Sec. 614. Establishment of fees for environmental reviews and authorizations for projects
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The head of each Federal agency required or authorized to complete an environmental document or an authorization for a major Federal action shall issue regulations to collect fees for work to complete any such environmental document or authorization. A fee collected under paragraph
(1)shall be, as determined by the head of the applicable Federal agency— fair; sufficient to cover the costs to the Federal agency of completing the environmental document or authorization; and consistent with the guidance established by the Council on Environmental Quality and the Office of Management and Budget under subsection (b). In collecting a fee under paragraph (1), the head of a Federal agency may also consider— the value of the service or thing to the individual or entity that receives a completed environmental review or authorization; the public interest served by the major Federal action; the complexity of the major Federal action and number of agencies involved as cooperating agencies; potential impacts of the major Federal action on small businesses; and other relevant factors, as determined by the head of the Federal agency. Fees collected under this subsection shall be deposited into the applicable Environmental Review Fund established under subsection (c)(1). Not later than 120 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Council on Environmental Quality and the Office of Management and Budget shall issue joint guidance for Federal agencies to facilitate the collection of fees under subsection
(a)and the reporting of data under subsection (c)(5). There is established at each Federal agency with authority for completing environmental reviews or authorizations required by law an Environmental Review Fund (referred to in this subsection as a Fund ), consisting of fees established under subsection
(a)that are collected by the Federal agency. Amounts in a Fund and amounts transferred to an agency under paragraph
(3)shall be available to the applicable Federal agency, without further appropriation, for— environmental review staff salaries and training and third-party contracts to support the completion of environmental documents and authorizations for major Federal actions; environmental data collection; development of documents and analyses that will facilitate timely environmental reviews, including programmatic analyses and memoranda of understanding; monitoring compliance with terms and conditions included in authorizations for major Federal actions; and other activities and services that will facilitate timely environmental reviews, as determined by the head of the Federal agency. A Federal agency for which a Fund is established by paragraph
(1)may transfer amounts in such a Fund to another Federal agency— for work performed as a cooperating agency to complete an environmental document for a major Federal action that is subject to a fee established by the Federal agency under subsection (a); to pay the costs of conducting and completing responsibilities required under other Federal law for the major Federal action on which the Federal agency is serving as the lead agency; or to fund liaison positions at another Federal agency to facilitate interagency coordination and timely completion of environmental documents and authorizations for major Federal action. A Federal agency with a Fund shall have the authority to accept funding transferred by another agency under subparagraph (A). A Federal agency for which a Fund is established by paragraph
(1)may establish, by issuing regulations, within the Fund a separate programmatic environmental review fund. A Federal agency may allow a project sponsor or group of project sponsors to contribute to a programmatic environmental review fund established under subparagraph
(A)to facilitate the development of a programmatic environmental review. A Federal agency that established a programmatic environmental review fund under subparagraph
(A)may establish fees, consistent with specifications and considerations under subsection (a), when the environmental document for a project carried out by a project sponsor will tier off the programmatic environmental review, consistent with section 1501.11 of title 40, Code of Federal Regulations (or a successor regulation). The head of each Federal agency for which a Fund is established by paragraph
(1)shall prepare, and make publicly available on the website of the Federal agency, an annual report on the collection and use of fees under subsection
(a)and this subsection. Amounts in a Fund shall supplement existing amounts authorized to carry out activities described in paragraph (2). A Federal agency using amounts in a Fund shall not be subject to any limitation relating to the number of full-time equivalent employees of the Federal agency otherwise imposed by law. A Federal agency that establishes a fee under subsection
(a)may exempt an entity from such a fee if, as determined by the Federal agency, the fee would impose an undue financial burden or is otherwise determined to be inappropriate.