HR 4059119th CongressIn Committee

SPEED Act

Introduced: Jun 20, 2025

Economy & TaxesInfrastructure

Standard Summary

Comprehensive overview in 1-2 paragraphs

The SPEED Act (Small Projects Expedited Execution and Delivery Act) would amend the MAP-21 transportation law to change the monetary thresholds used to determine when a project qualifies for a categorical exclusion (CE) under the environmental review process. Specifically, it raises two funding-based thresholds: subparagraph (A) from $6 million to $12 million, and subparagraph (B) from $35 million to $70 million. By increasing these thresholds, more transportation projects funded with limited federal assistance would be eligible for a CE, meaning they could bypass more extensive environmental impact analyses and documentation, potentially speeding up project delivery. The bill is introduced in the House by Ms. Hageman and referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.

Key Points

1The act is named the Small Projects Expedited Execution and Delivery Act (SPEED Act).
2It amends MAP-21, specifically the section that defines a categorical exclusion for projects of limited federal assistance.
3Threshold changes:
4- Subparagraph (A) increases from $6,000,000 to $12,000,000.
5- Subparagraph (B) increases from $35,000,000 to $70,000,000.
6Purpose: expand the set of projects that can qualify for a categorical exclusion, thereby expediting federal-aid transportation projects with limited federal involvement.
7Status: Introduced in the House on June 20, 2025; referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.

Impact Areas

Primary group/area affected:- State and local transportation agencies and project sponsors handling federally assisted projects with costs up to the new thresholds.- Federal and state environmental compliance staff who administer NEPA processes, as more projects may qualify for CEs and require less NEPA documentation.Secondary group/area affected:- Local communities and stakeholders near eligible projects, who may experience faster project delivery but with changes to the level of environmental review.- Environmental advocacy groups and public-interest organizations that monitor NEPA and project impacts.Additional impacts:- Potentially faster project delivery timelines and lower compliance costs for eligible small-to-medium projects.- Possible trade-offs related to environmental oversight, public participation, and scrutiny of projects that qualify for CEs.- No explicit changes described to monitoring, reporting, or post-approval mitigation requirements beyond the CE framework; oversight implications would depend on how the CE is implemented in practice.

Generated by gpt-5-nano on Oct 7, 2025