Coastal Zone Management Act Federal Consistency Regulations

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) revises the regulations implementing the federal consistency provision of the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972 (CZMA). The Coastal Zone Act Reauthorization Amendments of 1990, enacted November 5, 1990, as well as the Coastal Zone Protection Act of 1996, enacted June 3, 1996, amended and reauthorized the CZMA. Among the amendments were revisions to the federal consistency requirement contained in section 307 of the CZMA. Current federal consistency regulations were promulgated in 1979 and are in need of revision after 20 years of implementation. The purpose of this final rule is to make such revisions.