NEPA in Flux: The Legal and Policy Implications of Recent Executive and Administrative Actions Affecting NEPA’s Implementation
Ongoing executive and administrative actions may dramatically affect federal agencies’ implementation of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). On January 20, 2025, President Donald Trump issued Executive Order (EO) 14154, Unleashing American Energy. Section 5 of this EO first revokes a 1977 EO that directed the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) to issue regulations to federal agencies for the implementation of NEPA. Then, Section 5 directs CEQ to rescind its existing regulations entirely. This EO parallels recent judicial decisions from the U.S. District Courts for the Districts of Columbia and North Dakota finding CEQ’s NEPA regulations to be ultra vires.
CEQ has begun implementing the directives of EO 1454. On February 19, 2025, CEQ released a memorandum directing federal agencies to revise or establish their own NEPA procedures, with the goal of expediting permitting approvals. Then, on February 25, 2025, CEQ published in the Federal Register an interim final rule revoking the CEQ’s NEPA regulations. These actions constitute the most significant changes to NEPA’s implementation in more than 45 years.
CEQ has begun implementing the directives of EO 1454. On February 19, 2025, CEQ released a memorandum directing federal agencies to revise or establish their own NEPA procedures, with the goal of expediting permitting approvals. Then, on February 25, 2025, CEQ published in the Federal Register an interim final rule revoking the CEQ’s NEPA regulations. These actions constitute the most significant changes to NEPA’s implementation in more than 45 years.
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