New regulations took effect last month governing the federal environmental review process for highway, public transit and some railroad projects. This update highlights 10 important changes in the new regulations, as well as...more
12/21/2018
/ Construction Project ,
Department of Transportation (DOT) ,
Environmental Impact Report (EIR) ,
Environmental Policies ,
Federal Railroad Administration ,
Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (FAST Act) ,
MAP-21 ,
NEPA ,
New Regulations ,
Railways ,
Transportation Industry
The Environmental Protection Agency and the Army Corps of Engineers announced a proposed rule to redefine the term “waters of the United States” under the Clean Water Act on December 11, 2018. The proposed rule, which awaits...more
12/18/2018
/ Bright-Line Rule ,
Certiorari ,
Clean Water Act ,
Clean Water Rule ,
Comment Period ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Jurisdiction ,
NEPA ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Proposed Rules ,
SCOTUS ,
Trump Administration ,
US Army Corps of Engineers ,
Water ,
Waters of the United States
The United States Department of Transportation recently released its latest policy statement on automated vehicle technologies, Automated Driving Systems 3.0: Preparing for the Future of Transportation. This new policy...more
Late last week, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service withdrew two environmental policies adopted in late 2016 by the Obama administration that address mitigation for impacts to natural resources. These two policies established...more
8/2/2018
/ Bureau of Land Management ,
Conservation ,
Critical Habitat ,
Deregulation ,
Endangered Species ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Policies ,
FLPMA ,
Mitigation ,
NEPA ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) (collectively, the Services) published three proposed rules last week that would revise the regulations implementing portions of the...more
The Council on Environmental Quality yesterday issued an advance notice of proposed rulemaking inviting input on potential changes to the CEQ regulations under the National Environmental Policy Act, the federal law that...more
On April 9, 2018, the heads of a dozen federal agencies executed a memorandum of understanding on implementation of Executive Order 13807, which directed federal agencies to expedite environmental review and permitting for...more
The Federal Communications Commission recently adopted an order containing sweeping regulatory changes to speed the deployment of advanced wireless services to provide connectivity for innovative Internet of Things, augmented...more
4/17/2018
/ 5G Network ,
Cell Towers ,
Deregulation ,
Environmental Assessments ,
FCC ,
Infrastructure ,
Land Use Restrictions ,
NEPA ,
NHPA ,
Statutory Requirements ,
Technology Sector ,
Telecommunications ,
Tribal Lands ,
Wireless Devices ,
Wireless Industry
On February 12, 2018, the White House released a set of proposals to streamline the federal environmental review process for infrastructure projects. The 55-page “Legislative Outline for Rebuilding Infrastructure in America”...more
The Washington Post last week reported a leaked White House document that revealed a far-reaching set of proposals to streamline the environmental review process for infrastructure projects. The 23-page document included more...more
2/1/2018
/ Clean Water Act ,
Construction Project ,
Department of Transportation (DOT) ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Review ,
Exclusive Jurisdiction ,
Funding Requirements ,
Infrastructure ,
Judicial Review ,
Land-Use Permits ,
NEPA ,
Section 401 ,
Statute of Limitations
Last week, three U.S. Department of Transportation agencies issued requests for comment on ways to update federal regulations and policies to allow for the safe testing and deployment of autonomous vehicles (AVs):
The...more
Reversing a district court decision that had delayed work on the $2.4 billion Purple Line light rail transit project in Maryland, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit has held that the Federal...more
1/8/2018
/ Construction Project ,
Department of Transportation (DOT) ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Impact Report (EIR) ,
Federal Transit Administration ,
High-Speed Rail ,
Light Rail ,
Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) ,
NEPA ,
Railways ,
Surface Transportation ,
Transportation Industry
President Donald J. Trump issued Executive Order 13807, on August 15, 2017, which is intended to accelerate the environmental review and permitting for infrastructure projects that require an environmental impact statement...more
8/28/2017
/ Clean Water Act ,
Deregulation ,
Environmental Impact Report (EIR) ,
Environmental Review ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Land ,
Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (FAST Act) ,
Flood Zones ,
Infrastructure ,
NEPA ,
Permits ,
Revocation ,
Trump Administration
Title 41 of the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (FAST-41) includes measures to streamline environmental reviews for certain infrastructure projects. Congress passed the FAST Act in December 2015, and the Office of...more
The House Subcommittee on Digital Commerce and Consumer Protection reached bipartisan agreement on July 19, 2017, regarding major aspects of legislation to address the testing and deployment of autonomous vehicles. The...more
The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) announced today that it has initiated a review of its existing policies, guidance documents and regulations to identify “unnecessary obstacles to” transportation infrastructure...more
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has issued a comprehensive policy on “automated vehicles,” more commonly known as self-driving cars. Part of the U.S. Department of Transportation, NHTSA is the...more
10/3/2016
/ Auto Insurance ,
Automotive Industry ,
Comment Period ,
Connected Cars ,
Covered Entities ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data-Sharing ,
Department of Transportation (DOT) ,
Driverless Cars ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Internet of Things ,
NHTSA ,
Privacy Concerns ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Technology
A recent opinion from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit provides a useful roadmap for U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ review of major infrastructure projects under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act. See...more
On August 30, 2013, the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) proposed regulations for the Surface Transportation Project Delivery Program, a program that allows states to assume federal environmental review authority for...more