NV-2023-003 Change 1 - Updated Process for Department of the Interior (DOI) and Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Directorate Briefings and Reviews of National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) Documents

This IM establishes guidance and direction for State Office, District Office, and Field Office Managers, Program Leads, P&ECs, Project Managers, Interdisciplinary Teams, Communications staff, and others to execute the requirements for briefings with BLM Headquarters (HQ-100), Assistant Secretary for Land and Minerals Management (ASLM), and the Secretary’s Office for EIS-level project review. Required reviews for documents are those that: (1) are prepared in connection with actions requiring an EIS; (2) likely to be controversial and could result in litigation; or (3) are for SD approval. Recommended reviews are for documents prepared in connection with actions that are complex, unique, or unusual. This guidance outlines timelines, review processes and office level responsibilities, briefing procedures, guidance, and Best Practices (Attachment 3) for NEPA documents.

Provided below are the general steps necessary to successfully conduct the State Office Review process, State Director Briefings, and HQ or Department Review Team briefings.

1. Roles and Responsibilities

The intention in Nevada is to complete the EIS process from NOI to ROD within a 12-month timeline.

1.1. Responsibilities and Coordination of the Requesting Office
1.1.1. EIS project and managerial staff will coordinate issues and concerns with the NV-910 Resource Advisor during the monthly EIS status meetings.
1.1.2. The District Manager (DM) will consult with the SD for any extension of EIS timelines.

1.2. Responsibilities and Coordination of the Nevada State Office (NVSO)
1.2.1. The Resource Advisor will coordinate with EIS Project Managers regarding project milestones.

1.3. Responsibilities and Coordination of the Office of the Regional Solicitor
1.3.1. Regional Solicitors will also be invited and included as members of the project interdisciplinary team.
1.3.2. Regional Solicitors will be engaged in every step of EIS preparation and invited to participate in all sections and stages of the process.

2. Review Process and Responsibilities

Reviews are required for documents that are (1) prepared in connection with actions requiring an EIS; (2) likely to be controversial and could result in litigation; or (3) needing SD approval. Recommended reviews are for documents prepared in connection with actions that are complex, unique, or unusual.

2.1. The NVSO review will be notified early in the process, and time frames must be identified in the comprehensive schedule associated with the action. The requesting office point of contact (POC) will notify NVSO Planning and NEPA Staff of an upcoming review two weeks prior to a scheduled review.
2.2. Draft and Final EISs will receive a 14-calendar day review and comment period (excluding holidays) by the NVSO, with the package of associated documents and references made available in accordance with Best Practices (Attachment 3).
2.3. The 14-calendar day review period for the NVSO will be incorporated into the EIS project timeline. Upon request, the NVSO review may run concurrently with reviews by local interdisciplinary teams (IDT).
2.4. The start of this 14-calendar day review period is determined by NVSO and begins on a regular workday morning, but does not start until the pertinent documents, including a project-specific comment form, are made available on the internal BLM Nevada Planning and NEPA SharePoint site in the appropriate repository folder for the project. The review period will be longer if the request arrives during the last half of December. 2.5. The NVSO will review documents prior to cooperating agencies. Exceptions to this may be considered and approved by the DSD for Resources, Lands, and Planning (NV-930) on a case-by-case basis.
2.6. If requirements for EIS page limits cannot be met, the responsible manager will consult with the NV-910 Resource Advisor at the earliest opportunity to discuss the waiver process.
2.7. District Offices will engage NVSO at the earliest stage in the process on District requests to prepare an unusually complex EA and for requests to join an EA IDT (for example, a project driven RMP Amendment). Requests will be made by the District Manager to the NV-930 Deputy State Director. For the EA to receive NVSO support, the requesting office must provide a project description and a purpose and need statement. Cost-recovery code numbers in QuickTime format also will be provided for NVSO reviewers.

3. Briefing Procedures for BLM Headquarters and Nevada State Director:

3.1. The EIS Project Manager will update the NVSO EIS Review Dashboard spreadsheet on a bi-weekly basis and attend the monthly EIS Status and Dashboard Update meetings with NVSO staff. The EIS Review Dashboard spreadsheet will have the most recent project milestone dates/target dates and project information because NVSO updates the OEPC database directly from the data on this spreadsheet.
3.2. HQ-100 and the Assistant Secretary for Land and Minerals Management (ASLM) then utilize the information from the OEPC database to request and schedule briefings. If the EIS milestone data is not updated, EIS schedules potentially will not be met.
3.3. The most recent direction for HQ and Departmental briefings as well as up-to-date templates for Initial Action Notices (IAN), Notices of Intent (NOI), Scoping, Notices of Availability (NOA), and Records of Decision (ROD) can be found on the internal Headquarters-210 SharePoint site titled: Review Process – DOI and Leadership Briefings and Reviews of NEPA Documents.
3.4. A minimum of 45 days prior to the scheduled NOI release date, an IAN for a proposed BLM EIS will be submitted to HQ-100 by the NV-910 Resource Advisor.
3.5. The EIS project manager will provide the information needed for the IAN to the NV-910 Resource Advisor in a timely manner.
3.6. HQ-100 will use the information in the IAN to determine the level (HQ-100/ASLM or Department) of briefings required on the EIS.
3.7. Prior to the HQ-100/ASLM or Departmental briefings, the Districts will continue having SD briefings for Notice of Intent (NOI), Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS), Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS), and Record of Decision (ROD). These will be scheduled through the State Director’s Executive Assistants.

4. BLM Guidance for EIS Project Briefings:

The following is guidance related to the requirements for briefings with HQ-100, ASLM, and the Deputy Secretary for EIS level project review. The former DRT process referenced in IM 2019-016 is no longer in effect.

4.1. The BLM has developed step-down guidance on how the Departmental Review Team (DRT) process will be coordinated with the BLM Leadership review process. See Headquarters PIM 2023-004, Bureau of Land Management Environmental Impact Statements Document Clearance Process, which describes the review and approval process for all EISs and their associated Federal Register Notices (FRNs).

Please keep in mind and highlight the applicable State Director, BLM and Interior priorities when preparing the briefing statements and other information for review.

The NV-912 Communications staff and the NV-910 Resource Advisor will assist and facilitate communications with the HQ advisors to answer questions and schedule briefings. Once a project has reached HQ, an advisor is assigned to the project. The HQ advisor will work with the NV-910 Resource Advisor on initial questions but may reach out to project managers with specific questions. Please keep in close communication with the NVSO staff (Resource Advisor and NVSO administrative personnel) on all requests for briefing materials and information requested so they can keep the SD and Deputy State Directors (DSDs) informed. This IM regarding State Office review process, briefings, and the statewide project management process (Attachment 2) is effective upon issuance. All questions regarding the implementation of this policy should be directed to Nevada State Office Planning and NEPA staff.