By a vote of 229 to 179, the House passed the Responsibly and Professionally Invigorating Development (RAPID) Act of 2013 (H.R. 2641), which, as suggested by the acronym, would accelerate federal agency review of projects subject to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). 

According to its sponsor, Rep. Tom Marino (R-PA), the RAPID Act “will streamline the current permit approval process for energy, infrastructure, and other construction projects by setting hard deadlines, cracking down on prolonged lawsuits, and consolidating agency management of the approval process from start to finish.”

Marino pointed to a 2011 study by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce that identified 351 state-level projects waiting for permits.  If approved, the projects would create 1.9 million jobs and generate $1.1 trillion annually during construction.  “Bureaucracy is holding up projects and preventing job growth,” said Marino.

One EA, one EIS

H.R. 2641 would amend the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) and create a framework to enhance coordination among agencies in the environmental review process.  Specifically, the bill would:

• Allow a project sponsor, at the request of the lead agency, to prepare environmental documents required by NEPA.  The bill would require that only one environmental impact statement (EIS) and one environmental assessment (EA) be prepared under NEPA for a project, to be used by all agencies involved.  Supplements, as well as documents required by court order, would be allowed. 
• Allow the lead agency to adopt an environmental study that has already been prepared under a state law that is substantially equivalent to NEPA.
• Allow the lead agency to adopt an environmental document that has been prepared for a similar nearby project within the preceding 5 years.
• Require the lead agency to identify, as early as possible, agencies that have an interest in the project—including state, local, and tribal officials – and invite them to become participating agencies in the environmental review process.
• Require the lead agency to establish a schedule for completing the environmental review within the prescribed time frame.  The lead agency must not respond to or include documents submitted by participating agencies outside of the prescribed time frame.  The bill sets deadlines to complete the environmental review.  It also sets deadlines for agencies making permitting decisions; however, these do not begin to run until all relevant environmental and other agency reviews are complete.
• Require the lead agency to work with participating agencies to identify and resolve issues that could delay completion of the environmental review process or result in a denial of approval.  Agencies must notify project sponsors of such issues as early as practicable and must work with them to address these issues.  If an issue cannot be resolved, the Council on Environmental Quality retains traditional authority to mediate the dispute.
• Require each agency to report annually to Congress on its compliance with NEPA. 
• Limit legal challenges to an agency’s action under NEPA only to persons who previously commented on the environmental review document.  All claims must be brought within 180 days of the publication of notice that a permit, license, or approval is final. 

Following its passage in the House, the bill was sent to the Senate for its consideration.

H.R. 2641 is available at http://thomas.loc.gov.