H.R. 3634: Interactive Federal Review Act

This bill, known as the Interactive Federal Review Act, aims to enhance the environmental review process for highway projects in the United States. Here’s a breakdown of its main components:

Purpose of the Bill

The primary goals of the bill include:

• Expediting Reviews: It seeks to speed up the environmental review processes conducted by federal agencies.
• Enhancing Stakeholder Engagement: It aims to improve public involvement and understanding of the environmental effects related to highway projects.

Key Definitions

The bill specifies what constitutes a "covered project," which are highway projects that receive funding from certain federal programs, including:

• The Infrastructure for Rebuilding America (INFRA) grant program
• The Mega grant program
• The Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) grant program
• The program for national infrastructure investments, formerly known as the BUILD grant program.

Encouragement of Digital Tools

The bill encourages the Secretary of Transportation to promote the use of:

• Interactive Digital Platforms: These are cloud-based platforms that allow for real-time interaction during the review process.
• Digital Twins: High fidelity, 3-dimensional digital models of infrastructure elements that help visualize projects and their impacts.

These tools are intended to be employed in the environmental reviews required under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA).

Implementation Steps

To put the bill into action, the following steps are outlined:

• Guidance Publication: Within 90 days of the bill becoming law, the Secretary must publish best practices to guide project sponsors on using digital tools.
• Project Selection: The Secretary will select at least 10 covered projects to showcase the effectiveness of these digital tools in environmental reviews.
• Priority Projects: The Secretary will prioritize applications for projects that incorporate these digital tools when evaluating funding requests.

Reporting Requirements

The Secretary is also required to produce reports that include:

• Assessments of the effectiveness of using digital tools in achieving efficiencies and enhancing community engagement.
• Examples of successful environmental analyses carried out with the aid of these technology resources.
• At least five examples of environmental documents (like impact statements) developed using interactive, digital platforms, submitted to congressional committees within a year of enactment.

Savings Provision

The bill contains a provision ensuring that it does not interfere with the authority of states under existing federal transportation laws.

Relevant Companies

• CSCO - Cisco Systems: As a provider of networking and digital communication technologies, Cisco could see increased demand for its cloud-based solutions as states and localities adopt more digital tools for proposed projects.
• ADBE - Adobe Inc.: Adobe's suite of digital creation and collaboration tools may become more integral in visualizations and project planning for highway projects under this act.