ACTION ALERT: Protect Clean Water – Oppose the PERMIT Act (H.R. 3898)

The PERMIT Act is a dangerous bill moving through Congress that would significantly weaken the Clean Water Act and silence local voices. If passed, it would expand opportunities for industrial pollution, give federal agencies the authority to exclude waterways from Clean Water Act protections, take rights away from states to protect their waters, make it easier to discharge emerging pollutants such as PFAS, and create loopholes for pesticides to be discharged without specialized permits. Harmful projects would be able to proceed without safeguards for clean water—putting our rivers, wetlands, drinking water, and communities at risk.  

Here in the Connecticut River watershed, we rely on clean, healthy rivers for drinking water, recreation, tourism, wildlife, and flood protection. The Clean Water Act has protected these waters for more than 50 years. Now those protections are under threat.  

We need your help! Contact your representative and urge them to VOTE NO on the PERMIT Act (H.R. 3898).  

Together, we can stop this bill and protect clean water, healthy habitats, and resilient communities for generations to come.   

You can find your Representative by entering your zip code here.

You can read the full text of the PERMIT Act here. 

Please send your personalized version of the following message: 

“I am writing to express my strong opposition to the Promoting Efficient Review for Modern Infrastructure Today Act (PERMIT Act, H.R. 3898). This bill would gut core protections under the Clean Water Act and put the health of our rivers, wetlands, drinking water supplies - and the people who depend on them - at serious risk. 

The Clean Water Act (CWA) is one of our nation’s bedrock environmental laws that acts to protect and restore water resources. For over 50 years, the CWA has empowered states, tribes, and communities to safeguard their waters from harmful discharges and destructive development. The PERMIT Act as currently envisioned would fast-track projects and strip away state authority to review and condition federally permitted projects under Section 401 of the Clean Water Act. These reviews are critical tools for ensuring that large-scale projects - such as hydropower dams - do not cause irreversible harm to rivers, wetlands, aquatic habitats, or local communities. 

The PERMIT Act would not only weaken water quality protections by rushing projects through without proper oversight but also silence the voices of local communities and tribes that are most directly affected by these major infrastructure projects. The PERMIT Act reduces public participation as well as accountability for developers, and jeopardizes progress toward climate resilience, clean water, and thriving ecosystems. The PERMIT Act forces communities to shoulder the financial and public health burden of increased pollution. 

We urge you to reject the PERMIT Act (H.R. 3898). The Clean Water Act must be strengthened—not dismantled—to meet today’s environmental challenges and protect future generations. Clean water should not be a partisan issue, but rather a shared goal and a fundamental right.” 

Thank you!