[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 199 (Friday, October 14, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 71044-71045]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-24906]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Telecommunications and Information Administration

First Responder Network Authority

[Docket Number: 160929903-6903-01]
RIN 0660-XC032


Notice of Availability of a Draft Programmatic Environmental 
Impact Statement for the South Region of the Nationwide Public Safety 
Broadband Network and Notice of Public Meetings

AGENCY: First Responder Network Authority, National Telecommunications 
and Information Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce.

ACTION: Announcement of availability of a draft programmatic 
environmental impact statement and of public meetings.

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SUMMARY: The First Responder Network Authority (``FirstNet'') announces 
the availability of the Draft Programmatic Environmental Impact 
Statement for the South Region (``Draft PEIS''). FirstNet also 
announces a series of public meetings to be held throughout the South 
Region to receive comments on the Draft PEIS. The Draft PEIS evaluates 
the potential environmental impacts of the proposed nationwide public 
safety broadband network in the South Region, composed of Alabama, 
Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, New 
Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas.

DATES: Submit comments on the Draft PEIS for the South Region on or 
before December 13, 2016. FirstNet will also hold public meetings in 
each of the 13 states. See SUPPLMENTARY INFORMATION section for meeting 
dates.

ADDRESSES: At any time during the public comment period, members of the 
public, public agencies, and other interested parties are encouraged to 
submit written comments, questions, and concerns about the project for 
FirstNet's consideration or to attend any of the public meetings. 
Written comments may be submitted electronically via 
www.regulations.gov, FIRSTNET-2016-0005, or by mail to Genevieve 
Walker, Director of Environmental Compliance, First Responder Network 
Authority, National Telecommunications and Information Administration, 
U.S. Department of Commerce, 12201 Sunrise Valley Drive, M/S 243, 
Reston, VA 20192. Comments received will be made a part of the public 
record and may be posted to FirstNet's Web site (www.firstnet.gov) 
without change. Comments should be machine readable and should not be 
copy-protected. All personally identifiable information (e.g., name, 
address) voluntarily submitted by the commenter may be publicly 
accessible. Do not submit confidential business information or 
otherwise sensitive or protected information. The Draft PEIS is 
available for download from www.regulations.gov, FIRSTNET-2016-0005. A 
CD containing the electronic files of this document is also available 
at public libraries (see Chapter 21 of the Draft PEIS for the complete 
distribution list). See SUPPLMENTARY INFORMATION section for public 
meeting addresses.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For more information on the Draft 
PEIS, contact Genevieve Walker, Director of Environmental Compliance, 
First Responder Network Authority, National Telecommunications and 
Information Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 12201 Sunrise 
Valley Drive, M/S 243, Reston, VA 20192.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Public Meetings

    Attendees can obtain information regarding the project and/or 
submit a comment in person during public meetings. The meeting details 
are as follows:
     Nashville, Tennessee: October 24, 2016, from 4:00 p.m. to 
8:00 p.m., Hermitage Hotel, 231 6th Avenue North, Nashville, TN 37219

[[Page 71045]]

     Atlanta, Georgia: October 25, 2016, from 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 
p.m., Glenn Hotel, 110 Marietta Street NW., Atlanta, GA 30303
     Frankfort, Kentucky: October 25, 2016, from 4:00 p.m. to 
8:00 p.m., Hampton Inn Frankfort, 1310 U.S. Highway 127S, Frankfort, KY 
40601
     Morrisville (Raleigh Area), North Carolina: October 26, 
2016, from 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., Morrisville Fire Station 1, 200 Town 
Hall Drive, Training Room, Morrisville, NC 27560
     Montgomery, Alabama: October 26, 2016, from 4:00 p.m. to 
8:00 p.m., Renaissance Montgomery Hotel & Spa at the Convention Center, 
201 Tallapoosa Street, Montgomery, AL 36104
     Orlando, Florida: October 27, 2016, from 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 
p.m., Courtyard by Marriott Orlando Downtown, 730 N. Magnolia Avenue, 
Orlando, FL 32803
     Columbia, South Carolina: October 27, 2016, from 4:00 p.m. 
to 8:00 p.m., SpringHill Suites Columbia Downtown, 511 Lady Street, 
Columbia, SC 29201
     Baton Rouge, Louisiana: November 1, 2016, from 4:00 p.m. 
to 8:00 p.m., Louisiana State Police Training Academy, Classroom No. 5, 
7919 Independence Boulevard, Baton Rouge, LA 70806
     Sante Fe, New Mexico: November 1, 2016, from 4:00 p.m. to 
8:00 p.m., Hilton Sante Fe Historic Plaza, 100 Sandoval Street, Santa 
Fe, NM 87501
     Jackson Mississippi: November 2, 2016, from 4:00 p.m. to 
8:00 p.m., Jackson Marriott, 200 E Amite Street, Jackson, MS 39201
     Little Rock, Arkansas: November 3, 2016, from 4:00 p.m. to 
8:00 p.m., Arkansas State Capitol, 500 Woodlane Street, Room 130, 
Little Rock, AR 72201
     Oklahoma City, Oklahoma: November 3, 2016, from 4:00 p.m. 
to 8:00 p.m., OKC-County Health Department, Northeast Regional Health 
Wellness Campus, 2600 NE 63rd Street, Auditorium, Oklahoma City, OK 
73111
     Austin, Texas: November 7, 2016, from 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 
p.m., The W Austin Hotel, 200 Lavaca Street, Austin, TX 78701
     Dallas, Texas: November 9, 2016, from 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 
p.m., Hyatt Regency Dallas, 300 Reunion Boulevard East, Dallas, TX 
75207

Background

    The Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012 (Pub. L. 
112-96, Title VI, 126 Stat. 156 (codified at 47 U.S.C. 1401 et seq.)) 
(the ``Act'') created and authorized FirstNet to take all actions 
necessary to ensure the building, deployment, and operation of an 
interoperable, nationwide public safety broadband network (``NPSBN'') 
based on a single, national network architecture. The Act meets a 
longstanding and critical national infrastructure need, to create a 
single, nationwide network that will, for the first time, allow police 
officers, fire fighters, emergency medical service professionals, and 
other public safety entities to effectively communicate with each other 
across agencies and jurisdictions. The NPSBN is intended to enhance the 
ability of the public safety community to perform more reliably, 
effectively, and safely; increase situational awareness during an 
emergency; and improve the ability of the public safety community to 
effectively engage in those critical activities.
    The National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321-4347) 
(``NEPA'') requires federal agencies to undertake an assessment of 
environmental effects of their proposed actions prior to making a final 
decision and implementing the action. NEPA requirements apply to any 
federal project, decision, or action that may have a significant impact 
on the quality of the human environment. NEPA also establishes the 
Council on Environmental Quality (``CEQ''), which issued regulations 
implementing the procedural provisions of NEPA (see 40 CFR parts 1500-
1508). Among other considerations, CEQ regulations at 40 CFR 1508.28 
recommend the use of tiering from a ``broader environmental impact 
statement (such as a national program or policy statements) with 
subsequent narrower statements or environmental analysis (such as 
regional or basin wide statements or ultimately site-specific 
statements) incorporating by reference the general discussions and 
concentrating solely on the issues specific to the statement 
subsequently prepared.''
    Due to the geographic scope of FirstNet (all 50 states, the 
District of Columbia, and five territories) and the diversity of 
ecosystems potentially traversed by the project, FirstNet has elected 
to prepare five regional PEISs. The five PEISs were divided into the 
East, Central, West, South, and Non-Contiguous Regions. The South 
Region includes Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, 
Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South 
Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas. The Draft PEIS analyzes potential 
impacts of the deployment and operation of the NPSBN on the natural and 
human environment in the South Region, in accordance with FirstNet's 
responsibilities under NEPA.

Next Steps

    All comments received by the public and any interested stakeholders 
will be evaluated and considered by FirstNet during the preparation of 
the Final PEIS. Once a PEIS is completed and a Record of Decision (ROD) 
is signed, FirstNet will evaluate site-specific documentation, as 
network design is developed, to determine if the proposed project has 
been adequately evaluated in the PEIS or warrants a Categorical 
Exclusion, an Environmental Assessment, or an Environmental Impact 
Statement.

    Dated: October 11, 2016.
Elijah Veenendaal,
Attorney--Advisor, First Responder Network Authority.
[FR Doc. 2016-24906 Filed 10-13-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-TL-P