Waters and Wetlands: Corps of Engineers Needs to Ensure That Permit Decisions Made Using Funds from Nonfederal Public Entities Are Transparent and Impartial

摘要

When a nonfederal public entity such as a city or county wants to build a public works project that could degrade or damage federally regulated waters and wetlands, it must obtain a permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) before proceeding. To help expedite the permit process for these entities, the Congress enacted section 214 of the Water Resources and Development Act of 2000, providing the Corps with temporary authority to receive funds from such entities and use the funds to process permits. To ensure the impartiality and transparency of section 214 permit decisions, the Corps requires its districts to adhere to all existing permit review processes, as well as some additional requirements. GAO was asked to identify (1) how many districts have used the section 214 authority, (2) the amount of funds they have received, (3) how permit processing times have changed, (4) the extent to which districts have adhered to the existing review processes and the additional requirements. As of August 2006, 4 of the Corps' 38 districts had agreements with 11 nonfederal public entities to receive section 214 funds, which have been used to evaluate permit applications. These districts received, evaluated, and approved 187 applications using section 214 funds. The types of projects for which permits were requested included ecological restoration, water storage, transportation, and port construction. Most of the section 214 applicants were city or county departments, port authorities, or regional water authorities, but two applicants were private companies that were allowed to submit applications under section 214 agreements with the Corps.