Overview

The Accountability Scorecard evaluates agency performance and overall progress in processing environmental reviews and authorization decisions for major infrastructure projects (as defined in Section 3(e) of Executive Order 13807) and achieving the objectives of the Modernize Infrastructure Permitting Cross-Agency Priority Goal. The performance accountability system requires agencies to report data on different performance indicators including whether they are jointly and cooperatively processing environmental reviews and making authorization decisions using the One Federal Decision framework, whether major infrastructure projects have complete permitting timetables, whether they are meeting major milestone target dates, whether agencies establish and use a process to elevate schedule delay issues to senior agency officials, and the time and cost to complete environmental reviews and make decisions. OMB will review agencies’ performance at least once each quarter and will publish on the Permitting Dashboard, a quarterly scorecard of agency performance on meeting these performance indicators.

FY 2019, Quarter 4 Highlights

The scorecard for FY 2019, Quarter 4 evaluates data agencies submitted to the Permitting Dashboard from July - September 2019.  The scorecard includes data on three performance indicators: Permitting Timetables, One Federal Decision Implementation, and Elevation Procedures. Evaluations of the Meeting Milestones, Time to Complete, and Cost to Complete performance indicators will be published in future scorecards after more milestone data has been collected and as major infrastructure projects have completed the environmental review process.

Major Infrastructure Projects
Federal agencies initiated the environmental review process for ten additional major infrastructure projects (MIP) during the last quarter. There are now 33 MIPs being tracked on the Permitting Dashboard and assessed under the accountability system which include sectors such as surface transportation (highways), aviation, renewable energy (wind and solar), conventional energy (oil and gas), water resources, ports and waterways, and pipelines.

Permitting Timetable Completeness
27 of 33 MIPs have complete permitting timetables (i.e., all relevant project actions and milestone target dates are listed) published on the Permitting Dashboard. Of these, 21 were published on time while 6 timetables were submitted late. 1 project timetable was not updated while 3 projects failed to publish a timetable in the last quarter. 2 projects are currently paused and will have timetables updated once the projects are back in progress. 

One Federal Decision Implementation

Lead agencies reported that 30 MIPs are using the One Federal Decision framework to jointly and cooperatively process the environmental reviews and make authorization decisions.  Of those projects, lead agencies have granted 4 projects an exception to the requirement to issue a single Record of Decision, but has reported it is planning to implement all other relevant aspects of One Federal Decision. 3 projects were not implementing One Federal Decision at the time of assessment.