Twice a year the Administration updates its Unified Agenda with projected timelines for rulemakings and other actions. The spring agenda, released June 30, 2020, shows some delay in movement on key water programs that 麻豆视频 has been tracking due to their relevance to the construction industry. 麻豆视频 summarizes these developments below.
Army Corps of Engineers
- Review rules related to the review and approval of for compensatory mitigation (proposal pushed to Sept. 2020).
- Modify select to meet the requirements of Executive Order 13783 (related to energy independence); the Corps also is considering reissuing the remaining nationwide permits to keep all 52 nationwide permits on the same five-year cycle (proposal was pushed to June 2020, not yet released).
Council on Environmental Quality
- Update existing CEQ regulations implementing the procedural requirements of the pursuant to Executive Order 13807 (related to the environmental review process) (final anticipated in Sept. 2020).
Environmental Protection Agency
- Update regulations for when states can assume administration of the (proposal pushed back to Aug. 2020). Meaning that states, not the Corps, could make wetlands decisions for projects.
- Revise regulations on , which is a required step to obtain CWA 404 permits (final rule signed June 2020).
- Consider changes to the EPA's Section 404(c) review process that would govern the future use of the , i.e., when the EPA Administrator can revoke a Corps-issued CWA 404 permit (proposal pushed back to Aug. 2020).
- Make regulatory determinations for 鈥搕wo types of PFAS-- under the Safe Drinking Water Act (proposed in Mar. 2020; final anticipated in 2021).
- Designate , requiring the reporting of releases that meet or exceed the reportable quantity assigned to these substances (proposal pushed to Aug. 2020).
- Review and (final published ).
- Evaluate data on current , and options available to improve control of all criteria pollutant emissions through revised emissions standards (proposal expected in Sept. 2020).
- Initiate the five-year review and if appropriate revise the air quality criteria and national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) for (final expected in Dec. 2020).
- Initiate the five-year review and if appropriate revise the air quality criteria and national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) for (proposal expected in July 2020).
- Review of (proposal published ; final anticipated in Sept. 2020) -- the consideration of expanding the current lead paint 鈥渨ork practice鈥 rules to public and commercial buildings remains on the .
Although not on the spring agenda, U.S. EPA is working on reissuance of the Multi-Sector General Permit for stormwater discharges from industrial activities鈥攃ompletion expected for 2020. U.S. EPA also will begin the process for reissuing its Construction General Permit for stormwater discharges鈥攄ue in 2022.
Fish and Wildlife Service
- Review and revise regulations for ; will include a definition of the term 鈥渉abitat鈥 (proposal was expected in June 2020).
- Revise policy on interpretation of the phrase "" in the Endangered Species Act's (ESA) definitions of "endangered species" and "threatened species" (proposed policy pushed back to Oct. 2020)
- Establish new regulation governing the to codify the legal opinion in the Department of the Interior Solicitor鈥檚 Opinion M-37050 that incidental take resulting from an otherwise lawful activity is not prohibited under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (final expected in Oct. 2020).
For more information on environmental issues in the regulatory agenda, contact Melinda Tomaino at melinda.tomaino@agc.org or Leah Pilconis at leah.pilconis@agc.org.