[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 176 (Wednesday, September 15, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 51438-51439]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-19914]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Railroad Administration


Notice of Final Agency Actions on Proposed Railroad Project in 
California, on Behalf of the California High Speed Rail Authority

AGENCY: Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), U.S. Department of 
Transportation (DOT).

SUMMARY: FRA, on behalf of the California High-Speed Rail Authority 
(Authority), is issuing this notice to announce actions taken by the 
Authority that are final. By this notice, FRA is advising the public of 
the time limit to file a claim seeking judicial review of the actions 
related to a proposed railroad project, the California High-Speed Rail 
(HSR) Authority's Bakersfield to Palmdale Project Section (Project). 
These actions grant approvals for project implementation pursuant to 
the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and other laws, 
regulations, and executive orders.

DATES: A claim seeking judicial review of the agency actions on the 
Project will be barred unless the claim is filed on or before September 
15, 2023. If the Federal law that authorizes judicial review of a claim 
provides a time period of less than 2 years for filing such claim, then 
that shorter time period applies.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 
    For the Authority: Scott Rothenberg, NEPA Assignment Manager, 
Environmental Services, California High-Speed Rail Authority, 
telephone: (916) 403-6936; email: Scott.Rothenberg@hsr.ca.gov.
    For FRA: Marlys Osterhues, Division Chief, Environment and Project 
Engineering, RPD, telephone: (202) 493-0413; email: 
Marlys.Osterhues@dot.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Effective July 23, 2019, FRA assigned, and 
the State of California acting through the Authority assumed, 
environmental responsibilities for the California HSR System pursuant 
to 23 U.S.C. 327. Notice is given that the Authority has taken final 
agency actions subject to 23 U.S.C. 139(l)(1) and 49 U.S.C. 24201(a)(4) 
by issuing approvals for the Project.
    The purpose of the California HSR System \1\ is to provide a 
reliable, high-speed, electric-powered train system that links the 
major metropolitan areas of California, delivering predictable and 
consistent travel times. A further objective is to provide an interface 
with commercial airports, mass transit, and the highway network, and to 
relieve capacity constraints of the existing transportation system as 
increases in intercity travel demand in California occur, in a manner 
sensitive to and protective of California's unique natural resources. 
The Authority has selected Alternative 2 with the Refined C[eacute]sar 
E. Ch[aacute]vez National Monument Design Option, Avenue M Maintenance 
Site and Maintenance-of-Way Facility, and the Palmdale Station 
identified in the Final Environmental Impact Statement (Final EIS) for 
the Project because the Selected Alternative (1) best satisfies the 
Purpose, Need, and Objectives for the Project and (2) minimizes impacts 
on the natural and human environment by utilizing an existing 
transportation corridor where practicable and incorporating mitigation 
measures. The actions by the Authority, and the laws under which such 
actions were taken, are described in the Record of Decision (ROD) and 
Final EIS on the Project, approved on September 3, 2021. The ROD, Final 
EIS, and other documents are available online in PDF at the Authority's 
website (www.hsr.ca.gov) and on CD-ROM by calling (916) 324-1541.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ The California HSR System would be implemented in two 
phases. Phase 1 would connect San Francisco to Los Angeles and 
Anaheim via the Pacheco Pass and the southern Central Valley. Phase 
2 would extend the HSR system from the Central Valley (starting at 
the Merced Station) to the state's capital in Sacramento and from 
Los Angeles to San Diego.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The notice applies to the ROD, Final EIS, and all other Federal 
agency decisions with respect to the Project as of the issuance date of 
this notice and

[[Page 51439]]

all laws under which such actions were taken, including but not limited 
to:
    1. NEPA;
    2. Council on Environmental Quality regulations (1978); \2\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \2\ The Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) issued new 
regulations on July 14, 2020, effective September 14, 2020, updating 
the NEPA implementing procedures at 40 CFR parts 1500 through 1508. 
However, this project initiated NEPA before the effective date and 
relies on the CEQ regulations as they existed prior to September 14, 
2020. All subsequent citations to the CEQ regulations in the ROD and 
Final EIS refer to the 1978 regulations, consistent with 40 CFR 
1506.13 (2020) and the preamble at 85 FR 43340.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    3. Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act (FAST Act);
    4. Department of Transportation Act of 1966, Section 4(f);
    5. Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) Act of 1965, Section 
6(f);
    6. Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990;
    7. Clean Water Act of 1977 and 1987;
    8. Endangered Species Act of 1973;
    9. Migratory Bird Treaty Act;
    10. National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended;
    11. Executive Order 11990, Protection of Wetlands;
    12. Executive Order 11988, Floodplain Management;
    13. Executive Order 12898, Federal Actions to Address Environmental 
Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations;
    14. Executive Order 13112, Invasive Species.

    Issued in Washington, DC.
Jamie P. Rennert,
Director, Office of Infrastructure Investment.
[FR Doc. 2021-19914 Filed 9-14-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-06-P


