This bill directs the Chair of the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) to create common digital data standards and build shared, cloud-based tools so Federal agencies can collect, share, and manage authorization and environmental review data. It requires CEQ to design prototype tools (like application portals, case management systems, GIS tools, and automated comment analysis) and to publish guidance for agency implementation. Agencies must compare their current systems to the new standards, report findings, prepare implementation plans, and begin implementation on set schedules. The bill also calls for a unified interagency data system and a public-facing authorization portal hosted by the General Services Administration. The portal must support submission and tracking of applications, geospatial data, public engagement features, and reporting metrics. The bill includes deadlines for work products and pilots, requires periodic agency progress reports, allows CEQ to enter contracts, and requires compliance with privacy, cybersecurity, and other existing laws.
No publicly available information on total costs or specific funding amounts is included in the bill text. The bill does authorize the CEQ to enter into contracts and make payments as needed to carry out the Act, but it does not specify appropriations or estimated costs.
The bill text describes proponents' reasons: digital data standards and shared tools will improve coordination among agencies, increase transparency and public access, reduce redundant reviews, enable better project tracking, and support automation and reuse of data. The bill frames prototype tools, a unified data system, and an authorization portal as ways to make environmental reviews and authorizations more predictable and efficient.
No publicly available information in the bill text details specific opposition positions or objections to this bill.