STB seeks input on proposed permitting reforms

The Surface Transportation Board is seeking public comment on its new proposal to modernize and reform the board's permitting process. 

The proposed rule would accelerate the approval of rail infrastructure projects and lower costs across the transportation network, STB officials said in a press release. The board's unanimous decision to propose the rule promotes focused and efficient environmental review while ensuring the agency’s process informs the board’s decision-making and facilitates public participation, they added.

The rule would also align the agency’s process with current law and practices, including guidance from the Council on Environmental Quality and the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Seven County Infrastructure Coalition v. Eagle County, Colorado, STB officials said.

“Today’s proposed permitting reform would lead to more expeditious and cost-effective environmental reviews by focusing on appropriate analyses rather than unnecessary paperwork," said STB Chairman Patrick Fuchs.

Comments are due April 24. 

The board's proposed changes call for:

• expanding categorical exclusions for actions that normally do not significantly affect the quality of the environment, such as construction of connecting track within an existing rail right-of-way, as well as abandonments and discontinuances that do not involve salvage or substantial traffic diversions; 

• updating procedures for preparing environmental assessments and environmental impact statements;

• modernizing interagency coordination, including updating consultation lists and procedures for designating and coordinating among lead, cooperating and participating agencies, consistent with National Environmental Review Act (NEPA).

• increasing transparency by clarifying how the board determines the appropriate level of NEPA review;

• streamlining decision-making;

• improving applicant-prepared environmental reports by refining information requirements and requiring earlier agency consultations to reduce delays; and

• addressing emergency situations by creating transparent and faster procedures.

Under NEPA, the STB conducts environmental reviews to evaluate the “reasonably foreseeable” environmental effects of the board’s major federal actions before making a final decision on an action. These reviews often involve public meetings, extensive public comment and detailed written analyses. However, the board’s environmental regulations have not been comprehensively revised since 1991, despite significant changes to the board’s statutory authority and to NEPA’s legal and regulatory framework, STB officials said.

In the Seven County decision, the Supreme Court unanimously confirmed the broad discretion of federal agencies to determine the appropriate scope of environmental reviews and, more specifically, upheld the STB’s analysis in a multiyear environmental review of a Utah rail construction project intended to transport energy resources, among other commodities.