Department of Housing and Urban Development June 20, 2016 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) gives notice that the State of New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP), on behalf of the State of New Jersey through its Department of Community Affairs (NJDCA), as the recipient of U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) grant funds, and as the ``Responsible Entity,'' as that term is defined by HUD regulations at 24 CFR 58.2(a)(7)(i), intends to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Rebuild by Design (RBD) Meadowlands Flood Protection Project (the Proposed Project). The State of New Jersey, through NJDCA, has designated the NJDEP as the Lead Agency to prepare the EIS for the Proposed Project in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The EIS will analyze the environmental effects of alternatives for the construction of flood risk reduction measures within the Boroughs of Little Ferry, Moonachie, Carlstadt, and Teterboro, and the Township of South Hackensack, all in Bergen County, New Jersey (the Project Area). Such measures will be designed to address the impacts of coastal and riverine (fluvial) flooding on the quality of the human environment in the Project Area due to both sea level rise and storm hazards, including heavy rainfall events and intense coastal storm events. The approximate Project Area boundaries are: Hackensack River to the east; Paterson Plank Road and the southern boundary of Carlstadt to the south; State Route 17 to the west; and Interstate 80 and the northern boundary of the Borough of Little Ferry to the north. The State of New Jersey through NJDCA is the Grantee of HUD Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) funds that have been appropriated under the Disaster Relief Appropriations Act of 2013 (Pub. L. 113-2, approved January 29, 2013) related to disaster relief, long-term recovery, restoration of infrastructure and housing, and economic revitalization in the most impacted and distressed areas resulting from a major disaster that was declared pursuant to the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act of 1974 (Stafford Act) in calendar year 2012 for Hurricane Sandy. The Proposed Project was developed and selected as a winning concept through HUD's and the Hurricane Sandy Rebuilding Task Force's RBD competition. The RBD competition promotes the development of innovative resilience projects in the Sandy-affected region. HUD has allocated $150 million in CDBG-DR funds for the planning, design, and implementation of this Project. Receipt of CDBG-DR funding requires compliance with NEPA. This Notice of Intent to prepare an EIS is, therefore, being published in accordance with NEPA, the Council of Environmental Quality (CEQ) NEPA Regulations found at 40 CFR parts 1500-1508, HUD implementing regulations at 24 CFR part 58, and HUD's additional environmental review requirements for the Project published in a Federal Register notice on October 16, 2014 (79 FR 62182). This Notice of Intent to prepare a EIS (as defined at 40 CFR 1508.22) is in accordance with CEQ Regulations, and represents the beginning of the public scoping process as outlined in 40 CFR 1501.7. A Draft Public Scoping Document, or Draft Scope of Work to prepare an EIS (Draft Scope of Work), for the Proposed Project is available at www.rbd-meadowlands.nj.gov. The Draft Scope of Work outlines the Proposed Project's purpose and need, initial range of alternatives, resource areas to be addressed in the EIS, proposed analytical methodologies, and other elements associated with the Project and this NEPA process as known at this early stage. Following the public scoping process, a Draft EIS will be prepared that analyzes the Proposed Project. Once the Draft EIS is certified as complete, a notice will then be sent to appropriate government agencies, groups, and individuals known to have an involvement or interest in the Draft EIS and particularly in the environmental impact issues identified therein. A Notice of Availability of the Draft EIS will be published in the Federal Register and local media outlets at that time in accordance with HUD and CEQ Regulations. Any person or agency interested in receiving notice and commenting on the Draft Scope of Work or Draft EIS should contact the individual named in this notice under the heading FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT no later than July 20, 2016.

HUD is seeking approval from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for the information collection described below. In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act, HUD is requesting comment from all interested parties on the proposed collection of information. The purpose of this notice is to allow for 60 days of public comment.