Permitting Council

What Permitting Council does

The Permitting Council (legal name: Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council) is a federal agency established in 2015 by Title 41 of the Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act (FAST-Act) to coordinate federal environmental reviews and authorizations for critical infrastructure projects. The Council is composed of an Executive Director (currently Emily Domenech, appointed by President Trump), 13 federal agency Council members, the Chair of the White House Council on Environmental Quality, and the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, giving it direct coordination authority over agencies such as the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Bureau of Land Management, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, and U.S. Forest Service.

The Council's core offering is the FAST-41 program, which provides qualifying projects with comprehensive permitting timetables and predictable review timelines, supported by the Federal Permitting Dashboard — an online transparency tool that tracks real-time project permitting status. A secondary mechanism, the Environmental Review Improvement Fund (ERIF), supplies Congress-appropriated funding available through 2031 to sustain operations. The Council also executes Federal-State Coordination Agreements (MOUs), exemplified by its first-of-its-kind agreement with the State of Alaska in September 2025. Recent portfolio activity is dominated by critical mineral and mining projects (50 covered, 49 added under the current Administration as of November 2025), alongside pipeline, transmission, and clean energy projects.

The Council is not a private company and does not generate commercial revenue; it operates through congressional appropriations and the ERIF. Projects do not pay fees for coordination services, and pricing is not applicable. As a result, traditional commercial KPIs (ARR, customers, pricing) do not apply. Its "customers" are sponsoring entities of FAST-41-eligible infrastructure projects, and its GTM motion is event-driven, triggered by project eligibility under Title 41 and political/regulatory catalysts (e.g., the March 2025 executive order on mineral production).

Name

Permitting Council

Legal name

Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council

Website

https://permitting.gov

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Permitting Council (Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council) is a U.S. federal agency, established in 2015 by the FAST-Act, that coordinates environmental reviews and authorizations across federal agencies for FAST-41 covered infrastructure projects, with a current portfolio dominated by critical mineral and mining projects.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Federal Permitting Coordination

NAICS

Administration of Environmental Quality Programs (9241), Regulation and Administration of Communications, Electric, Gas, and Other Utilities (92613), Regulation, Licensing, and Inspection of Miscellaneous Commercial Sectors (926150), Administration of Conservation Programs (92412)

akta.pro primary industry

Environmental Permitting & Impact Assessment (EIA/NEPA) (BPAIAMAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Energy, Utilities & Natural Resources Regulators (BPAIAOAJ), Facility Siting, Permitting & Land-Use Regulatory Compliance (Multi-media Permitting, Zoning/Entitlements Support) (EUAHABAH), Licensing & Permitting Authorities (General) (BPAIAOAB), Environmental & Radiological Permitting (EIA, Effluent/Discharge Authorizations) (EUAKAEAE)

Keywords

• Federal permitting coordination
• Infrastructure project permitting
• Environmental review services
• Regulatory transparency dashboard
• Government permitting oversight

Headquarters

HQ city

Washington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Others

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Permitting Council coordinates federal environmental reviews and authorizations for critical infrastructure projects that qualify for FAST-41 coverage under Title 41 of the Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act. It provides predictable regulatory review timelines, comprehensive permitting timetables, and transparent tracking through the Federal Permitting Dashboard, working with 13 federal agency council members to streamline multi-agency permitting for mining, energy, pipeline, and clean infrastructure projects.

Product overview

The Permitting Council operates as a federal agency administering the FAST-41 program, which serves as a central coordinating body for streamlining federal environmental review and authorization processes for critical infrastructure projects. The core FAST-41 Program works in conjunction with the Federal Permitting Dashboard, an online transparency and tracking tool that displays real-time project permitting status. The Environmental Review Improvement Fund (ERIF) provides financial support enabling the agency's operations. The Council also establishes Federal-State Coordination Agreements through MOUs with states like Alaska to extend FAST-41 efficiencies to state-level infrastructure projects.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• FAST-41 Program The Permitting Council's core program established under Title 41 of the FAST Act, providing transparency, predictability, and accountability for critical infrastructure projects advancing through the federal permitting process. Projects receiving FAST-41 coverage benefit from comprehensive permitting timetables and transparent management on the Federal Permitting Dashboard.
• Federal Permitting Dashboard An online transparency tool that provides real-time tracking and management of federal environmental review and authorization processes for FAST-41 covered projects. Enables stakeholders to monitor project permitting progress and coordinate across federal agencies.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• State of AlaskacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 September 2025First-of-its-kind Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council and the State of Alaska. The agreement provides for federal permitting assistance through the Permitting Council's FAST-41 program, streamlining the permitting process for critical infrastructure projects across Alaska.
• U.S. Forest ServicecoreOthersFederal agency that serves as lead permitting agency for certain FAST-41 covered projects, such as mining projects in national forests.
• U.S. Army Corps of EngineerscoreOthersFederal agency that serves as lead permitting agency for many FAST-41 covered infrastructure projects including mining and pipeline projects.
• Nuclear Regulatory CommissioncoreOthersFederal agency that serves as lead permitting agency for FAST-41 covered uranium extraction and nuclear-related projects.
• Bureau of Land ManagementcoreOthersFederal agency under the Department of the Interior that serves as lead permitting agency for FAST-41 covered mining projects on public lands.
• Federal Energy Regulatory CommissioncoreOthersIndependent federal agency that serves as lead permitting agency for FAST-41 covered energy infrastructure projects including pipelines.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• AECOM: Major infrastructure consulting firm with environmental permitting and NEPA documentation practices serving federal infrastructure clients. Comparable as a scaled private-sector delivery partner in the same permitting process.
• ICF International: Provides environmental review, permitting strategy, and NEPA consulting services to project sponsors. Comparable as a private-sector delivery vehicle for the permitting coordination work the Council oversees.
• ERM (Environmental Resources Management): Global environmental and permitting consultancy advising mining, energy, and infrastructure clients through multi-agency federal reviews. Comparable as a private-sector participant in the same FAST-41 / NEPA workflow.

Broad incumbents

• Bureau of Land Management (BLM): Lead federal permitting agency for FAST-41 covered mining projects on public lands. Comparable as a major federal entity whose decisions drive the Council's project throughput.
• Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC): Lead federal permitting agency for FAST-41 covered energy infrastructure projects including pipelines and LNG. Comparable as an independent federal regulator whose pipeline work interacts directly with FAST-41 coverage.
• U.S. Army Corps of Engineers: Lead permitting agency for many FAST-41 covered pipeline and infrastructure projects. Direct operating counterpart in the multi-agency permitting process the Council coordinates.
• Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC): Lead permitting agency for FAST-41 covered uranium extraction and nuclear-related projects. Comparable as an independent federal regulator with licensing authority the Council coordinates with.
• White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ): Chairs the Permitting Council per FAST-41 and oversees federal NEPA policy. Direct institutional counterpart and the most comparable federal entity on environmental review coordination.

Regional players

• Alaska Department of Natural Resources: State-level permitting counterpart to the Permitting Council under the September 2025 federal-state MOU. Comparable as a state-level coordinating body now explicitly linked to FAST-41.

Emerging players

• Permitting Institute (fka Infill Thinking): Independent think tank and policy forum focused on U.S. permitting reform across infrastructure sectors. Comparable as a private advisory voice shaping the same federal permitting reform agenda.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/PermitCouncil
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/permittingcouncil

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Permitting Council