Staff Reports
The American Chemistry Council’s new policy summit made one thing plain: permitting reform isn’t a nice-to-have, it’s a must-have if America wants to build and compete again. ACC President and CEO Chris Jahn opened the event by urging Congress and federal agencies to overhaul slow permitting and give manufacturers the certainty they need. He even pointed to the Empire State Building as proof that big projects once moved fast — a vivid example meant to shame today’s red tape.
Who spoke and why it mattered
Lawmakers and top officials showed up for the summit: Senator Pete Ricketts, EPA Deputy Administrator David Fotouhi, and Department of the Interior Deputy Secretary Kate MacGregor. Jahn called the chemical industry “quiet, unseen, but indispensable” and warned that without faster permitting and clearer regulation, onshoring and energy dominance stall. That’s not a partisan quibble — it’s a simple business fact. Industry leaders want predictability so they can invest here, hire here, and make the products America needs.
Empire State Building: a sharp example, with a reality check
Jahn said the Empire State Building was “permitted and built in only two years.” The broad point holds: the building was put up in record time and stands as a reminder that Americans once moved projects quickly. Construction took roughly a year and 45 days, so Jahn’s two-year shorthand is fair as an illustration. Still, anyone waving 1930s construction as a policy blueprint should admit the truth — the 1920s and 30s had a very different rulebook. Today an Environmental Impact Statement can take about 4.5 years on average under current NEPA practice, so the comparison is meant to highlight how much slower we’ve gotten, not to suggest we can copy the past verbatim.
What Jahn and the ACC want: TSCA fixes, permits, and tax certainty
The ACC’s agenda is focused and predictable: reform the Toxic Substances Control Act to give manufacturers clearer timelines, speed up reviews for new chemicals, and reduce needless legal and regulatory delay. Jahn also praised moves to lock in the R&D tax credit as a real incentive for domestic manufacturing. Panelists even noted an administration goal to cut rules, citing a “10-for-1” approach to roll back costly regulations. One reporting quirk: a panelist named Eli Nachmany was described by some as an OMB official, but his public biography does not list an OMB role — another reminder that facts matter even in policy rooms.
Bottom line: Congress and regulators must act
If the goal is jobs, security, and a stronger manufacturing base, permitting reform and TSCA fixes are low-hanging fruit. Lawmakers can craft smart reforms that protect health and the environment while trimming needless delay. The choice is simple: keep letting lawsuits and slow reviews drive projects offshore, or pass clear rules that let America build again. The ACC put the challenge on the table. Congress should stop polite debate and do something bold — before our competitors build what we should have built yesterday.
