42 U.S.C. 4332 Cooperation of agencies; reports; availability of information; recommendations; international and national coordination of efforts

§ 4332

TITLE 42—THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE

§ 4332. Cooperation of agencies; reports; availability of information; recommendations;
international and national coordination of
efforts
The Congress authorizes and directs that, to
the fullest extent possible: (1) the policies, regulations, and public laws of the United States
shall be interpreted and administered in accordance with the policies set forth in this chapter,
and (2) all agencies of the Federal Government
shall—
(A) utilize a systematic, interdisciplinary
approach which will insure the integrated use
of the natural and social sciences and the environmental design arts in planning and in decisionmaking which may have an impact on
man’s environment;
(B) identify and develop methods and procedures, in consultation with the Council on Environmental Quality established by subchapter II of this chapter, which will insure
that presently unquantified environmental
amenities and values may be given appropriate consideration in decisionmaking along
with economic and technical considerations;
(C) include in every recommendation or report on proposals for legislation and other
major Federal actions significantly affecting
the quality of the human environment, a detailed statement by the responsible official
on—
(i) the environmental impact of the proposed action,
(ii) any adverse environmental effects
which cannot be avoided should the proposal
be implemented,
(iii) alternatives to the proposed action,
(iv) the relationship between local shortterm uses of man’s environment and the
maintenance and enhancement of long-term
productivity, and
(v) any irreversible and irretrievable commitments of resources which would be involved in the proposed action should it be
implemented.
Prior to making any detailed statement, the
responsible Federal official shall consult with
and obtain the comments of any Federal agency which has jurisdiction by law or special expertise with respect to any environmental impact involved. Copies of such statement and
the comments and views of the appropriate
Federal, State, and local agencies, which are
authorized to develop and enforce environmental standards, shall be made available to
the President, the Council on Environmental
Quality and to the public as provided by section 552 of title 5, and shall accompany the
proposal through the existing agency review
processes;
(D) Any detailed statement required under
subparagraph (C) after January 1, 1970, for any
major Federal action funded under a program
of grants to States shall not be deemed to be
legally insufficient solely by reason of having
been prepared by a State agency or official, if:
(i) the State agency or official has statewide jurisdiction and has the responsibility
for such action,
(ii) the responsible Federal official furnishes guidance and participates in such
preparation,

Page 5252

(iii) the responsible Federal official independently evaluates such statement prior to
its approval and adoption, and
(iv) after January 1, 1976, the responsible
Federal official provides early notification
to, and solicits the views of, any other State
or any Federal land management entity of
any action or any alternative thereto which
may have significant impacts upon such
State or affected Federal land management
entity and, if there is any disagreement on
such impacts, prepares a written assessment
of such impacts and views for incorporation
into such detailed statement.
The procedures in this subparagraph shall not
relieve the Federal official of his responsibilities for the scope, objectivity, and content of
the entire statement or of any other responsibility under this chapter; and further, this
subparagraph does not affect the legal sufficiency of statements prepared by State agencies with less than statewide jurisdiction.1
(E) study, develop, and describe appropriate
alternatives to recommended courses of action
in any proposal which involves unresolved
conflicts concerning alternative uses of available resources;
(F) recognize the worldwide and long-range
character of environmental problems and,
where consistent with the foreign policy of the
United States, lend appropriate support to initiatives, resolutions, and programs designed to
maximize international cooperation in anticipating and preventing a decline in the quality
of mankind’s world environment;
(G) make available to States, counties, municipalities, institutions, and individuals, advice and information useful in restoring,
maintaining, and enhancing the quality of the
environment;
(H) initiate and utilize ecological information in the planning and development of resource-oriented projects; and
(I) assist the Council on Environmental
Quality established by subchapter II of this
chapter.
(Pub. L. 91–190, title I, § 102, Jan. 1, 1970, 83 Stat.
853; Pub. L. 94–83, Aug. 9, 1975, 89 Stat. 424.)
AMENDMENTS
1975—Subpars. (D) to (I). Pub. L. 94–83 added subpar.
(D) and redesignated former subpars. (D) to (H) as (E)
to (I), respectively.
CERTAIN COMMERCIAL SPACE LAUNCH ACTIVITIES
Pub. L. 104–88, title IV, § 401, Dec. 29, 1995, 109 Stat.
955, provided that: ‘‘The licensing of a launch vehicle or
launch site operator (including any amendment, extension, or renewal of the license) under [former] chapter
701 of title 49, United States Code [now chapter 509
(§ 50901 et seq.) of Title 51, National and Commercial
Space Programs], shall not be considered a major Federal action for purposes of section 102(C) of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C.
4332(C)) if—
‘‘(1) the Department of the Army has issued a permit for the activity; and
‘‘(2) the Army Corps of Engineers has found that
the activity has no significant impact.’’
1 So

in original. The period probably should be a semicolon.

Page 5253

TITLE 42—THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE

EX. ORD. NO. 13352. FACILITATION OF COOPERATIVE
CONSERVATION
Ex. Ord. No. 13352, Aug. 26, 2004, 69 F.R. 52989, provided:
By the authority vested in me as President by the
Constitution and the laws of the United States of
America, it is hereby ordered as follows:
SECTION 1. Purpose. The purpose of this order is to ensure that the Departments of the Interior, Agriculture,
Commerce, and Defense and the Environmental Protection Agency implement laws relating to the environment and natural resources in a manner that promotes
cooperative conservation, with an emphasis on appropriate inclusion of local participation in Federal decisionmaking, in accordance with their respective agency
missions, policies, and regulations.
SEC. 2. Definition. As used in this order, the term ‘‘cooperative conservation’’ means actions that relate to
use, enhancement, and enjoyment of natural resources,
protection of the environment, or both, and that involve collaborative activity among Federal, State,
local, and tribal governments, private for-profit and
nonprofit institutions, other nongovernmental entities
and individuals.
SEC. 3. Federal Activities. To carry out the purpose of
this order, the Secretaries of the Interior, Agriculture,
Commerce, and Defense and the Administrator of the
Environmental Protection Agency shall, to the extent
permitted by law and subject to the availability of appropriations and in coordination with each other as appropriate:
(a) carry out the programs, projects, and activities of
the agency that they respectively head that implement
laws relating to the environment and natural resources
in a manner that:
(i) facilitates cooperative conservation;
(ii) takes appropriate account of and respects the
interests of persons with ownership or other legally
recognized interests in land and other natural resources;
(iii) properly accommodates local participation in
Federal decisionmaking; and
(iv) provides that the programs, projects, and activities are consistent with protecting public health
and safety;
(b) report annually to the Chairman of the Council on
Environmental Quality on actions taken to implement
this order; and
(c) provide funding to the Office of Environmental
Quality Management Fund (42 U.S.C. 4375) for the Conference for which section 4 of this order provides.
SEC. 4. White House Conference on Cooperative Conservation. The Chairman of the Council on Environmental Quality shall, to the extent permitted by law
and subject to the availability of appropriations:
(a) convene not later than 1 year after the date of
this order, and thereafter at such times as the Chairman deems appropriate, a White House Conference on
Cooperative Conservation (Conference) to facilitate the
exchange of information and advice relating to (i) cooperative conservation and (ii) means for achievement of
the purpose of this order; and
(b) ensure that the Conference obtains information in
a manner that seeks from Conference participants their
individual advice and does not involve collective judgment or consensus advice or deliberation.
SEC. 5. General Provision. 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, instrumentalities or entities, its officers, employees or agents, or any other person.
GEORGE W. BUSH.

§ 4333. Conformity of administrative procedures
to national environmental policy
All agencies of the Federal Government shall
review their present statutory authority, admin-

§ 4342

istrative regulations, and current policies and
procedures for the purpose of determining
whether there are any deficiencies or inconsistencies therein which prohibit full compliance
with the purposes and provisions of this chapter
and shall propose to the President not later than
July 1, 1971, such measures as may be necessary
to bring their authority and policies into conformity with the intent, purposes, and procedures set forth in this chapter.
(Pub. L. 91–190, title I, § 103, Jan. 1, 1970, 83 Stat.
854.)
§ 4334. Other statutory obligations of agencies
Nothing in section 4332 or 4333 of this title
shall in any way affect the specific statutory obligations of any Federal agency (1) to comply
with criteria or standards of environmental
quality, (2) to coordinate or consult with any
other Federal or State agency, or (3) to act, or
refrain from acting contingent upon the recommendations or certification of any other Federal
or State agency.
(Pub. L. 91–190, title I, § 104, Jan. 1, 1970, 83 Stat.
854.)
§ 4335. Efforts supplemental to existing authorizations
The policies and goals set forth in this chapter
are supplementary to those set forth in existing
authorizations of Federal agencies.
(Pub. L. 91–190, title I, § 105, Jan. 1, 1970, 83 Stat.
854.)
SUBCHAPTER II—COUNCIL ON
ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
§ 4341. Omitted
CODIFICATION
Section, Pub. L. 91–190, title II, § 201, Jan. 1, 1970, 83
Stat. 854, which required the President to transmit to
Congress annually an Environmental Quality Report,
terminated, effective May 15, 2000, pursuant to section
3003 of Pub. L. 104–66, as amended, set out as a note
under section 1113 of Title 31, Money and Finance. See,
also, item 1 on page 41 of House Document No. 103–7.

§ 4342. Establishment; membership; Chairman;
appointments
There is created in the Executive Office of the
President a Council on Environmental Quality
(hereinafter referred to as the ‘‘Council’’). The
Council shall be composed of three members who
shall be appointed by the President to serve at
his pleasure, by and with the advice and consent
of the Senate. The President shall designate one
of the members of the Council to serve as Chairman. Each member shall be a person who, as a
result of his training, experience, and attainments, is exceptionally well qualified to analyze
and interpret environmental trends and information of all kinds; to appraise programs and
activities of the Federal Government in the
light of the policy set forth in subchapter I of
this chapter; to be conscious of and responsive
to the scientific, economic, social, esthetic, and
cultural needs and interests of the Nation; and
to formulate and recommend national policies
to promote the improvement of the quality of
the environment.