I am all about renewable sources of energy, but federal agencies need to be involved to study the impact on the environment before new damns are built. In the meantime, how about legislation that encourages solar and wind projects?

Hydropower is not a viable source of energy for our world in this era of climate change. In addition, dans wreak havoc on existing eco systems, which we can no longer afford to degrade.

This is another way to circumvent the environmental review. Not that my rep will even bother to listen to his constituents, but this is a big NO.

As a geology student, I’m all for supporting and strengthening our nation’s access to renewable energy, but collecting said energy can be a delicate and environmentally-unsound endeavor. We need MORE regulation and oversight, not less.

Sounds like yet another environmental catastrophe in the making now – I don’t trust this Administration nor the majority of the Republican Congress in anyway, so any bill they initiate makes me suspicious, especially after endorsing renewing the CHIP program for children’s health Care and only realizing it sabotaged Medicaid after Mark DeSaulnier voted against it.

Water is not a renewable source of energy and should not be designated as such. Just ask the people of California, Arizona, Nevada and southeastern Colorado how renewable their water source is during long droughts. Building new hydropower plants will require building new dams. These new dams will require large areas of probably public lands to be confiscated and filled with water that should be used to preserve the life and livelihood of the small family farms that have become all-important in the current fight over the estate tax. Those two positions don't quite square with each other. Water is precious and needs to remain available to all, not just energy companies looking for another break. If Washington state wants to build hydopower plants, it should do so but not at the expense of the rest of the nation.

How about more wind farms? Or solar panels? Dams destroy ecosystems, let’s stay away from hydropower unless absolutely necessary.

In spite of repeated requests by Democratic members, the Committee did not invite state, tribal, or federal resource agency witnesses to its general oversight hearing on hydropower licensing or to the legislative hearing on this bill. The Committee received letters from numerous entities expressing concerns that the legislation could undermine their efforts to execute their responsibilities under the Clean Water Act. H.R. 3043 is an unbalanced bill that is far more likely to generate new controversy and lawsuits than to facilitate a timely and efficient hydropower licensing process. It will deliver neither the faster outcomes nor the improved environmental performance we need. It will encourage more confrontation among competing water users. Rivers belong to all of us. Water is required by every living thing and it is required for every private and public activity in which we engage. We should follow the advice offered by Mr. Katz--either leave current law unchanged or repeal the provision on trial-type hearings altogether.

Dams have been highly detrimental to our environment. We have other, less harmful, clean and renewable energy sources that need the investment.

Streamlining is Conservative code for bypassing environmental, civil and criminal laws for the sake of profits... Enforce the laws that protect the environment and the citizens... VOTE NO !!!

As an Oregonian for 56 years, I am very familiar with the impacts, both good and bad, of hydropower. 10 years for permitting a new hydropower project seems appropriate given the extremely complex impact these have on everything upstream & downstream. There have been disastrous consequences in the past to adding dams, on the fish runs, on the ecology of the rivers, on the agriculture below and above the dams. Seems like this is just an attempt to remove regulations put in place to try and avoid similar mistakes in the future. I strongly urge a no vote. With projects this huge, and with this much potential impact, cautious assessment of all the factors upstream and especially downstream is mandatory, even if it takes 20 years!!

This bill would increase uncertainty in the hydropower regulatory process by limiting the involvement of several federal agencies. We all know the republican stance on alternate energy use and climate change as they hate facts and scientists. I believe that any bill introduce by republicans is just another way to rip federal agencies apart as their main goal is to deconstruct (destroy completely) the federal government so that they can push their corporate white supremacist agenda on all us. Always remember the republicans all approved the thuggery cabinet and do nothing about Putin power in our government..... They are doing everything they can to undermine the investigation.........they are complicit

Why are regulations by the government being left out of the control of hydropower for protection of the environment & clean water and all the while Congress just voted to control the healthcare of veterans ?? The incongruity of the bills on governance by the Congress is amazing.

I support the expansion of hydropower, but we should not streamline the permit process. Proper reviews need to be done in order to ensure that the environmental impact of such projects is minimal. Also, instead of focusing on handing out permits, why doesn’t the federal government start building more of its own hydroelectric dams?