Project permitting relief in debt deal | EV car park collapse concerns | "Big-bang approaches" to densifying American downtowns

The bi-partisan agreement to suspend America's debt ceiling a couple of weeks ago was reason to cheer in its own right.

But for infrastructure enthusiasts there are a few other provisions packed into the bill that are also worth celebrating. The debt deal (officially, the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023) includes an amended version of the BUILDER Act, which was part of H.R. 1, the Lower Energy Cost Act, passed by House Republicans earlier this year, and is a partial answer to the industry's long-standing calls for the government to modernize the federal environmental permitting process for construction projects.