A major goal of NEPA is that state and federal transportation agencies develop a process that provides an opportunity for stakeholders and the public to actively participate in transportation decision-making. MaineDOT is required to consider and assess the social, natural, cultural, and economic impacts a project may have on a community. The overall goal is to gain meaningful input from stakeholders, the public, and interested parties. MaineDOT’s Public Involvement Plan and NEPA Public Involvement Plan guide projects through the public process.

The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) is a federal procedural law that establishes a national environmental policy. NEPA provides a framework for environmental planning and decision-making for projects that receive federal funds or require federal approvals. NEPA requires federal agencies (or states that have assumed responsibility under 23 U.S.C. 326 or 23 U.S.C. 327) when planning projects to conduct environmental reviews to consider the potential impacts on the environment by their proposed actions.

Section 6005(a) of the Safe Affordable Flexible Efficient Transportation Act (SAFETEA-LU) and updated by the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21) established a Surface Transportation Project Delivery Program that allows the Secretary of the United States Department of Transportation to assign, and a State to assume, the USDOT Secretary's responsibilities under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969 (42 U.S.C.

The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) is a federal procedural law that establishes a national environmental policy.

Section 101 of NEPA provides a national policy "to use all practicable means and measures, including financial and technical assistance, in a manner calculated to foster and promote the general welfare, to create and maintain conditions under which man and nature can exist in productive harmony, and fulfill the social, economic, and other requirements of present and future generations of Americans." 42 U.S.C. 4331(a).

The United States Fish & Wildlife Service (USFWS), Maine Department of Transportation (MaineDOT), Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), and the Maine Turnpike Authority (MTA) set out to streamline the consultation process in 2013, aided by a  $250,000 SHRP2 Eco-Logical Implementation Assistance grant from FHWA. The agencies collaborated under the Endangered Species Act through a process that expedites endangered species consultations and aims to meet both wildlife and project goals.