Sec. 3. Federal Register and NEPA process for phosphate and potash exploration or mine permits
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/bill/117/s/5128/is/section-3·A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
Absent any extraordinary circumstance, and except as otherwise required by law, the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture shall ensure that each Federal Register notice described in paragraph
(2)shall be— subject to any required reviews within the Department of the Interior or the Department of Agriculture; and published in final form in the Federal Register not later than 45 days after the date of initial preparation of the notice. The preparation of Federal Register notices required by law associated with the issuance of a potash or phosphate exploration or mine permit shall be delegated to the organizational level within the Federal agency responsible for issuing the potash or phosphate exploration or mine permit. All Federal Register notices relating to official document availability, announcements of meetings, or notices of intent to undertake an activity described in paragraph
(2)shall be originated in, and transmitted to the Federal Register from, the office in which, as applicable— the documents or meetings are held; or the activity is initiated. In this subsection, the term covered project means a project for the exploration or mining of potash or phosphate for which a Federal permit is required. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the head of a Federal agency may, on request of a project sponsor for a covered project, authorize a qualified third party or the project sponsor for the covered project to prepare an environmental document intended to be adopted by a Federal agency as the environmental impact statement, environmental assessment, or other environmental document for a covered project. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the record of decision for a covered project shall be completed by not later than 30 months after the date on which the proposal for the covered project was submitted.