Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 119.djvu/1885

 PUBLIC LAW 109–59—AUG. 10, 2005

119 STAT. 1867

the Secretary and the terms of the proposed agreement with the State; and ‘‘(B) provide an opportunity for public comment. ‘‘(3) SELECTION CRITERIA.—The Secretary may approve the application of a State to assume responsibilities under the program only if— ‘‘(A) the requirements under paragraph (2) have been met; and ‘‘(B) the Secretary determines that the State has the capability to assume the responsibilities. ‘‘(4) OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY VIEWS.—Before assigning to a State a responsibility of the Secretary that requires the Secretary to consult with another Federal agency, the Secretary shall solicit the views of the Federal agency. ‘‘(d) STATE DEFINED.—With respect to the recreational trails program, the term ‘State’ means the State agency designated by the Governor of the State in accordance with section 206(c)(1). ‘‘(e) PRESERVATION OF PUBLIC INTEREST CONSIDERATION.— Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit the requirements under any applicable law providing for the consideration and preservation of the public interest, including public participation and community values in transportation decisionmaking.’’. (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The analysis for chapter 3 of title 23, United States Code, is amended by adding after the item relating to section 324 the following:

23 USC 301.

‘‘325. State assumption of responsibilities for certain programs and projects.’’. SEC. 6004. STATE ASSUMPTION OF RESPONSIBILITY FOR CATEGORICAL EXCLUSIONS.

(a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 3 of title 23, United States Code, is further amended by inserting after section 325 the following: ‘‘§ 326. State assumption of responsibility for categorical exclusions ‘‘(a) CATEGORICAL EXCLUSION DETERMINATIONS.— ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may assign, and a State may assume, responsibility for determining whether certain designated activities are included within classes of action identified in regulation by the Secretary that are categorically excluded from requirements for environmental assessments or environmental impact statements pursuant to regulations promulgated by the Council on Environmental Quality under part 1500 of title 40, Code of Federal Regulations (as in effect on October 1, 2003). ‘‘(2) SCOPE OF AUTHORITY.—A determination described in paragraph (1) shall be made by a State in accordance with criteria established by the Secretary and only for types of activities specifically designated by the Secretary. ‘‘(3) CRITERIA.—The criteria under paragraph (2) shall include provisions for public availability of information consistent with section 552 of title 5 and the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.). ‘‘(b) OTHER APPLICABLE FEDERAL LAWS.— ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If a State assumes responsibility under subsection (a), the Secretary may also assign and the State may assume all or part of the responsibilities of the Secretary for environmental review, consultation, or other related actions

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