National Environmental Policy Act Implementing Procedures, 32563-32564 [2014-13035]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 108 (Thursday, June 5, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32563-32564]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-13035]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

[Docket Number DHS-2013-0052]


National Environmental Policy Act Implementing Procedures

AGENCY: Department of Homeland Security.

ACTION: Notice of Proposed Revisions to National Environmental Policy 
Act implementing procedures and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The purpose of this notice is to provide an opportunity for 
public comment on the Department of Homeland Security (DHS or 
Department) draft Directive 023-01, Rev. 01 and draft Instruction 
Manual 023-01-001-01, Rev. 01, Implementation of the National 
Environmental Policy Act (herein after referred to as Directive and 
Instruction). Together, the Directive and Instruction serve as the 
Department's procedures for implementing the National Environmental 
Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), as amended, and the 
Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) regulations for implementing the 
procedural provisions of NEPA (40 CFR Parts 1500-1508). Pursuant to the 
CEQ regulations, DHS is soliciting comments on its proposed internal 
Directive and Instruction from members of the interested public.

DATES: Comments and related material must be received on or before (or, 
if mailed, postmarked on or before) August 4, 2014 to ensure 
consideration. Late comments may be considered to the extent 
practicable.

ADDRESSES: Relevant documents are posted at https://www.regulations.gov 
(Docket ID: DHS-2013-0052) and www.dhs.gov/nepa. These documents 
include: this notice, the proposed Directive and Instruction, and a 
synopsis of the Department's administrative record for several proposed 
new NEPA categorical exclusions (CATEXs).
    You may submit comments, identified by ``DHS NEPA Procedures,'' by 
one of the following methods:
    (1) Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov. Follow 
the online instructions for submitting comments electronically via 
docket number DHS-2013-0052.
    (2) Mail: Sustainability and Environmental Programs, Office of the 
Chief Readiness Support Officer, Management Directorate, Department of 
Homeland Security, 245 Murray Lane SW., Mail Stop 0075, Washington, DC 
20528-0075.
    (3) Email: SEP-EPHP@hq.dhs.gov.
    In choosing among these means of providing comments, please give 
due regard to the security screening difficulties and delays associated 
with delivery of mail to federal agencies in Washington, DC, through 
the U.S. Postal Service.
    All comments received, including any personal information provided, 
will become a part of the public record for the Department's NEPA 
procedures and may be posted without change on the internet at https://www.regulations.gov and https://www.dhs.gov/nepa.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Laura Shick, Environmental Protection 
Specialist, Department of Homeland Security, 202-603-3517, or 
laura.shick@hq.dhs.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Department of Homeland Security (DHS or 
Department) encourages interested persons to submit written data, 
views, or comments. Persons submitting comments should include their 
name, address, and other appropriate contact information. You may 
submit your comments and material by one of the means listed under 
ADDRESSES. If you submit them by mail or hand delivery, submit them in 
an unbound format, no larger than 8\1/2\ by 11 inches, suitable for 
copying and electronic filing. If you submit them by mail and would 
like to know that they were received, please enclose a stamped, self-
addressed postcard or envelope. DHS will consider all comments received 
during the comment period.
    The Directive and Instruction establish the policy and procedures 
DHS follows to comply with NEPA (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and the CEQ 
regulations (40 CFR Parts 1500-1508). Together, the Directive and 
Instruction apply to all of DHS, which is currently comprised of over 
20 support and operational components, and help ensure the integration 
of environmental stewardship into DHS decision making as required by 
NEPA. The Directive and Instruction serve as the DHS implementing 
procedures for NEPA and the CEQ regulations (as required by 40 CFR 
1505.1 and 1507.3) and therefore must be read in conjunction with the 
CEQ regulations.
    The Directive and Instruction have been substantially revised to 
address a number of circumstances and requirements that have arisen 
since April 19, 2006, the effective date of the original DHS procedures 
(Federal Register, Vol. 71, No. 64, April 4, 2006). Revision of the 
Directive and Instruction, including additions to the Department's list 
of NEPA categorical exclusions (CATEXs), was a collaborative effort on 
the part of numerous DHS environmental and legal professionals from 
across the Department. These professionals are NEPA practitioners and 
environmental protection specialists with numerous years of federal 
NEPA experience, including experience in implementing the 2006 DHS NEPA 
procedures or Component-specific procedures, and legal practitioners 
with advanced education and experience advising federal agency project 
and program managers on NEPA compliance. The DHS Components and offices 
whose staff contributed to the update of the Directive and Instruction 
include:
     Sustainability and Environmental Programs (SEP), Office of 
the Chief Readiness Support Officer, Under Secretary for Management, 
DHS HQ
     Office of the General Counsel, DHS HQ
     Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)
     United States Coast Guard (USCG)
     Customs and Border Protection (CBP)
     Transportation Security Administration (TSA)
     Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)
     Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC)
     United States Secret Service (USSS)
     Science and Technology Directorate (S&T)
     National Protection and Programs Directorate (NPPD)
     United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)
    When originally published in 2006, the Directive and Instruction 
did not apply to the Components of FEMA, CBP, or USCG; these three 
Components each maintained their own procedures for implementing NEPA 
when the Department was established in 2002. This proposed revision to 
the Directive and Instruction incorporates FEMA, CBP, and USCG into the 
Department's NEPA procedures and addresses the full scope of DHS 
activities to which NEPA

[[Page 32564]]

applies. When the updated procedures are finalized and become 
effective, they will apply to all Components of DHS, including FEMA, 
CBP, and USCG. In addition, every Component will have the option of 
developing Supplemental Instructions to establish how that particular 
Component will meet the requirements of the final version of the DHS 
Directive and Instruction. In a separate yet related effort, FEMA will 
pursue rescission of its regulations at 44 CFR 10 and replace them with 
Supplemental Instructions that conform to requirements of the final 
version of the DHS Directive and Instruction.
    As the Department has matured, the requirements of its Directives 
System have changed. The current DHS Directives System, effective as of 
August 2012, establishes standards for the length, format, and content 
of documents such as policies, delegations of authority, directives, 
instructions, manuals, handbooks, etc. The 2006 Directive and 
Instruction do not align to the requirements of the Department's 
current Directives System, and therefore revisions were necessary. For 
example, a directive must be used to establish policy as well as high-
level roles and responsibilities, and cannot exceed five pages in 
length; an instruction accompanies a directive and provides detail on 
how to comply with the requirements of the directive, such as by 
establishing specific roles and responsibilities, processes, systems, 
and program management requirements. The revised Directive establishes 
the policy that DHS will comply with NEPA, and the revised Instruction 
establishes the procedures for ensuring this compliance is implemented 
in an effective and efficient manner.
    The requirements put forth in the revised Directive and Instruction 
emphasize that the NEPA process must be appropriately integrated into 
the performance of DHS missions and activities and decision making. The 
Instruction covers the following: overview of NEPA requirements, 
including requirements for the preparation and content of NEPA 
documents; management of NEPA implementation in DHS; criteria for 
Components to obtain a delegation of authority to approve their 
respective NEPA reviews; public involvement; dispute resolution; 
information protected from public disclosure; procedures for 
emergencies; review of applications from persons or organizations 
outside of DHS (e.g., grant applications); and an identification of the 
types of DHS activities normally reviewed in a CATEX, Environmental 
Assessment, or Environmental Impact Statement.
    Revisions were also made to the Directive and Instruction to 
address the requirements of laws and Executive Orders since 2006, as 
well as to incorporate recent CEQ guidance memoranda. Readability, 
clarity, and organization of the content were improved to comply with 
the requirements of the Plain Writing Act of 2010. The revised 
Instruction incorporates CEQ guidance on mitigation and monitoring; 
establishing and applying CATEXs; emergencies; preparation of efficient 
and timely environmental reviews; and environmental collaboration and 
conflict resolution.
    The CATEXs published in 2006 are being retained and are included in 
the revised Instruction (Appendix A, Table 1). In addition, the 
following new CATEXs are proposed: One CATEX for an administrative 
activity; five CATEXs for real property management activities; 13 
CATEXs for non-grant activities unique to FEMA's mission and 
authorities; and 19 CATEXs for federal assistance (e.g., grant) 
activities. DHS followed the CEQ guidance memorandum on ``Establishing, 
Applying, and Revising Categorical Exclusions under the National 
Environmental Policy Act,'' dated November 23, 2010, in developing 
these new CATEXs. For synopses of the administrative record support for 
the Department's list of existing and proposed new CATEXs, see the 
docket and the DHS NEPA Web page at https://www.dhs.gov/nepa.
    There are currently approximately 80 federal assistance programs in 
DHS (see the Catalogue of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) at https://www.cfda.gov for the list of programs). The majority of these programs 
are administered by FEMA. Applicants use federal assistance from DHS, 
such as grant funding, to implement a variety of emergency 
preparedness, response, and recovery and hazard mitigation activities 
and projects, ranging from classroom training and purchases of portable 
equipment to laboratory research to facility repair, renovation, and 
construction. Because these activities are federally-assisted, DHS, in 
coordination with the recipients of grants or other assistance, must 
ensure they are compliant with NEPA. DHS is proposing several CATEXs 
for its federal assistance activities because DHS has determined these 
activities would normally not have the potential to have an 
individually or cumulatively significant impact on the quality of the 
human environment. These CATEXs will help ensure the timely and 
effective delivery of DHS assistance in an environmentally compliant 
fashion. These proposed new CATEXs are included in the Instruction in 
Appendix A, Table 1, Section N.
    Several statutes, authorities, programs, and activities are unique 
to FEMA (i.e., not relevant to or undertaken by any other DHS 
component) and therefore additions to the list of CATEXs include 
several developed specifically for FEMA activities that would not 
normally have the potential to have individually or cumulatively 
significant impacts on the quality of the human environment. These 
include activities associated with the administration of the National 
Flood Insurance Program, and emergency and disaster response and 
recovery and hazard mitigation activities authorized by the Robert T. 
Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (Public Law 93-
288) as amended. These proposed new CATEXs are included in the 
Instruction in Appendix A, Table 1, Section M.
    DHS invested over three years in developing the proposed revision 
to its NEPA procedures. The revised Directive and Instruction were 
provided to CEQ in the fall of 2013 for discussion prior to this 
publication for public comment. CEQ will remain engaged and be asked to 
issue a letter prior to publication of the final Directive and 
Instruction as required under 40 CFR 1507.3. The Directive and 
Instruction published here in the Federal Register are available for a 
60-day public comment period. The comments received will be analyzed 
and any appropriate revisions will be made to the documents. The 
Directive and Instruction revised in response to public comments will 
be shared with CEQ prior to final adoption and implementation. A Notice 
of Final Directive and Instruction will be published in the Federal 
Register with a 120-day waiting period before the new NEPA procedures 
become effective. This notice will present the response to the public 
comments received on the proposed revised Directive and Instruction.
    A copy of this Federal Register publication and the proposed 
Directive and Instruction and supporting documents are available on the 
internet at www.regulations.gov and https://www.dhs.gov/nepa.

    Dated: May 29, 2014.
Teresa R. Pohlman,
Director of Sustainability and Environmental Programs.
[FR Doc. 2014-13035 Filed 6-4-14; 8:45 am]
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