Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 176 / Wednesday, September 13, 2023 / Notices 62873 

UDOT’s annual resource agency survey. 

These are examples of where UDOT’s 

program may benefit from more 

consistent, program-level discussions 

with resource agencies to ensure that all 

parties understand their respective roles 

and responsibilities, as well as the 

provisions of the 326 and 327 programs. 

Stronger managerial-level 

communications with the resource 

agencies may increase their 

understanding of the importance of the 

survey and improve the response rate. 

No Non-Compliance Observations in 

Audit #4 

Non-compliance observations are 

instances where the team found UDOT 

was out of compliance or deficient in 

proper implementation of a Federal 

regulation, statute, guidance, policy, the 

terms of the MOU, or UDOT’s own 

procedures for compliance with the 

NEPA process. Such observations may 

also include instances where UDOT has 

failed to maintain technical 

competency, adequate personnel, and/or 

financial resources to carry out the 

assumed responsibilities. Other 

noncompliance observations could 

suggest a persistent failure to adequately 

consult, coordinate, or consider the 

concerns of other Federal, State, Tribal, 

or local agencies with oversight, 

consultation, or coordination 

responsibilities. The FHWA expects 

UDOT to develop and implement 

corrective actions to address all noncompliance observations. The Audit 

Team did not identify any noncompliance observations during this 

audit. 

Follow-up on the Prior NonCompliance Observations From Audit 

#3 

The FHWA had reported a 

noncompliance observation relating to 

UDOT not complying with the State’s 

environmental review procedures as a 

part of Audit #3. 2019 Audit #3—Issuing 

a Document Without Final Legal 

Sufficiency Finding As noted earlier, in 

response to the 2019 audit finding that 

legal sufficiency review documentation 

was not provided prior to approval of a 

project FEIS, UDOT and outside counsel 

implemented a more formalized system 

by instituting a Legal Sufficiency 

Review Form to be completed by 

UDOT’s outside counsel. The form 

would ensure a record that the legal 

sufficiency review occurred. The Audit 

Team confirmed that UDOT developed 

and implemented the form for the legal 

sufficiency reviews during this audit 

period. 

Response to Public Comments on the 

Draft Report and the Final Report 

The FHWA received and responded to 

three comments on the draft audit 

report, pursuant to 23 U.S.C. 327(g)(2). 

The American Road & Transportation 

Builders Association (ARTBA) 

commented that they are in general 

support of UDOT’s implementation of 

the NEPA Assignment Program to 

accelerate Federal-aid highway program 

and project delivery in Utah. The 

FHWA appreciates ARTBA’s input. A 

private citizen commented that he is not 

supportive of UDOT’s implementation 

of the NEPA Assignment Program, due 

to his experience with the Northern 

Corridor Highway Project in the Bureau 

of Land Management’s (BLM) Red Cliffs 

National Conservation Area. The Audit 

Team, in conjunction with the FHWA 

Utah Division Office, independently 

reviewed and confirmed that the 

Federal action associated with this 

concern was the BLM’s Federal land 

management decision, including BLM’s 

NEPA approval for that Federal land 

management decision. It was not a 

NEPA approval by UDOT under the 

NEPA Assignment Program. Finally, an 

anonymous commenter raised concerns 

about UDOT’s traffic noise abatement 

procedures as they apply to local public 

agencies. Based on FHWA’s traffic noise 

abatement regulations in 23 CFR 

772.7(b), UDOT has developed noise 

policies in conformance with 23 CFR 

part 772, and FHWA Utah Division 

Office approved them. The UDOT is 

required to apply these policies 

uniformly and consistently statewide, 

including the uniform and consistent 

application to the NEPA reviews of the 

Federal-aid highway projects 

administered by the local public 

agencies in Utah. 

After reviewing the public comments, 

and looking into the concerns raised in 

the comments, FHWA determined that 

there is no need to revise the draft audit 

report. The FHWA may also consider 

the public comments in scoping the 

future NEPA Assignment monitoring 

reviews in Utah. 

Therefore, FHWA is finalizing 

UDOT’s fourth and final NEPA 

Assignment audit report with this 

Federal Register notice. 

[FR Doc. 2023–19705 Filed 9–12–23; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Highway Administration 

[Docket No. FHWA–2023–0023] 

National Bridge Inspection Program 

Compliance Review Manual 

AGENCY: Federal Highway 

Administration (FHWA), U.S. 

Department of Transportation (DOT). 

ACTION: Notice; request for comments. 

SUMMARY: This notice requests 

comments on the Performance Year (PY) 

2024 Interim National Bridge Inspection 

Program (NBIP) Compliance Review 

Manual outlining the procedures FHWA 

Division Bridge Engineers will follow 

during calendar year 2023 when 

performing compliance reviews of State 

department of transportation bridge 

safety inspection programs. The PY 

2024 Interim NBIP Compliance Review 

Manual incorporates revised provisions 

of the National Bridge Inspection 

Standards (NBIS), which came into 

effect June 6, 2022. The FHWA will 

consider all comments received during 

the comment period in developing 

subsequent versions of the NBIP 

Compliance Review Manual. However, 

please note that the PY 2024 Interim 

NBIP Compliance Review Manual is 

currently in effect and will be utilized 

by FHWA Division Bridge Engineers for 

the calendar year 2023 reviews. 

DATES: Comments must be received on 

or before October 13, 2023. Late-filed 

comments will be considered to the 

extent practicable. 

To ensure that you do not duplicate 

your docket submissions, please submit 

all comments by only one of the 

following means: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to 

www.regulations.gov and follow the 

online instructions for submitting 

comments. 

• Mail: Docket Management Facility, 

U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 

New Jersey Avenue SE, W12–140, 

Washington, DC 20590. 

• Hand Delivery: West Building 

Ground Floor, Room W12–140, 1200 

New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 

20590 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., 

Monday through Friday, except Federal 

holidays. The telephone number is (202) 

366–9329. 

• Instructions: You must include the 

agency name and docket number at the 

beginning of your comments. All 

comments received will be posted 

without change to www.regulations.gov, 

including any personal information 

provided. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

questions about this notice, contact Ms. 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1
62874 Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 176 / Wednesday, September 13, 2023 / Notices 

1Report MH–2009–013; Link to OIG Report. 

2Senate Report 110–418; Link to Report. 

3House of Representatives Conference Report 

111–366; Link to Report. 

Samantha Lubkin, Safety Inspection 

Team Leader, FHWA Office of Bridges 

and Structures, (202) 366–1575, Federal 

Highway Administration, 1200 New 

Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 

20590, or via email at 

samantha.lubkin@dot.gov. For legal 

questions, please contact Mr. William 

Winne, Attorney Advisor, FHWA Office 

of the Chief Counsel, (202) 366–1397, 

Federal Highway Administration, 1200 

New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 

20590, or via email at william.winne@

dot.gov. Business hours for the FHWA 

are from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., e.t., 

Monday through Friday, except Federal 

holidays. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Electronic Access and Filing 

A copy of the PY 2024 Interim NBIP 

Compliance Review Manual is available 

for download and public inspection 

under the docket number noted above at 

the Federal eRulemaking portal at: 

www.regulations.gov. You may submit 

or retrieve comments online through the 

Federal eRulemaking portal at: 

www.regulations.gov. The website is 

available 24 hours each day, 365 days 

each year. Electronic submission and 

retrieval help and guidelines are 

available under the help section of the 

website. 

An electronic copy of this document 

may also be downloaded from the Office 

of the Federal Register’s home page at: 

www.federalregister.gov and the 

Government Printing Office’s web page 

at: www.GovInfo.gov. Late comments 

will be considered to the extent 

practicable. 

Background 

For more than 45 years, FHWA has 

annually assessed each State’s bridge 

inspection program to evaluate 

compliance with the NBIS as codified at 

23 CFR 650, subpart C. Historically, the 

depth and scope of the reviews varied 

based upon FHWA’s knowledge of the 

State’s inspection program and the 

experience of FHWA staff. In 2009, the 

Office of Inspector General (OIG) issued 

an audit report National Bridge 

Inspection Program: Assessment of 

FHWA’s Implementation of DataDriven, Risk-Based Oversight 1 that 

summarized its review of FHWA 

oversight of the NBIP. One of the five 

OIG recommendations from this audit 

was for FHWA to develop and 

implement minimum requirements for a 

data-driven, risk-based process for 

Division Bridge Engineers to use for 

their annual NBIP compliance reviews. 

Senate Report 110–418 2 supported the 

OIG recommendations and the need for 

prompt action by FHWA. In addition, 

Conference Report 111–366,3 directed 

FHWA to improve its oversight of bridge 

safety and conditions. 

In response to the OIG 

recommendations and congressional 

direction, FHWA developed a new 

systematic, data-driven, risk-based 

oversight process for monitoring State 

compliance with the NBIS. In 2010, 

FHWA initiated a pilot program using 

the new process in nine States. The 

FHWA made adjustments following the 

pilot in preparation for nationwide 

implementation in February 2011. After 

the nationwide implementation, in the 

fall of 2011, FHWA and the American 

Association of State Highway and 

Transportation Officials (AASHTO) 

established a joint task force to further 

identify possible modifications or 

improvements to the assessment 

process. As a first step, the joint task 

force gathered information from all 

States and interested Federal Agencies, 

including their input and feedback on 

the assessment process. The FHWA 

collected information from internal 

staff, and AASHTO gathered 

information from the States. The joint 

task force used the information 

collected to help identify and prioritize 

improvements to the process. The joint 

task force efforts resulted in FHWA 

implementing several improvements in 

April 2012. 

Section 1111 of the Moving Ahead for 

Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP– 

21) (Pub. L. 112–141, 126 Stat. 405) 

amended 23 U.S.C. 144(h)(3)(A)(i) to 

include provisions for the Secretary to 

establish, in consultation with the 

States, Federal Agencies, and interested 

and knowledgeable private 

organizations and individuals, 

procedures to conduct reviews of State 

compliance with the NBIS. The MAP– 

21 also amended 23 U.S.C. 144(h)(5) to 

establish a penalty for States determined 

to be in noncompliance with the NBIS. 

The FHWA developed and 

implemented the current review process 

to evaluate a State’s bridge inspection 

program for compliance with the NBIS 

prior to the requirements of MAP–21, 

section 1111. The development of the 

review process included consultation 

with stakeholders through the pilot 

project, the joint FHWA/AASHTO task 

force, as well as with individual States 

and Federal Agencies during the initial 

implementation of the process in 2011. 

The FHWA continued to use the riskbased, data-driven review process that 

was implemented in 2011 to evaluate 

State compliance with the NBIS as 

required by 23 U.S.C. 144(h)(4)(A). 

On June 7, 2013, at 78 FR 34424, 

FHWA published a notice requesting 

comment on the process FHWA uses to 

conduct reviews of State compliance 

with the NBIS and the associated 

penalty process for findings of 

noncompliance. The FHWA responded 

to comments received and implemented 

the compliance review procedures and 

the penalty provisions in 23 U.S.C. 

144(h)(5). The FHWA later documented 

the process in FHWA’s NBIP 

Compliance Review Manual. 

On May 6, 2022, at 87 FR 27396, 

FHWA published a final rule updating 

the NBIS regulations as required by 

MAP–21. The NBIS regulations were 

revised to address MAP–21 

requirements, incorporate technological 

advancements, and address ambiguities 

identified since the last update of the 

NBIS. The rule became effective June 6, 

2022. Most of the revised requirements 

were also effective on that date, but 

some provisions will become effective 

24 months later, June 6, 2024. In 

addition, some provisions of the rule 

relating to data submissions in 

accordance with the Specifications for 

the National Bridge Inventory will not 

be able to be implemented until the 

States have the necessary data collection 

and management systems in place. The 

timeline for the data submissions in the 

new format is expected to commence 

with the States’ March 2026 data 

submissions. 

Under 23 U.S.C. 144(h), FHWA is 

required to revise the compliance 

review criteria to address the recent 

changes to the NBIS. The PY 2024 

Interim NBIP Compliance Review 

Manual incorporates the revised 

provisions of the NBIS, 23 CFR part 650, 

subpart C, that are currently in effect. 

The PY 2024 Interim Compliance 

Review Manual designates new criteria 

and review procedures that will be 

evaluated for compliance in calendar 

year 2023 in a bold and underlined text 

format. A blue and italicized font is 

used to indicate criteria that will be 

assessed for compliance beginning in 

the PY 2025 reviews. The intent of 

including the PY 2025 information is to 

give the States a preview of next year’s 

criteria to aid in the States’ preparation. 

It is anticipated that the NBIP 

Compliance Review Manual will need 

to be slightly modified in successive 

years to reflect changes resulting from 

full implementation of the updated 

NBIS and provisions that became 

effective after June 6, 2022. 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1
Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 176 / Wednesday, September 13, 2023 / Notices 62875 

The FHWA welcomes comments on 

the PY 2024 Interim NBIP Compliance 

Review Manual from any interested 

party, including Federal, State, and 

local agencies; industry groups; and the 

public. A copy of the PY 2024 Interim 

NBIP Compliance Review Manual is 

available for download and public 

inspection under the docket number 

noted above at the Federal eRulemaking 

portal at: www.regulations.gov. The 

FHWA requests that commenters cite 

the page number of the manual for 

which each specific comment to the 

docket is concerned, to help make the 

FHWA’s docket comment review 

process more efficient. The FHWA will 

consider all comments received during 

the comment period in developing 

subsequent versions of the NBIP 

Compliance Review Manual. However, 

please note that the PY 2024 Interim 

NBIP Compliance Review Manual is 

currently in effect and will be utilized 

for calendar year 2023 reviews. 

Shailen P. Bhatt, 

Administrator, Federal Highway 

Administration. 

[FR Doc. 2023–19702 Filed 9–12–23; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Highway Administration 

[FHWA Docket No. FHWA–2021–0019] 

Surface Transportation Project 

Delivery Program; Alaska Department 

of Transportation Fourth Audit Report 

AGENCY: Federal Highway 

Administration (FHWA), U.S. 

Department of Transportation (DOT). 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The Moving Ahead for 

Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP– 

21) established the Surface 

Transportation Project Delivery Program 

that allows a State to assume FHWA’s 

environmental responsibilities for 

environmental review, consultation, and 

compliance under the National 

Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) for 

Federal highway projects. When a State 

assumes these Federal responsibilities, 

the State becomes solely responsible 

and liable for carrying out the 

responsibilities it has assumed, in lieu 

of FHWA. This program mandates 

annual audits during each of the first 4 

years of State participation to ensure 

compliance with program requirements. 

This notice makes available the final 

fourth audit report for the Alaska 

Department of Transportation and 

Public Facilities (DOT&PF). 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. 

David T. Williams, Office of Project 

Development and Environmental 

Review, (202) 366–5074, 

David.Williams@dot.gov, or Michelle 

Andotra, Office of the Chief Counsel, 

(404) 562–3679, Michelle.Andotra@

dot.gov; Federal Highway 

Administration, U.S. Department of 

Transportation, 1200 New Jersey 

Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590. 

Office hours are from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 

p.m., E.T., Monday through Friday, 

except Federal holidays. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Electronic Access 

An electronic copy of this notice may 

be downloaded from the specific docket 

page at www.regulations.gov. 

Background 

The Surface Transportation Project 

Delivery Program, codified at 23 U.S.C. 

327, commonly known as the NEPA 

Assignment Program, allows a State to 

assume FHWA’s environmental 

responsibilities for review, consultation, 

and compliance for Federal highway 

projects. When a State assumes these 

Federal responsibilities, the State 

becomes solely liable for carrying out 

the responsibilities it has assumed, in 

lieu of FHWA. The Alaska DOT&PF 

published its application for NEPA 

assumption on May 1, 2016; and made 

it available for public comment for 30 

days. After considering public 

comments, DOT&PF submitted its 

application to FHWA on July 12, 2016. 

The application served as the basis for 

developing a memorandum of 

understanding (MOU) that identified the 

responsibilities and obligations that 

DOT&PF would assume. The FHWA 

published a notice of the draft MOU in 

the Federal Register on August 25, 

2017, with a 30-day comment period to 

solicit the views of the public and 

Federal agencies. After the close of the 

comment period, FHWA and DOT&PF 

considered comments and proceeded to 

execute the MOU. Effective November 

13, 2017, DOT&PF assumed FHWA’s 

responsibilities under NEPA, and the 

responsibilities for NEPA-related 

Federal environmental laws described 

in the MOU. 

Section 327(g) of title 23, U.S.C., 

requires the Secretary to conduct annual 

audits to ensure compliance with the 

MOU during each of the first 4 years of 

State participation and, after the fourth 

year, monitor compliance. The FHWA 

must make the results of each audit 

available for public comment. The 

FHWA published a notice in the 

Federal Register at 87 FR 66352, 

November 3, 2022, soliciting comments 

for 30 days pursuant to 23 U.S.C. 327(g). 

The FHWA received comments on the 

draft report from the American Road & 

Transportation Builders Association 

(ARTBA). The ARTBA’s comments were 

supportive of the Surface Transportation 

Project Delivery Program and did not 

relate specifically to the audit. The team 

has considered these comments in 

finalizing the audit report. This notice 

makes available the final audit report of 

DOT&PF’s fourth audit under the 

program. The final audit report is 

available for download at 

www.regulations.gov under FHWA 

Docket No. FHWA–2021–0019. 

Authority: Section 1313 of Public Law 

112–141; section 6005 of Public Law 

109–59; 23 U.S.C. 327; 23 CFR 773. 

Shailen P. Bhatt, 

Administrator, Federal Highway 

Administration. 

Surface Transportation Project Delivery 

Program, FHWA’s Audit of the Alaska 

Department of Transportation, April 

12–16, 2021 

Executive Summary 

This report summarizes the results of 

the Federal Highway Administration’s 

(FHWA) fourth audit of the Alaska 

Department of Transportation and 

Public Facilities’ (DOT&PF) assumption 

of FHWA’s project-level National 

Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) 

responsibilities and obligations 

pursuant to a 23 U.S.C. 327 

memorandum of understanding (MOU). 

The DOT&PF entered the NEPA 

Assignment Program after more than 8 

years of experience making FHWA 

NEPA Categorical Exclusion (CE) 

determinations pursuant to 23 U.S.C. 

326 (beginning September 22, 2009). 

Alaska’s MOU became effective on 

November 13, 2017, and was amended 

on August 20, 2020. Currently, FHWA’s 

NEPA responsibilities in Alaska include 

the oversight and auditing of the 

DOT&PF’s execution of the NEPA 

Assignment Program and certain 

activities excluded from the MOU, such 

as the NEPA reviews of projects 

advanced by direct recipients other than 

the DOT&PF. 

The FHWA audit team began to 

prepare for the site visit in November 

2020. The audit team reviewed 

DOT&PF’s NEPA project files, 

DOT&PF’s response to FHWA’s preaudit information request (PAIR), and 

DOT&PF’s Self-Assessment Report. On 

April 12–16, 2021, the audit team 

conducted a virtual site visit for the 

second year due to COVID–19 pandemic 

safety concerns, rather than on-site 

visits as had been used for the first two 

audits. 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1