FAST ACT Section 1421 - Programmatic Approaches to Project Delivery
On December 4, 2015, President Obama signed into law the Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act, or the "FAST Act”. Section 1421 of the FAST Act provides for the following:
"SEC. 1421. PRODUCTIVE AND TIMELY EXPENDITURE OF FUNDS.
(a) IN GENERAL.-Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall develop guidance that encourages the use of programmatic approaches to project delivery, expedited and prudent procurement techniques, and other best practices to facilitate productive, effective, and timely expenditure of funds for projects eligible for funding under title 23, United States Code.
(b) IMPLEMENTATION.-The Secretary shall work with States to ensure that any guidance developed under subsection (a) is consistently implemented by States and the Federal Highway Administration to-
(1) avoid unnecessary delays in completing projects;
(2) minimize cost overruns; and
(3) ensure the effective use of Federal funding.
Federal Register Notices
- August 30, 2016, Federal Register Notice and Request for Comments
- December 19, 2017, Federal Register Final Notice
Programmatic Agreements
- Every Day Counts 1 - Programmatic Agreements
- Every Day Counts 2 – Programmatic Agreements Current State of Practice
- EDC-2 Final Report, March 2015 (pdf)
- Benefit and Costs of Programmatic Agreements Report, February 2015
- National Online Dialogue for MAP-21 Section 1305 - Programmatic Approaches
- SHRP2 C19 Expediting Project Delivery
- Programmatic Agreement for Processing Interstate Access Requests
- AASHTO CEE Programmatic Agreements Library (PAL) Database – Developed by the AASHTO's Center for Environmental Excellence, this site provides a database of programmatic agreements for various categories including: Air Quality, Section 106, Section 4(f), NEPA, Endangered Species, Land Management, Transportation Enhancements, and other categories.
- FHWA Environmental Review Toolkit – Accelerating Project Delivery
Environmental Streamlining
- FHWA Transportation Liaison Community of Practice
- Information for Planning and Conservation System (IPaC) The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service planning tool for streamlining the environmental review process
- Planning and Environment Linkages (PEL) – Streamlining Transportation Decision-making. Minimize duplication of effort and reduce delays in project implementation
- Synchronizing Environmental Reviews for Transportation and Other Infrastructure Projects 2015 Red Book