View Information Collection Request (ICR) Package

OMB Control No: 2020-0033	ICR Reference No: 201610-2020-001
Status: Historical Active	Previous ICR Reference No: 201307-2020-001
Agency/Subagency: EPA/OECA	Agency Tracking No: 2243.08
Title: Procedures for Implementing the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and Assessing the Environmental Effects Abroad of EPA Actions (Renewal)
Type of Information Collection: Extension without change of a currently approved collection	Common Form ICR: No
Type of Review Request: Regular
OIRA Conclusion Action: Approved without change	Conclusion Date: 01/19/2017
	Date Received in OIRA: 10/27/2016
Terms of Clearance:

	Inventory as of this Action	Requested	Previously Approved
Expiration Date	01/31/2020	36 Months From Approved	01/31/2017
Responses	63	0	313
Time Burden (Hours)	13,677	0	37,525
Cost Burden (Dollars)	2,145	0	8,452

Abstract: The National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), establishes the federal government's national policy for protection of the environment. The Council on Environmental Quality Regulations (CEQ Regulations) at 40 CFR parts 1500 through 1508 establish procedures implementing the national policy. The CEQ Regulations (40 CFR 1505.1) require federal agencies to adopt and, revise their own implementing procedures to supplement the CEQ Regulations. Those subject to the final NEPA rule include EPA officials who must comply with NEPA, and certain grant or permit applicants who must submit environmental information documentation to EPA for their proposed projects. Compliance with the final NEPA regulations is the responsibility of EPA's Responsible Officials. For applicant-proposed actions, certain procedures apply to applicants (that is grantees and permit applicants) who must submit environmental information to EPA as part of the environmental review process. The EPA Responsible Official is responsible for the environmental review process, including any categorical exclusion determination or the scope, accuracy, and contents of a final environmental assessment (EA) or environmental impact statement (EIS) and any supporting documents. The applicant contributes by submitting environmental information to EPA as part of the environmental review process. For actions subject to NEPA, the Responsible Official may determine that the proposed action does not individually or cumulatively have a significant effect on the human environment and may, therefore, be categorically excluded from further NEPA review. If the proposed action is not categorically excluded, the Responsible Official may prepare an EA in order to determine whether to prepare an EIS or a finding of no significant impact (FONSI). If necessary, the Responsible Official must prepare an EIS if the proposed action will have a significant effect on the human environment. Unless the applicant-proposed action is categorically excluded, the Responsible Official may gather the information and prepare the NEPA documents without assistance from the applicant, or have the applicant prepare an environmental information document (EID) or a draft EA and supporting documents or implement a third-party contract agreement with the applicant. EPA is collecting information from certain applicants as part of the process of complying with either NEPA or Executive Order 12114. EPA's NEPA regulations apply to the actions of EPA that are subject to NEPA in order to ensure that environmental information is available to the Agency's decision-makers and the public before decisions are made and before actions are taken. The NEPA review and resulting documents generally rely on the use of existing data and information, including data and information from other federal agencies, state or local governments, or federally-recognized Indian tribes with jurisdiction by law or special expertise. The quality of the information provided by an applicant must be sufficient to enable the Responsible Official to make a decision. When the environmental information is provided by the applicant, the Responsible Official is responsible for the statements, analyses, and conclusions of the EA or EIS and any supporting documents. There are no forms, checklists, or ongoing reporting, recordkeeping or file-maintenance requirements for applicants. EPA maintains file records for each action. The information submitted by applicants would be consistent with the guidelines of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) in 5 CFR 1320.6. There are no schedule requirements or requirements on the number of copies of the documentation to be submitted or requirements for ongoing reporting or recordkeeping or to conduct statistical surveys.

Authorizing Statute(s): US Code: 41 USC 4321-4347 Name of Law: National Environmental Policy Act
EO: EO 12114 Name/Subject of EO: Environmental Effects Abroad of Major Federal Actions

Citations for New Statutory Requirements: None

Associated Rulemaking Information
RIN:	Stage of Rulemaking:	Federal Register Citation:	Date:
	Not associated with rulemaking

Federal Register Notices & Comments
60-day Notice:	Federal Register Citation:	Citation Date:
	81 FR 35762	06/03/2016
30-day Notice:	Federal Register Citation:	Citation Date:
	81 FR 74428	10/26/2016
Did the Agency receive public comments on this ICR? No

ICR Summary of Burden

	Total Approved	Previously Approved	Change Due to Adjustment in Estimate
Annual Number of Responses	63	313	-250
Annual Time Burden (Hours)	13,677	37,525	-23,848
Annual Cost Burden (Dollars)	2,145	8,452	-6,307

Burden increases because of Program Change due to Agency Discretion: No

Burden Increase Due to:

Burden decreases because of Program Change due to Agency Discretion: No

Burden Reduction Due to:

Short Statement: Under the current ICR, EPA estimated that approximately 75% of the annual 300 grant projects would be documented with a CE, and 25% with an EA. Under the renewal ICR, we expect the burden to be reduced due to fewer NEPA documents being completed following the elimination of awarding SAAP grants in 2010. This is further supported by information posted online in EPA’s NEPA Compliance Database on NEPA documents for its own actions that require documentation.

Annual Cost to Federal Government: $398,900

Does this IC contain surveys, censuses, or employ statistical methods? No

Is the Supporting Statement intended to be a Privacy Impact Assessment required by the E-Government Act of 2002? No

Is this ICR related to the Affordable Care Act [Pub. L. 111-148 & 111-152]? No

Is this ICR related to the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, [Pub. L. 111-203]? No

Is this ICR related to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA)? No

Is this ICR related to the Pandemic Response? Uncollected

Agency Contact: Jessica Trice 202 564-6646 trice.jessica@epa.gov

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