II 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1756 

To improve the processes by which environmental documents are prepared 

and permits and applications are processed and regulated by Federal 

departments and agencies, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

AUGUST 3, 2017 

Mr. SULLIVAN (for himself, Mrs. FISCHER, Mrs. CAPITO, and Mrs. ERNST) 

introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 

Committee on Environment and Public Works 

A BILL 

To improve the processes by which environmental documents 

are prepared and permits and applications are processed 

and regulated by Federal departments and agencies, and 

for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Rebuild America Now Act’’. 

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

7 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

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TITLE I—ENVIRONMENTAL AND PROJECT REVIEW 

MODERNIZATION 

Sec. 101. Expansion of State responsibility for categorical exclusions. 

Sec. 102. National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 reform. 

Sec. 103. Designation of categorical exclusions for emergency projects and 

structurally deficient infrastructure. 

Sec. 104. Categorical exclusion for projects of limited Federal assistance. 

Sec. 105. Simplifying environmental documents. 

Sec. 106. Permittee bill of rights. 

Sec. 107. Policy review under Clean Air Act. 

TITLE II—JUDICIAL PROVISIONS 

Sec. 201. Deadline for filing energy-related causes of action. 

Sec. 202. Limiting sue and settle practices. 

TITLE III—NATURAL GAS PIPELINE PERMITTING EFFICIENCY 

Sec. 301. Regulatory approval of natural gas pipeline projects. 

Sec. 302. Rights-of-way for public utilities. 

TITLE IV—TRANSPORTATION CONFORMITY REFORM 

Sec. 401. Limitations on certain Federal assistance under Clean Air Act. 

Sec. 402. Study on transportation air quality conformity under Clean Air Act. 

TITLE V—INCREASING STATE AUTHORITY AND COLLABORATION 

IN REVIEWING TRANSPORTATION PROJECTS 

Sec. 501. Federal-State project agreements. 

Sec. 502. Project approval and oversight for high risk projects. 

Sec. 503. Advance acquisition of real property. 

Sec. 504. Agreements relating to use of, and access to, rights-of-way on Interstate System. 

1 TITLE I—ENVIRONMENTAL AND 

2 PROJECT REVIEW MOD3 ERNIZATION 

4 SEC. 101. EXPANSION OF STATE RESPONSIBILITY FOR CAT5 EGORICAL EXCLUSIONS. 

6 Section 326 of title 23, United States Code, is 

7 amended— 

8 (1) in subsection (a)— 

9 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘certain 

10 designated activities are included within classes 

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1 of action identified in regulation by the Sec2 retary that are’’ and inserting ‘‘any activity is 

3 included within a class of action identified in a 

4 regulation by the Secretary that is’’; and 

5 (B) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘and 

6 only for types of activities specifically des7 ignated by the Secretary’’; and 

8 (2) in subsection (b)(1), by inserting ‘‘(includ9 ing the responsibility for making conformity deter10 minations under the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7401 

11 et seq.))’’ after ‘‘categorical exclusions’’. 

12 SEC. 102. NATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY ACT OF 1969 

13 REFORM. 

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—The National Environmental Pol15 icy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) is amended by 

16 adding at the end the following: 

17 ‘‘TITLE III—INTERAGENCY CO18 ORDINATION RELATING TO 

19 PERMITTING 

20 ‘‘SEC. 301. INTERAGENCY COORDINATION RELATING TO 

21 PERMITTING. 

22 ‘‘(a) PREPARATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL DOCU23 MENTS.—An agency or other entity seeking approval of, 

24 or otherwise responsible for carrying out, a project (re25 ferred to in this section as the ‘project sponsor’), may premstockstill on DSK30JT082PROD with BILLS

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1 pare an environmental impact statement or environmental 

2 assessment for the purpose of an environmental review in 

3 support of the project for approval by the lead agency of 

4 the project if, before the project sponsor takes any action 

5 or seeks any approval based on the environmental docu6 ment, the lead agency— 

7 ‘‘(1) provides oversight in the preparation of 

8 the environmental impact statement or environ9 mental assessment; 

10 ‘‘(2) independently evaluates the environmental 

11 impact statement or environmental assessment; and 

12 ‘‘(3) approves, within a reasonable time, and 

13 adopts the environmental impact statement or envi14 ronmental assessment. 

15 ‘‘(b) ADOPTION AND USE OF ENVIRONMENTAL DOC16 UMENTS.— 

17 ‘‘(1) ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENTS

18 AND ASSESSMENTS.— 

19 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

20 subparagraph (B), the lead agency shall not 

21 prepare more than 1 environmental impact 

22 statement and 1 environmental assessment 

23 under this Act for a project. 

24 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTIONS.—The limitation in sub25 paragraph (A) shall not apply to— 

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1 ‘‘(i) a supplemental environmental 

2 document; or 

3 ‘‘(ii) an environmental impact state4 ment or environmental assessment pre5 pared pursuant to a court order. 

6 ‘‘(C) RECORD OF DECISION.— 

7 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Except as pro8 vided in clause (ii), after the date on which 

9 the lead agency issues a record of decision 

10 for a project, the head of a Federal agency 

11 responsible for approving the project shall 

12 not rely on any environmental impact 

13 statement or environmental assessment 

14 prepared before that date. 

15 ‘‘(ii) ENVIRONMENTAL DOCUMENT OF

16 LEAD AGENCY.—Notwithstanding clause 

17 (i), the head of a Federal agency may rely 

18 on an environmental impact statement or 

19 environmental assessment prepared by the 

20 lead agency after the date on which the 

21 lead agency issues a record of decision for 

22 the project. 

23 ‘‘(D) IMPACT ANALYSIS.—On request by a 

24 project sponsor, a lead agency may adopt, use, 

25 or rely on a secondary or cumulative impact 

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1 analysis that is included in any environmental 

2 impact statement or environmental assessment 

3 for a project located in the geographical area 

4 that is the subject of the secondary or cumu5 lative impact analysis, if the secondary or cu6 mulative impact analysis provides information 

7 that is applicable to the project. 

8 ‘‘(2) STATE ENVIRONMENTAL DOCUMENTS.— 

9 ‘‘(A) ADOPTION.— 

10 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—On request by a 

11 project sponsor and subject to clause (ii), 

12 a lead agency may adopt as the environ13 mental impact statement or environmental 

14 assessment for a project an environmental 

15 document prepared under State law, if the 

16 State law provides environmental protec17 tion and an opportunity for public involve18 ment that is substantially similar to the 

19 environmental protection and opportunity 

20 for public involvement under this Act. 

21 ‘‘(ii) SUPPLEMENTAL DOCUMENTS.— 

22 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—A lead agen23 cy shall prepare and publish a supple24 ment to an environmental document 

25 referred to in clause (i) before adoptmstockstill on DSK30JT082PROD with BILLS

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1 ing the State environmental document 

2 if the lead agency determines that— 

3 ‘‘(aa) a significant change 

4 has been made to the project that 

5 is relevant for purposes of the en6 vironmental review by the lead 

7 agency; or 

8 ‘‘(bb) there have been sig9 nificant changes in circumstances 

10 or availability of information rel11 evant to that environmental re12 view. 

13 ‘‘(II) PERIOD OF COMMENT.— 

14 For any supplemental document pre15 pared and published under subclause 

16 (I), the lead agency may solicit com17 ments from agencies and the public 

18 for a period of not more than 45 days 

19 beginning on the date of the publica20 tion. 

21 ‘‘(B) OBLIGATION OF LEAD AGENCY.—The 

22 adoption of an environmental document by a 

23 lead agency under subparagraph (A)(i) satisfies 

24 the obligation of the lead agency to prepare an 

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1 environmental impact statement or environ2 mental assessment under this Act. 

3 ‘‘(C) RECORD OF DECISION.—With respect 

4 to a project, the lead agency shall issue a record 

5 of decision or finding of no significant impact, 

6 as appropriate, based on— 

7 ‘‘(i) the environmental document 

8 adopted under subparagraph (A)(i); and 

9 ‘‘(ii) any supplemental document pre10 pared under subparagraph (A)(ii). 

11 ‘‘(3) CONTEMPORANEOUS PROJECTS.—The lead 

12 agency may adopt for a project an environmental 

13 impact statement or environmental assessment that 

14 resulted from an environmental review carried out 

15 for a similar project in geographical proximity to the 

16 project, if the lead agency— 

17 ‘‘(A) determines that— 

18 ‘‘(i) there is a reasonable likelihood 

19 that the project will have a similar environ20 mental impact as the similar project; and 

21 ‘‘(ii) during the 5-year period ending 

22 on the date on which the lead agency 

23 makes the determination, the similar 

24 project was subject to environmental re25 view or similar State procedures; and 

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1 ‘‘(B) adopts the environmental impact 

2 statement or environmental assessment in ac3 cordance with paragraph (2)(A). 

4 ‘‘(c) COOPERATING AGENCIES.— 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The lead agency of a 

6 project shall— 

7 ‘‘(A) be responsible for designating or in8 viting, as applicable, cooperating agencies (with9 in the meaning of section 1501.6 of title 40, 

10 Code of Federal Regulations (as in effect on the 

11 date of enactment of this section)) in accord12 ance with this subsection; and 

13 ‘‘(B) provide to the head of each cooper14 ating agency a notice of the designation or invi15 tation in writing. 

16 ‘‘(2) FEDERAL COOPERATING AGENCIES.— 

17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

18 subparagraph (C), any Federal agency that is 

19 required to adopt the environmental impact 

20 statement or environmental assessment of the 

21 lead agency for a project shall— 

22 ‘‘(i) be designated as a cooperating 

23 agency; and 

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1 ‘‘(ii) collaborate on the preparation of 

2 the environmental impact statement or en3 vironmental assessment. 

4 ‘‘(B) NOTIFICATION.—The lead agency 

5 shall provide to the head of a Federal agency 

6 described in subparagraph (A) a written notice 

7 of designation under paragraph (1) that speci8 fies a date by which the head of the Federal 

9 agency shall respond. 

10 ‘‘(C) EXCEPTION.—Notwithstanding sub11 paragraph (A), the head of a Federal agency 

12 may decline designation as a cooperation agency 

13 if, not later than the date specified by the lead 

14 agency under subparagraph (B), the head of 

15 the Federal agency informs the lead agency in 

16 writing that the Federal agency— 

17 ‘‘(i) has no jurisdiction or authority 

18 with respect to the project; 

19 ‘‘(ii) has no expertise or information 

20 relevant to the project; and 

21 ‘‘(iii) does not intend to submit com22 ments on the project. 

23 ‘‘(3) OTHER COOPERATING AGENCIES.— 

24 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The lead agency shall 

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1 mental review for a project, any official or 

2 agency other than an agency described in para3 graph (2) that may have an interest in the 

4 project, including— 

5 ‘‘(i) the Governor of an affected State; 

6 and 

7 ‘‘(ii) a local or tribal government. 

8 ‘‘(B) INVITATION.— 

9 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The lead agency 

10 shall provide a written invitation to any 

11 agency or official identified under subpara12 graph (A) to become a cooperating agency 

13 in the environmental review for the project. 

14 ‘‘(ii) DEADLINE REQUIRED.— 

15 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—The invita16 tion described in clause (i) shall in17 clude a deadline, not to exceed 30 

18 days after the date on which the invi19 tation is received, by which the invited 

20 agency or official shall accept or de21 cline the invitation. 

22 ‘‘(II) EXTENSION.—The lead 

23 agency may extend the deadline under 

24 subclause (I) only for good cause 

25 shown. 

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1 ‘‘(C) FAILURE TO RESPOND.—An agency 

2 or official that fails to respond to an invitation 

3 under subparagraph (B)(i) before the deadline 

4 under subparagraph (B)(ii) shall be considered 

5 to have declined the invitation for designation. 

6 ‘‘(D) DESIGNATION.—The lead agency 

7 shall designate as a cooperating agency any 

8 agency or official that accepts an invitation 

9 under subparagraph (B). 

10 ‘‘(4) EFFECT OF DECLINING COOPERATING

11 AGENCY INVITATION.—An agency or official that de12 clines a designation or invitation by the lead agency 

13 to be a cooperating agency for a project shall be pre14 cluded from— 

15 ‘‘(A) submitting comments on any environ16 mental impact statement or environmental as17 sessment prepared for the project; and 

18 ‘‘(B) taking any action to oppose, based on 

19 the environmental review, any permit, license, 

20 or approval relating to the project. 

21 ‘‘(5) EFFECT OF DESIGNATION.—Designation 

22 as a cooperating agency under this subsection does 

23 not imply that the cooperating agency— 

24 ‘‘(A) supports a proposed project; or 

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1 ‘‘(B) has jurisdiction over, or special exper2 tise with respect to evaluation of, the project. 

3 ‘‘(6) CONCURRENT REVIEWS.—The head of 

4 each Federal agency designated as a cooperating 

5 agency shall— 

6 ‘‘(A) carry out the obligations of the Fed7 eral agency under other applicable law concur8 rently and in conjunction with the environ9 mental review required for the applicable 

10 project under this Act; and 

11 ‘‘(B) in accordance with the rules promul12 gated by the Council on Environmental Quality 

13 pursuant to section 102(b)(1) of the Rebuild 

14 America Now Act, develop and carry out such 

15 rules, policies, and procedures as may be rea16 sonably necessary to enable the Federal agency 

17 to ensure completion of the environmental re18 view and environmental decisionmaking process 

19 in a timely, coordinated, and environmentally 

20 responsible manner. 

21 ‘‘(7) COOPERATING AGENCY COMMENTS.— 

22 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In providing com23 ments on a project, a cooperating agency— 

24 ‘‘(i) shall not provide comments on a 

25 subject matter that does not relate to the 

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1 expertise and statutory authority of the co2 operating agency, as expressly delegated by 

3 Congress; and 

4 ‘‘(ii) shall identify in the comments of 

5 the cooperating agency the legal authority 

6 of the cooperating agency relating to the 

7 subject matter of the comments. 

8 ‘‘(B) LEAD AGENCY.—A lead agency shall 

9 not carry out any action in response to, or in10 clude in any document prepared under this Act, 

11 any comment submitted by a cooperating agen12 cy that relates to a subject matter outside the 

13 expertise and authority of the cooperating agen14 cy. 

15 ‘‘(d) INITIATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW.—Not 

16 later than 45 days after the date on which a lead agency 

17 receives an application for a project from a project spon18 sor, the lead agency shall initiate an environmental review 

19 of the project. 

20 ‘‘(e) ALTERNATIVES ANALYSIS.— 

21 ‘‘(1) PARTICIPATION OF COOPERATING AGEN22 CIES.—As early as practicable during the environ23 mental review, but not later than the period during 

24 which the preparation of an environmental impact 

25 statement is required, the lead agency shall provide 

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1 an opportunity to the cooperating agencies to par2 ticipate in determining the range of alternatives to 

3 be considered for a project. 

4 ‘‘(2) RANGE OF ALTERNATIVES.— 

5 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara6 graphs (B) and (C), after completion of the 

7 participation of the cooperating agencies de8 scribed in paragraph (1), the lead agency shall 

9 determine the range of alternatives for consid10 eration in the environmental impact statement 

11 or environmental assessment for the project. 

12 ‘‘(B) NO EVALUATION OF CERTAIN ALTER13 NATIVES.—The head of a Federal agency shall 

14 not evaluate an alternative that— 

15 ‘‘(i) was identified during the partici16 pation period described in paragraph (1); 

17 and 

18 ‘‘(ii)(I) was not accepted by the lead 

19 agency under subparagraph (A) for de20 tailed evaluation in an environmental im21 pact statement or environmental assess22 ment; or 

23 ‘‘(II)(aa) was evaluated by the lead 

24 agency; and 

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1 ‘‘(bb) was not selected for any envi2 ronmental impact statement or environ3 mental assessment for the project. 

4 ‘‘(C) ONLY FEASIBLE ALTERNATIVES

5 EVALUATED.—In the case of a project that is 

6 constructed, managed, funded, or carried out by 

7 a project sponsor that is not a Federal agency, 

8 the head of a Federal agency shall only evaluate 

9 an alternative that, consistent with the purpose 

10 of, and the need for, the project— 

11 ‘‘(i) the project sponsor may feasibly 

12 carry out; and 

13 ‘‘(ii) is technically and economically 

14 feasible, as determined by the head of the 

15 Federal agency. 

16 ‘‘(3) METHODOLOGIES.— 

17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—With respect to an al18 ternative for a project, the lead agency shall, in 

19 collaboration with cooperating agencies at an 

20 appropriate time during the environmental re21 view for the project, determine the methodolo22 gies to be used in, and the level of detail re23 quired for, the review. 

24 ‘‘(B) DESCRIPTION REQUIRED.—The lead 

25 agency shall include in the environmental immstockstill on DSK30JT082PROD with BILLS

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1 pact statement or environmental assessment for 

2 a project a description of— 

3 ‘‘(i) the methodologies used in pre4 paring the environmental impact statement 

5 or environmental assessment; and 

6 ‘‘(ii) the means by which the meth7 odologies were selected. 

8 ‘‘(C) NO EVALUATION OF INAPPROPRIATE

9 ALTERNATIVES.—In preparing an environ10 mental impact statement or environmental as11 sessment, a lead agency may omit from the en12 vironmental document a detailed evaluation of 

13 an alternative determined by the lead agency 

14 not to meet the purpose of, and need for, the 

15 project. 

16 ‘‘(4) EMPLOYMENT ANALYSIS.—The evaluation 

17 of each alternative in an environmental impact state18 ment or environmental assessment shall identify the 

19 potential effects of the alternative on employment, 

20 including— 

21 ‘‘(A) potential short-term and long-term 

22 employment increases and reductions; and 

23 ‘‘(B) shifts in employment. 

24 ‘‘(f) COORDINATION PLAN AND SCHEDULING.— 

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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—To facilitate the expedi2 tious resolution of an environmental review, the lead 

3 agency shall establish and implement a coordination 

4 plan for public and agency participation in, and 

5 comment on, the environmental review for a project 

6 or category of projects. 

7 ‘‘(2) SCHEDULE.— 

8 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In developing the co9 ordination plan described in paragraph (1), the 

10 lead agency shall consult with each cooperating 

11 agency and the project sponsor to develop a 

12 schedule for the completion of the environ13 mental review that— 

14 ‘‘(i) considers factors such as— 

15 ‘‘(I) the responsibilities of the co16 operating agencies under applicable 

17 law; 

18 ‘‘(II) the resources available to 

19 the cooperating agencies; 

20 ‘‘(III) the overall size and com21 plexity of the project; 

22 ‘‘(IV) the overall schedule for 

23 and cost of the project; 

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1 ‘‘(V) the sensitivity of the natural 

2 and historical resources that may be 

3 affected by the project; and 

4 ‘‘(VI) the extent to which similar 

5 projects in geographical proximity to 

6 the project were recently subject to 

7 environmental review or similar State 

8 procedures; and 

9 ‘‘(ii) includes the deadlines, consistent 

10 with subsection (g), for decisions under 

11 Federal law relating to the project, includ12 ing decisions on the issuance or denial of 

13 a permit or license. 

14 ‘‘(B) COMPLIANCE WITH SCHEDULE.— 

15 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Each cooperating 

16 agency shall comply with— 

17 ‘‘(I) the deadlines established in 

18 the schedule under subparagraph (A); 

19 and 

20 ‘‘(II) in the case of a modifica21 tion to the schedule under paragraph 

22 (4), any modified deadline. 

23 ‘‘(ii) EFFECT OF NONCOMPLIANCE.— 

24 The lead agency shall disregard, and shall 

25 not respond to or include in any environmstockstill on DSK30JT082PROD with BILLS

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1 mental impact statement or environmental 

2 assessment, any comment or information 

3 submitted or any finding made by a co4 operating agency that is not in accordance 

5 with the deadline established in the sched6 ule under subparagraph (A) or a modified 

7 deadline under paragraph (4). 

8 ‘‘(iii) FAILURE TO OBJECT.—If a co9 operating agency fails to object in writing 

10 to a lead agency decision, finding, or re11 quest for concurrence in accordance with 

12 the deadline established under law or by 

13 the lead agency, the cooperating agency 

14 shall be considered to have concurred in 

15 the decision, finding, or request. 

16 ‘‘(3) CONSISTENCY WITH OTHER DEADLINES.— 

17 A schedule under paragraph (2) shall be consistent 

18 with any other relevant deadline under Federal law. 

19 ‘‘(4) MODIFICATION OF SCHEDULE.—With re20 spect to a schedule under paragraph (2), the lead 

21 agency may— 

22 ‘‘(A) extend the schedule for good cause; 

23 and 

24 ‘‘(B) shorten the schedule only with the 

25 concurrence of each cooperating agency. 

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1 ‘‘(5) DISSEMINATION.—With respect to a 

2 schedule under paragraph (2), the lead agency 

3 shall— 

4 ‘‘(A) not later than 15 days after the date 

5 of completion or modification of schedule, pro6 vide a copy of the schedule and any modifica7 tion to each cooperating agency and the project 

8 sponsor; and 

9 ‘‘(B) make a copy of the schedule available 

10 to the public. 

11 ‘‘(6) ROLE AND RESPONSIBILITY OF LEAD

12 AGENCY.—With respect to the environmental review 

13 for a project, the lead agency may take such actions 

14 as are necessary, within the authority of the lead 

15 agency, to facilitate the expeditious resolution of the 

16 environmental review. 

17 ‘‘(g) DEADLINES.— 

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The deadlines described in 

19 this subsection shall apply to any project subject to 

20 review under this Act and any decision under Fed21 eral law relating to the project, including the 

22 issuance or denial of a permit or license or any re23 quired finding. 

24 ‘‘(2) ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEWS.— 

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1 ‘‘(A) ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATE2 MENT PROJECTS.—The lead agency shall— 

3 ‘‘(i) for a project that requires an en4 vironmental impact statement under Fed5 eral law (including regulations), issue the 

6 environmental impact statement by not 

7 later than 2 years after the earlier of— 

8 ‘‘(I) the date on which the lead 

9 agency receives an application for the 

10 project from a project sponsor; and 

11 ‘‘(II) the date on which a notice 

12 of intent to prepare an environmental 

13 impact statement is published in the 

14 Federal Register; and 

15 ‘‘(ii) for a project for which the lead 

16 agency prepared an environmental assess17 ment, and determined pursuant to that en18 vironmental assessment that an environ19 mental impact statement is required, issue 

20 the environmental impact statement by not 

21 later than 2 years after the date of publi22 cation of the notice of intent to prepare an 

23 environmental impact statement in the 

24 Federal Register. 

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1 ‘‘(B) ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT

2 PROJECTS.—For a project that requires an en3 vironmental assessment, the lead agency shall 

4 issue a finding of no significant impact or pub5 lish a notice of intent to prepare an environ6 mental impact statement in the Federal Reg7 ister by not later than 1 year after the earliest 

8 of— 

9 ‘‘(i) the date on which the lead agency 

10 receives the project initiation request; 

11 ‘‘(ii) the date on which the lead agen12 cy makes a decision to prepare an environ13 mental assessment; and 

14 ‘‘(iii) the date on which the lead agen15 cy sends out cooperating agency invita16 tions. 

17 ‘‘(C) EXTENSIONS.— 

18 ‘‘(i) REQUIREMENTS.—Subject to 

19 clause (ii), the lead agency may extend a 

20 deadline under subparagraph (A) or (B) 

21 only— 

22 ‘‘(I) if the lead agency, project 

23 sponsor, and each cooperating agency 

24 agree on a different deadline; or 

25 ‘‘(II) for good cause. 

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1 ‘‘(ii) LIMITATION.—The lead agency 

2 shall not extend a deadline under subpara3 graph (A) or (B)— 

4 ‘‘(I) in the case of a project that 

5 requires an environmental impact 

6 statement, by more than 1 year; and 

7 ‘‘(II) in the case of a project that 

8 requires an environmental assessment, 

9 by more than 180 days. 

10 ‘‘(3) ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW COMMENTS.— 

11 The lead agency shall establish for each environ12 mental impact statement and environmental assess13 ment a comment period of not more than 30 days 

14 after the date on which the environmental impact 

15 statement or environmental assessment is made pub16 licly available, unless— 

17 ‘‘(A) the lead agency, project sponsor, and 

18 each cooperating agency agree on a different 

19 deadline; or 

20 ‘‘(B) the lead agency extends the deadline 

21 for good cause. 

22 ‘‘(4) DECISIONS PRIOR TO RECORD OF DECI23 SION OR FINDING OF NO SIGNIFICANT IMPACT.— 

24 Notwithstanding any other provision of law, in the 

25 case of a project for which a Federal agency is remstockstill on DSK30JT082PROD with BILLS

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1 quired to approve or otherwise to take an action re2 lating to a permit, license, or other similar applica3 tion before the lead agency may issue a record of de4 cision or finding of no significant impact, the head 

5 of the Federal agency shall approve or take the ap6 plicable action by not later than the earlier of— 

7 ‘‘(A) the end of the 90-day period begin8 ning on the date on which— 

9 ‘‘(i) all other relevant Federal agency 

10 reviews relating to the project are com11 plete; and 

12 ‘‘(ii) the lead agency publishes a no13 tice of the availability of the final environ14 mental impact statement or issuance of 

15 other final environmental documents; and 

16 ‘‘(B) the date that is otherwise required by 

17 law. 

18 ‘‘(5) OTHER DECISIONS.— 

19 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

20 subparagraph (B), with respect to any approval 

21 or other action of a Federal agency relating to 

22 a project that is not subject to paragraph (4), 

23 each Federal agency shall make the approval or 

24 carry out the action by not later than the end 

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1 of the 180-period beginning on the date on 

2 which— 

3 ‘‘(i) all other relevant agency reviews 

4 relating to the project are complete; and 

5 ‘‘(ii) the lead agency issues a record 

6 of decision or finding of no significant im7 pact. 

8 ‘‘(B) EXTENSION.— 

9 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Subject to clause 

10 (ii), the head of a Federal agency may ex11 tend the deadline referred to in subpara12 graph (A) for good cause, if the head of 

13 the Federal agency, the lead agency, and 

14 the project sponsor agree to extend the 

15 deadline. 

16 ‘‘(ii) LIMITATION.—The head of a 

17 Federal agency shall not extend a deadline 

18 under clause (i) for a period longer than 1 

19 year after the date on which the lead agen20 cy issues the record of decision or finding 

21 of no significant impact. 

22 ‘‘(6) EFFECT OF NONCOMPLIANCE.— 

23 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A permit, license, or 

24 other similar application for approval relating 

25 to a project that requires the approval or other 

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1 action by a Federal agency shall be considered 

2 to be approved by the Federal agency if the 

3 head of the Federal agency fails to approve or 

4 otherwise take an action relating to the permit, 

5 license, or other similar application by the dead6 line described in paragraph (4) or (5). 

7 ‘‘(B) DEADLINE FOR COMPLIANCE.—The 

8 head of the Federal agency shall act in accord9 ance with the approval under subparagraph (A) 

10 by not later than 30 days after the applicable 

11 deadline described in paragraph (4) or (5). 

12 ‘‘(C) FINAL AGENCY ACTION.— 

13 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—An approval under 

14 subparagraph (A) shall be considered to be 

15 a final agency action, which may not be re16 versed by any agency. 

17 ‘‘(ii) REVIEW.—In any action under 

18 chapter 7 of title 5, United States Code, 

19 that seeks review of a final agency action 

20 under clause (i), a court may not set aside 

21 the action based on the action having been 

22 made final under that clause. 

23 ‘‘(h) ISSUE IDENTIFICATION AND RESOLUTION.— 

24 ‘‘(1) COOPERATION.—The lead agency and the 

25 cooperating agencies shall work in accordance with 

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1 this subsection to identify and resolve any issue that 

2 may delay the completion of an environmental review 

3 or result in the denial of an approval required for 

4 the project under applicable law. 

5 ‘‘(2) LEAD AGENCY RESPONSIBILITIES.—As 

6 early as practicable during the environmental review 

7 process, the lead agency shall make available infor8 mation (including information based on existing data 

9 sources, including geographic information systems) 

10 relating to the environmental, historic, and socio11 economic resources located in the project area and 

12 the general location of any alternative under consid13 eration. 

14 ‘‘(3) COOPERATING AGENCY RESPONSIBIL15 ITIES.—Based on information received from the lead 

16 agency, a cooperating agency shall identify, as early 

17 as practicable, any issue of concern relating to the 

18 potential environmental, historical, or socioeconomic 

19 impact of a project, including any issue that may 

20 substantially delay or prevent an agency from grant21 ing a permit or other approval required for the 

22 project. 

23 ‘‘(4) ISSUE RESOLUTION.— 

24 ‘‘(A) MEETING OF COOPERATING AGEN25 CIES.—To resolve any issue that may delay the 

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1 completion of an environmental review or result 

2 in the denial of an approval required for a 

3 project under applicable law, the lead agency 

4 shall promptly convene a meeting with the rel5 evant cooperating agency and the project spon6 sor on request by a project sponsor at any time. 

7 ‘‘(B) NOTICE THAT RESOLUTION CANNOT

8 BE ACHIEVED.—If a resolution to an issue iden9 tified under paragraph (1) cannot be achieved 

10 by the date that is 30 days after the date on 

11 which a meeting is convened under subpara12 graph (A), and the lead agency determines that 

13 all information necessary to resolve the issue 

14 has been obtained, the lead agency shall— 

15 ‘‘(i) notify— 

16 ‘‘(I) each cooperating agency; 

17 ‘‘(II) the project sponsor; and 

18 ‘‘(III) the Council on Environ19 mental Quality established by section 

20 202 for further proceedings in accord21 ance with section 204; and 

22 ‘‘(ii) publish in the Federal Register a 

23 notice relating to the failure to achieve a 

24 resolution. 

25 ‘‘(i) MERGING DOCUMENTS.— 

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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 

2 provision of law, except as provided in paragraph 

3 (2), the lead agency of a project shall expeditiously 

4 develop a single document that consists of— 

5 ‘‘(A) a final environmental impact state6 ment relating to the project; 

7 ‘‘(B) each record of decision relating to the 

8 project; and 

9 ‘‘(C) the final decision of the Secretary of 

10 the Army with respect to the environmental re11 view carried out by the Secretary, acting 

12 through the Chief of Engineers, relating to an 

13 application for a permit for the project under 

14 section 404 of the Federal Water Pollution 

15 Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1344). 

16 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTIONS.—Paragraph (1) shall not 

17 apply in any case in which— 

18 ‘‘(A) the final environmental impact state19 ment relating to the project makes a substantial 

20 change relating to an environmental or safety 

21 concern to a proposed action under the project; 

22 or 

23 ‘‘(B) there exists a significant new cir24 cumstance or information relating to an envimstockstill on DSK30JT082PROD with BILLS

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1 ronmental concern that affects such a proposed 

2 action or the impacts of the proposed action. 

3 ‘‘(j) LIMITATIONS ON CLAIMS.— 

4 ‘‘(1) FINAL AGENCY ACTIONS.— 

5 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The deadline for filing 

6 a claim for judicial review of a final agency ac7 tion is the date that is 180 days after the date 

8 of publication of a notice in the Federal Reg9 ister announcing the record of decision for the 

10 action. 

11 ‘‘(B) NEW INFORMATION.—A claim chal12 lenging a final agency action on the basis of in13 formation contained in a supplemental environ14 mental impact statement shall be limited to a 

15 challenge on the basis of that information. 

16 ‘‘(2) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in 

17 this subsection creates a right to judicial review or 

18 places any limit on filing a claim that a person has 

19 violated the terms of a permit, license, or approval 

20 issued by a Federal agency for an action subject to 

21 this Act. 

22 ‘‘(k) CATEGORIES OF PROJECTS.—The authority 

23 granted under this title may be exercised for— 

24 ‘‘(1) any single project; or 

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1 ‘‘(2) any category of two or more projects re2 lated by project type, potential environmental im3 pact, geographical location, or other similar project 

4 feature or characteristic. 

5 ‘‘(l) EFFECTIVE DATE.— 

6 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—This title applies only to an 

7 environmental review or environmental decision8 making process initiated after the date of enactment 

9 of this title. 

10 ‘‘(2) APPLICABILITY OF DEADLINES.— 

11 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

12 subparagraph (B), in the case of a project for 

13 which an environmental review or environ14 mental decisionmaking process is initiated be15 fore the date of enactment of this title, sub16 section (g) shall apply. 

17 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—Notwithstanding any 

18 other provision of this section, in determining a 

19 deadline under subsection (g), any applicable 

20 period of time shall be calculated as beginning 

21 on the date of enactment of this title. 

22 ‘‘(m) APPLICABILITY.—Except as provided in sub23 section (n), this title applies to each project for which a 

24 Federal agency is required to carry out an environmental 

25 review or environmental decisionmaking process. 

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1 ‘‘(n) SAVINGS CLAUSE.—Nothing in this section su2 persedes, amends, or modifies— 

3 ‘‘(1) section 134, 135, 139, 325, 326, or 327 

4 of title 23, United States Code; 

5 ‘‘(2) section 5303 or 5304 of title 49, United 

6 States Code; or 

7 ‘‘(3) subtitle C of title I of division A of the 

8 Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act 

9 (Public Law 112–141; 126 Stat. 527) (or any 

10 amendment made by that subtitle).’’. 

11 (b) REGULATIONS.— 

12 (1) COUNCIL ON ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY.— 

13 Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment 

14 of this Act, the Council on Environmental Quality 

15 established by section 202 of the National Environ16 mental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4342) shall— 

17 (A) amend the regulations contained in 

18 chapter V of title 40, Code of Federal Regula19 tions (or successor regulations), to implement 

20 this section and the amendments made by this 

21 section; and 

22 (B) by rule, designate each State with laws 

23 and procedures that satisfy the criteria under 

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1 mental Policy Act of 1969 (as added by sub2 section (a)). 

3 (2) FEDERAL AGENCIES.—Not later than 120 

4 days after the date on which the Council on Envi5 ronmental Quality amends the regulations described 

6 in paragraph (1)(A), the head of each Federal agen7 cy that has promulgated regulations implementing 

8 the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 

9 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) shall amend the regulations to 

10 implement this section and the amendments made by 

11 this section. 

12 (c) LIMITATIONS ON CLAIMS UNDER FAST ACT.— 

13 Section 41007(a) of the FAST Act (42 U.S.C. 4370m– 

14 6(a)) is amended— 

15 (1) in paragraph (1)(A), by striking ‘‘2 years’’ 

16 and inserting ‘‘180 days’’; and 

17 (2) in paragraph (2)(B), by striking ‘‘2 years’’ 

18 and inserting ‘‘180 days’’. 

19 SEC. 103. DESIGNATION OF CATEGORICAL EXCLUSIONS 

20 FOR EMERGENCY PROJECTS AND STRUC21 TURALLY DEFICIENT INFRASTRUCTURE. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the 

23 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Transpor24 tation shall— 

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1 (1) consult with the Administrator of the Fed2 eral Emergency Management Agency and the Sec3 retary of the Army to identify communities that are 

4 imminently threatened from flooding or erosion; and 

5 (2) designate as an action categorically ex6 cluded from the requirements relating to environ7 mental assessments or environmental impact state8 ments for purposes of section 771.117(c) of title 23, 

9 Code of Federal Regulations (or successor regula10 tions), and section 1508.4 of title 40, Code of Fed11 eral Regulations (or successor regulations), any 

12 project— 

13 (A) that is critical to the immediate safety 

14 of a threatened community identified under 

15 paragraph (1); or 

16 (B) for the maintenance, repair, recon17 struction, restoration, retrofitting, or replace18 ment of an existing road, highway, bridge, tun19 nel, or other transit facility (such as a ferry 

20 dock or bus transfer station), including ancil21 lary transportation facilities (such as pedestrian 

22 and bicycle paths and bike lanes), if the project 

23 is to be completed in the same location, and 

24 with the same preexisting design, as the exist25 ing structure. 

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1 (b) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary of Transportation 

2 shall promulgate such regulations as are necessary to 

3 carry out subsection (a) by not later than 150 days after 

4 the date of enactment of this Act. 

5 SEC. 104. CATEGORICAL EXCLUSION FOR PROJECTS OF 

6 LIMITED FEDERAL ASSISTANCE. 

7 Section 1317(1) of the MAP–21 (126 Stat. 550; 129 

8 Stat. 1402; 23 U.S.C. 109 note) is amended— 

9 (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking 

10 ‘‘$5,000,000’’ and inserting ‘‘$10,000,000’’; and 

11 (2) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘15 per12 cent’’ and inserting ‘‘16 percent’’. 

13 SEC. 105. SIMPLIFYING ENVIRONMENTAL DOCUMENTS. 

14 (a) STATEMENT OF POLICY.—It is the policy of the 

15 United States that the purpose of requiring an environ16 mental document relating to a project is only to ensure 

17 that the process of considering the effects of the project 

18 takes place before the occurrence of any significant Fed19 eral action to carry out the project. 

20 (b) PAGE LIMITS.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—To facilitate public trans22 parency and understanding of environmental docu23 mentation, an environmental document— 

24 (A) shall— 

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1 (i) be sufficient to provide a reason2 able consideration of the potential environ3 mental effects and alternatives of a pro4 posed project; and 

5 (ii) reflect a thorough examination of 

6 the potential impacts of the project; but 

7 (B) shall not exceed 300 pages without 

8 substantial justification. 

9 (2) NOTICE AND COMMENT REQUIREMENTS.— 

10 (A) IN GENERAL.—An agency may exceed 

11 the 300-page limit under paragraph (1)(B) if 

12 the agency provides to proponents of the appli13 cable project a notice, and a period of not less 

14 than 30 days for comment, regarding the pro15 posed exceedance. 

16 (B) ELIGIBILITY TO COMMENT.—The op17 portunity to comment under subparagraph (A) 

18 shall not be provided to any individual or entity 

19 other than a proponent of the applicable 

20 project. 

21 SEC. 106. PERMITTEE BILL OF RIGHTS. 

22 Section 101 of the National Environmental Policy 

23 Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4331) is amended by adding at 

24 the end the following: 

25 ‘‘(d) PERMITTEE BILL OF RIGHTS.— 

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1 ‘‘(1) STATEMENT OF POLICY.—It is the policy 

2 of the United States— 

3 ‘‘(A) to use natural resources in a respon4 sible manner to maximize value and utility, 

5 while protecting public health and welfare; and 

6 ‘‘(B) that, therefore, in implementing a 

7 Federal permitting law, a Federal agency 

8 should, to the maximum extent practicable, seek 

9 to issue permit decisions favorably. 

10 ‘‘(2) DEFINITION OF FEDERAL PERMITTING

11 LAW.—In this subsection: 

12 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘Federal 

13 permitting law’ means any provision of Federal 

14 law pursuant to which a Federal agency may 

15 issue a permit. 

16 ‘‘(B) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘Federal 

17 permitting law’ includes— 

18 ‘‘(i) the Toxic Substances Control Act 

19 (15 U.S.C. 2601 et seq.); 

20 ‘‘(ii) the Endangered Species Act of 

21 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.); 

22 ‘‘(iii) the Surface Mining Control and 

23 Reclamation Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 1201 

24 et seq.); 

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1 ‘‘(iv) the Federal Water Pollution 

2 Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.); 

3 ‘‘(v) the Safe Drinking Water Act (42 

4 U.S.C. 300f et seq.); 

5 ‘‘(vi) the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 

6 (42 U.S.C. 2011 et seq.); 

7 ‘‘(vii) the Solid Waste Disposal Act 

8 (42 U.S.C. 6901 et seq.); 

9 ‘‘(viii) the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 

10 7401 et seq.); and 

11 ‘‘(ix) the Outer Continental Shelf 

12 Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1331 et seq.). 

13 ‘‘(3) APPLICANT AND PERMITTEE RIGHTS.—In 

14 any communication between a permittee or an appli15 cant for a permit and a Federal agency relating to 

16 a determination of the agency pursuant to a Federal 

17 permitting law, the following shall apply: 

18 ‘‘(A) Any decision relating to the applica19 ble permit or application shall be issued— 

20 ‘‘(i) within the applicable deadline; or 

21 ‘‘(ii) at such other reasonable time as 

22 may be agreed to by the permittee or ap23 plicant and the Federal agency. 

24 ‘‘(B) Each permittee and permit applicant 

25 shall have the right— 

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1 ‘‘(i) to assistance and prompt re2 sponse in seeking from the Federal agency 

3 information regarding the regulatory and 

4 permit process; 

5 ‘‘(ii) to request and receive— 

6 ‘‘(I) a clear projected schedule of 

7 fees for the review and completion of 

8 the permit process; and 

9 ‘‘(II) a clear, concise statement 

10 of the reasoning for a determination 

11 by the agency to reject a permit appli12 cation; 

13 ‘‘(iii) to know the exact deficiencies in 

14 a rejected application; and 

15 ‘‘(iv) to a transparent and unbiased 

16 decision based on the submitted application 

17 and applicable Federal permitting law and 

18 regulatory requirements.’’. 

19 SEC. 107. POLICY REVIEW UNDER CLEAN AIR ACT. 

20 Section 309(a) of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 

21 7609(a)) is amended by striking ‘‘any (1) legislation pro22 posed by any Federal department or agency, (2) newly au23 thorized Federal projects for construction and any major 

24 Federal agency action (other than a project for construc25 tion) to which section 102(2)(C) of Public Law 91–190 

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1 applies, and (3) proposed regulations’’ and inserting ‘‘any 

2 legislation proposed by a Federal department or agency 

3 or proposed regulations’’. 

4 TITLE II—JUDICIAL PROVISIONS 

5 SEC. 201. DEADLINE FOR FILING ENERGY-RELATED 

6 CAUSES OF ACTION. 

7 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

8 (1) AGENCY ACTION.—The term ‘‘agency ac9 tion’’ has the meaning given the term in section 551 

10 of title 5, United States Code. 

11 (2) ENERGY-RELATED CAUSE OF ACTION.—The 

12 term ‘‘energy-related cause of action’’ means a cause 

13 of action that— 

14 (A) is filed on or after the date of enact15 ment of this Act; and 

16 (B) seeks judicial review of a final agency 

17 action to issue a permit, license, or other form 

18 of agency permission allowing— 

19 (i) an individual or entity to conduct 

20 on Indian land or public land activities in21 volving the exploration, development, pro22 duction, or transportation of oil, gas, coal, 

23 shale gas, oil shale, geothermal resources, 

24 wind or solar resources, underground coal 

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1 gasification, biomass, or the generation of 

2 electricity; or 

3 (ii) an Indian tribe, or any organiza4 tion of two or more entities at least one of 

5 which is an Indian tribe, to conduct activi6 ties involving the exploration, development, 

7 production, or transportation of oil, gas, 

8 coal, shale gas, oil shale, geothermal re9 sources, wind or solar resources, under10 ground coal gasification, biomass, or the 

11 generation of electricity, regardless of the 

12 location at which those activities are car13 ried out. 

14 (3) INDIAN LAND.— 

15 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘Indian 

16 land’’ has the meaning given the term in sec17 tion 2601 of the Energy Policy Act of 1992 (25 

18 U.S.C. 3501). 

19 (B) INCLUSION.—The term ‘‘Indian land’’ 

20 includes land owned by a Native Corporation 

21 under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act 

22 (43 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.). 

23 (4) PUBLIC LAND.—The term ‘‘public land’’ 

24 has the meaning given the term ‘‘public lands’’ in 

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1 section 103 of the Federal Land Policy and Manage2 ment Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1702). 

3 (b) DEADLINE FOR FILING.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—An energy-related cause of 

5 action shall be filed by not later than 60 days after 

6 the date of publication of the applicable final agency 

7 action. 

8 (2) PROHIBITION.—An energy-related cause of 

9 action that is not filed within the time period de10 scribed in paragraph (1) shall be barred. 

11 (c) DISTRICT COURT VENUE AND DEADLINE.—An 

12 energy-related cause of action shall be— 

13 (1) brought in the United States District Court 

14 for the District of Columbia Circuit; and 

15 (2) resolved— 

16 (A) as expeditiously as practicable; and 

17 (B) in any event, not later than the date 

18 that is 180 days after the date on which the en19 ergy-related cause of action is filed. 

20 (d) APPELLATE REVIEW.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—An interlocutory order or 

22 final judgment, decree, or order of the district court 

23 in an energy-related cause of action may be reviewed 

24 by the United States Court of Appeals for the Dis25 trict of Columbia Circuit. 

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1 (2) REQUIREMENT.—The United States Court 

2 of Appeals for the District of Columbia shall resolve 

3 an appeal of an energy-related cause of action— 

4 (A) as expeditiously as practicable; and 

5 (B) in any event, not later than the date 

6 that is 180 days after the date on which the ap7 plicable interlocutory order or final judgment, 

8 decree, or order of the district court was issued. 

9 (e) LIMITATION ON CERTAIN PAYMENTS.—Notwith10 standing section 1304 of title 31, United States Code, no 

11 award may be made under section 504 of title 5, United 

12 States Code, or section 2412 of title 28, United States 

13 Code, and no amounts may be obligated or expended from 

14 the Claims and Judgment Fund of the Treasury to pay 

15 any fees or other expenses under those sections, to any 

16 person or party in an energy-related cause of action. 

17 (f) LEGAL FEES.— 

18 (1) DEFINITION OF ULTIMATELY PREVAIL.—In 

19 this subsection: 

20 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘ultimately 

21 prevail’’ means a final, enforceable judgment by 

22 a court of competent jurisdiction in favor of a 

23 party on at least 1 energy-related cause of ac24 tion that is an underlying rationale for the premstockstill on DSK30JT082PROD with BILLS

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1 liminary injunction, administrative stay, or 

2 other relief requested by the party. 

3 (B) EXCLUSION.—The term ‘‘ultimately 

4 prevail’’ does not include any situation in which 

5 the relevant final agency action is modified or 

6 amended by the issuing agency, unless the 

7 modification or amendment is required pursu8 ant to— 

9 (i) a final, enforceable judgment of 

10 the court; or 

11 (ii) a court-ordered consent decree. 

12 (2) AWARD.— 

13 (A) IN GENERAL.—In any energy-related 

14 cause of action in which the plaintiff does not 

15 ultimately prevail, the court shall award to the 

16 defendant (including any intervenor-defend17 ants), other than the United States, fees and 

18 other expenses incurred by that defendant in 

19 connection with the energy-related cause of ac20 tion, unless the court finds that— 

21 (i) the position of the plaintiff was 

22 substantially justified, in accordance with 

23 subparagraph (B); or 

24 (ii) special circumstances make such 

25 an award unjust. 

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1 (B) SUBSTANTIALLY JUSTIFIED DETER2 MINATION.—Whether the position of the plain3 tiff was substantially justified for purposes of 

4 subparagraph (A)(i) shall be determined on the 

5 basis of the administrative record, as a whole, 

6 relating to the energy-related cause of action 

7 for which fees and other expenses are sought. 

8 SEC. 202. LIMITING SUE AND SETTLE PRACTICES. 

9 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

10 (1) AGENCY; AGENCY ACTION.—The terms 

11 ‘‘agency’’ and ‘‘agency action’’ have the meanings 

12 given those terms under section 551 of title 5, 

13 United States Code. 

14 (2) COVERED CIVIL ACTION.—The term ‘‘cov15 ered civil action’’ means a civil action— 

16 (A) seeking to compel agency action; 

17 (B) alleging that the agency is unlawfully 

18 withholding or unreasonably delaying an agency 

19 action relating to a regulatory action that would 

20 affect the rights of— 

21 (i) private persons other than the per22 son bringing the action; or 

23 (ii) a State, local, or tribal govern24 ment; and 

25 (C) brought under— 

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•S 1756 IS

1 (i) chapter 7 of title 5, United States 

2 Code; or 

3 (ii) any other statute authorizing such 

4 an action. 

5 (3) COVERED CONSENT DECREE.—The term 

6 ‘‘covered consent decree’’ means— 

7 (A) a consent decree entered into in a cov8 ered civil action; and 

9 (B) any other consent decree that requires 

10 agency action relating to a regulatory action 

11 that affects the rights of— 

12 (i) private persons other than the per13 son bringing the action; or 

14 (ii) a State, local, or tribal govern15 ment. 

16 (4) COVERED CONSENT DECREE OR SETTLE17 MENT AGREEMENT.—The term ‘‘covered consent de18 cree or settlement agreement’’ means a covered con19 sent decree and a covered settlement agreement. 

20 (5) COVERED SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT.—The 

21 term ‘‘covered settlement agreement’’ means— 

22 (A) a settlement agreement entered into in 

23 a covered civil action; and 

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1 (B) any other settlement agreement that 

2 requires agency action relating to a regulatory 

3 action that affects the rights of— 

4 (i) private persons other than the per5 son bringing the action; or 

6 (ii) a State, local, or tribal govern7 ment. 

8 (b) CONSENT DECREE AND SETTLEMENT RE9 FORM.— 

10 (1) PLEADINGS AND PRELIMINARY MATTERS.— 

11 (A) IN GENERAL.—In any covered civil ac12 tion, the agency against which the covered civil 

13 action is brought shall publish the notice of in14 tent to sue and the complaint in a readily ac15 cessible manner, including by making the notice 

16 of intent to sue and the complaint available in 

17 the Federal Register or online not later than 15 

18 days after receiving service of the notice of in19 tent to sue or complaint, respectively. 

20 (B) ENTRY OF A COVERED CONSENT DE21 CREE OR SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT.—A party 

22 may not make a motion for entry of a covered 

23 consent decree or to dismiss a civil action pur24 suant to a covered settlement agreement until 

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1 after the end of proceedings in accordance with 

2 subparagraph (A) and paragraph (2)(B)(i). 

3 (2) PUBLICATION OF AND COMMENT ON COV4 ERED CONSENT DECREES OR SETTLEMENT AGREE5 MENTS.— 

6 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 60 days 

7 before the date on which a covered consent de8 cree or settlement agreement is filed with a 

9 court, the agency seeking to enter the covered 

10 consent decree or settlement agreement shall 

11 publish in the Federal Register and online the 

12 proposed covered consent decree or settlement 

13 agreement. 

14 (B) PUBLIC COMMENT.— 

15 (i) IN GENERAL.—An agency seeking 

16 to enter a covered consent decree or settle17 ment agreement shall accept public com18 ment during the period described in sub19 paragraph (A) on any issue relating to the 

20 matters alleged in the complaint in the ap21 plicable civil action or addressed or af22 fected by the proposed covered consent de23 cree or settlement agreement. 

24 (ii) SUBMISSIONS TO COURT.—When 

25 moving that the court enter a proposed 

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1 covered consent decree or settlement agree2 ment or for dismissal pursuant to a pro3 posed covered consent decree or settlement 

4 agreement, an agency shall inform the 

5 court of the statutory basis for the pro6 posed covered consent decree or settlement 

7 agreement and its terms. 

8 (3) REVIEW BY COURT.— 

9 (A) IN GENERAL.—A court shall review the 

10 statutory basis for the proposed covered consent 

11 decree or settlement agreement and its terms de 

12 novo. 

13 (B) REVIEW OF DEADLINES.— 

14 (i) PROPOSED COVERED CONSENT DE15 CREES.—For a proposed covered consent 

16 decree, a court shall not approve the cov17 ered consent decree unless the proposed 

18 covered consent decree allows sufficient 

19 time and incorporates adequate procedures 

20 for the agency to comply with chapter 5 of 

21 title 5, United States Code, and other ap22 plicable statutes that govern rulemaking 

23 and, unless contrary to the public interest, 

24 the provisions of any Executive order that 

25 governs rulemaking. 

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1 (ii) PROPOSED COVERED SETTLE2 MENT AGREEMENTS.—For a proposed cov3 ered settlement agreement, a court shall 

4 ensure that the covered settlement agree5 ment allows sufficient time and incor6 porates adequate procedures for the agency 

7 to comply with chapter 5 of title 5, United 

8 States Code, and other applicable statutes 

9 that govern rulemaking and, unless con10 trary to the public interest, the provisions 

11 of any Executive order that governs rule12 making. 

13 TITLE III—NATURAL GAS PIPE14 LINE PERMITTING EFFI15 CIENCY 

16 SEC. 301. REGULATORY APPROVAL OF NATURAL GAS PIPE17 LINE PROJECTS. 

18 Section 7 of the Natural Gas Act (15 U.S.C. 717f) 

19 is amended— 

20 (1) in subsection (d)— 

21 (A) by striking ‘‘(d) Applications for cer22 tificates’’ and inserting the following: 

23 ‘‘(d) APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS.— 

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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—An application for a certifi2 cate of public convenience and necessity under this 

3 section’’; and 

4 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

5 ‘‘(2) USE OF AERIAL SURVEY DATA TO SATISFY

6 PRELIMINARY REQUIREMENTS.—A natural-gas com7 pany that submits to the Commission an application 

8 for a certificate of public convenience and necessity 

9 under this section to construct an interstate natural 

10 gas pipeline— 

11 ‘‘(A) with respect to any preliminary re12 quirement for that certification, may use aerial 

13 survey data to satisfy the preliminary require14 ment; but 

15 ‘‘(B) with respect to each applicable non16 preliminary survey requirement for approval of 

17 the certification, shall achieve compliance with 

18 the requirement through such other means as 

19 the Commission may require.’’; and 

20 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

21 ‘‘(i) REGULATORY APPROVAL OF NATURAL GAS

22 PIPELINE PROJECTS.— 

23 ‘‘(1) DEFINITION OF PREFILED PROJECT.—In 

24 this subsection, the term ‘prefiled project’ means a 

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1 eration of a natural gas pipeline with respect to 

2 which a prefiling docket number has been assigned 

3 by the Commission pursuant to a prefiling process 

4 established by the Commission for the purpose of fa5 cilitating the formal application process for obtain6 ing a certificate of public convenience and necessity. 

7 ‘‘(2) DETERMINATION ON APPLICATIONS.—The 

8 Commission shall approve or deny an application for 

9 a certificate of public convenience and necessity for 

10 a prefiled project by not later than 1 year after the 

11 date of receipt of a completed application that is 

12 ready to be processed, as determined by the Com13 mission by regulation. 

14 ‘‘(3) OTHER FEDERAL AGENCIES.— 

15 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

16 subparagraph (B), the head of the Federal de17 partment or agency responsible for issuing any 

18 license, permit, or other approval required 

19 under Federal law in connection with a prefiled 

20 project for which a certificate of public conven21 ience and necessity is sought under this Act 

22 shall approve or deny the license, permit, or 

23 other approval by not later than 90 days after 

24 the date on which the Commission issues a final 

25 environmental document relating to the project. 

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1 ‘‘(B) EXTENSION.— 

2 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Commission 

3 may extend an applicable deadline under 

4 subparagraph (A) by not longer than an 

5 additional 30 days, if the head of the af6 fected Federal department or agency dem7 onstrates that— 

8 ‘‘(I) the process of determining 

9 whether to approve or deny the appli10 cable license, permit, or other ap11 proval cannot be completed by the ap12 plicable deadline; and 

13 ‘‘(II) the department or agency 

14 therefore will be compelled to deny the 

15 license, permit, or approval. 

16 ‘‘(ii) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—In 

17 providing an extension under this subpara18 graph, the Commission may offer to the af19 fected Federal department or agency such 

20 technical assistance as is necessary to ad21 dress any condition preventing the comple22 tion of the review of the application for the 

23 license, permit, or other approval. 

24 ‘‘(C) FAILURE TO ACT.—If a Federal de25 partment or agency described in subparagraph 

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1 (A) fails to approve or deny a license, permit, 

2 or other approval by the deadline under sub3 paragraph (A) or (B), as applicable— 

4 ‘‘(i) the license, permit, or approval 

5 shall take effect on the date that is 30 

6 days after the expiration of the deadline; 

7 and 

8 ‘‘(ii) the Commission shall incorporate 

9 into the terms of the license, permit, or ap10 proval any conditions proffered by the Fed11 eral department or agency that the Com12 mission does not determine to be incon13 sistent with any relevant environmental 

14 document.’’. 

15 SEC. 302. RIGHTS-OF-WAY FOR PUBLIC UTILITIES. 

16 Section 100902(a)(1)(A) of title 54, United States 

17 Code, is amended by striking ‘‘and lines for the generation 

18 and distribution of electrical power’’ and inserting ‘‘lines 

19 for the generation and distribution of electrical power, and 

20 natural gas or petroleum product pipelines’’. 

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1 TITLE IV—TRANSPORTATION 

2 CONFORMITY REFORM 

3 SEC. 401. LIMITATIONS ON CERTAIN FEDERAL ASSISTANCE 

4 UNDER CLEAN AIR ACT. 

5 Section 176 of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7506) 

6 is amended— 

7 (1) in subsection (c)(1)— 

8 (A) by striking the undesignated matter 

9 following clause (iii) of subparagraph (B); and 

10 (B) in the fourth sentence, by striking 

11 ‘‘Conformity to an implementation plan 

12 means—’’ and inserting the following: 

13 ‘‘(a) DEFINITION OF CONFORM.— 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In this section, the term 

15 ‘conform’, with respect to the status of an activity, 

16 project, program, or plan as determined under an 

17 applicable implementation plan, means that the ac18 tivity, project, program, or plan—’’; 

19 (2) in subsection (a) (as so redesignated)— 

20 (A) in paragraph (1) (as so redesig21 nated)— 

22 (i) by striking ‘‘(A) conformity to’’ 

23 and inserting the following: 

24 ‘‘(A) achieves compliance with’’; and 

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1 (ii) by striking ‘‘(B) that such activi2 ties will’’ and inserting the following: 

3 ‘‘(B) will’’; 

4 (B) by moving the subsection (as so 

5 amended) to appear at the beginning of the sec6 tion; and 

7 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

8 ‘‘(2) DETERMINATION ESTIMATES.—For pur9 poses of paragraph (1), a determination regarding 

10 the conformity of an activity, project, program, or 

11 plan shall be based on the most recent estimates of 

12 the emissions of the activity, project, program, or 

13 plan, which shall be determined based on the most 

14 recent applicable population, employment, travel, 

15 and congestion estimates (as determined by the met16 ropolitan planning organization or other agency au17 thorized to make those estimates).’’; 

18 (3) by redesignating subsections (c) and (d) as 

19 subsections (b) and (c), respectively; 

20 (4) in subsection (b) (as so redesignated)— 

21 (A) by striking the subsection designation 

22 and all that follows through ‘‘No department’’ 

23 in the first sentence and inserting the following: 

24 ‘‘(b) REQUIREMENT OF CONFORMITY FOR FEDERAL

25 ASSISTANCE.— 

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1 ‘‘(1) LIMITATIONS.— 

2 ‘‘(A) FEDERAL AGENCIES.—No depart3 ment’’; 

4 (B) in paragraph (1)(A) (as so redesig5 nated)— 

6 (i) in the first sentence, by striking 

7 ‘‘it has’’ and inserting ‘‘the implementation 

8 plan has’’; 

9 (ii) in the third sentence, by striking 

10 ‘‘The assurance of conformity to such an 

11 implementation plan’’ and inserting the 

12 following: 

13 ‘‘(C) RESPONSIBILITY FOR ASSURANCE.— 

14 The assurance of conformity to an implementa15 tion plan approved or promulgated under sec16 tion 110’’; and 

17 (iii) in the second sentence, by strik18 ing ‘‘No metropolitan’’ and inserting the 

19 following: 

20 ‘‘(B) METROPOLITAN PLANNING ORGANI21 ZATIONS.—No metropolitan’’; 

22 (C) in paragraph (2)— 

23 (i) in subparagraph (A), by striking 

24 ‘‘of paragraph (1)(B)’’ and inserting ‘‘de25 scribed in subsection (a)(1)(B)’’; 

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1 (ii) in subparagraph (C)— 

2 (I) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘(i) 

3 such a project’’ and inserting the fol4 lowing: 

5 ‘‘(II)(aa) the project’’; 

6 (II) in clause (ii), by striking 

7 ‘‘(ii) the design’’ and inserting the fol8 lowing: 

9 ‘‘(bb) the design’’; 

10 (III) in clause (iii), by striking 

11 ‘‘(iii) the design’’ and inserting the 

12 following: 

13 ‘‘(cc) the design’’; and 

14 (IV) in the matter preceding 

15 clause (i), by striking ‘‘only if it meets 

16 either the requirements of subpara17 graph (D) or the following require18 ments’’ and inserting the following: 

19 ‘‘only if— 

20 ‘‘(I) the transportation project 

21 achieves compliance with all applicable 

22 requirements of clause (iv); or’’; 

23 (iii) in subparagraph (D), by striking 

24 ‘‘subparagraph (C)’’ and inserting ‘‘clause 

25 (iii)’’; 

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1 (iv) in subparagraph (E)— 

2 (I) in clause (ii), by striking 

3 ‘‘clause (i)’’ and inserting ‘‘subclause 

4 (I)’’; and 

5 (II) by redesignating clauses (i) 

6 through (iii) as subclauses (I) through 

7 (III), respectively, and indenting the 

8 subclauses appropriately; 

9 (v) by redesignating subparagraphs 

10 (A) through (E) as clauses (i) through (v), 

11 respectively, and indenting the clauses ap12 propriately; and 

13 (vi) in the matter preceding clause (i) 

14 (as so redesignated)— 

15 (I) in the third sentence, by 

16 striking ‘‘In particular—’’ and insert17 ing the following: 

18 ‘‘(C) ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS.—The 

19 additional requirements referred to in subpara20 graph (B)(i)(II) are that—’’; 

21 (II) in the second sentence— 

22 (aa) by striking ‘‘been found 

23 to conform to any applicable im24 plementation plan in effect under 

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1 this Act.’’ and inserting the fol2 lowing: ‘‘been determined— 

3 ‘‘(I) to conform to an applicable 

4 implementation plan in effect under 

5 this Act (as determined in accordance 

6 with paragraph (4)(B)); and 

7 ‘‘(II) to achieve compliance with 

8 all applicable additional requirements 

9 described in subparagraph (C).’’; and 

10 (bb) by striking ‘‘No Fed11 eral’’ and inserting the following: 

12 ‘‘(B) CONFORMITY REQUIRED.— 

13 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Subject to clause 

14 (ii), no Federal’’; 

15 (III) in the first sentence, by 

16 striking ‘‘(2) Any’’ and inserting the 

17 following: 

18 ‘‘(2) TRANSPORTATION CONFORMITY.— 

19 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Each’’; and 

20 (IV) in subparagraph (B) (as 

21 designated by subclause (II)(bb)), by 

22 adding at the end the following: 

23 ‘‘(ii) APPLICABILITY.—The require24 ment described in clause (i) shall not 

25 apply— 

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1 ‘‘(I) to a transportation plan, 

2 program, or project carried out in an 

3 area designated under this Act as a 

4 marginal nonattainment or attain5 ment-maintenance area; and 

6 ‘‘(II) in an area that is not an 

7 area described in subclause (I), until 

8 the date that is 180 days after the 

9 date on which the Administrator ap10 proves the motor vehicle emissions 

11 budget contained in the State imple12 mentation plan applicable to the rel13 evant transportation plan, program, 

14 or project.’’; 

15 (D) in paragraph (3)— 

16 (i) in subparagraph (A)— 

17 (I) in clause (i), by adding ‘‘and’’ 

18 after the semicolon at the end; and 

19 (II) by striking clause (iii); and 

20 (ii) in subparagraph (B)— 

21 (I) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘en22 actment; and’’ and all that follows 

23 through the end of the undesignated 

24 matter following clause (ii) and insert25 ing ‘‘enactment.’’; and 

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1 (II) in the matter preceding 

2 clause (i), by striking ‘‘projects—’’ 

3 and all that follows through ‘‘come 

4 from’’ in clause (i) and inserting 

5 ‘‘projects are carried out under’’; 

6 (E) in paragraph (4)— 

7 (i) in subparagraph (B)— 

8 (I) by striking ‘‘The Adminis9 trator’’ and inserting the following: 

10 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Subject to clause 

11 (ii), the Administrator’’; and 

12 (II) by adding at the end the fol13 lowing: 

14 ‘‘(ii) REQUIREMENTS.—The criteria 

15 and procedures promulgated pursuant to 

16 clause (i) shall— 

17 ‘‘(I) be based on the most re18 cently issued national ambient air 

19 quality standard for each applicable 

20 criteria pollutant; and 

21 ‘‘(II) establish that conformity in 

22 the case of transportation plans, pro23 grams, and projects shall not be re24 quired— 

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1 ‘‘(aa) in any area designated 

2 under this Act as a marginal 

3 nonattainment or attainment4 maintenance area; and 

5 ‘‘(bb) with respect to any 

6 area that is not an area described 

7 in item (aa), until the date that 

8 is 180 days after the date on 

9 which the Administrator approves 

10 the motor vehicle emissions budg11 et contained in the State imple12 mentation plan applicable to the 

13 relevant transportation plan, pro14 gram, or project.’’; 

15 (ii) in subparagraph (D)— 

16 (I) in clause (ii)— 

17 (aa) in subclause (II), by 

18 striking ‘‘paragraph (2)(E)’’ and 

19 inserting ‘‘paragraph (2)(C)(v)’’; 

20 and 

21 (bb) by indenting subclauses 

22 (I) and (II) appropriately; 

23 (II) by indenting clauses (i) 

24 through (iii) appropriately; and 

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1 (III) by striking ‘‘(D) The’’ and 

2 inserting the following: 

3 ‘‘(D) MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS.—The’’; 

4 and 

5 (iii) in subparagraph (F), by striking 

6 ‘‘(F) Compliance’’ and inserting the fol7 lowing: 

8 ‘‘(F) TRAFFIC SIGNAL SYNCHRONIZATION

9 PROJECTS.—Compliance’’; 

10 (F) by striking paragraphs (5) and (6); 

11 (G) by redesignating paragraphs (7) 

12 through (9) as paragraphs (5) through (7), re13 spectively; 

14 (H) in subparagraph (A) of paragraph (5) 

15 (as so redesignated), by striking ‘‘Each’’ and 

16 inserting ‘‘Subject to paragraph (2)(B)(ii)(II), 

17 each’’; 

18 (I) in paragraph (7) (as so redesignated), 

19 by striking ‘‘If’’ and inserting the following: 

20 ‘‘(A) DEFINITION OF LAPSE.—In this 

21 paragraph, the term ‘lapse’, with respect to a 

22 conformity determination for a transportation 

23 plan or transportation improvement program, 

24 means that— 

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1 ‘‘(i) the conformity determination has 

2 expired; and 

3 ‘‘(ii) as a result of that expiration, no 

4 currently conforming transportation plan 

5 or transportation improvement program 

6 exists. 

7 ‘‘(B) LAPSES.—If’’; and 

8 (J) by striking paragraph (10); and 

9 (5) in subsection (c) (as redesignated by para10 graph (3))— 

11 (A) in the second sentence, by striking 

12 ‘‘This paragraph extends to, but is not limited 

13 to,’’ and inserting the following: 

14 ‘‘(2) APPLICABILITY.—The authority described 

15 in paragraph (1) includes any’’; and 

16 (B) by striking the subsection designation 

17 and all that follows through ‘‘Federal Govern18 ment’’ and inserting the following: 

19 ‘‘(c) PRIORITY.— 

20 ‘‘(1) REQUIREMENT.—Each Federal depart21 ment, agency, and instrumentality’’. 

22 SEC. 402. STUDY ON TRANSPORTATION AIR QUALITY CON23 FORMITY UNDER CLEAN AIR ACT. 

24 The Administrators of the Environmental Protection 

25 Agency, the Federal Highway Administration, and the 

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1 Federal Transit Administration shall jointly enter into an 

2 arrangement with the National Academy of Sciences 

3 under which the Academy shall— 

4 (1) conduct a study relating to transportation 

5 air quality conformity to evaluate the effectiveness of 

6 the conformity requirements under section 176 of 

7 the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7506) (as amended by 

8 section 401); and 

9 (2) provide to the Administrators recommenda10 tions for transportation conformity policy, including 

11 suggested legislative and regulatory changes relating 

12 to transportation planning and air quality. 

13 TITLE V—INCREASING STATE 

14 AUTHORITY AND COLLABO15 RATION IN REVIEWING 

16 TRANSPORTATION PROJECTS 

17 SEC. 501. FEDERAL-STATE PROJECT AGREEMENTS. 

18 Section 106(b) of title 23, United States Code, is 

19 amended by adding at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(3) NO FEDERAL APPROVAL FOR CERTAIN AC21 TIVITIES.— 

22 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any 

23 other provision of law (including regulations), 

24 no approval of the Secretary shall be required 

25 under this section for any project described in 

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1 subparagraph (B), subject to the condition that 

2 the project shall be carried out in accordance 

3 with all other applicable requirements under 

4 this title and title 49. 

5 ‘‘(B) DESCRIPTION OF PROJECTS.—A 

6 project referred to in subparagraph (A) is any 

7 project— 

8 ‘‘(i) carried out under— 

9 ‘‘(I) a stewardship and oversight 

10 agreement; or 

11 ‘‘(II) any other agreement under 

12 this section; and 

13 ‘‘(ii) relating to— 

14 ‘‘(I) the standard specifications 

15 of the applicable State transportation 

16 department; 

17 ‘‘(II) the pavement design policy 

18 of the State transportation depart19 ment; 

20 ‘‘(III) any value engineering poli21 cies or procedures of the State trans22 portation department; 

23 ‘‘(IV) liquidated damage rates; 

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1 ‘‘(V) a quality assurance program 

2 of the State transportation depart3 ment; or 

4 ‘‘(VI) such other matter as the 

5 Secretary, in consultation with State 

6 transportation departments, deter7 mines to be appropriate.’’. 

8 SEC. 502. PROJECT APPROVAL AND OVERSIGHT FOR HIGH 

9 RISK PROJECTS. 

10 Section 106(c)(4) of title 23, United States Code, is 

11 amended— 

12 (1) in subparagraph (A)— 

13 (A) by striking ‘‘shall not assign any re14 sponsibilities to a State for projects’’ and in15 serting ‘‘may assign to a State responsibility for 

16 a project in the State that’’; and 

17 (B) by inserting ‘‘, subject to the require18 ment that the project shall be carried out in ac19 cordance with all applicable requirements of an 

20 agreement between the Secretary and the State 

21 under this section’’ before the period at the 

22 end; and 

23 (2) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘The Sec24 retary may define the high risk categories under this 

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1 subparagraph on’’ and inserting the following: ‘‘For 

2 purposes of subparagraph (A), the Secretary— 

3 ‘‘(A) shall establish high risk categories in 

4 collaboration with State transportation depart5 ments; and 

6 ‘‘(B) may define the categories on’’. 

7 SEC. 503. ADVANCE ACQUISITION OF REAL PROPERTY. 

8 Section 108 of title 23, United States Code, is 

9 amended— 

10 (1) in subsection (a)(1), by striking ‘‘may 

11 make’’ and inserting ‘‘shall make’’; 

12 (2) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘(b) Federal’’ 

13 and inserting the following: 

14 ‘‘(b) MAXIMUM PARTICIPATION.—Federal’’; 

15 (3) in subsection (c)(3)— 

16 (A) in the matter preceding subparagraph 

17 (A), by striking ‘‘State demonstrates to the 

18 Secretary and the Secretary finds’’ and insert19 ing ‘‘State ensures’’; 

20 (B) in subparagraph (F)— 

21 (i) by inserting ‘‘of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 

22 4321 et seq.)’’ after ‘‘Policy Act’’; 

23 (ii) by striking ‘‘this Act’’ and insert24 ing ‘‘the Intermodal Surface Transpormstockstill on DSK30JT082PROD with BILLS

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1 tation Efficiency Act of 1991 (Public Law 

2 102–240; 105 Stat. 1914)’’; and 

3 (iii) by inserting ‘‘of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 

4 1531 et seq.)’’ after ‘‘Species Act’’; and 

5 (C) in subparagraph (G), by striking ‘‘the 

6 Secretary’’ and inserting ‘‘the State’’; and 

7 (4) in subsection (d)— 

8 (A) in paragraph (2)— 

9 (i) by striking ‘‘a State’’ each place it 

10 appears and inserting ‘‘the State’’; and 

11 (ii) by striking ‘‘The Secretary may’’ 

12 and inserting ‘‘On receipt of a request 

13 from a State, the Secretary shall’’; 

14 (B) in paragraph (3), in the matter pre15 ceding subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘, with 

16 concurrence by the Secretary,’’; and 

17 (C) in paragraph (7)— 

18 (i) by striking ‘‘If’’ and inserting the 

19 following: 

20 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara21 graph (B), if’’; and 

22 (ii) by adding at the end the fol23 lowing: 

24 ‘‘(B) EXTENSION.—On receipt of a request 

25 from a State, the Secretary shall delay the efmstockstill on DSK30JT082PROD with BILLS

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1 fective date of the offset against the apportion2 ment of the State described in subparagraph 

3 (A) for such period as the Secretary determines 

4 to be appropriate, in accordance with applicable 

5 law (including regulations).’’. 

6 SEC. 504. AGREEMENTS RELATING TO USE OF, AND ACCESS 

7 TO, RIGHTS-OF-WAY ON INTERSTATE SYSTEM. 

8 Section 111 of title 23, United States Code, is 

9 amended— 

10 (1) in subsection (a)— 

11 (A) in the fourth sentence— 

12 (i) by striking ‘‘Nothing’’ and insert13 ing the following: 

14 ‘‘(4) EFFECT OF SECTION.—Nothing’’; 

15 (ii) by striking ‘‘Interstate System (1) 

16 if such establishment (A) was’’ and insert17 ing the following: ‘‘Interstate System, if— 

18 ‘‘(A) the establishment— 

19 ‘‘(i) was’’; 

20 (iii) by striking ‘‘1960, (B) is owned 

21 by a State, and (C) is’’ and inserting the 

22 following: ‘‘1960; 

23 ‘‘(ii) is owned by a State; and 

24 ‘‘(iii) is’’; and 

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1 (iv) by striking ‘‘otherwise, and (2) if 

2 all’’ and inserting the following: ‘‘other3 wise; and 

4 ‘‘(B) all’’; 

5 (B) in the third sentence, by striking 

6 ‘‘Such agreements may, however,’’ and insert7 ing the following: 

8 ‘‘(3) USE OF AIRSPACE.—An agreement de9 scribed in paragraph (1)(A) may’’; 

10 (C) in the second sentence, by striking 

11 ‘‘Such agreements shall also contain a clause 

12 providing’’ and inserting the following: 

13 ‘‘(2) AUTOMOTIVE SERVICE STATIONS.—An 

14 agreement described in paragraph (1)(A) shall in15 clude a requirement’’; 

16 (D) by striking the subsection designation 

17 and heading and all that follows through ‘‘All 

18 agreements between the Secretary and the’’ in 

19 the first sentence and inserting the following: 

20 ‘‘(a) REQUIREMENTS FOR AGREEMENTS.— 

21 ‘‘(1) POINTS OF ACCESS AND EXIT.— 

22 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

23 subparagraph (B), each agreement between the 

24 Secretary and a’’; and 

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1 (E) in paragraph (1) (as so redesignated), 

2 by adding at the end the following: 

3 ‘‘(B) TRANSFER OF AUTHORITY TO

4 STATES.—On receipt of a request from a State 

5 transportation department, the Secretary shall 

6 transfer to the State transportation department 

7 the sole authority to approve the addition of a 

8 point of access to, or exit from, an applicable 

9 project on the Interstate System on approval by 

10 the State transportation department of a jus11 tification report under subsection (e).’’; and 

12 (2) in subsection (e), by striking ‘‘Secretary 

13 may permit a State transportation department to 

14 approve the report’’ and inserting ‘‘Secretary, on re15 ceipt of a request from an affected State transpor16 tation department, shall transfer to the State trans17 portation department in accordance with subsection 

18 (a)(1)(B) the sole authority to approve the addition 

19 of the applicable point of access to, or exit from, a 

20 relevant project on the Interstate System on ap21 proval by the State transportation department of the 

22 report’’. 

Æ 

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