HARRISBURG —  The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) will formally begin accepting applications for the Streamlining Permits for Economic Expansion and Development (SPEED) program beginning June 30 for a common construction permit.

This new initiative builds on Gov. Josh Shapiro’s administration’s work to reform the Commonwealth’s permitting, licensing and certification processes.

“For the past few years, DEP has looked for new ways to improve our services, while still protecting Pennsylvania’s beautiful environment, and SPEED is another tool for us to do both,” said DEP Acting Secretary Jessica Shirley. “Like an amusement park fast pass, SPEED gives permit applicants the choice to skip the permit line and have their project first reviewed by a qualified professional contracted through the Department and paid for by the applicant.”

More information on the SPEED program can be found on the DEP website.

The first permits available under the SPEED program are Chapter 102 Individual NPDES Permits for Stormwater Discharges Associated with Construction Activities. DEP previously launched a pilot program to improve and accelerate the review process for these key construction and stormwater discharge permits. The SPEED program was created by the 2024-25 budget signed by Governor Josh Shapiro.

The SPEED program will provide additional flexibility to permit applicants by allowing them to choose to have a DEP-verified and qualified professional conduct the initial review of the application. DEP staff will review the recommendations of the qualified professional and either make a final permit decision or identify technical deficiencies to the applicant. DEP will have final authority over all permit decisions. Applicants for those permits will agree to pay any review fees incurred by the qualified professional, in addition to permit application fees.

DEP is continuing to accept bids from qualified professionals to review applications for certain Air Quality Plan Approvals (Chapter 127), earth disturbance (Chapter 102), dam safety (Chapter 105), and individual water obstruction and encroachment (Chapter 105) permits.

Applications for other permit types under the SPEED Program will open later in July.

DEP is modernizing its permitting process by investing in new technology and reviewing processes to identify and eliminate bottlenecks. In January, DEP launched a Permit Tracker to allow applicants and residents to monitor the progress of permits as they move through the review process. Since 2023, DEP has also added 225 employees to carry out critical functions like public health and safety inspections and permit application reviews.

During his first two weeks in office, Governor Shapiro signed an Executive Order directing state agencies to conduct a 90-day comprehensive review of how long it was taking them to process applications for licenses, permits and certifications. Based on the review, the Governor’s Office established a date-certain for each license, permit, or certificate by which completed applications will be processed. If completed applications are not processed by that date, the agency responsible will refund the applicants their application fee.

Since the launch of PAyback, DEP has made significant progress to reduce its processing times and eliminate backlogs. As a result, applicants are experiencing greater certainty and fewer delays when they do business with the commonwealth.

“As DEP celebrates its 30th anniversary in 2025,” officials said in a press release, “the Shapiro Administration is committed to protecting Pennsylvanians’ air, land, and water from pollution. DEP will continue to work as partners with people, businesses, and organizations to protect our natural resources and public health, now and forever.”