On July 15, 2020, the White House Council for Environmental Quality (CEQ) issued its final rule updating, clarifying, and modernizing its governing regulations of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The final rule, entitled “Update to the Regulations Implementing the Procedural Provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act,” is the first major comprehensive revision of NEPA since its promulgation in 1978. The goals of the final rule are to create a more efficient and timely NEPA review process, improve interagency coordination, and enhance state and tribal participation.
While the final rule will become effective September 14, 2020, activities such as congressional review and impending litigation will likely delay the effective date of the final rule. However, federal agencies have the authority to apply the provisions of the final rule to NEPA activities prior to the effective date. Federal agencies must develop or revise their own NEPA regulations in accordance with the final rule by September 14, 2021, within one year of the final rule going into effect.
Stephen E. Sandherr, CEO of the Associated General Contractors of America, issued the following statement in reaction: “This updated review process will make it easier to rebuild aging infrastructure, attract private investment, support efforts to reinvigorate our economy and continue to provide strict protections for the environment. Given the broad, bipartisan support for improving infrastructure, these common-sense reforms should be widely embraced and supported.
“Significantly, under the final rule, projects still undergo an environmental review with public input. The key difference is that those reviews will last months, instead of years and it will become slightly harder for special interests to delay the process with unmerited lawsuits. Notably, the substantive environmental laws and requirements that come into play on every construction project remain unchanged.
While the final rule will become effective September 14, 2020, activities such as congressional review and impending litigation will likely delay the effective date of the final rule. However, federal agencies have the authority to apply the provisions of the final rule to NEPA activities prior to the effective date. Federal agencies must develop or revise their own NEPA regulations in accordance with the final rule by September 14, 2021, within one year of the final rule going into effect.
Stephen E. Sandherr, CEO of the Associated General Contractors of America, issued the following statement in reaction: “This updated review process will make it easier to rebuild aging infrastructure, attract private investment, support efforts to reinvigorate our economy and continue to provide strict protections for the environment. Given the broad, bipartisan support for improving infrastructure, these common-sense reforms should be widely embraced and supported.
“Significantly, under the final rule, projects still undergo an environmental review with public input. The key difference is that those reviews will last months, instead of years and it will become slightly harder for special interests to delay the process with unmerited lawsuits. Notably, the substantive environmental laws and requirements that come into play on every construction project remain unchanged.