National Environmental Policy Act Regulations
Key claim: Federal highway, railroad, and transit agencies have locked in streamlined environmental-review rules for transportation projects, making only small technical tweaks after public comments.
Abstract
(Rule · Transportation Department, Federal Highway Administration, Federal Railroad Administration, Federal Transit Administration) FHWA, FRA, and FTA (collectively referred to as the “Agencies”) are finalizing the interim final rule (IFR) published on July 3, 2025, which revised the Agencies’ National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969 implementing regulations in light of the removal of the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) regulations, the amendments to NEPA included in the section of the Fiscal Responsibility Act (FR Act) of 2023, known as the Building United States Infrastructure through Limited Delays and Efficient Reviews (BUILDER) Act of 2023, amendments regarding efficient environmental reviews included in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) of 2021, and the Supreme Court decision in Seven County Infrastructure Coalition. The Agencies provided a 30-day comment period for the public to review and comment on the IFR. This final rule addresses public comments received and finalizes the IFR with minor technical changes.
Why this matters
Finalizing the DOT NEPA procedures across the three surface-transportation modal agencies cements a faster, more uniform environmental-review process for federally funded highway, rail, and transit projects. Because the rule adopts prior interim procedures with only technical edits, project sponsors gain regulatory certainty about how categorical exclusions, environmental assessments, and EIS thresholds will be applied going forward.