NASA Sends NEPA Implementation IFR to OMB

Yesterday the OMB’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) announced that it had received an interim final rule from NASA on “Procedures for Implementing the National Environmental Policy Act”. This is part of the ongoing federal agency response to CEQ’s implantation of EO 14154 requirements to rescind National Environmental Policy Act regulations and update NEPA guidance.

According to the Spring 2025 Unified Agenda entry for this rulemaking:

“The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is amending its existing regulations related to environmental quality at 14 CFR 1216 as directed by the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) per Memorandum from Executive Office of the President for Heads of Federal Departments and Agencies to meet Executive Orders requirements.”

Coverage of this IFR will fall under my limited Space Geek coverage.

EPA Sends NEPA Update NPRM to OMB

Yesterday the OMB’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) announced that it had received a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) from the EPA on “Updates to Procedures for Implementing the National Environmental Policy Act and Assessing the Environmental Effects of EPA Actions”.

According to the Spring 2025 Unified Agenda entry for this rulemaking:

“On February 19, 2025, the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) issued guidance through a memorandum for heads of Federal departments and agencies on the implementation of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The guidance, consistent with Executive Order (E.O.) 14154, Unleashing American Energy, 90 Fed. Reg. 8353 [link added] (Jan. 29, 2025), requires agencies to update their implementing NEPA regulations to expedite permitting approvals and for consistency with NEPA as amended by the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 (Public Law 118-5), including the deadlines established in NEPA. In accordance with CEQ’s guidance, agencies are required to complete the revision of their procedures no later than 12 months after the date of this CEQ memorandum. This proposal is for the EPA to update the implementing NEPA regulations to be consistent with the text of NEPA, E.O. 14154, and CEQ’s guidance. Examples of EPA actions subject to NEPA include the award of wastewater treatment construction grants under Title II of the Clean Water Act, EPA’s issuance of new source National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits under section 402 of the Clean Water Act, and certain research and development.”

OMB Approves CEQ Guidance on NEPA and Emergencies

Yesterday the OMB’ Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) announced that it had approved a guidance document from the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) on “Guidance on Emergencies and the National Environmental Policy Act”. The document was sent to OIRA on May 8^th, 2025.

Guidance documents are not typically described in the Unified Agenda, but would appear to address a memorandum from Brenda Mallory, the previous CEQ Chair, that was published on December 18^th, 2024: “Emergencies and the National Environmental Policy Act Guidance”. That memo provided guidance on how agencies should include environmental stewardship activities in their responses to emergencies “involving immediate threats to human health or safety, or immediate threats to valuable natural resources” that do not allow time to complete the steps outlined in the National Environmental Protection Act regulations. 

I do not expect to cover this guidance document in any detail in this blog, but its publication will almost certainly be noted in the appropriate Short Takes post.

OMB Approves Removal of NEPA Implementing Regulations Final Rule

Yesterday the OMB’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) announced that it had approved a final rule from the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) on “Removal of National Environmental Policy Act Implementing Regulations”. This final rule was sent to OIRA on August 11^th, 2025. The interim final rule was published on February 25^th, 2025.

According to the Spring 2025 Unified Agenda entry for this rulemaking:

“This interim final rule removes the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) regulations implementing the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) from the Code of Federal Regulations.”

I expect that this final rule will be published in the Federal Register next week. I do not plan on providing any detailed analysis of this rule, but I will publish a note in the appropriate Short Takes post when it is published.

OMB Approved 14 NEPA Related Rulemakings

 Yesterday the OMB’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs announced that they had approved 15 separate regulatory actions (interim final rule, final rules, and notices) related to the implementation of the National Environmental Policy Act as revised by EO 14154.

• DOC/EDA – Final Rule - Amendment to Environment Regulation,

• DOC/NOAA – Notice - NOAA NEPA Procedures,

• DOC/NTIA – Notice - FirstNet Authority NEPA Procedures,

• DOC/NTIA – Notice - NTIA NEPA Procedures,

• DOC/EDA – Notice - EDA NEPA Procedures,

• DOC/NIST – Notice - NIST NEPA Procedures,

• DOE/OGC – Interim Final Rule - National Environmental Policy Act Implementing Procedures,

• DOT/FHWA - Interim Final Rule - Categorical Exclusions and Environmental Procedure,

• DOD/COE - Interim Final Rule - Procedures for Implementing the National Environmental Policy Act for Regulatory Program,

• FERC – Final Rule - National Environmental Policy Act Implementing Procedures,

• DOD/AF – Interim Final Rule - National Environmental Policy Act Implementing Procedures; Proposed Department of the Air Force (DAF)'s Environmental Impact Analysis Process (EIAP),

• DOD/DOA – Interim Final Rule - Environmental Analysis of Army Actions,

• DOD/NAVY – Interim Final Rule - Policies and Responsibilities for Implementation of the National Environmental Policy Act Within the Department of the Navy,

• USDA/AgSec – Interim Final Rule - USDA NEPA Amending Regulations

I do not plan on covering any of these rulemaking actions in any detail. I do intend to mention their publication in the Federal Register in the appropriate Short Takes post.

Additional NEPA Implementation Rules Sent to OMB – 6-10-25

Yesterday, the OMB’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) announced (EO Review Search Criteria: Agencies=All;   Review Status=Pending Review;   Received from 06/09/2025) that it had received six additional National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) implementation rules from agencies in the Department of Commerce and Department of Energy. This is in addition to the rules that I reported yesterday.

Yesterday’s rulemakings include:

• National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration - NOAA NEPA Procedures,

• National Telecommunications and Information Administration - FirstNet Authority NEPA Procedures,

• National Telecommunications and Information Administration - NTIA NEPA Procedures,

• Economic Development Administration - EDA NEPA Procedures,

• National Institute of Standards and Technology - NIST NEPA Procedures, and

• DOE Office of the General Counsel - National Environmental Policy Act Implementing Procedures

One major difference from yesterday’s report, none of these rulemakings were listed in the Fall 2024 Unified Agenda, making these uniquely Trumpian NEPA rules. While you might be able to question Trumps commitment to environmental quality, there is no doubt that his Administration is ‘taking action’ to a whole new level. This is almost certainly attributable to the actions of Russel Voight, Director of the Office of Management and Budget and the primary author of Project 2025.

Again, I will probably not be covering any of these rulemakings in detail when published, but I do intend to mark that publication with notices in the appropriate Short Takes post.

Multiple NEPA Rules Sent to OMB – 6-9-25

Yesterday, the OMB’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) announced that they had received seven rulemakings related to changes in the implementation of the National Environmental Policy Act. Those rulemakings include:

• FHWA - Categorical Exclusions and Environmental Procedure (2125-AF80),

• Corps of Engineers - Procedures for Implementing the National Environmental Policy Act for Regulatory Program (0710-AB20),

• Corps of Engineers - Procedures for Implementing the National Environmental Policy Act Under the Civil Works Program (0710-AB28),

• FERC - National Environmental Policy Act Implementing Procedures (1902-AG30),

• Air Force - National Environmental Policy Act Implementing Procedures; Proposed Department of the Air Force (DAF)'s Environmental Impact Analysis Process (EIAP) (0701-AA97),

• Army - Environmental Analysis of Army Actions (0702-AB02), and

• Navy - Policies and Responsibilities for Implementation of the National Environmental Policy Act Within the Department of the Navy (0703-AB31).

Interestingly, all of these rulemakings (with the exception of the one from FERC, that is why there is no link to that RIN) were listed in the Fall 2024 Unified Agenda. Some of them have been under consideration since as far back as 2018. Obviously, correcting the NEPA implementation is a high priority goal of President Russel Vought (er… Donald Trump). I expect relatively quick action by OIRA on these proposals.

I do not expect to cover any of these NEPA rules in any detail in this blog. I do intend to announce their publication (if and when) in the appropriate Short Takes post.

OMB Approves NEPA Regulation Removal IFR

Yesterday the OMB’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) announced that it had approved an interim final rule from the Council on Environmental Quality on “Removal of National Environmental Policy Act Implementing Regulations”. The IFR was submitted to OIRA on Sunday, February 16^th, 2025.

A Department of Energy website does provide some insights on this IFR. It notes that:

“On January 20, 2025, President Trump issued Executive Order (E.O.) 14154, Unleashing American Energy, which directed CEQ to propose rescinding CEQ’s NEPA regulations and to provide guidance on implementing NEPA. CEQ has prepared an Interim Final Rule in response to this direction and is requesting public comments. CEQ also has issued initial guidance on implementing NEPA in response to E.O. 14154 [link added].”

An advanced copy of the proposed IFR is available. The actual IFR will probably appear in the Federal Register next week. Additionally, the DOE web site also provides a copy of a memorandum from the CEQ on “Implementation of the National Environmental Policy Act”. This document outlines the requirements for the revisions of agency implementation of NEPA under EO 14154.

Interesting side note. The USA.gov website provides two links to the CEQ; the CEQ website and the CEQ contact information. The first leads to a generic White House landing page (featuring a triumphant photo of the new President) and the second provides a generic White House contact form. This appears to be part of the ongoing effort on the Executive Branch’s updating of the public facing of the federal government.

I will probably not be providing any significant coverage of this rulemaking in this blog. I will, however, include a note on its publication in the appropriate Short Takes post.

CEQ Sends NEPA Deletion Rule to OMB

Yesterday (Sunday) the OMB’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) announced that it had received an interim final rule (IFR) from the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) on “Removal of National Environmental Policy Act Implementing Regulations”. This rulemaking was not listed in the Fall 2024 Unified Agenda.

The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) (42 USC Chapter 55) establishes the CEQ and requires federal agencies to assess the environmental effects of their proposed actions prior to making decisions. The CEQ has issued regulations (40 CFR Parts 1500 thru 1508) to implement the NEPA requirements.

While it is obvious that the Trump Administration would have little use for the broad sweep of environmental regulations issued under NEPA over the last 55 years, it staggers the imagination that it could consider completely removing the NEPA implementing regulations in an interim final rule without going through the whole publish and comment process. This rulemaking will be the source of any number of law suits by environmental organizations and a number of blue States.