On December 21, 2020, EPN submitted comments in response to the Department of Transportation’s (DOT’s) proposed significant changes to National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) regulations. The NEPA process allows transportation officials to make project decisions that balance engineering and transportation needs with social, economic, and natural environmental factors. The DOT proposal implements the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) NEPA regulations that became effective in September 2020, which extensively revised the procedures all federal agencies must follow. EPN strongly opposed the CEQ’s revisions in its March 2020 comments, and now opposes DOT’s proposal, finding that it is inconsistent with NEPA law, congressional intent, and years of practice.
Read the comments.