The National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), establishes the federal government's national policy for protection of the environment. The Council on Environmental Quality Regulations (CEQ Regulations) at 40 CFR parts 1500 through 1508 establish procedures implementing the national policy. The CEQ Regulations (40 CFR 1505.1) require federal agencies to adopt and, revise their own implementing procedures to supplement the CEQ Regulations.
Those subject to the final NEPA rule include EPA officials who must comply with NEPA, and certain grant or permit applicants who must submit environmental information documentation to EPA for their proposed projects. Compliance with the final NEPA regulations is the responsibility of EPA's Responsible Officials. For applicant-proposed actions, certain procedures apply to applicants (that is grantees and permit applicants) who must submit environmental information to EPA as part of the environmental review process. The EPA Responsible Official is responsible for the environmental review process, including any categorical exclusion determination or the scope, accuracy, and contents of a final environmental assessment (EA) or environmental impact statement (EIS) and any supporting documents.
The applicant contributes by submitting environmental information to EPA as part of the environmental review process. For actions subject to NEPA, the Responsible Official may determine that the proposed action does not individually or cumulatively have a significant effect on the human environment and may, therefore, be categorically excluded from further NEPA review. If the proposed action is not categorically excluded, the Responsible Official may prepare an EA in order to determine whether to prepare an EIS or a finding of no significant impact (FONSI). If necessary, the Responsible Official must prepare an EIS if the proposed action will have a significant effect on the human environment. Unless the applicant-proposed action is categorically excluded, the Responsible Official may gather the information and prepare the NEPA documents without assistance from the applicant, or have the applicant prepare an environmental information document (EID) or a draft EA and supporting documents or implement a third-party contract agreement with the applicant.
EPA is collecting information from certain applicants as part of the process of complying with either NEPA or Executive Order 12114. EPA's NEPA regulations apply to the actions of EPA that are subject to NEPA in order to ensure that environmental information is available to the Agency's decision-makers and the public before decisions are made and before actions are taken.
The NEPA review and resulting documents generally rely on the use of existing data and information, including data and information from other federal agencies, state or local governments, or federally-recognized Indian tribes with jurisdiction by law or special expertise. The quality of the information provided by an applicant must be sufficient to enable the Responsible Official to make a decision. When the environmental information is provided by the applicant, the Responsible Official is responsible for the statements, analyses, and conclusions of the EA or EIS and any supporting documents. There are no forms, checklists, or ongoing reporting, recordkeeping or file-maintenance requirements for applicants. EPA maintains file records for each action.
The information submitted by applicants would be consistent with the guidelines of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) in 5 CFR 1320.6. There are no schedule requirements or requirements on the number of copies of the documentation to be submitted or requirements for ongoing reporting or recordkeeping or to conduct statistical surveys.
US Code:
41 USC 4321-4347
Name of Law: National Environmental Policy Act
EO: EO 12114 Name/Subject of EO: Environmental Effects Abroad of Major Federal Actions
Under the current ICR, EPA estimated that approximately 75% of the annual 300 grant projects would be documented with a CE, and 25% with an EA. Under the renewal ICR, we expect the burden to be reduced due to fewer NEPA documents being completed following the elimination of awarding SAAP grants in 2010. This is further supported by information posted online in EPAâs NEPA Compliance Database on NEPA documents for its own actions that require documentation.
On behalf of this Federal agency, I certify that the collection of information encompassed by this request complies with 5 CFR 1320.9 and the related provisions of 5 CFR 1320.8(b)(3).
The following is a summary of the topics, regarding the proposed collection of information, that the certification covers:
(i) Why the information is being collected;
(ii) Use of information;
(iii) Burden estimate;
(iv) Nature of response (voluntary, required for a benefit, or mandatory);
(v) Nature and extent of confidentiality; and
(vi) Need to display currently valid OMB control number;
If you are unable to certify compliance with any of these provisions, identify the item by leaving the box unchecked and explain the reason in the Supporting Statement.
2243ss08.docx
Categorical Exclusion (CE) - for State/Local/Tribal Governments