Meyer signs executive order to streamline state permitting

Gov. Matt Meyer signed an executive order Feb. 26, to streamline permitting regulations across Delaware, making it easier to build affordable and workforce-focused homes, develop sustainable energy generation, expand access to broadband, and integrate public water and wastewater.  

“For too long, Delawareans have watched essential projects get stuck in red tape that can stretch on for years, driving up costs and stifling progress,” Meyer said in a press release. “By creating a permitting accelerator with clear timelines, real accountability and transparent tracking, we can build more affordable, workforce-focused homes, and deliver reliable, sustainable energy and 21st-century infrastructure, without weakening environmental protections or public safety.” 

Meyer’s executive order establishes a permitting accelerator to coordinate agency reviews, prioritizing high-impact projects, accelerating timelines where legally permissible and improving transparency – without expanding agency authority or weakening environmental, health or safety protections, officials said.  

The executive order also seeks to support smart growth by prioritizing infill, growth-area and infrastructure-ready development rather than greenfield sprawl, officials said.

Projects that qualify for expedited coordination under the executive order are:

• Residential developments meeting minimum-density thresholds, affordability requirements and location criteria
• Developments combining housing and commercial uses in walkable, transit-accessible locations, meeting both density and connectivity standards

• Previously developed or surrounded sites, or locations served by existing water and sewer infrastructure, where redevelopment is environmentally and fiscally efficient
• Municipal areas or locations designated in adopted plans or by the governor for concentrated development and infrastructure investment
• Infrastructure that supports planned growth, improves public health or enhances system resilience
• Energy generation expansion, modernization, transmission, distribution or storage to reduce costs, improve reliability or facilitate clean and nuclear energy integration
• Expanding high-speed internet to unserved or underserved areas, or increasing broadband capacity to support economic development.