STATEMENT OF SENATOR GEORGE V. VOINOVICH
ENVIRONMENT AND PUBLIC WORKS COMMITTEE
PROJECT DELIVERY AND ENVIRONMENTAL
STEWARDSHIP
SEPTEMBER 19, 2002
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Thank
you, Mr. Chairman, for conducting this hearing on project delivery and
environmental stewardship. I have a
unique perspective on this important issue due to my background as a former
governor and mayor. In particular, as Governor, I witnessed
first-hand the frustration of many state agencies because they were required to
complete a myriad of federally-required tasks on every project they initiated.
My
experience with this process led me to hold two hearings on project delivery
and streamlining when I was Chairman of the Subcommittee on Transportation and
Infrastructure. Now, as the current
ranking member of the Clean Air Subcommittee, which has jurisdiction over NEPA,
I am concerned that the amount of time it takes to develop and complete large
construction projects has gotten even worse.
Ten years ago, one Ohio group produced a chart entitled “So You Want to
Build a Highway?” that showed an “eight-year hitch” required to develop a road
project – and that’s before construction even begins.
On
average, major transportation projects now take 13 years or more to get through
the planning process, environmental reviews, design, and right-of-way
acquisition. On those major projects,
development of an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) takes, on average, more
than five years to complete. Surely, there
is room for improvement.
Environmental
review is good public policy, and I know there are more efficient ways to
ensure adequate and timely delivery of construction projects and still
carefully assess environmental concerns.
As
Chairman of the National Governors Association, I was involved in negotiating TEA-21
and lobbying for a streamlined project delivery process. Congress recognized the states’ frustration
and enacted an environmental streamlining provision in TEA-21.
After
arriving in the Senate in 1999, I called two Subcommittee hearings on implementation
of environmental streamlining as contained in Section 1309 of TEA-21. At those hearings, I stressed the importance
of implementing Section 1309 in a way that will streamline and expedite, not
complicate the process of delivering transportation projects.
A
year after these hearings and nearly two years after the passage of TEA-21, the
Department of Transportation finally published it proposed regulations for the
implementation of Section 1309 in May 2000.
Many of us were disappointed with the length of time it took to develop these
rules and with their content.
Unfortunately,
the proposed rules were inconsistent with Congressional intent and would have
done little, if anything, to streamline and expedite the states’ ability to
meet their transportation needs. In
fact, the American Association of State and Highway Transportation Officials,
representing our customers – the state departments of transportation – and said
that the proposal was “completely at odds” with Congressional intent.
Other
groups, such as the Association of Metropolitan Planning Organizations,
American Society of Civil Engineers, and the American Road and Transportation
Builders Association all requested that the proposed rules be substantially
rewritten. They were really a great
disappointment. That is why I joined Senator
Smith to introduce a bill in October 2000 that would have required the
administration to revise and re-propose the rules.
Mr.
Chairman, we are about to enter the last year of TEA-21, and we still do not
have rules to implement the environmental streamlining provision of the law. I regret that we may have wasted an
opportunity to realize the benefits of an expedited environmental review
process that we envisioned five years ago.
Meeting
our nation’s transportation needs is too important for us to wait until the
next highway authorization bill before we get serious about streamlining. That is why we should do whatever is humanly
possible to implement the environmental streamlining provision of TEA-21. Otherwise, I believe we will end up waiting several
more years before we can see
any substantial progress in reducing unnecessary delays on transportation
projects.
In
1999, the Federal Highway Administration signed a Memorandum of Understanding
with six other federal agencies and established a pilot program on
environmental streamlining. I am eager
to hear from the Department of Transportation as to whether the MOU or the pilot
program has had an impact on reducing project delays. Most importantly, I would like to know why the Department has not
issued a new rule on environmental streamlining and whether it intends to do so
before TEA-21 expires next year.
However,
last night the President did announce an Executive Order on Environmental
Stewardship and Transportation Infrastructure Project Reviews. Although it’s not a new rule, I appreciate
the Administration’s recognition of the continued importance of environmental
streamlining to improving our nation’s transportation system. I look forward to hearing from today’s
witnesses about this Executive Order and how effective it may be in improving
project delivery.
Again,
thank you, Mr. Chairman, for holding this hearing. I join you in welcoming each of the witnesses who have come to
testify. I look forward to their testimony
and to their answers to any questions that may follow.
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