# 2026-03657: FERC Proposes Skipping Eco-Reviews for Water Power License Cancellations

2026-03657, Categorical Exclusion Under the National Environmental Policy Act for Certain Terminations or Revocations of Water Power Licenses and Exemptions, is a Federal Register proposed rule from Energy Department, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission published 2026-02-24, effective Comments are due March 26, 2026. (as of 2026-06-11).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-03657
- As of: 2026-06-11
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Document number: 2026-03657
- Title: Categorical Exclusion Under the National Environmental Policy Act for Certain Terminations or Revocations of Water Power Licenses and Exemptions
- Type: Proposed Rule
- Agencies: Energy Department; Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
- Citation: 91 FR 8799
- Published: 2026-02-24
- Effective: Comments are due March 26, 2026.
- Comments close: not stated
- Significant: no
- Touches household money: no
- Regulation identifier numbers: none
- Last updated: 2026-06-11

## In one line

FERC Proposes Skipping Eco-Reviews for Water Power License Cancellations

## Summary

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission wants to speed things up by skipping extra environmental reviews when ending or canceling certain water power licenses that cause little to no change in the environment. This change mainly affects companies holding these licenses and could save time and money. Comments on this proposal are open until March 26, 2026, so now’s the time to speak up!

## Abstract

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission) proposes to amend section 380.4 of its regulations implementing the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) to expand an existing Categorical Exclusion (CE). A CE describes a category of actions that a Federal agency has determined normally does not significantly affect the quality of the human environment, absent extraordinary circumstances, and so does not trigger NEPA's requirement to prepare an environmental document. The proposed revision would add a category of actions to an existing CE to include terminations or revocations of water power licenses and exemptions that will result in minor or no ground disturbing activity and minor or no changes in reservoir conditions and downstream flows.

## Effects PRIA read

- New categorical exclusion for certain terminations: benefit, low. The Commission proposes to expand 18 CFR 380.4(a)(13) to add a categorical exclusion for terminations or revocations of water power licenses and exemptions that will result in "minor or no ground disturbing activity and minor or no changes in reservoir conditions and downstream flows." For those co…
- No economic impact on small hydropower entities: benefit, low. The Commission certifies under the Regulatory Flexibility Act that this proposed rule would apply to entities holding hydropower licenses or exemptions (some of which may be small) but "would have no effect on these entities" because it imposes no action or requirement on licensees. The Small Busin…

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## Sources
- [2026-03657 on federalregister.gov](https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/02/24/2026-03657/categorical-exclusion-under-the-national-environmental-policy-act-for-certain-terminations-or)
- [2026-03657 as published (PDF)](https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2026-02-24/pdf/2026-03657.pdf)

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- [All Federal Register documents](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-03657 (as of 2026-06-11).