State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA)

The State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) process identifies and analyzes environmental impacts associated with governmental decisions. These decisions may be related to issuing permits for private projects, constructing public facilities, or adopting regulations, policies, and plans.

The SEPA review process helps agency decision-makers, applicants, and the public understand how the entire proposal will affect the environment. SEPA can be used to modify or deny a proposal to avoid, reduce, or compensate for probable impacts. We oversee the rules and guidance for the state and we provide technical assistance to agencies, applicants, and citizens as they participate in the SEPA review process. We also serve as the SEPA lead or co-lead agency for some proposals.