[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 180 (Monday, September 17, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 46911-46912]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-20051]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Rural Utilities Service


Telecommunications Program: Notice of availability of a Finding 
of No Significant Impact

AGENCY: Rural Utilities Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of Availability of a Finding of No Significant Impact 
for a Programmatic Environmental Assessment of USDA Rural Utilities 
Service's Financial Support for Deployment of the Telecommunications 
Programs to Rural America.

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SUMMARY: The Rural Utilities Service (RUS), an agency of the United 
States Department of Agriculture, has issued a Finding of No 
Significant Impact (FONSI) in association with the ``Broadband 
Deployment to Rural America'' Programmatic Environmental Assessment 
(PEA) published on March 1, 2016. The PEA provides a broad 
environmental analysis of the Agency's preliminary decisions and 
includes a tiered, site-specific analysis at the project level that 
would be completed before Agency dispersal of funds and/or applicant 
construction.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To obtain copies of the FONSI or PEA, 
or for further information, please contact: Ms. Lauren Rayburn, 
Environmental Scientist, Rural Utilities Service, 1400 Independence 
Ave. SW, Mail Stop 1571, Room 2240, Washington, DC 20250, phone: (202) 
695-2540, or email: [email protected]. Additional information 
about the Agency and its programs is available on the internet at 
http://www.rd.usda.gov/.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: RUS issued a Programmatic Environmental 
Assessment (PEA) for the development of a more efficient and effective 
environmental review process for its Telecommunications Program on 
March 1, 2016. The PEA provides a broad environmental analysis of the 
Agency's preliminary decisions and includes a tiered, site-specific 
analysis at the project level that would be completed before Agency 
dispersal of funds and/or applicant construction. Since publication of 
the Agency's Environmental Policies and Procedures (7 CFR part 1970) on 
March 2, 2016, RUS has updated the PEA with citations to the Agency's 
new environmental rule. These changes were administrative and not 
substantive, therefore supplementation of the PEA is not required.
    The RUS Telecommunications Program provides a variety of loans and 
grants to build and expand broadband networks in rural America. Loans 
to build broadband networks and deliver service to households and 
businesses in rural communities provide a necessary source of capital 
for rural telecommunications companies. Grant funding is awarded based 
on a number of factors relating to the benefits to be derived from the 
proposed broadband network project, as specified in applicable program 
regulations.
    Eligible applicants for RUS loans and grants include for-profit and 
non-profit entities, tribes, municipalities, and cooperatives. The 
Agency particularly encourages investment in tribal and economically 
disadvantaged areas. Through low-cost funding for telecommunications 
infrastructure, rural residents can have access to services that will 
close the digital divide between rural and urban communities. Once 
funds are awarded, RUS monitors the projects to make sure they are 
completed in accordance with program conditions and requirements.
    The application process for requesting financial assistance for the 
various Telecommunications programs varies slightly from a competitive 
grant program, individual project proposals, or multi-year ``loan 
design'' applications. The Agency seeks to synchronize and create 
environmental review efficiencies for future project-level 
environmental review compliance for the various programs, commensurate 
with the potential environmental impacts. The Agency also seeks to 
establish proper sequencing of certain agency preliminary decisions 
(i.e., obligation of funds and/or approval of interim financing 
requests) with subsequent tiered, site-specific project environmental 
reviews.
    The PEA is intended to expedite the funding, deployment, and 
expansion of broadband infrastructure in rural America. The PEA 
includes detailed descriptions and analyses of the direct, indirect, 
and cumulative impacts associated with broadband infrastructure 
technologies and construction methods, such as impacts to water 
resources, terrestrial resources, historic and cultural resources, air 
and climate resources, noise, threatened and endangered species, 
electromagnetic radiation, and Environmental Justice issues. Use of the 
PEA analyses thereby saves project-level processing time, ensuring 
consistent and accurate environmental evaluations while avoiding 
unnecessary duplication and repetition in project-level planning and 
evaluation. Use of the PEA and its FONSI enables project-level 
compliance with NEPA, ESA, NHPA, and other requirements to focus on the 
remaining relevant site-specific issues, expediting planning, analysis, 
compliance, documentation, and ultimately project-level decisions.
    Any final action by RUS related to the broadband portion of the RUS 
Telecommunications Program will be subject to, and contingent upon, 
compliance with all relevant presidential executive orders and federal, 
state, and local environmental laws and regulations in addition to the 
completion of the environmental review requirements as prescribed in 
the Agency's Environmental Policies and Procedures.
    Based on its EA, RUS has determined that the issued FONSI fulfills 
its obligations under NEPA for Agency actions associated with financing 
through the following programs: Telecommunications Infrastructure Loan 
Program; Rural Broadband Access Loan and Loan Guarantee Program; 
Community Connect Grant Program; and Distance Learning and Telemedicine 
Grant Program. RUS is satisfied that the environmental

[[Page 46912]]

consequences have been assessed and adequately addressed at a 
programmatic level. Accordingly, an Environmental Impact Statement will 
not be prepared.

    Dated: September 11, 2018.
Christopher A. McLean,
Acting Administrator, Rural Utilities Service.
[FR Doc. 2018-20051 Filed 9-14-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3410-15-P