Streamlining Infrastructure Environmental Review

NEW YORK, NY – It is universally accepted that much of America’s infrastructure is in disrepair. A new issue brief by the Manhattan Institute suggests a way to free federal agency resources to deal with the complex projects that require more comprehensive review, reducing the time for projects that pass muster to begin.

In “Streamlining Infrastructure Environmental Review,” MI policy analyst Charles Hughes argues that even where money is not an obstacle to new infrastructure projects, the reviews that are required by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) can be a significant source of delay. The average time to complete a final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), for example, was 5.1 years in 2016. Only 16% of them were completed in two years or less.

Hughes makes the case that lengthy reviews introduce uncertainty, add to the costs, and threaten the viability of infrastructure projects. Meanwhile, existing facilities continue to deteriorate as proposed upgrades or replacements wind their way through federal and state regulatory bodies.

The issue brief proposes that updating rules and procedures at the agency level are necessary to exempt additional infrastructure projects from lengthy and complex review requirements. It also recommends giving agencies more flexibility to make use of NEPA’s “categorical exclusion” provisions as well as assigning more environmental review duties to states.

Click here to read the full report.