What Happened
Although the main purpose of the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 is to increase the federal debt limit, the legislation also includes important provisions related to permitting reform (see Title III of the Act), specifically, changes in the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) itself that effectively solidify many of the changes made by the Trump Administration in the 2020 Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) NEPA Regulations. This new legislation is significant in that it effectively codifies the 2020 changes and prevents the upcoming Phase 2 revisions to the CEQ Regulations from reversing the 2020 changes.
Why It Matters
The most relevant changes that affect industry and agencies are:
- Identifies thresholds for determining when preparation of a NEPA document is necessary, as well as data and analysis requirements to support that document. Additionally, the legislation identifies specific direction about what does and does not constitute a “major federal action.”
- Provides allowances for a lead federal agency to adopt other agencies’ categorical exclusions.
- Requires consolidation of the multi-lead agency NEPA projects under a single “lead agency.” It provides direction for next steps if federal agencies are unable to agree on the designation of a lead agency.
- Establishes a 150-page limit for environmental impact statements (300 pages for projects of…
