RAPID/About
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About the RAPID Toolkit
The Regulatory and Permitting Information Desktop (RAPID) Toolkit provides permitting information, best practices, and reference material for renewable energy and bulk transmission project development. Uncertainty about the duration and outcome of the permitting process has been a deterrent to project investment and project construction. Providing easy access, in one location, to permitting and regulatory information for project development, the RAPID Toolkit can optimize the regulatory process, lower project costs, and ease investor risk.
The RAPID Toolkit makes regulatory and permitting information rapidly accessible from one location by providing step-by-step analysis of the approval process, contact information for federal and state regulators, best practice information, reference material, and links to permit applications, manuals, and related information.
The RAPID Toolkit:
- Enhances transparency and understanding of all stakeholders in the permitting process
- Facilitates communication among permitting agencies
- Saves permitting agencies time by explaining the permitting process to industry
- Helps agencies train new staff and document procedures
- Helps agencies provide consistency among multiple offices
- Provides a model for jurisdictions that have yet to develop permitting regulations
- Provides a forum for sharing and maintaining permitting processes and documents
- Provides data and background analysis to inform policymakers and stakeholders in the development of new regulations, policies, and rules
- Provides assurance to stakeholders that projects will be conducted in a technically, environmentally, and socially responsible manner.
The RAPID Toolkit’s initial regulatory flowcharts and permitting information are developed by the RAPID Toolkit development team with the assistance of federal and state agencies. The RAPID Toolkit development team also works with agencies and industry to update the content, as needed. We encourage all stakeholders—agencies, industry, financiers, researchers, and others to participate by using the feedback widget located on each page or contact the development team at rapidtoolkit@nrel.gov.
The RAPID Toolkit was developed by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory with funding from the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy and the Office of Electricity. Additional support is provided by Tetra Tech, Environmental Management and Planning Solutions Inc., Kearns and West, and Herrick Solutions. Learn more about our development team.
See the RAPID Toolkit FAQs for more information.