National Environmental Policy Act

Document Headings Document headings vary by document type but may contain the following: the agency or agencies that issued and signed a document the number of the CFR title and the number of each part the document amends, proposes to amend, or is directly related to the agency docket number / agency internal file number the RIN which identifies each regulatory action listed in the Unified Agenda of Federal Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions See the Document Drafting Handbook for more details. Department of Agriculture 7 CFR Part 1b [USDA-2025-0008] RIN 0503-AA86 ( printed page 17062) AGENCY: Agriculture (USDA). ACTION: Final rule. SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is adopting the interim final rule (IFR) published on July 3, 2025, with minor changes, as final. The IFR revised departmental regulations implementing the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and removed various USDA agency regulations for implementing NEPA. The IFR was in response to the Council on Environmental Quality's (CEQ) rescission of its NEPA implementing regulations (which USDA's NEPA regulations were designed to supplement), statutory changes to NEPA, executive orders, and case law. In the IFR, USDA provided a 30-day comment period for the public to review and make comments. This final rule addresses public comments and adopts as final the IFR, with certain substantive changes as explained herein. DATES: This final rule is effective April 3, 2026. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Scott Vandegrift, Chief Environmental Review and Permitting Officer, Office of the Secretary, 202-720-5166, SM.OSEC.NRE.NEPA@usda.gov . Individuals who use telecommunications devices for the hearing-impaired may call 711 to reach the Telecommunications Relay Service, 24 hours a day, every day of the year, including holidays. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The following acronyms are used frequently: APA—Administrative Procedure Act CE—Categorical Exclusion CEQ—Council on Environmenta…