LIVE: President Trump Delivers Remarks in Atlanta on the Rebuilding of America’s Infrastructure – 7/15/2020

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President Trump Delivers Remarks in Atlanta on the Rebuilding of America’s Infrastructure –

 

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Infrastructure

Infrastructure

The Administration strongly supports the development of modern, resilient infrastructure, including for the transportation, water, energy, and other critical sectors of our economy. For many infrastructure projects, the permitting process can be fragmented, inefficient, unpredictable, and costly.

Executive Order 13807

Recognizing these challenges, in August 2017, President Trump issued Executive Order (EO) 13807, to reduce unnecessary duplication and uncertainty in the Federal environmental review and authorization process that can delay major infrastructure projects and hold back the American economy.

EO 13807 established a One Federal Decision policy for Federal environmental reviews of major infrastructure projects. The One Federal Decision policy sets a goal for completing environmental reviews for major infrastructure projects within 2 years. CEQ and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), in consultation with the Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council (Permitting Council), developed a framework for implementing the One Federal Decision policy, and on April 9, 2018, 11 Federal agencies and the Permitting Council signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). Under the MOU, agencies have committed to greater coordination throughout the process to achieve the 2 year goal, including through the development of joint project schedules, in order to provide greater transparency, accountability, and predictability for project sponsors, applicants, and the public.

Implementation of the One Federal Decision policy:

The Federal Infrastructure Permitting Dashboard tracks the Federal government’s environmental review and authorization processes for major infrastructure projects.

Documents and Guidance Related to EO 13807:

To comply with section 5(d) of EO 13807, CEQ will refer various requests for designation of State projects pursuant to EO 13766, titled, “Expediting Environmental Reviews and Approvals for High Priority Infrastructure Projects,” to the Permitting Council, Department of Transportation, and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, as appropriate. Additional requests under EO 13766 will be reviewed by CEQ to determine whether a project qualifies as a high priority infrastructure project.

Executive Order 13766 Requests & CEQ Responses (Updated March 27, 2018):

Presidential Memoranda on Promoting Reliable Supplies of Water in the West

To improve the reliability of water supplies for families, farmers, and cities across the West, President Trump issued a Presidential Memorandum in October 2018 directing Federal agencies to reduce regulatory burdens and promote efficient, coordinated environmental reviews of major water infrastructure projects in California, Oregon, Idaho, and Washington.

  • Presidential Memorandum on Promoting the Reliable Supply and Delivery of Water in the West (October 19, 2018)
  • Water Infrastructure 
    • Section 2 of the Presidential Memorandum directed the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Commerce to ensure that the long-term coordinated operations of the Central Valley Project and the California State Water Project be completed and that an updated Plan of Operations (Plan) and Record of Decision (ROD) be issued.
    • That Plan and ROD were issued on February 19, 2020.  On February 19, 2020, President Trump also issued a Presidential memorandum directing the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Commerce to build on these actions, and to coordinate efforts to (a) develop water storage, capture more water during storm events, and give agricultural and municipal water users more regulatory certainty; and (b) fully implement recent steps undertaken to improve implementation of programs established pursuant to the Endangered Species Act.
    • Improving Forecasts of Water Availability
      • Section 3 of the October 2018 Presidential memorandum directed the Secretary of Commerce and the Secretary of the Interior to develop an action plan, in coordination with water experts and resource managers, to improve forecasts of water availability. In October 2019, Department of Commerce and the Department of the Interior released a Federal Action Plan for Improving Forecasts of Water Availability (Action Plan)
      • Water Reuse
        • Section 4 of the October 2018 Presidential Memorandum directed Federal agencies to improve use of technology to increase water reliability.  This included broader scale deployment of desalination technology, recycled water, and programs that promote and encourage innovation, research and development of technology that improve water management, and using best available science through real-time monitoring of wildlife and water deliveries.
        • Water reuse represents a major opportunity to support our nation’s communities and economy by bolstering safe and reliable water supplies for human consumption, agriculture, business, industry, recreation, and healthy ecosystems.  The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in conjunction with other Federal agencies including CEQ, announced a draft National Water Reuse Action plan for public comment in September 2019 and a final National Water Reuse Action Plan in February 2020.

Source:  The White House

 

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