(a) NEPA applies to major Federal actions as defined in section 111(10) of NEPA, 42 U.S.C. 4336e (10). The terms “major” and “Federal action,” each have independent force. NEPA applies only when both criteria are met. Such a determination is inherently bound up in the facts and circumstances of each individual situation and is thus reserved to the discretion of NASA in each instance.
(b) NASA will determine that NEPA does not apply to a proposed agency action when:
(1) The activities or decision do not result in final agency action under the Administrative Procedure Act, see 5 U.S.C. 704, or other relevant statute that also includes a finality requirement.
(2) The proposed activity or decision is exempted from NEPA by law.
(3) Compliance with NEPA would clearly and fundamentally conflict with the requirements of another provision of law.
(4) In circumstances where Congress by statute has prescribed decisional criteria with sufficient completeness and precision such that NASA retains no residual discretion to alter its action based on the consideration of environmental factors, thus that function of NASA is nondiscretionary within the meaning of NEPA sec. 106(a)(4) and/or sec. 111(10)(B)(vii) (42 U.S.C. 4336(a)(4) and 4336e(10)(B)(vii), respectively), and NEPA does not apply to the action in question.
(5) The proposed action is an action for which another statute's requirements serve the function of agency compliance with the Act.
(6) NEPA does not apply to response actions taken under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) (42 U.S.C. 9601 et seq.).