Trump Officials Push for Reduced Oversight in Texas Highway Expansions

The Trump administration wants to give Texas more authority – and require less transparency – as the state expands existing highways and builds new ones.

In November, the Texas Department of Transportation asked the Federal Highway Administration to extend a special designation that lets it oversee its own compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act. NEPA requires the state to document community and environmental impacts of road projects.

BACKGROUND: Critics say TxDOT flouted environmental laws in push for highway expansions

Now, TxDOT has submitted a new application, with changes that would give itself drastically more oversight and authority over its own federal environmental review. The draft rule would allow TxDOT to skip annual self-assessments and monthly reports that document the agency’s compliance with the federal law.

The application was revised after federal leadership "presented an opportunity to address unnecessary administrative requirements in a renegotiated MOU that preserves all of the legal requirements of the NEPA assignment program," said Adam Hammons, a TxDOT spokesperson, in an email. He said that TxDOT was still subject to monitoring and audits by the Federal Highway Administration.

If approved, TxDOT won’t have to inform community members of their right to sue the state agency or file a civil rights complaint with the FHWA, as dozens of people did in 2021 in response to the I-45 expansion in Houston. The new agreement also removes a requirement that TxDOT reevaluate old projects, meaning projects originally approved years ago could begin construction without public notice or input.

"The Biden Administration added burdensome NEPA requirements like environmental justice initiatives that delayed progress on vital road and bridge projects," said U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy when he announced the proposed changes. "If enacted, Texas’ new agreement will allow the state to tackle critical infrastructure bigger, better and faster."

But environmental advocates criticized the revised agreement, saying it allowed TxDOT – and the Texas Transportation Commission, which oversees the state agency – to spend its $100 billion 10-year budget with almost no accountability.

Before the state began self-auditing its NEPA compliance, in 2019, federal auditors found "several serious, recurring issues with TxDOT’s issue of NEPA authority," according to LINK Houston, which advocates for equitable transportation. Those included non-compliant public engagement activities and project approvals that violated regulatory guidelines.

"The usefulness of NEPA and the checks and balances that most people believe are a cornerstone of the United States government are being dissolved and eroded," said Michael Moritz, an organizer with Texas Streets Coalition, a group of 30 nonprofit and community organizations across the state.

Seven other states, including California, have the same self-regulating ability. It’s unclear if the expanded authority being discussed for Texas would apply to all NEPA assignment states when those agreements come up for renewal.

Public comment on the new Texas agreement is open until July 7.