“When democracies are at the cliff’s edge, among the most important guardrails are the law and the people’s ability to go to court and challenge the government that is turning against them. All of this to say, taking down the guardrails is a dangerously bad idea." — Abbie Dillen, President, Earthjustice

BAAJA “could create a gold rush for gas.” — Rep. Sean Casten (D-Ill.)

“I think they have handed Trump not just a loaded gun, but they’ve handed him a loaded Howitzer to go after public lands, to permit stuff that even if it’s illegal can’t be reversed by the courts.” - John Podesta, founder, Center for American Progress

BAAJA is “a shotgun marriage: useful reforms surrounded by provisions that would weaken environmental safeguards, increase energy costs and diminish public accountability." — Carl Pope, former Executive Director, Sierra Club

“Anybody who is telling you that they can model the effects of this bill is telling you what their opinion is. They're not telling you facts because when you have a White House that is not obeying the law, I don't know how to model a change in law.” — Rep. Sean Casten (D-Ill.)

“BAAJA has potentially profound and far reaching implications for all sources of pollution, especially new projects like petrochemical plants and gas-fired power for AI data centers.” — Jeremy Symons, Center for Energy & Environmental Analysis

“It would be tone deaf if Congress makes it easier to build data centers right after an election with bipartisan rage against shoving them down the throats of local communities.” — Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Ill.)

“The price of certainty for developers cannot be ambiguity for the agencies or the public. Perhaps in the business of statutory drafting, if it is not transparent, it shouldn’t be acceptable.” — Sara Gonzales-Rothi, Pace Law

“The Trump administration’s playbook is to move fast and break things, and that applies to everything, from mass firings to mass deportations. BAAJA would supercharge that playbook.” — Abbie Dillen, President, Earthjustice

“What a dangerous bill. I want to reform permitting, not deform it. The maxim ‘measure twice, cut once’ is turned upside down. This bill is everything, everywhere, all at once— no measuring, no weighing, no screening, just cut.” — Sara Gonzales-Rothi, Pace Law

“What is being presented as a bipartisan compromise appears to be a compromise over how much Tribal participation can be reduced and constrained, and how much federal control over Tribal cultural interests can be expanded. That is not respect for Tribal sovereignty. It is paternalism dressed up as permitting reform.” — Ira Matt, National Association of Tribal Historic Preservation Officers

“In seeking our support for BAAJA, you are asking every Senator to rely on informal assurances from a Trump administration that has proven to be an untrustworthy and erratic negotiating partner and demonstrated a willingness to ignore and violate the plain language of the law.” — Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.)

“We’re giving Trump a lot of authority in this bill, when we know we can’t trust him. In Maryland, they’ve been trying to sabotage offshore wind.” — Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.)

If BAAJA passes, “you could build data centers along the property line of the Gettysburg Battlefield and the public, governmental officials, or the State Historic Preservation Office would have no recourse.” — archeologist Ira Beckerman

“We all witnessed President Trump’s destruction of the East Wing; this bill will only give him greater legal authority to bulldoze more of America’s treasures.” — Rep. Teresa Leger Fernandez (D-N.M.)

"BAAJA would create more legal runway for this president to make corrupt deals and greenlight harmful projects of all kinds." — Abbie Dillen, President, Earthjustice

BAAJA “is structurally designed to lock in and subsidize natural gas & other fossil projects over cleaner renewables for years to come, using the courts and taxpayer dollars.” — Jody Freeman, Harvard Law

“The Senate's bipartisan permit reform bill would upend the National Environmental Policy Act and also weaken the Endangered Species Act, the Clean Water Act, and the National Historic Preservation Act.” — Michael Gerrard, Columbia Law

“This bad deal trades lifetimes of pollution and harm for pennies in relief.” — Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), Summer Lee (D-Pa.), Adelita Grijalva (D-Ariz.)

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