H.R. 9188 – Military Readiness Permitting Efficiency Act of 2026

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Updated June 16, 2026 at 7:21 PM UTC

The Military Readiness Permitting Efficiency Act of 2026 updates Title 10 to let the Department of Defense partner with the National Marine Fisheries Service or the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to speed up required environmental reviews for high‑priority defense projects. By providing funding to these agencies, the bill aims to ensure that necessary permits and consultations under key wildlife and fisheries laws are completed more quickly when national defense interests demand it.

Key Provisions

Allows the Secretary of Defense or a military department to sign agreements with the National Marine Fisheries Service or the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to carry out environmental reviews for priority defense programs or projects.
The agreements can include direct financial assistance from the Department of Defense to help the agency hire staff needed to complete the review, but only for expenses directly related to the review.
Agreements can be made only when the Secretary determines a timely review is important for national defense and the agency confirms it lacks sufficient funds or personnel to meet the deadline on its own.
The environmental laws that can be reviewed under these agreements are the Marine Mammal Protection Act, the Endangered Species Act, and the Magnuson‑Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act.
Defines “eligible expense” to cover costs for military planning support, the review itself, and any related consultation or programmatic agreements.

Legislative Activity

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HouseIntro Referral Latest Action

Referred to the House Committee on Armed Services.

Armed Services Committee

June 8, 2026

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HouseIntro Referral

Introduced in House

June 8, 2026

HouseIntro Referral

Referred to the House Committee on Armed Services.

Armed Services Committee

June 8, 2026

Bill Text

Latest available legislative text

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Introduced in HouseIssued June 8, 2026

I

119th CONGRESS

2d Session

H. R. 9188

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

June 8, 2026

Ms. Elfreth (for herself and Mr. Bergman) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Armed Services

A BILL

To amend title 10, United States Code, to authorize interagency agreements to expedite reviews of priority programs and projects of the Department of Defense, and for other purposes.

1.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Military Readiness Permitting Efficiency Act of 2026.

2.

Interagency agreements to execute certain reviews of priority Department of Defense programs and projects

Chapter 159 of title 10, United States Code, is amended by inserting after section 2672 the following new section:

2673.

Interagency agreements to execute reviews of priority programs and projects

(a)

Agreements authorized

(1)

Subject to the requirements of paragraph (2), the Secretary of Defense or the Secretary of a military department may enter into an agreement with the Director of the National Marine Fisheries Service or the Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service under which—

(A)

the Director agrees to execute a review process under a law specified in paragraph (2) for a priority military program or project, as designated by the Secretary; and

(B)

the Secretary of Defense or the Secretary of a military department agrees to provide to the Director direct financial assistance in such amounts as may be necessary to hire personnel to execute the review process, provided such amounts are used only for such purpose.

(2)

The Secretary of Defense or the Secretary of a military department may enter into an agreement under this subsection with respect to a program or project only if—

(A)

the Secretary determines that it is in the interest of national defense to carry out a review process for the program or project within a particular period of time; and

(B)

the Director of the National Marine Fisheries Service or the Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service provides notice to the Secretary that the National Marine Fisheries Service or the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, as the case may be, does not have sufficient funds or adequate personnel to carry out the review process within such period without the receipt of assistance under the agreement.

(3)

The laws specified in this paragraph are each of the following:

(A)

The Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.).

(B)

The Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.).

(C)

The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.).

(b)

Definitions

In this section:

(1)

The term eligible expense, with respect to a review process, includes an expense for—

(A)

support of or participation in military planning activities that precede the initiation of the review process;

(B)

activities directly related to the review process, including any associated consultation process; and

(C)

development of programmatic agreements.

(2)

The term review process, with respect to a law, means the process of reviewing the potential environmental impacts of a program or project to determine whether the program or project meets the requirements of the law, including any requirement for a consultation, plan, permit, or approval.

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