Presidential Documents

40463 

Federal Register 

Vol. 82, No. 163 

Thursday, August 24, 2017 

Title 3— 

The President 

Executive Order 13807 of August 15, 2017 

Establishing Discipline and Accountability in the Environmental Review and Permitting Process for Infrastructure 

Projects 

By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the 

laws of the United States of America, and in order to ensure that the 

Federal environmental review and permitting process for infrastructure 

projects is coordinated, predictable, and transparent, it is hereby ordered 

as follows: 

Section 1. Purpose. America needs increased infrastructure investment to 

strengthen our economy, enhance our competitiveness in world trade, create 

jobs and increase wages for our workers, and reduce the costs of goods 

and services for our families. The poor condition of America’s infrastructure 

has been estimated to cost a typical American household thousands of 

dollars each year. Inefficiencies in current infrastructure project decisions, 

including management of environmental reviews and permit decisions or 

authorizations, have delayed infrastructure investments, increased project 

costs, and blocked the American people from enjoying improved infrastructure that would benefit our economy, society, and environment. More efficient and effective Federal infrastructure decisions can transform our economy, so the Federal Government, as a whole, must change the way it 

processes environmental reviews and authorization decisions. 

Sec. 2. Policy. It is the policy of the Federal Government to: 

(a) safeguard our communities and maintain a healthy environment; 

(b) ensure that Federal authorities make informed decisions concerning 

the environmental impacts of infrastructure projects; 

(c) develop infrastructure in an environmentally sensitive manner; 

(d) provide transparency and accountability to the public regarding environmental review and authorization decisions; 

(e) be good stewards of public funds, including those used to develop 

infrastructure projects, and avoid duplicative and wasteful processes; 

(f) conduct environmental reviews and authorization processes in a coordinated, consistent, predictable, and timely manner in order to give public 

and private investors the confidence necessary to make funding decisions 

for new infrastructure projects; 

(g) speak with a coordinated voice when conducting environmental reviews 

and making authorization decisions; and 

(h) make timely decisions with the goal of completing all Federal environmental reviews and authorization decisions for major infrastructure projects 

within 2 years. 

Sec. 3. Definitions. The terms of this order shall be applied consistently 

with those defined under 42 U.S.C. 4370m and implementing guidance 

to the maximum extent possible. The following definitions shall specifically 

apply: 

(a) ‘‘Authorization’’ means any license, permit, approval, finding, determination, or other administrative decision issued by a Federal department 

or agency (agency) that is required or authorized under Federal law in 

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order to site, construct, reconstruct, or commence operations of an infrastructure project, including any authorization under 42 U.S.C. 4370m(3). 

(b) ‘‘CAP Goals’’ means Federal Government Priority Goals established 

by the Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) Modernization 

Act of 2010, Public Law 111–352, 124 Stat. 3866, and commonly referred 

to as Cross-Agency Priority (CAP) Goals. 

(c) ‘‘Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council’’ or ‘‘FPISC’’ means 

the entity established under 42 U.S.C. 4370m–1. 

(d) ‘‘Infrastructure project’’ means a project to develop the public and 

private physical assets that are designed to provide or support services 

to the general public in the following sectors: surface transportation, including roadways, bridges, railroads, and transit; aviation; ports, including navigational channels; water resources projects; energy production and generation, 

including from fossil, renewable, nuclear, and hydro sources; electricity 

transmission; broadband Internet; pipelines; stormwater and sewer infrastructure; drinking water infrastructure; and other sectors as may be determined 

by the FPISC. 

(e) ‘‘Major infrastructure project’’ means an infrastructure project for which 

multiple authorizations by Federal agencies will be required to proceed 

with construction, the lead Federal agency has determined that it will prepare 

an environmental impact statement (EIS) under the National Environmental 

Policy Act (NEPA), 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq., and the project sponsor has 

identified the reasonable availability of funds sufficient to complete the 

project. 

(f) ‘‘Permitting timetable’’ means an environmental review and authorization schedule, or other equivalent schedule, for a project or group of projects 

that identifies milestones—including intermediate and final completion dates 

for action by each agency on any Federal environmental review or authorization required for a project or group of projects—that is prepared by the 

lead Federal agency in consultation with all cooperating and participating 

agencies. 

Sec. 4. Agency Performance Accountability. Federal agencies should follow 

transparent and coordinated processes for conducting environmental reviews 

and making authorization decisions. These processes must include early 

and open coordination among Federal, State, tribal, and local agencies and 

early engagement with the public. Holding Federal agencies accountable 

for their progress on implementing the policy set forth in section 2 of 

this order should, among other things, produce measurably better environmental outcomes with respect to infrastructure development. 

(a) Performance Priority Goals. 

(i) CAP Goal. A CAP Goal is a Federal tool for accelerating progress 

in priority areas that require active collaboration among multiple agencies 

to overcome organizational barriers and to achieve better performance 

than one agency could achieve on its own. Within 180 days of the date 

of this order, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), 

in consultation with the FPISC, shall establish a CAP Goal on Infrastructure 

Permitting Modernization so that, where permitted by law: 

(A) Federal environmental reviews and authorization processes for infrastructure projects are consistent, coordinated, and predictable; and 

(B) the time for the Federal Government’s processing of environmental 

reviews and authorization decisions for new major infrastructure projects 

should be reduced to not more than an average of approximately 2 years, 

measured from the date of the publication of a notice of intent to prepare 

an environmental impact statement or other benchmark deemed appropriate by the Director of OMB. 

(ii) Agency Goals. All Federal agencies with environmental review, authorization, or consultation responsibilities for infrastructure projects shall 

modify their Strategic Plans and Annual Performance Plans under the 

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Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 163 / Thursday, August 24, 2017 / Presidential Documents 40465 

GPRA Modernization Act of 2010 to include agency performance goals 

related to the completion of environmental reviews and authorizations 

for infrastructure projects consistent with the new CAP Goal on Infrastructure Permitting Modernization. The agencies shall integrate the achievement of these performance goals into appropriate agency personnel performance plans, such as those of the agency Chief Environmental Review 

and Permitting Officers (CERPOs) or other appropriate officials, consistent 

with guidance to be provided by OMB, in consultation with the Office 

of Personnel Management. Progress on these goals shall be reviewed and 

analyzed by agency leadership, pursuant to the GPRA Modernization Act 

of 2010. 

(b) Accountability. Within 180 days of the establishment of the CAP Goal 

on Infrastructure Permitting Modernization, as described in subsection (a) 

of this section, or such longer period of time as determined by the Director 

of OMB, OMB, in consultation with the FPISC, shall issue guidance for 

establishing a performance accountability system to facilitate achievement 

of the CAP Goal. 

(i) Tracking of Major Infrastructure Projects. The performance accountability system shall track each major infrastructure project. The performance accountability system shall include, at a minimum, assessments of 

the agency’s performance with respect to each of the following areas, 

as applicable: 

(A) whether major infrastructure projects are processed using the ‘‘One 

Federal Decision’’ mechanism, as described in subsection 5(b) of this 

order; 

(B) whether major infrastructure projects have a permitting timetable; 

(C) whether major infrastructure projects follow an effective process 

that automatically elevates instances in which permitting timetable milestones are missed or extended, or are anticipated to be missed or extended, 

to appropriate senior agency officials; 

(D) whether agencies are meeting the established milestones in the permitting timetable; 

(E) the time it takes to complete the processing of environmental reviews 

and authorizations for each major infrastructure project; and 

(F) the costs of the environmental reviews and authorizations for each 

major infrastructure project. 

(ii) Scoring. The accountability system shall include a scoring mechanism 

that shall follow, at a minimum, the following procedures: 

(A) agencies will submit information to OMB, consistent with existing 

reporting mechanisms to the maximum extent possible, on the assessment 

areas described in subsection (b)(i) of this section; 

(B) at least once per quarter, OMB will produce a scorecard of agency 

performance and overall progress toward achieving CAP Goal targets; 

(C) where an agency’s inability to meet a permitting timetable milestone 

results in a significant delay of the project timeline, after consulting with 

the project sponsor and relevant agencies, agencies will submit (based 

on OMB guidance) an estimate of the delay’s costs to the project; and 

(D) the Director of OMB will consider each agency’s performance during 

budget formulation and determine whether appropriate penalties, including 

those authorized at 23 U.S.C. 139(h)(7) and 33 U.S.C. 2348(h)(5), must 

or should be imposed, to the extent required or permitted by law, for 

those that significantly fail to meet a permitting timetable milestone or 

in other situations deemed appropriate by the Director of OMB after considering the causes of any poor performance. 

(iii) Best Practices. Agencies shall implement the techniques and strategies 

the FPISC annually identifies as best practices pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 

4370m–1(c)(2)(B), as appropriate. The performance accountability system 

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40466 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 163 / Thursday, August 24, 2017 / Presidential Documents 

shall track and score agencies on the incorporation and implementation 

of appropriate best practices for all infrastructure projects, including the 

implementation of such best practices at an agency’s field level. 

Sec. 5. Process Enhancements. In furtherance of the policy described in 

section 2 of this order, Federal agencies shall follow a more unified environmental review and authorization process. 

(a) Processing of Major Infrastructure Projects. In processing environmental 

reviews and authorizations for major infrastructure projects, Federal agencies 

shall: 

(i) use ‘‘One Federal Decision’’ described in subsection (b) of this section; 

(ii) develop and follow a permitting timetable, which shall be reviewed 

and updated at least quarterly by the lead Federal agency in consultation 

with Federal cooperating and participating agencies; and 

(iii) follow an effective process that automatically elevates instances where 

a permitting timetable milestone is missed or extended, or is anticipated 

to be missed or extended, to appropriate senior agency officials of the 

lead Federal agency and the cooperating and participating Federal agency 

or agencies to which the milestone applies. 

(b) One Federal Decision. 

(i) Each major infrastructure project shall have a lead Federal agency, 

which shall be responsible for navigating the project through the Federal 

environmental review and authorization process, including the identification of a primary Federal point of contact at each Federal agency. All 

Federal cooperating and participating agencies shall identify points of 

contact for each project, cooperate with the lead Federal agency point 

of contact, and respond to all reasonable requests for information from 

the lead Federal agency in a timely manner. 

(ii) With respect to the applicability of NEPA to a major infrastructure 

project, the Federal lead, cooperating, and participating agencies for each 

major infrastructure project shall all record any individual agency decision 

in one Record of Decision (ROD), which shall be coordinated by the 

lead Federal agency unless the project sponsor requests that agencies 

issue separate NEPA documents, the NEPA obligations of a cooperating 

or participating agency have already been satisfied, or the lead Federal 

agency determines that a single ROD would not best promote completion 

of the project’s environmental review and authorization process. The Federal lead, cooperating, and participating agencies shall all agree to a permitting timetable that includes the completion dates for the ROD and the 

federally required authorizations for the project. 

(iii) All Federal authorization decisions for the construction of a major 

infrastructure project shall be completed within 90 days of the issuance 

of a ROD by the lead Federal agency, provided that the final EIS includes 

an adequate level of detail to inform agency decisions pursuant to their 

specific statutory authority and requirements. The lead Federal agency 

may extend the 90-day deadline if the lead Federal agency determines 

that Federal law prohibits the agency from issuing its approval or permit 

within the 90-day period, the project sponsor requests that the permit 

or approval follow a different timeline, or the lead Federal agency determines that an extension would better promote completion of the project’s 

environmental review and authorization process. 

(iv) The Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) and OMB shall develop 

the framework for implementing One Federal Decision, in consultation 

with the FPISC. 

(A) The framework should be consistent with the model processes established under 42 U.S.C. 4370m–2, 23 U.S.C. 139, 33 U.S.C. 2348, the 

2015 ‘‘Red Book’’ (officially entitled ‘‘Synchronizing Environmental Reviews for Transportation and Other Infrastructure Projects’’), and CEQ 

guidance on efficient and timely environmental reviews under NEPA. 

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(B) The framework shall also include guidance on the development 

of permitting timetables by the lead Federal agencies, in collaboration 

with Federal cooperating and participating agencies. Permitting timetables 

shall identify estimated intermediate and final completion dates for all 

environmental reviews and authorizations that are reasonably anticipated 

as being needed for a project, including the process for granting extensions 

of any established dates. The guidance shall specify that lead Federal 

agencies need not include the estimated intermediate and final completion 

dates of any such reviews or authorizations until the design of a project 

has sufficiently advanced so that they can be developed. In such cases, 

the guidance shall instruct lead Federal agencies to estimate when the 

project’s design will be advanced enough to determine such dates. The 

timelines shall account for any federally required decisions or permits 

that are assumed by, or delegated to, State, tribal, or local agencies and 

the extent to which any approval or permit to be issued by a Federal 

agency is dependent upon the issuance of such a decision or permit. 

(C) CEQ and OMB shall also develop guidance for applying One Federal 

Decision whenever the lead agency is a State, tribal, or local agency 

exercising an assignment or delegation of an agency’s NEPA responsibilities. 

(c) Dashboard. All projects subject to 23 U.S.C. 139 and ‘‘covered projects’’ 

under 42 U.S.C. 4370m shall be tracked on the Dashboard established under 

42 U.S.C. 4370m–2(b). Other projects or classes of projects subject to special 

environmental review and authorization streamlining processes similar to 

those referenced in this subsection may also be tracked on the Dashboard 

at the discretion of the FPISC Executive Director. The dates for milestones 

of all projects tracked on the Dashboard shall be updated monthly, or on 

another appropriate timeline as may be determined by the FPISC Executive 

Director. 

(d) Executive Order 13766. For purposes of implementing Executive Order 

13766 of January 24, 2017 (Expediting Environmental Reviews and Approvals 

for High Priority Infrastructure Projects), all infrastructure projects that meet 

the criteria for, and are subject to, 23 U.S.C. 139, 33 U.S.C. 2348, or 42 

U.S.C. 4370m–4370m–12 shall qualify as high priority projects under Executive Order 13766. Other projects or classes of projects subject to special 

environmental review and authorization streamlining processes, similar to 

those referenced in this subsection as may be determined by the FPISC 

Executive Director in consultation with OMB and CEQ, shall also qualify 

as high priority infrastructure projects under Executive Order 13766. The 

CEQ Chairman’s responsibilities under sections 2 and 3 of Executive Order 

13766 shall be satisfied by referring the project to the FPISC Executive 

Director, the Secretary of Transportation, or the Assistant Secretary of the 

Army for Civil Works, as appropriate. 

(e) Council on Environmental Quality. 

(i) Directives. Within 30 days of the date of this order, the CEQ shall 

develop an initial list of actions it will take to enhance and modernize 

the Federal environmental review and authorization process. Such actions 

should include issuing such regulations, guidance, and directives as CEQ 

may deem necessary to: 

(A) ensure optimal interagency coordination of environmental review 

and authorization decisions, including by providing for an expanded role 

and authorities for lead agencies, more clearly defined responsibilities 

for cooperating and participating agencies, and Government-wide applicability of NEPA decisions and analyses; 

(B) ensure that environmental reviews and authorization decisions involving multiple agencies are conducted in a manner that is concurrent, 

synchronized, timely, and efficient; 

(C) provide for agency use, to the maximum extent permitted by law, 

of environmental studies, analysis, and decisions conducted in support 

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of earlier Federal, State, tribal, or local environmental reviews or authorization decisions; and 

(D) ensure that agencies apply NEPA in a manner that reduces unnecessary burdens and delays as much as possible, including by using CEQ’s 

authority to interpret NEPA to simplify and accelerate the NEPA review 

process. 

(ii) Dispute Resolution. Except where dispute resolution processes are 

otherwise provided for in law, including under 42 U.S.C. 4370m–2, or 

by Executive Order or other Presidential directive, upon request of a 

lead Federal agency, cooperating agency, or participating agency, CEQ 

may mediate interagency disputes arising between Federal agencies concerning Federal environmental review or authorization decisions for any 

infrastructure project pertaining to any environmental law, regulation, order 

or policy, and shall facilitate resolution of any conflicting positions of 

the relevant agencies. 

(iii) Agency Procedures. CEQ shall form and lead an interagency working 

group, consisting of the Director of OMB, agency CERPOs, and such other 

representatives of agencies as CEQ deems appropriate. The working group 

shall review the NEPA implementing regulations and other environmental 

review and authorization processing policies of agencies that are members 

of the FPISC to identify impediments to efficient and effective environmental reviews and authorizations for infrastructure projects. The working 

group shall also identify those agencies that require an action plan to 

address identified impediments. Based on this review, agencies shall develop action plans that set forth the actions they will take and timelines 

for completing those actions, and they shall submit those action plans 

to CEQ and OMB for comment. Each agency’s action plan shall, at a 

minimum, establish procedures for a regular review and update of categorical exclusions, where appropriate. 

(f) Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council. 

(i) Organizational Support. Unless otherwise determined by the Director 

of OMB, the General Services Administration (GSA) shall provide necessary 

administrative and organizational support to the FPISC, including personnel, procurement, and budget support. The GSA Administrator, or 

the head of another agency designated by the Director of OMB, may 

delegate any authority to the FPISC Executive Director necessary for the 

operation and administration of the FPISC and the Office of the Executive 

Director, and the Executive Director may redelegate these authorities, as 

appropriate. 

(ii) Additional Duties. In addition to the duties and responsibilities charged 

to the FPISC Executive Director under 42 U.S.C. 4370m–4370m–12 and 

this order, the FPISC Executive Director may, upon request of a FPISC 

member agency or a project sponsor, work with the lead agency or any 

cooperating and participating agencies to facilitate the environmental review and authorization process for any infrastructure project regardless 

of whether the project is a ‘‘covered project’’ under 42 U.S.C. 4370m, 

including by resolving disputes and promoting early coordination. The 

FPISC Executive Director, the Director of OMB, or the Chairman of CEQ 

may establish any appropriate policies or procedures concerning the FPISC 

Executive Director’s facilitation of the environmental review and authorization process under this subsection. Agencies must cooperate with the 

FPISC Executive Director with respect to the implementation of these 

additional duties. 

(g) Energy Corridors. The Departments of the Interior and Agriculture, 

as appropriate, shall be the lead agencies for facilitating the identification 

and designation of energy right-of-way corridors on Federal lands for Government-wide expedited environmental review for the development of energy 

infrastructure projects. 

(h) The Department of the Interior shall provide to OMB a strategy and 

recommendations for a multi-agency reorganization effort that would further 

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Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 163 / Thursday, August 24, 2017 / Presidential Documents 40469 

the aims of this order. OMB, in consultation with the Department of the 

Interior, shall coordinate with the heads of other agencies affected to incorporate the strategy, as appropriate, into the comprehensive reorganization 

plan developed under Executive Order 13781 of March 13, 2017 (Comprehensive Plan for Reorganizing the Executive Branch). 

Sec. 6. Executive Order 13690 of January 30, 2015 (Establishing a Federal 

Flood Risk Management Standard and a Process for Further Soliciting and 

Considering Stakeholder Input), is revoked. 

Sec. 7. General Provisions. (a) Nothing in this order shall be construed 

to impair or otherwise affect: 

(i) the authority granted by law to an executive department, agency, or 

the head thereof; or 

(ii) the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget 

relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals. 

(b) This order shall be implemented consistent with applicable law and 

subject to the availability of appropriations. 

(c) This order is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, 

substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party 

against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, 

employees, or agents, or any other person. 

THE WHITE HOUSE, 

August 15, 2017. 

[FR Doc. 2017–18134 

Filed 8–23–17; 11:15 am] 

Billing code 3295–F7–P 


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