President Trump signed on April 10 two executive orders to prevent states from blocking the construction of oil and gas pipelines. (The Washington Post)
CROSBY, Tex. — President Trump signed a pair of executive orders on Wednesday seeking to make it easier for firms to build oil and gas pipelines and harder for state agencies to intervene, a move that drew immediate backlash from some state officials and environmental activists.
“Too often, badly needed energy infrastructure is being held back by special-interest groups, entrenched bureaucracies and radical activists,” Trump said during a visit to a union training center for operating engineers 25 miles outside of Houston. “The two executive orders that I’ll be signing in just a moment will fix this, dramatically accelerating energy infrastructure approvals.”
The executive action seeks to rein in states’ power by changing the implementation instructions, known as guidance, that are issued by federal agencies, according to one of the orders.