Saturday, August 27, 2011
Ruby Red Tape - WSJ.com
I started out thinking this was a "classic".
Then the "applying for a permit to apply for a permit" sentence caused my brain to kick in, and I realized it just status quo for government at work...
Then the "applying for a permit to apply for a permit" sentence caused my brain to kick in, and I realized it just status quo for government at work...
The Wall Street Journal recently published this:
"The abstraction known as 'regulation' is often invoked as a reason businesses aren't growing or hiring fast enough, and with good reason. Anyone wondering what that means in practice should consult the epic saga of the Ruby pipeline.
Last month the 682-mile Ruby started feeding liquefied natural gas from the Rocky Mountains to the growing West Coast markets. Stretching underground from Opal, Wyoming to gas interconnections near Malin, Oregon, the pipeline is one of those 'infrastructure' projects that everyone in Washington claims to favor. Naturally, the regulatory state ensured that the $3.65 billion project came in 23% over budget and four months off schedule.
El Paso, a Texas-based gas pipeline firm, began the 'pre-filing' process in January 2008, which is essentially applying for a permit to apply for the permit known as an 'environmental impact statement.' "
