[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 119 (Wednesday, June 22, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 37373-37374]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-13277]


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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).

ACTION: Notice.

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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. 
The actions relate to the California High-Speed Rail San Jose to Merced 
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.

[[Page 37374]]


DATES: A claim seeking judicial review of the agency actions on the 
Project will be barred unless the claim is filed on or before June 21, 
2024. If Federal law later authorizes 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: [email protected].
    For FRA: Marlys Osterhues, Division Chief, Environment and Systems 
Planning, Federal Railroad Administration, telephone: (202) 493-0413; 
email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Effective July 23, 2019, FRA assigned, and 
the State of California acting through the Authority assumed, 
environmental responsibilities for the California High-Speed Rail (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); 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 4, with the San Jose Diridon Station, a 
station in downtown Gilroy, the South Gilroy Maintenance-of-Way 
Facility and maintenance of way siding (MOWS) west of Turner Island 
Road in the Central Valley, as identified in the Final Environmental 
Impact Statement (Final EIS) and Record of Decision, for the San Jose 
to Merced 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 where practicable. The actions by the Authority, and the laws 
under which such actions were taken, are described in the Project's 
Final EIS and Record of Decision (ROD). The ROD was executed on June 1, 
2022. The ROD, Final EIS, and other documents will be available online 
in PDF at the Authority's website (www.hsr.ca.gov) and via electronic 
media by calling (916) 324-1541.
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    \1\ The California HSR System will be implemented in two phases. 
Phase 1 will connect San Francisco to Los Angeles and Anaheim via 
the Pacheco Pass and the southern Central Valley. Phase 2 will 
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.
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    This 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 all laws under which such actions were taken, including 
but not limited to:

    1. NEPA;
    2. Council on Environmental Quality regulations (1978); \2\
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    \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 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.
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    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. 2022-13277 Filed 6-21-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-06-P


