Establishing Discipline and Accountability in the Environmental Review and Permitting Process for Infrastructure Projects
Record date: 2017-08-24
Executive Order 13807 of August 15, 2017 Establishing Discipline and Accountability in the Environmental Review and Permitting Process for Infrastructure Projects By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, and in order to ensure that the Federal environmental review and permitting process for infrastructure projects is coordinated, predictable, and transparent, it is hereby ordered as follows: Section 1 . Purpose. America needs increased infrastructure investment to strengthen our economy, enhance our competitiveness in world trade, create jobs and
What this record contains
- Federal Register document
- 2017-18134
- Publication date
- 2017-08-24
- Citation
- 82 FR 40463
- Issuing office
- Executive Office of the President
Official record excerpt
Executive Order 13807 of August 15, 2017 Establishing Discipline and Accountability in the Environmental Review and Permitting Process for Infrastructure Projects By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, and in order to ensure that the Federal environmental review and permitting process for infrastructure projects is coordinated, predictable, and transparent, it is hereby ordered as follows: Section 1 . Purpose. America needs increased infrastructure investment to strengthen our economy, enhance our competitiveness in world trade, create jobs and increase wages for our workers, and reduce the costs of goods and services for our families. The poor condition of America's infrastructure has been estimated to cost a typical American household thousands of dollars each year. Inefficiencies in current infrastructure project decisions, including management of environmental reviews and permit decisions or authorizations, have delayed infrastructure investments, increased project costs, and blocked the American people from enjoying improved infrastructure that would benefit our economy, society, and environment. More efficient and effective Federal infrastructure decisions can transform our economy, so the Federal Government, as a whole, must change the way it processes environmental reviews and authorization decisions. Sec. 2 . Policy. It is the policy of the Federal Government to: (a) safeguard our communities and maintain a healthy environment; (b) ensure that Federal authorities make informed decisions concerning the environmental impacts of infrastructure projects; (c) develop infrastructure in an environmentally sensitive manner; (d) provide transparency and accountability to the public regarding environmental review and authorization decisions; (e) be good stewards of public funds, including those used to develop infrastructure projects, and avoid duplicative and wasteful processes; (f) conduct environmental reviews and authorization processes in a coordinated, consistent, predictable, and timely manner in order to give public and private investors the confidence necessary to make funding decisions for new infrastructure projects; (g) speak with a coordinated voice when conducting environmental reviews and making authorization decisions; and (h) make timely decisions with the goal of completing all Federal environmental reviews and authorization decisions for major infrastructure projects within 2 years. Sec. 3 . Definitions. The terms of this order shall be applied consistently with those defined under 42 U.S.C. 4370m and implementing guidance to the maximum extent possible. The following definitions shall specifically apply: (a) “Authorization” means any license, permit, approval, finding, determination, or other administrative decision issued by a Federal department or agency (agency) that is required or authorized under Federal law in ( printed page 40464) order to site, construct, reconstruct, or commence operations of an infrastructure project, including any authorization under 42 U.S.C. 4370m(3) . (b) “CAP Goals” means Federal Government Priority Goals established by the Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) Modernization Act of 2010, Public Law 111-352 , 124 Stat. 3866, and commonly referred to as Cross-Agency Priority (CAP) Goals. (c) “Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council” or “FPISC” means the entity established under 42 U.S.C. 4370m-1 . (d) “Infrastructure project” means a project to develop the public and private physical assets that are designed to provide or support services to the general public in the following sectors: surface transportation, including roadways, bridges, railroads, and transit; aviation; ports, including navigational channels; water resources projects; energy production and generation, including from fossil, renewable, nuclear, and hydro sources; electricity transmission; broadband Internet; pipelines; stormwater and sewer infrastructure; drinking water infrastructure; and other sectors as may be determined by the FPISC. (e) “Major infrastructure project” means an infrastructure project for which multiple authorizations by Federal agencies will be required to proceed with construction, the lead Federal agency has determined that it will prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq., and the project sponsor has identified the reasonable availability of funds sufficient to complete the project. (f) “Permitting timetable” means an environmental review and authorization schedule, or other equivalent schedule, for a project or group of projects that identifies milestones—including intermediate and final completion dates for action by each agency on any Federal environmental review or authorization required for a project or group of projects—that is prepared by the lead Federal agency in consultation with all cooperating and participating agencies. Sec. 4 .
The excerpt is reproduced from the public federal record and may omit later sections, tables, signatures or attachments. Open the official source for the complete text.
Questions for accountability
- What legal authority does this economy action cite?
- Which agencies or officials were directed to act?
- What measurable implementation, cost, deadline or later court action followed?
How to use this page
This is a source-record entry, not a truth-rating by itself. It preserves the action, date and original government publication so it can be connected to later claims, implementation records, court decisions, costs and measurable outcomes. Editorial claim reviews on this site use separate finding labels and explain the evidence for those findings.