[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 40, Volume 1]
[Revised as of July 1, 2007]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 40CFR6.400]

[Page 110-111]
 
                   TITLE 40--PROTECTION OF ENVIRONMENT
 
               CHAPTER I--ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
 
PART 6_PROCEDURES FOR IMPLEMENTING THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE COUNCIL ON 
ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY ON THE NATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY ACT--
 
          Subpart D_Public and Other Federal Agency Involvement
 
Sec. 6.400  Public involvement.


    (a) General. EPA shall make diligent efforts to involve the public 
in the environmental review process consistent with program regulations 
and EPA policies on public participation. The responsibile official 
shall ensure that public notice is provided for in accordance with 40 
CFR 1506.6(b) and shall ensure that public involvement is carried out in 
accordance with EPA Public Participation Regulations, 40 CFR part 25, 
and other applicable EPA public participation procedures.
    (b) Publication of notices of intent. As soon as practicable after 
his decision to prepare an EIS and before the scoping process, the 
responsible official shall send the notice of intent to interested and 
affected members of the public and shall request the OEA to publish the 
notice of intent in the Federal Register. The responsible official shall 
send to OEA the signed original notice of intent for Federal Register 
publication purposes. The scoping process should be initiated as soon as 
practicable in accordance with the requirements of 40 CFR 1501.7. 
Participants in the scoping process shall be kept informed of 
substantial changes which evolve during the EIS drafting process.

[[Page 111]]

    (c) Public meetings or hearings. Public meetings or hearings shall 
be conducted consistent with Agency program requirements. There shall be 
a presumption that a scoping meeting will be conducted whenever a notice 
of intent has been published. The responsible official shall conduct a 
public hearing on a draft EIS. The responsible official shall ensure 
that the draft EIS is made available to the public at least 30 days in 
advance of the hearing.
    (d) Findings of no significant impact (FNSI). The responsible 
official shall allow for sufficient public review of a FNSI before it 
becomes effective. The FNSI and attendant publication must state that 
interested persons disagreeing with the decision may submit comments to 
EPA. The responsible official shall not take administrative action on 
the project for at least thirty (30) calendar days after release of the 
FNSI and may allow more time for response. The responsible official 
shall consider, fully, comments submitted on the FNSI before taking 
administrative action. The FNSI shall be made available to the public in 
accordance with the requirements and all appropriate recommendations 
contained in Sec. 1506.6 of this title.
    (e) Record of Decision (ROD). The responsible official shall 
disseminate the ROD to those parties which commented on the draft or 
final EIS.
    (f) Categorical exclusions. (1) For categorical exclusion 
determinations under subpart E (Wastewater Treatment Construction Grants 
Program), an applicant who files for and receives a determination of 
categorical exclusion under Sec. 6.107(a), or has one rescinded under 
Sec. 6.107(c), shall publish a notice indicating the determination of 
eligibility or rescission in a local newspaper of community-wide 
circulation and indicate the availability of the supporting 
documentation for public inspection. The responsible official shall, 
concurrent with the publication of the notice, make the documentation as 
outlined in Sec. 6.107(b) available to the public and distribute the 
notice of the determination to all known interested parties.
    (2) For categorical exclusion determinations under other subparts of 
this regulation, no public notice need be issued; however, information 
regarding these determinations may be obtained by contacting the U.S. 
Environmental Protection Agency's Office of Research Program Management 
for ORD actions, or the Office of Federal Activities for other program 
actions.

[44 FR 64177, Nov. 6, 1979, as amended at 51 FR 32611, Sept. 12, 1986; 
56 FR 20543, May 6, 1991]