I 
112TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 4377 
To provide for improved coordination of agency actions in the preparation 
and adoption of environmental documents for permitting determinations, 
and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
APRIL 18, 2012 
Mr. ROSS of Florida (for himself, Mr. SMITH of Texas, Mr. COBLE, and Mr. 
PETERSON) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Natural Re-
sources, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in 
each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdic-
tion of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To provide for improved coordination of agency actions in 
the preparation and adoption of environmental docu-
ments for permitting determinations, and for other pur-
poses. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Responsibly And Pro-
fessionally Invigorating Development Act of 2012’’ or as 
the ‘‘RAPID Act’’. 
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SEC. 2. COORDINATION OF AGENCY ADMINISTRATIVE OP-
ERATIONS FOR EFFICIENT DECISIONMAKING. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Part I of chapter 5 of title 5, 
United States Code, is amended by inserting after sub-
chapter II the following: 
‘‘SUBCHAPTER IIA—INTERAGENCY 
COORDINATION REGARDING PERMITTING 
‘‘560. Coordination of agency administrative operations for efficient decision-
making. 
‘‘§ 560. Coordination of agency administrative oper-
ations for efficient decisionmaking 
‘‘(a) CONGRESSIONAL DECLARATION OF PURPOSE.— 
The purpose of this subchapter is to establish a framework 
and procedures to streamline, increase the efficiency of, 
and enhance coordination of agency administration of the 
regulatory review, environmental decisionmaking, and per-
mitting process for projects undertaken, reviewed, or fund-
ed by Federal agencies. This subchapter will ensure that 
agencies administer the regulatory process in a manner 
that is efficient so that citizens are not burdened with reg-
ulatory excuses and time delays. 
‘‘(b) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this sub-
chapter, the term— 
‘‘(1) ‘agency’ means any agency, department, or 
other unit of Federal, State, local, or Indian tribal 
government; 
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‘‘(2) ‘category of projects’ means 2 or more 
projects related by project type, potential environ-
mental impacts, geographic location, or another 
similar project feature or characteristic; 
‘‘(3) ‘environmental assessment’ means a con-
cise public document for which a Federal agency is 
responsible that serves to— 
‘‘(A) briefly provide sufficient evidence and 
analysis for determining whether to prepare an 
environmental impact statement or a finding of 
no significant impact; 
‘‘(B) aid an agency’s compliance with 
NEPA when no environmental impact state-
ment is necessary; and 
‘‘(C) facilitate preparation of an environ-
mental impact statement when one is necessary; 
‘‘(4) ‘environmental impact statement’ means 
the detailed statement of significant environmental 
impacts required to be prepared under NEPA; 
‘‘(5) ‘environmental review’ means the Federal 
agency procedures for preparing an environmental 
impact statement, environmental assessment, cat-
egorical exclusion, or other document under NEPA; 
‘‘(6) ‘environmental decisionmaking process’ 
means the Federal agency procedures for under-
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taking and completion of any environmental permit, 
decision, approval, review, or study under any Fed-
eral law other than NEPA for a project subject to 
an environmental review; 
‘‘(7) ‘environmental document’ means an envi-
ronmental assessment or environmental impact 
statement; 
‘‘(8) ‘finding of no significant impact’ means a 
document by a Federal agency briefly presenting the 
reasons why a project, not otherwise subject to a 
categorical exclusion, will not have a significant ef-
fect on the human environment and for which an en-
vironmental impact statement therefore will not be 
prepared; 
‘‘(9) ‘lead agency’ means the Federal agency 
preparing or responsible for preparing the environ-
mental document; 
‘‘(10) ‘NEPA’ means the National Environ-
mental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.); 
‘‘(11) ‘project’ means major Federal actions 
that are construction activities undertaken with Fed-
eral funds or that require approval by a permit or 
regulatory decision issued by a Federal agency; 
‘‘(12) ‘project sponsor’ means the agency or 
other entity, including any private or public-private 
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entity, that seeks approval for a project or is other-
wise responsible for undertaking a project; and 
‘‘(13) ‘record of decision’ means a document 
prepared by a lead agency under NEPA following an 
environmental impact statement that states the lead 
agency’s decision, identifies the alternatives consid-
ered by the agency in reaching its decision and 
states whether all practicable means to avoid or min-
imize environmental harm from the alternative se-
lected have been adopted, and if not, why they were 
not adopted. 
‘‘(c) ROLE OF PROJECT SPONSOR.— 
‘‘(1) PREPARATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL DOCU-
MENTS.—Upon the request of any project sponsor to 
the lead agency, the project sponsor shall be author-
ized to prepare any document for purposes of an en-
vironmental review required in support of any 
project or approval by the lead agency if the lead 
agency furnishes oversight in such preparation and 
independently evaluates such document and the doc-
ument is approved and adopted by the lead agency 
prior to taking any action or making any approval 
based on such document. 
‘‘(2) AUTHORITY TO ACCEPT CONTRIBUTIONS 
OF FUNDS.—A lead agency is authorized to accept 
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voluntary contributions of funds from a project 
sponsor, which the lead agency shall use solely to 
undertake an environmental review or make a deci-
sion under an environmental law for a project for 
which a Federal agency is undertaking an environ-
mental review. 
‘‘(d) ADOPTION AND USE OF DOCUMENTS.— 
‘‘(1) DOCUMENTS PREPARED UNDER NEPA.— 
‘‘(A) Not more than 1 environmental im-
pact statement and 1 environmental assessment 
shall be prepared under NEPA for a project, 
and, except as otherwise provided by law, the 
lead agency shall prepare the environmental im-
pact statement or environmental assessment. 
After the lead agency issues a record of deci-
sion, no Federal agency responsible for making 
any approval for that project may rely on a doc-
ument other than the environmental document 
prepared by the lead agency. 
‘‘(B) Lead agencies shall adopt, use, or 
rely upon secondary and cumulative impact 
analyses included in any environmental docu-
ment prepared under NEPA for projects in the 
same geographic area where the secondary and 
cumulative impact analyses provide information 
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and data that pertains to the NEPA decision 
for the project under review. 
‘‘(2) STATE
ENVIRONMENTAL
DOCUMENTS; 
SUPPLEMENTAL DOCUMENTS.— 
‘‘(A) Upon the request of a project spon-
sor, a lead agency shall adopt a document that 
has been prepared for a project under State 
laws and procedures as the environmental im-
pact statement or environmental assessment for 
the project, provided that the State laws and 
procedures under which the document was pre-
pared provide environmental protection and op-
portunities for public involvement that are sub-
stantially equivalent to NEPA. 
‘‘(B) An environmental document adopted 
under subparagraph (A) is deemed to satisfy 
the lead agency’s obligation under NEPA to 
prepare an environmental impact statement or 
environmental assessment. 
‘‘(C) In the case of a document described 
in subparagraph (A), during the period after 
preparation of the document but before its 
adoption by the lead agency, the lead agency 
shall prepare and publish a supplement to that 
document if the lead agency determines that— 
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‘‘(i) a significant change has been 
made to the project that is relevant for 
purposes of environmental review of the 
project; or 
‘‘(ii) there have been significant 
changes in circumstances or availability of 
information relevant to the environmental 
review for the project. 
‘‘(D) If the agency prepares and publishes 
a supplemental document under subparagraph 
(C), the lead agency may solicit comments from 
agencies and the public on the supplemental 
document for a period of not more than 30 
days beginning on the date of the publication of 
the supplement. 
‘‘(E) A lead agency shall issue its record of 
decision or finding of no significant impact, as 
appropriate, based upon the document adopted 
under subparagraph (A), and any supplements 
thereto. 
‘‘(3) CONTEMPORANEOUS
PROJECTS.—If the 
lead agency determines that there is a reasonable 
likelihood that the project will have similar environ-
mental impacts as a similar project in geographical 
proximity to the project, and that similar project 
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was subject to environmental review or similar State 
procedures within the 5 year period immediately pre-
ceding the date that the lead agency makes that de-
termination, the lead agency may adopt the environ-
mental document that resulted from that environ-
mental review or similar State procedure. The lead 
agency may adopt such an environmental document, 
if it is prepared under State laws and procedures 
only upon making a favorable determination on such 
environmental document pursuant to paragraph 
(2)(A). 
‘‘(e) PARTICIPATING AGENCIES.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The lead agency shall be 
responsible for inviting and designating participating 
agencies in accordance with this subsection. The 
lead agency shall provide the invitation or notice of 
the designation in writing. 
‘‘(2) FEDERAL PARTICIPATING AGENCIES.—Any 
Federal agency that is required to adopt the envi-
ronmental document of the lead agency for a project 
shall be designated as a participating agency and 
shall collaborate on the preparation of the environ-
mental document, unless the Federal agency informs 
the lead agency, in writing, by a time specified by 
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the lead agency in the designation of the Federal 
agency that the Federal agency— 
‘‘(A) has no jurisdiction or authority with 
respect to the project; 
‘‘(B) has no expertise or information rel-
evant to the project; and 
‘‘(C) does not intend to submit comments 
on the project. 
‘‘(3) INVITATION.—The lead agency shall iden-
tify, as early as practicable in the environmental re-
view for a project, any agencies other than an agen-
cy described in paragraph (2) that may have an in-
terest in the project, including, where appropriate, 
Governors of affected States, and shall invite such 
identified agencies and Governors to become partici-
pating agencies in the environmental review for the 
project. The invitation shall set a deadline of 30 
days for responses to be submitted, which may only 
be extended by the lead agency for good cause 
shown. Any agency that fails to respond prior to the 
deadline shall be deemed to have declined the invita-
tion. 
‘‘(4) EFFECT
OF
DECLINING
PARTICIPATING 
AGENCY INVITATION.— 
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‘‘(A) Any agency that declines a designa-
tion or invitation by the lead agency to be a 
participating agency shall be precluded from 
submitting comments on or taking any meas-
ures to oppose— 
‘‘(i) the project; 
‘‘(ii) any document prepared under 
NEPA for that project; and 
‘‘(iii) any permit, license, or approval 
related to that project. 
‘‘(B) A lead agency shall disregard and 
shall not respond to or include in any document 
prepared under NEPA, any comment submitted 
by an agency that has declined an invitation or 
designation by the lead agency to be a partici-
pating agency. 
‘‘(5) EFFECT
OF
DESIGNATION.—Designation 
as a participating agency under this subsection does 
not imply that the participating agency— 
‘‘(A) supports a proposed project; or 
‘‘(B) has any jurisdiction over, or special 
expertise with respect to evaluation of, the 
project. 
‘‘(6) COOPERATING
AGENCY.—A participating 
agency may also be designated by a lead agency as 
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a ‘cooperating agency’ under the regulations con-
tained in part 1500 of title 40, Code of Federal Reg-
ulations, as in effect on January 1, 2011. Designa-
tion as a cooperating agency shall have no effect on 
designation as participating agency. No agency that 
is not a participating agency may be designated as 
a cooperating agency. 
‘‘(7) CONCURRENT
REVIEWS.—Each Federal 
agency shall— 
‘‘(A) carry out obligations of the Federal 
agency under other applicable law concurrently 
and in conjunction with the review required 
under NEPA; and 
‘‘(B) in accordance with the rules made by 
the Council on Environmental Quality pursuant 
to subsection (n)(1), make and carry out such 
rules, policies, and procedures as may be rea-
sonably necessary to enable the agency to en-
sure completion of the environmental review 
and environmental decisionmaking process in a 
timely, coordinated, and environmentally re-
sponsible manner. 
‘‘(8) COMMENTS.—Each participating agency 
shall limit its comments on a project to areas that 
are within the authority and expertise of such par-
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ticipating agency. Each participating agency shall 
identify in such comments the statutory authority of 
the participating agency pertaining to the subject 
matter of its comments. The lead agency shall not 
act upon, respond to or include in any document 
prepared under NEPA, any comment submitted by 
a participating agency that concerns matters that 
are outside of the authority and expertise of the 
commenting participating agency. 
‘‘(f) PROJECT INITIATION REQUEST.— 
‘‘(1) NOTICE.—A project sponsor shall provide 
the Federal agency responsible for undertaking a 
project with notice of the initiation of the project by 
providing a description of the proposed project, the 
general location of the proposed project, and a state-
ment of any Federal approvals anticipated to be nec-
essary for the proposed project, for the purpose of 
informing the Federal agency that the environmental 
review should be initiated. 
‘‘(2) LEAD AGENCY INITIATION.—The agency 
receiving a project initiation notice under paragraph 
(1) shall promptly identify the lead agency for the 
project, and the lead agency shall initiate the envi-
ronmental review within a period of 45 days after 
receiving the notice required by paragraph (1) by in-
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viting or designating agencies to become partici-
pating agencies, or, where the lead agency deter-
mines that no participating agencies are required for 
the project, by taking such other actions that are 
reasonable and necessary to initiate the environ-
mental review. 
‘‘(g) ALTERNATIVES ANALYSIS.— 
‘‘(1) PARTICIPATION.—As early as practicable 
during the environmental review, but no later than 
during scoping for a project requiring the prepara-
tion of an environmental impact statement, the lead 
agency shall provide an opportunity for involvement 
by cooperating agencies in determining the range of 
alternatives to be considered for a project. 
‘‘(2) RANGE
OF
ALTERNATIVES.—Following 
participation under paragraph (1), the lead agency 
shall determine the range of alternatives for consid-
eration in any document which the lead agency is re-
sponsible for preparing for the project, subject to the 
following limitations: 
‘‘(A) NO
REQUIREMENT
TO
EVALUATE 
CERTAIN ALTERNATIVES.—No Federal agency 
shall be required to evaluate any alternative 
that was identified but not carried forward for 
detailed evaluation in an environmental docu-
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project (including the issuance or denial of a permit or 
license or any required finding): 
‘‘(1) ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW DEADLINES.— 
The lead agency shall complete the environmental 
review within the following deadlines: 
‘‘(A) ENVIRONMENTAL
IMPACT
STATE-
MENT PROJECTS.—For projects requiring prep-
aration of an environmental impact statement— 
‘‘(i) the lead agency shall issue a 
record of decision within 2 years after the 
earlier of the date the lead agency receives 
the project initiation request or a Notice of 
Intent to Prepare an Environmental Im-
pact Statement is published in the Federal 
Register; and 
‘‘(ii) in circumstances where the lead 
agency has prepared an environmental as-
sessment and determined that an environ-
mental impact statement will be required, 
the lead agency shall issue a record of de-
cision within 2 years after the date of pub-
lication of the Notice of Intent to Prepare 
an Environmental Impact Statement in the 
Federal Register. 
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