in effect
This is an interim final rule from three U.S. Department of Transportation agencies — the Federal Highway Administration, Federal Railroad Administration, and Federal Transit Administration — rewriting the regulations (23 CFR part 771) they use to carry out the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) for road, rail, and transit projects. “Interim final” means it took effect right away (July 3, 2025) rather than being proposed first, but the agencies are still taking public comment. It directs how these agencies conduct environmental reviews of the projects they fund or approve.
The rule removes references to the separate Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) regulations, which were repealed effective April 11, 2025, so Part 771 now stands on its own. It folds in two laws: the 2023 BUILDER Act (part of the Fiscal Responsibility Act) and the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, both aimed at speeding up reviews. Concretely, it inserts the phrase “reasonably foreseeable” before “impact” and “effect” throughout; adds new definitions (such as “cooperating agency,” “environmental document,” and “major project”); states that the rules apply only to “major Federal actions” and lists common actions that are excluded; and adds new sections setting review timelines, page limits, and certification requirements (771.138) and rules for reusing or adopting other agencies’ environmental documents (771.141). It also lets any project sponsor, including private entities, prepare environmental documents under a lead agency’s supervision, drops the old “Class I/II/III” labels, and requires re-evaluating a first-tier analysis if the second tier comes 5 or more years later.
Project sponsors and applicants — including state and local transportation agencies and private or public-private entities seeking federal approval for highway, rail, or transit projects — are the main parties affected, and the agencies say the changes are meant to move projects through environmental review faster with less documentation. The three DOT agencies themselves are affected because they must now follow these self-contained procedures. The agencies state the rule does not preempt state law, does not impose costs of $100 million or more, and does not uniquely affect Tribal governments; anyone can submit comments through August 4, 2025.