"Senate Republicans are looking at potential legislative or administrative changes to stop states from using their authority under the Clean Water Act to halt or slow natural gas pipelines for what they say are political reasons.
Republican Sens. John Barrasso of Wyoming and Steve Daines of Montana both spoke about the issue at a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing yesterday, echoing recent comments from federal officials, including Energy Secretary Rick Perry and Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Chief of Staff Anthony Pugliese, who have criticized New York in particular for blocking what they say is much-needed infrastructure .
New York's Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo used the state's delegated authority under Section 401 of the Clean Water Act, which requires project developers to get a water quality certificate from states, to block the Constitution pipeline, a proposed natural gas project that would run from Pennsylvania to New York."
