A Forest Service final rule effective Nov. 12 changes the public comment and predecision objection process for covered national forest and grassland projects.
The change matters to people who want to challenge a proposed project before the agency makes its final decision: they must watch the project's notice and meet the applicable filing period.
Comal County residents who participate in covered Forest Service project reviews will need to follow the revised comment and objection procedures when they apply to a project. The rule does not identify a project in Comal County. Its reach is the agency's process for covered projects on national forests and grasslands.
For environmental assessments, the final rule sets a minimum public comment period of 15 days; for environmental impact statements, the minimum is 30 days. The Forest Service says its proposed version would have reduced those minimums to 10 and 20 days, respectively, from the earlier 30 and 45 days. The final rule also shifts project notice toward Forest Service web pages and direct notification tools, and moves objection review to the official responsible for the project, subject to a higher-level concurrence requirement for certain responses.
An objection under this rule comes before a project decision. It is distinct from the later appeals process described in the rule's legislative history. Whether the revised procedures govern a particular project depends partly on when its notice-and-comment period began and what its notice said. Anyone following a proposal can inspect the rule's transition provisions and the project's own notice to establish which process and deadline apply.