Note. Only selected portions of this announcement are presented here
During FY 1998, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is not proposing any significant regulations as defined by E.O. 12866. The Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army (Civil Works) and the Corps will propose and complete two regulations initiated as part of the President's August 24, 1993, Wetlands Protection Plan and the President's 1995 Regulatory Reinvention Initiative. The wetlands protection plan provides for a fair, flexible, and effective approach to protecting America's wetlands through both regulatory and nonregulatory mechanisms. The regulatory reinvention initiative reinforced those provisions and included additional regulatory reform and streamlining provisions.
During 1997 and 1998, the Corps will propose and finalize three regulations pursuant to its authorities under section 404 of the Clean Water Act and section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899. The first regulation establishes the wetland delineator certification program. This regulation was proposed on March 14, 1995, and will be finalized by the end of 1997. This program provides for training and certification of individuals, as provided for by section 307(e) of the Water Resources Development Act of 1990, to submit for approval, wetland delineations in accordance with the current Federal wetland delineation manual. Individuals can be certified as meeting certain standards, resulting in an expedited decision by the Corps on their submitted wetland delineation. The goal of the certification program is to improve the quality of consultant-prepared wetland delineations that are submitted to the Corps so that they can be reviewed and approved expeditiously.
The second regulation will establish an administrative appeal process whereby permit applicants and landowners can appeal permit denial decisions and jurisdictional determinations. This regulation was proposed on July 19, 1995, and will be finalized in 1997. The administrative appeal process will increase fairness to applicants and landowners in the permitting process by establishing a recourse to Corps permit denial decisions and jurisdictional determinations without pursuing litigation. The process will also provide for third-party involvement when the Corps reconsiders a previous denial. The final regulation will be a consolidation of the Corps rulemaking and guidance, including the above regulations, that have been issued since the last consolidation of regulations dated November 13, 1986. The regulations will also be reorganized to make them clearer and easier to use.
[October 29, 1997 (Volume 62, Number 209)]
[Page 57029-57033]
Environmental Technical Services Co., 834 Castle Ridge Rd., Austin, TX 78746
Updated January 12, 1998 URL= http://www.wetlands.com/coe/coe1998.htm