PROGRAMMATIC AGREEMENTS AND ADDITIONAL CATEGORICAL EXCLUSIONS.

SEC. 1318. [23 U.S.C. 109 note] PROGRAMMATIC AGREEMENTS AND ADDITIONAL CATEGORICAL EXCLUSIONS. (a) In General.—Not later than 60 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall— (1) survey the use by the Department of categorical exclusions in transportation projects since 2005; (2) publish a review of the survey that includes a description of— (A) the types of actions categorically excluded; and (B) any requests previously received by the Secretary for new categorical exclusions; and (3) solicit requests from State departments of transportation, transit authorities, metropolitan planning organizations, or other government agencies for new categorical exclusions. (b) New Categorical Exclusions.—Not later than 120 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall publish a notice of proposed rulemaking to propose new categorical exclusions received by the Secretary under subsection (a), to the extent that the categorical exclusions meet the criteria for a categorical exclusion under section 1508.4 of title 40, Code of Federal Regulations, and section 771.117(a) of title 23, Code of Federal Regulations (as those regulations are in effect on the date of the notice). (c) Additional Actions.—The Secretary shall issue a proposed rulemaking to move the following types of actions from subsection (d) of section 771.117 of title 23, Code of Federal Regulations (as in effect on the date of enactment of this Act), to subsection (c) of that section, to the extent that such movement complies with the criteria for a categorical exclusion under section 1508.4 of title 40, Code of Federal Regulations (as in effect on the date of enactment of this Act): (1) Modernization of a highway by resurfacing, restoration, rehabilitation, reconstruction, adding shoulders, or adding auxiliary lanes (including parking, weaving, turning, and climbing). (2) Highway safety or traffic operations improvement projects, including the installation of ramp metering control devices and lighting. (3) Bridge rehabilitation, reconstruction, or replacement or the construction of grade separation to replace existing at-grade railroad crossings. (d) Programmatic Agreements.— (1) In general.—The Secretary shall seek opportunities to enter into programmatic agreements with the States that establish efficient administrative procedures for carrying out environmental and other required project reviews. (2) Inclusions.—Programmatic agreements authorized under paragraph (1) may include agreements that allow a State to determine on behalf of the Federal Highway Administration whether a project is categorically excluded from the preparation of an environmental assessment or environmental impact statement under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.). (3) Determinations.—An agreement described in paragraph (2) may include determinations by the Secretary of the types of projects categorically excluded (consistent with section 1508.4 of title 40, Code of Federal Regulations) in the State in addition to the types listed in subsections (c) and (d) of section 771.117 of title 23, Code of Federal Regulations (as in effect on the date of enactment of this Act). (e) Programmatic Agreement Template.— (1) In general.—The Secretary shall develop a template programmatic agreement described in subsection (d) that provides for efficient and adequate procedures for evaluating Federal actions described in section 771.117(c) of title 23, Code of Federal Regulations (as in effect on the date of enactment of this subsection). (2) Use of template.—The Secretary— (A) on receipt of a request from a State, shall use the template programmatic agreement developed under paragraph (1) in carrying out this section; and (B) on consent of the applicable State, may modify the template as necessary to address the unique needs and characteristics of the State. (3) Outcome measurements.—The Secretary shall establish a method to verify that actions described in section 771.117(c) of title 23, Code of Federal Regulations (as in effect on the date of enactment of this subsection), are evaluated and documented in a consistent manner by the State that uses the template programmatic agreement under this subsection.