	Introduction

Under programs administered by the Department of Transportation's (DOT's) Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), certain highway and bridge projects may be eligible to receive federal-aid funding. As a condition of receiving those funds, a project sponsor (e.g., a local or state transportation agency) must meet certain standards and requirements applicable to activities completed at every stage of project development. Although the names of those stages may vary somewhat from state to state, those stages generally include initial project planning, preliminary design/engineering and environmental review, final design and rights-of-way acquisition, construction, and facility operation and maintenance. When there is debate over the time it takes to complete federally funded highway projects, particularly debate over activities that may expedite or delay project delivery, various elements of the environmental review stage of project development have been the focus of attention. The two most recent laws authorizing DOT programs included requirements intended to expedite the environmental review process that focused primarily on procedures necessary to demonstrate compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA, 42 U.S.C. §4321 et seq.). Current legislation to authorize DOT programs in the House and the Senate (the American Energy and Infrastructure Jobs Act of 2012 ( H.R. 7 ) and Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21 st Century (MAP-21; S. 1813 )) also include provisions intended to expedite project delivery that focus primarily on the NEPA process. NEPA has two primary aims—to assure that federal agencies consider the environmental effects of their actions before proceeding with them and to involve the public in the decision-making process. However, the following factors call into question the degree to which NEPA alone is a significant source of project delay in overall project development:
The majority of projects require limited review under NEPA. The NEPA compliance process is used to demonstrate compliance with all applicable environmental review requirements . Supplemental documents may be required in some instances. Among other requirements, the new process
requires the project sponsor to notify DOT of the type of work, termini, length, general location of the proposed project, and a statement of any anticipated federal approvals; establishes a new entity required to participate in the NEPA process, referred to as a "participating agency," which includes any federal, state, tribal, regional, and local government agencies that may have an interest in the project; requires the lead agency to establish a plan for coordinating public and agency participation in and comment on the environmental review process for a project or category of projects; requires the lead agency to establish a 60-day deadline on agency and public comments on a draft EIS and a 30-day deadline on all other comment periods in the environmental review process, except under certain circumstances (e.g., the deadline is extended by the lead agency for "good cause"); and prohibits claims seeking judicial review of a permit, license, or approval issued by a federal agency for highway or transit projects unless they are filed within 180 days after publication of a notice in the Federal Register announcing the final agency action, unless a shorter time is specified in the federal law under which the judicial review is allowed (previously, the six-year limit under the Administrative Procedure Act applied to NEPA-related claims). However, it may be the threat of litigation that affects its current implementation. Demonstrating Compliance with Additional Requirements

Unlike NEPA, which will apply in some way to all federally funded highway projects, additional environmental requirements applicable to a project will depend on site-specific conditions and potential impacts to resources at the site. Further, although there are no comprehensive data and available information tends to be anecdotal, when delays in the environmental review process have been identified, they primarily stemmed from local or project-specific issues (e.g., project complexity, changes in state priorities, or late changes in project scope). Surveys and Studies Applicable to the Environmental Review Process

In this report, summary information and conclusions regarding factors applicable to measuring the stages of project development, the time it takes to complete the environmental review process, and primary sources of delay or perceptions among transportation agency officials regarding causes of delay in completing the environmental review process were drawn from data included in the following surveys and studies conducted by FHWA, GAO, universities, or transportation organizations:
Federal Highway Administration (available on FHWA's "Environmental Toolkit: Streamlining/Stewardship—Performance Reporting" website, http://environment.fhwa.dot.gov/strmlng/es10measures.asp ).
Under programs administered by the Department of Transportation's (DOT's) Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), certain highway and bridge projects may be eligible for federal funding. Project approval and the receipt of federal funds are conditioned on the project sponsor (e.g., a local public works or state transportation agency) meeting certain standards and complying with federal law. Activities necessary to demonstrate compliance with those requirements may be completed at various stages of project development. Although the names of each stage may vary from state to state, project development generally includes the following: planning, preliminary design and environmental review, final design and rights-of-way acquisition, construction, and facility operation and maintenance.
When there is debate over the time it takes to complete federal highway projects, the environmental review stage has been a primary focus of congressional attention concerning legislative options to speed project delivery. The current process includes activities necessary to demonstrate that all potential project-related impacts to the human, natural, and cultural environment are identified; effects of those impacts are taken into consideration (among other factors such as economic or community benefits) before a final decision is made; the public is included in that decision-making process; and all state, tribal, or federal compliance requirements applicable as a result of the project's environmental impacts are, or will be, met.
Compliance requirements depend on site-specific factors, including the size and scope of the project, and whether and to what degree it may affect resources such as parks, historic sites, water resources, wetlands, or urban communities. For all proposed federal-aid highway projects, however, some level of review will be required under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA, 42 U.S.C. §4321 et seq.). Broadly, NEPA requires federal agencies to consider the environmental effects of an action before proceeding with it and to involve the public in the decision-making process.
The time it takes to complete the NEPA process is often the focus of debate over project delays attributable to the overall environmental review stage. However, the majority of FHWA-approved projects require limited documentation or analyses under NEPA. Further, when environmental requirements have caused project delays, requirements established under laws other than NEPA have generally been the source. This calls into question the degree to which the NEPA compliance process is a significant source of delay in completing either the environmental review process or overall project delivery. Causes of delay that have been identified are more often tied to local/state and project-specific factors, primarily local/state agency priorities, project funding levels, local opposition to a project, project complexity, or late changes in project scope. Further, approaches that have been found to expedite environmental reviews involve procedures that local and state transportation agencies may implement currently, such as efficient coordination of interagency involvement; early and continued involvement with stakeholders interested in the project; and identifying environmental issues and requirements early in project development.
Bills in the House and Senate (the American Energy and Infrastructure Jobs Act of 2012 (H.R. 7) and Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21; S. 1813)) would reauthorize DOT programs. Both include provisions intended to expedite project delivery by changing elements of the environmental review process, particularly NEPA requirements. This report provides information on existing NEPA and environmental review requirements, particularly requirements that may be subject to change under the House and Senate proposals.