Quote State and local leaders are being empowered by President Donald Trump to decide how best to rebuild America’s aging infrastructure.

Rising LNG exports a sign Trump administration’s infrastructure policies are paying off

By Secretary Rick Perry

The Plain Dealer [Cleveland, Ohio]

March 29, 2018

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State and local leaders are being empowered by President Donald Trump to decide how best to rebuild America’s aging infrastructure.

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President Trump’s “Building a Stronger America” infrastructure initiative will empower partners at the State, local, Tribal, and private levels to invest wisely. Particular emphasis will be placed on developing rural America, which has been left behind for far too long.

And rather than erecting regulatory barriers that needlessly get in the way of infrastructure projects, Washington will focus on removing them – streamlining permitting, fast-tracking construction, and strengthening America’s workforce – while putting more power where it belongs, back in the hands of locals.

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Thanks in large part to the President’s policies, one of our most important exports in the coming years will be energy. We have recently become a net exporter of liquefied natural gas (LNG), but fully realizing the benefits of America’s energy abundance will require investments in new pipelines, railways and ports.

For example, America now has two substantial LNG export facilities in operation. Sabine Pass, spanning the border between Texas and Louisiana, and Cove Point in Maryland are currently loading LNG tankers for the international market. Six more are under construction and are nearly ready for commercial operation. Once online, these facilities will enable the export of more than 10 billion cubic feet of LNG per day to our friends and allies around the world.

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Past private infrastructure projects, like these export facilities, have languished for years under a burdensome and multi-layered federal permitting process, even though most infrastructure is not federally owned. The President’s “One Federal Decision” proposal seeks to shorten permitting review to two years, or less, while continuing to protect our environment.

The President recognizes how essential a modern and vibrant infrastructure is to our economic growth. He also knows that Washington doesn’t always know what’s best. Rather, he trusts communities to set priorities based on their unique needs and goals. And, most importantly, he wants to get the Federal government out of the way of rebuilding America.

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Read the full op-ed here.