Johnson’s bill brings reviews of federal highway projects into next century

U.S. Rep. Dusty Johnson (R-SD) recently offered bipartisan, bicameral legislation that would improve the environmental review process for federal highway projects through the use of interactive, digital, cloud-based platforms.

“Environmental reviews are stuck in the ’90s and continue to delay critical infrastructure projects for years at a time, discouraging innovation and growth,” Rep. Johnson said. “We need to take advantage of all opportunities to modernize and accelerate the review process. The Interactive Federal Review Act would do just that.”

The Interactive Federal Review Act, H.R. 4621, which Rep. Johnson sponsored alongside original cosponsor U.S. Rep. Greg Stanton (D-AZ), would direct the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) to select a minimum of 10 federal highway projects to demonstrate the use of such platforms in carrying out the environmental analysis and community engagement processes required in FHWA projects, according to a bill summary provided by the lawmakers.

The measure would address a root cause of delayed environmental reviews for infrastructure projects by moving the development of National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) documents from PDFs to interactive, cloud-based platforms, which are estimated to shorten the review time of traditional schedules for large projects by 50 percent through real-time, concurrent reviews by agencies, the summary says.

The same-named S. 2319 also was introduced on July 13 by U.S. Sens. Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) and Mark Kelly (D-AZ).

“Utilizing 21st century technology to speed up the environmental review process for transportation infrastructure projects maximizes the benefits of our Bipartisan Infrastructure Law,” said Sen. Kelly. “Completing projects like widening I-10 and building I-11 without unnecessary and costly delays will fuel economic growth, strengthen our supply chain, and improve Arizonans’ quality of life.”