public convenience and necessity under section 7 of 
such Act, the Commission shall designate an agency 
identified under paragraph (1) as a participating 
agency with respect to an application for authoriza-
tion under section 3 of the Natural Gas Act or a 
certificate of public convenience and necessity under 
section 7 of such Act unless the agency informs the 
Commission, in writing, by the deadline established 
pursuant to paragraph (2)(B), that the agency— 
(A) has no jurisdiction or authority with 
respect to the applicable Federal authorization; 
(B) has no special expertise or information 
relevant to any project-related NEPA review; or 
(C) does not intend to submit comments 
for the record for the project-related NEPA re-
view conducted by the Commission. 
(4) EFFECT OF NON-DESIGNATION.— 
(A) EFFECT
ON
AGENCY.—Any agency 
that is not designated as a participating agency 
under paragraph (3) with respect to an applica-
tion for an authorization under section 3 of the 
Natural Gas Act or a certificate of public con-
venience and necessity under section 7 of such 
Act may not request or conduct a NEPA review 
that is supplemental to the project-related 
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NEPA review conducted by the Commission, 
unless the agency— 
(i) demonstrates that such review is 
legally necessary for the agency to carry 
out responsibilities in considering an as-
pect of an application for a Federal au-
thorization; and 
(ii) requires information that could 
not have been obtained during the project- 
related NEPA review conducted by the 
Commission. 
(B) COMMENTS; RECORD.—The Commis-
sion shall not, with respect to an agency that is 
not designated as a participating agency under 
paragraph (3) with respect to an application for 
an authorization under section 3 of the Natural 
Gas Act or a certificate of public convenience 
and necessity under section 7 of such Act— 
(i) consider any comments or other in-
formation submitted by such agency for 
the project-related NEPA review conducted 
by the Commission; or 
(ii) include any such comments or 
other information in the record for such 
project-related NEPA review. 
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(e) WATER QUALITY IMPACTS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding section 401 
of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 
U.S.C. 1341), an applicant for a Federal authoriza-
tion shall not be required to provide a certification 
under such section with respect to the Federal au-
thorization. 
(2) COORDINATION.—With respect to any 
NEPA review for a Federal authorization to conduct 
an activity that will directly result in a discharge 
into the navigable waters (within the meaning of the 
Federal Water Pollution Control Act), the Commis-
sion shall identify as an agency under subsection 
(d)(1) the State in which the discharge originates or 
will originate, or, if appropriate, the interstate water 
pollution control agency having jurisdiction over the 
navigable waters at the point where the discharge 
originates or will originate. 
(3) PROPOSED CONDITIONS.—A State or inter-
state agency designated as a participating agency 
pursuant to paragraph (2) may propose to the Com-
mission terms or conditions for inclusion in an au-
thorization under section 3 of the Natural Gas Act 
or a certificate of public convenience and necessity 
under section 7 of such Act that the State or inter-
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state agency determines are necessary to ensure that 
any activity described in paragraph (2) conducted 
pursuant to such authorization or certification will 
comply with the applicable provisions of sections 
301, 302, 303, 306, and 307 of the Federal Water 
Pollution Control Act. 
(4) COMMISSION
CONSIDERATION
OF
CONDI-
TIONS.—The Commission may include a term or 
condition in an authorization under section 3 of the 
Natural Gas Act or a certificate of public conven-
ience and necessity under section 7 of such Act pro-
posed by a State or interstate agency under para-
graph (3) only if the Commission finds that the term 
or condition is necessary to ensure that any activity 
described in paragraph (2) conducted pursuant to 
such authorization or certification will comply with 
the applicable provisions of sections 301, 302, 303, 
306, and 307 of the Federal Water Pollution Con-
trol Act. 
(f) SCHEDULE.— 
(1) DEADLINE
FOR
FEDERAL
AUTHORIZA-
TIONS.—A deadline for a Federal authorization re-
quired with respect to an application for authoriza-
tion under section 3 of the Natural Gas Act or a 
certificate of public convenience and necessity under 
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section 7 of such Act set by the Commission under 
section 15(c)(1) of such Act shall be not later than 
90 days after the Commission completes its project- 
related NEPA review, unless an applicable schedule 
is otherwise established by Federal law. 
(2) CONCURRENT REVIEWS.—Each Federal and 
State agency— 
(A) that may consider an application for a 
Federal authorization required with respect to 
an application for authorization under section 3 
of the Natural Gas Act or a certificate of public 
convenience and necessity under section 7 of 
such Act shall formulate and implement a plan 
for administrative, policy, and procedural mech-
anisms to enable the agency to ensure comple-
tion of Federal authorizations in compliance 
with schedules established by the Commission 
under section 15(c)(1) of such Act; and 
(B) in considering an aspect of an applica-
tion for a Federal authorization required with 
respect to an application for authorization 
under section 3 of the Natural Gas Act or a 
certificate of public convenience and necessity 
under section 7 of such Act, shall— 
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(i) formulate and implement a plan to 
enable the agency to comply with the 
schedule established by the Commission 
under section 15(c)(1) of such Act; 
(ii) carry out the obligations of that 
agency under applicable law concurrently, 
and in conjunction with, the project-related 
NEPA review conducted by the Commis-
sion, and in compliance with the schedule 
established by the Commission under sec-
tion 15(c)(1) of such Act, unless the agen-
cy notifies the Commission in writing that 
doing so would impair the ability of the 
agency to conduct needed analysis or oth-
erwise carry out such obligations; 
(iii) transmit to the Commission a 
statement— 
(I) acknowledging receipt of the 
schedule established by the Commis-
sion under section 15(c)(1) of the 
Natural Gas Act; and 
(II) setting forth the plan formu-
lated under clause (i) of this subpara-
graph; 
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(iv) not later than 30 days after the 
agency receives such application for a Fed-
eral authorization, transmit to the appli-
cant a notice— 
(I) indicating whether such appli-
cation is ready for processing; and 
(II) if such application is not 
ready for processing, that includes a 
comprehensive description of the in-
formation needed for the agency to 
determine that the application is 
ready for processing; 
(v) determine that such application 
for a Federal authorization is ready for 
processing for purposes of clause (iv) if 
such application is sufficiently complete for 
the purposes of commencing consideration, 
regardless of whether supplemental infor-
mation is necessary to enable the agency to 
complete the consideration required by law 
with respect to such application; and 
(vi) not less often than once every 90 
days, transmit to the Commission a report 
describing the progress made in consid-
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ering such application for a Federal au-
thorization. 
(3) FAILURE TO MEET DEADLINE.—If a Fed-
eral or State agency, including the Commission, fails 
to meet a deadline for a Federal authorization set 
forth in the schedule established by the Commission 
under section 15(c)(1) of the Natural Gas Act, not 
later than 5 days after such deadline, the head of 
the relevant Federal agency (including, in the case 
of a failure by a State agency, the Federal agency 
overseeing the delegated authority) shall notify Con-
gress and the Commission of such failure and set 
forth a recommended implementation plan to ensure 
completion of the action to which such deadline ap-
plied. 
(g) CONSIDERATION
OF APPLICATIONS
FOR FED-
ERAL AUTHORIZATION.— 
(1) ISSUE
IDENTIFICATION
AND
RESOLU-
TION.— 
(A) IDENTIFICATION.—Federal and State 
agencies that may consider an aspect of an ap-
plication for a Federal authorization shall iden-
tify, as early as possible, any issues of concern 
that may delay or prevent an agency from 
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working with the Commission to resolve such 
issues and granting such authorization. 
(B) ISSUE RESOLUTION.—The Commission 
may forward any issue of concern identified 
under subparagraph (A) to the heads of the rel-
evant agencies (including, in the case of an 
issue of concern that is a failure by a State 
agency, the Federal agency overseeing the dele-
gated authority, if applicable) for resolution. 
(2) REMOTE SURVEYS.—If a Federal or State 
agency considering an aspect of an application for a 
Federal authorization requires the person applying 
for such authorization to submit data, the agency 
shall consider any such data gathered by aerial or 
other remote means that the person submits. The 
agency may grant a conditional approval for the 
Federal authorization based on data gathered by 
aerial or remote means, conditioned on the 
verification of such data by subsequent onsite in-
spection. 
(3) APPLICATION PROCESSING.—The Commis-
sion, and Federal and State agencies, may allow a 
person applying for a Federal authorization to fund 
a third-party contractor to assist in reviewing the 
application for such authorization. 
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(h) 
ACCOUNTABILITY, 
TRANSPARENCY, 
EFFI-
CIENCY.—For an application for an authorization under 
section 3 of the Natural Gas Act or a certificate of public 
convenience and necessity under section 7 of such Act that 
requires multiple Federal authorizations, the Commission, 
with input from any Federal or State agency considering 
an aspect of the application, shall track and make avail-
able to the public on the Commission’s website information 
related to the actions required to complete the Federal au-
thorizations. Such information shall include the following: 
(1) The schedule established by the Commission 
under section 15(c)(1) of the Natural Gas Act. 
(2) A list of all the actions required by each ap-
plicable agency to complete permitting, reviews, and 
other actions necessary to obtain a final decision on 
the application. 
(3) The expected completion date for each such 
action. 
(4) A point of contact at the agency responsible 
for each such action. 
(5) In the event that an action is still pending 
as of the expected date of completion, a brief expla-
nation of the reasons for the delay. 
(i) PIPELINE SECURITY.—In considering an applica-
tion for an authorization under section 3 of the Natural 
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Gas Act or a certificate of public convenience and neces-
sity under section 7 of such Act, the Federal Energy Reg-
ulatory Commission shall consult with the Administrator 
of the Transportation Security Administration regarding 
the applicant’s compliance with security guidance and best 
practice recommendations of the Administration regarding 
pipeline infrastructure security, pipeline cybersecurity, 
pipeline personnel security, and other pipeline security 
measures. 
Æ 
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