Page 39 - Highway Engineering Handbook Building and Rehabilitating the Infrastructure

22 CHAPTER ONE

Record of Decision. Preparation and publication of a record of decision (ROD) by
FHWA is the final step in the EIS process. The ROD documents the decisions made by
FHWA for the proposed action, including identification of the preferred alternative, and the
measures identified to mitigate any identified adverse impacts of the preferred alternative,
including the commitments and plans to enforce and monitor implementation of the mea-
sures (40 CFR §1505.2). The ROD also discloses the bases for the agency’s decision,
including the reasons for whether to proceed with the proposed action. The ROD must also
discuss whether all practical means have been applied to avoid or minimize environmental
harm have been adopted, and, if not, why they were not (40 CFR §1505.2). The ROD must
be made publicly available by publication in the Federal Register or on the agency web-
site, or both.

Environmental Reevaluation and Supplemental EIS. An environmental reevaluation
(ER) of the FEIS is prepared when any of the following circumstances occur:
• An acceptable FEIS is not submitted to FHWA within 3 years from the date of circula-
tion of the DEIS.
• No major steps have been taken to advance a project (e.g., allocation of a substantial por-
tion of right-of-way or construction funding) within 3 years from the date of approval of
the FEIS.
• When there have been lengthy periods of inactivity between major steps to advance the
project.
The purpose of the reevaluation is to determine whether there has been a substantial
change in the social, economic, and environmental effects of the proposed action. This
could result from changes in the project itself or from changes in the context under which
the project is to be undertaken.
A supplemental EIS should be prepared when there are changes that result in significant
impacts not previously disclosed in the original document. An EIS may be supplemented
or amended at any time and must be supplemented or amended when (1) changes to the pro-
posed project would result in significant environmental impacts that were not disclosed in
the EIS or (2) new information or circumstances relevant to environmental concerns and
bearing on the proposed project or its impacts would either bring to light or result in sig-
nificant environmental impacts not evaluated in the original document. The supplemental
EIS need only address those subjects in the original document affected by the changes or
new information.

1.3.2 State Environmental Review Legislation

Fifteen states and the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico have enacted environmental
policy acts, which, because they are largely modeled on NEPA, are collectively referred to
as “Little NEPAs.” A list of these statutes is provided in Table 1.7. Highway projects may
be affected by these state-specific environmental requirements, which, in general, follow
or expand upon federal objectives and programs. In some instances, the state defers to the
NEPA process, while, in others, the state reviews proceed as independent but parallel and
coordinated efforts. In addition, increasingly, states are being given powers to implement
federal programs, leading to their further involvement in the environmental review of high-
way projects. For example, under SAFETEA-LU, Congress provided for a process
whereby some states could assume responsibilities for all environmental compliance for
highway projects, including NEPA.