Designation of the State of Wyoming as a Cooperating Agency on all NEPA & Planning Documents and Review Procedures of Environmental Documents

United States Department of the Interior
BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT
Wyoming State Office
P.O. Box 1828
Cheyenne, Wyoming 82009-1828
IN REPLY REFER TO:
1792 (930) P
November 7, 2014
EMS Transmission: 11/10/22014
Instruction Memorandum No. WY-2015-013
Expires: 09/30/2015
To: District Managers
From: State Director
Subject: Designation of the State of Wyoming as a Cooperating Agency on all NEPA and
Planning Documents and Review Procedures of Environmental Documents
Program Area: Planning and National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)
Purpose: This Instruction Memorandum (IM) transmits the Memorandum of Understanding
(MOU) with the State of Wyoming designating them as a Cooperating Agency on all NEPA and
Planning Documents in Wyoming (See Attachment 1).
Policy/Action: The Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Wyoming State Office and the State
of Wyoming have entered into a MOU (BLM-MOU-WY-930-1501) on October 3, 2014 for all
Planning and NEPA Analyses for which the BLM is the Lead Federal Agency. The MOU
establishes a Cooperating Agency relationship between the BLM and the State of Wyoming by
and through the Office of the Governor (“Cooperator” or Cooperating Agency”), for the purpose
of preparing all Resource Management Plans (RMP) and associated Environmental Impact
Statements (EIS) or Environmental Assessments (EA) under the NEPA. Additionally, this MOU
establishes a Cooperating Agency relationship between the BLM and the State for all NEPA
Analyses in which the BLM is the lead Federal Agency. This MOU applies only to EISs and
EAs. Categorical Exclusions and Determinations of NEPA Adequacy and Land Use Plan
Conformance are not covered in the MOU. An attachment to the MOU will be developed by the
District Resource Advisors and maintained by WY 933. At the start of each NEPA document to
which the MOU is applied, Project Leads will send to WY 933, the title and NEPA number.
Another email will be sent to WY 933 at the conclusion (DR/ROD) of each NEPA document to
which the MOU is applied.

2
Following recent discussions with the State of Wyoming’s Policy Office and staff, the review
procedures of Environmental Documents have been updated to reflect the State’s current
staffing. This IM supersedes WY IM No. 2010-014.
The following environmental documents for review are to be sent to State Agencies listed in
Attachment 2:
1. All Resource Management Plans and Draft and Final EISs
2. All Draft and Final Project EISs
3. Potentially controversial EAs, unique proposals, or other actions specifically requested
State Agencies
Effective immediately – Send one electronic copy of all Environmental Documents requiring
review, as identified in Attachment 2, directly to each of the appropriate State Agencies. An
updated list of the State Agency addresses and electronic mail contacts are also included
(Attachment 3). Please note, one copy of the Environmental Documents will always be sent to
the Governor’s Policy Office, the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, State Historic
Preservation Office (SHPO), Department of Agriculture, and the Office State Lands and
Investments. Field Offices will continue to send review and comment copies of Environmental
Documents to their associated Regional Game and Fish Offices as before. The State prefers an
electronic copy of or link to the Environmental Document be sent to the electronic in boxes of
the contacts listed in Attachment 3. To comply with BLM e-mailing conventions, only send
electronic documents through the mail if they meet the BLM email size requirements. The
State’s second preferred medium would be to have a CD sent to the individual State Agencies.
Provide the State with the same comment period that you have established for public review. If
no comments are provided by the State Agencies within the allotted time, assume no comments
will be provided and move forward with the NEPA process.
Background: The Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) regulations at 40 CFR 1501.6 and
BLM Planning Regulations at 43 CFR 1610.3 requires Federal Agencies to coordinate with other
Federal, State and Local Agencies in the development of planning and NEPA documents.
Timeframe: This IM is effective immediately.
Budget Impact: Compliance with the policy of this IM will not have any budget impacts.
Manual/Handbook Sections Affected: None.
Coordination: This IM was coordinated with the Deputy State Director, Resource Policy and
Management and the State of Wyoming.

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Contact: Questions concerning this IM should be directed to Mike Abel, WY 933 Branch Chief
at 307-775-6092.
Signed by: Authenticated by:
Donald A. Simpson Sherry J. Dixon
State Director Support Services Assistant
3 Attachments:
1 – MOU (8 pp)
2 - Agency Addresses and Contacts (3 pp)
3 - Document Request Matrix (1 p)
Distribution:
Director (210), Rm. 20 M Street 1 w/atch.
Central Files 2 w/atch.