Notice of Intent To Prepare a Supplement to the Next Generation Delivery Vehicles Acquisitions Final Environmental Impact Statement Publication: Federal Register Signing Official: Joshua J. Hofer Agency: U.S. Postal Service Date: 10 June 2022

[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 112 (Friday, June 10, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 35581-35582]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-12581]


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POSTAL SERVICE


Notice of Intent To Prepare a Supplement to the Next Generation 
Delivery Vehicles Acquisitions Final Environmental Impact Statement

AGENCY: Postal Service.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: On January 7, 2022, the Postal Service published a Final 
Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) pursuant to the requirements of 
the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), its implementing 
regulations, and the President's Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) 
regulations for its Next Generation Delivery Vehicle (NGDV) 
Acquisitions. On February 23, 2022, the Postal Service issued its 
Record of Decision, determining that it would implement the NGDV FEIS's 
Preferred Alternative to purchase and deploy over a ten-year period 
50,000 to 165,000 purpose-built, right-hand drive NGDV consisting of a 
mix of internal combustion engine (ICE) and battery electric vehicle 
(BEV) powertrains, with at least ten percent BEVs. On March 24, 2022, 
in accordance with that decision, the Postal Service placed an order 
for 50,000 NGDV, of which 10,019 are BEV. The Postal Service now 
announces its intention to prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact 
Statement (SEIS) to address the three considerations that have 
developed since the NGDV FEIS and Record of Decision.

DATES: Comments should be received no later than July 25, 2022. The 
Postal Service will also publish a Notice of Availability to announce 
the availability of the Draft SEIS and solicit comments on the Draft 
SEIS during a second 45-day public comment period.

ADDRESSES: Interested parties may direct comments and questions to: Mr. 
Davon Collins, Environmental Counsel, United States Postal Service, 475 
L'Enfant Plaza SW, Office 6606, Washington, DC 20260-6201, or at 
NEPA@usps.gov. Note that comments sent by mail may be subject to delay 
due to federal security screening. Faxed comments are not accepted. All 
submitted comments and attachments are part of the public record and 
subject to disclosure. Do not enclose any material in your comments 
that you consider to be confidential or inappropriate for public 
disclosure.
    The Postal Service will also conduct a virtual public hearing on 
Tuesday, July 19, 2022, at 7 p.m. (ET). Registration information will 
be made available 15 days prior to the hearing date at the following 
website: http://uspsngdveis.com/.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The three considerations that have developed 
since the NGDV FEIS and Record of Decision are as follows:
    First, in response to potential delivery network refinements and 
route optimization efforts being considered for the postal delivery 
network, the SEIS would analyze the potential impacts to the delivery 
fleet from such changes, including whether the changed route length and 
characteristics warrant an increase in the minimum number of BEV NGDVs 
to be procured under the Proposed Action set forth in the FEIS.
    Second, in response to its need to accelerate the replacement of 
aged and high-maintenance Long Life Vehicles (LLV) and Flexible Fuel 
Vehicles (FFV) in furtherance of its Universal Service Obligation, the 
Postal Service intends to analyze the potential impacts of replacing 
the remainder of its LLV/FFV fleet with a combination of NGDV and 
Commercial Off-the-Shelf (COTS) vehicles. The Postal Service 
anticipates that the SEIS Proposed Action will propose acquiring up to 
37,000 left-hand drive COTS with ICE and BEV powertrains, which would 
be deployed on routes with fewer than 21 curb-line delivery points.
    Third, as the NGDV FEIS only assessed the environmental impacts 
from a replacement of the Postal Service's LLV and FFVs, the SEIS would 
also assess the potential impacts from replacing other aged and high-
maintenance non-LLV/FFV postal delivery vehicles. This analysis would 
include consideration of the acquisition of: (1) up to 60,000 right-
hand drive non-NGDV purpose-built vehicles with ICE and BEV powertrains 
to place on routes currently utilizing personally owned vehicles 
(POVs), for rural route growth, and for routes that require a vehicle 
less than 111 inches tall; and (2) the acquisition of up to 26,000 
left-hand drive COTS with ICE and BEV powertrains to replace existing 
COTS delivery vehicles that will reach the end of their service lives 
within the next ten years.
    The Postal Service actively seeks input from the public, interested 
persons, organizations, and Federal, state, and regional agencies to 
identify environmental concerns and potential alternatives to be 
addressed in the SEIS and will accept public comments for a 45-day 
period, concluding on July 25, 2022. With respect to recommendations 
regarding potential alternatives, the Postal Service requests that 
comments be as specific as possible regarding vehicle type, model and 
manufacturer so that the Postal Service might fully consider the 
alternative in terms of pricing, operational capabilities, and market 
availability.

References

1. U.S. Postal Service, Notice of Intent to Prepare an Environmental 
Impact

[[Page 35582]]

Statement for Purchase of Next Generation Delivery Vehicles, 86 FR 
12715 (Mar. 4, 2021).
2. U.S. Postal Service, Notice of Availability of Draft Environmental 
Impact Statement for Purchase of Next Generation Delivery Vehicle, 86 
FR 47662 (Aug. 26, 2021).
3. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Notice of Availability of EIS 
No. 20210129, Draft, USPS, DC, Next Generation Delivery Vehicle 
Acquisitions, 86 FR 49531 (Sept. 3, 2021).
4. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Notice of Availability of EIS 
No. 20220001, Final, USPS, DC, Next Generation Delivery Vehicle 
Acquisitions, 87 FR 964 (Jan. 7, 2022).
5. U.S. Postal Service, Notice of Availability of Final Environmental 
Impact Statement for Purchase of Next Generation Delivery Vehicles, 87 
FR 994 (Jan. 7, 2022).
6. U.S. Postal Service, Notice of Availability of Record of Decision, 
87 FR 14588 (Mar. 15, 2022).

Joshua J. Hofer,
Attorney, Ethics and Legal Compliance.
[FR Doc. 2022-12581 Filed 6-7-22; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 7710-12-P