Summary

Requires the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to explicitly measure and weigh greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and effects on environmental justice communities when deciding whether to approve natural gas infrastructure certificates. Applicants must quantify likely upstream, downstream, construction/operation, leakage, and capacity-driven GHG emissions, propose mitigation, and FERC must treat projects emitting at least 100,000 metric tons CO2-equivalent per year as presumptively having a significant climate effect. FERC must decide whether environmental harms are significant, whether harms can be mitigated, and whether benefits outweigh harms while also considering reliability and affordability. If FERC approves a project despite unmitigated significant effects, it must provide a detailed explanation. The law also requires using short‑term global warming potentials for non‑CO2 gases and evaluating cumulative and community‑identified stressors in environmental justice areas.

• FERC must quantify and consider GHG emissions and environmental justice impacts when approving Natural Gas Act certificates.
• Applicants must include mitigation proposals and quantify upstream, downstream, construction/operation, leakage, utilization, and capacity-driven emissions.
• Non‑CO2 gases must be converted to CO2e using IPCC 20‑year global warming potentials.
• Projects emitting ≥100,000 metric tons CO2e per year are presumed to have a significant climate effect.
• FERC must determine if effects can be mitigated, if harms outweigh benefits, and whether the project is necessary for reliability and affordability.
• If FERC approves projects with unmitigated significant effects, it must provide a detailed, evidence-based explanation.
• Environmental justice communities must be evaluated using record evidence, including cumulative stressors and community-identified factors.
• FERC must attach practicable mitigation conditions or explain why none are practicable.
• The amendment adds definitions to clarify terms used in reviews.
• The law expands analytic and documentation requirements for certificates, likely increasing review time and technical burden on applicants.