The meeting is scheduled from 6 to 7 p.m. at Fusion 54. It will give residents, commuters and other interested members of the public an opportunity to review design progress and learn about environmental-review requirements connected to the National Environmental Policy Act, commonly known as NEPA.

The open house is the next scheduled public meeting in a broader review and development timeline. It is not identified as a final construction decision or a presentation of a completed design.

Environmental review begins this fall

The project schedule calls for an environmental assessment to be available for public review in October 2026. A NEPA public hearing is planned for early November.

Written comments are scheduled to be accepted from November through December 2026. Those steps will create additional opportunities for the public to examine the project as it moves through environmental review and toward later approval decisions.

The environmental assessment and hearing are important next steps because the project’s design must proceed through the required environmental review before the project can advance through its later stages. The scheduled timeline gives the public several points of contact with the project between August and the end of the year.

City leads project development

Crawfordsville is the project’s sole grantee and will lead its development. The Indiana Department of Transportation is expected to provide oversight for effects involving state highways.

INDOT’s State Transportation Improvement Program for fiscal years 2026 through 2030 identifies transportation projects in Crawfordsville and Montgomery County, linking the state agency to transportation planning in the area.

The project website has not disclosed a final design, construction cost or construction start date. It also has not identified which crossings will receive final treatment. Those details remain separate from the design progress and environmental-review schedule currently announced for 2026.

For people who travel through Crawfordsville or live and work near the city’s rail crossings, the Aug. 12 meeting is the next scheduled chance to examine the project’s direction. The environmental assessment in October, the early-November hearing and the November-through-December comment period will follow.

Track 1: FERC tells NERC to build “computational load” reliability standards

Under item E-1 (Docket No. RD26-7-000), FERC directed NERC to develop and submit new or modified Reliability Standards for “computational load integration” reliability risks. FERC also directed NERC to revise its Rules of Procedure to include registry criteria for “computational load entities.”

The key deadline is the same for both parts: the Reliability Standards and the Rules of Procedure revisions are due by December 31, 2026. That timing matters for utilities, grid planners, and parties that will likely be pulled into the new registry/requirements process as NERC finalizes definitions and compliance expectations.

What this does (and doesn’t) mean right now: The FERC directive sets the standards-development and filing timeline. It does not automatically mean the rules are already final for all computational-load operators today. Expect additional regulatory steps as NERC works through the standards process and FERC reviews what is submitted.

Track 2: Hydropower NEPA categorical exclusions get expanded and added

FERC also approved NEPA streamline changes for hydropower-related actions in items H-1 and H-2.

• H-1 (RM26-7-000): FERC issued a final rule expanding an existing NEPA categorical exclusion for certain terminations or revocations of hydropower licenses and exemptions. The change is limited to situations involving minor or no ground-disturbing activities and minor or no alterations to reservoir conditions and downstream flows.
• H-2 (CX26-2-000): FERC adopted two categorical exclusions (from the Tennessee Valley Authority) covering development of recreation sites near hydropower projects and certain public-use areas.

For the recreation/public-use category, FERC described activities such as hunting, fishing, primitive camping, wildlife observation, hiking, and mountain biking. It also set an acreage limit for general physical disturbance: no more than 10 acres. FERC said eligible work may include construction of parking areas, campgrounds, stream access points, and day-use areas.

Practical takeaway: Categorical exclusions can reduce the need for an Environmental Assessment or Environmental Impact Statement for qualifying hydropower actions. But they do not erase other federal, state, or local environmental and permitting obligations that may still apply, especially when a proposal falls outside the stated “limited impact” boundaries.

Who should pay attention next

For the grid: If your organization is planning, operating, or procuring power connected to “computational loads,” the July 16 order signals a coming reliability/registry framework. With both the standards and Rules of Procedure revisions due by December 31, 2026, the next phase will be NERC’s standards work and stakeholder process.

For hydropower and recreation planning: Landowners, licensees, developers, and project managers looking for faster NEPA processing will want to check whether their specific action fits the expanded termination/revocation limits in H-1 and the recreation/public-use limits described in H-2—especially the “minor/no” disturbance parameters and the 10-acre physical disturbance cap.

What to watch between now and year-end

The immediate next milestone is NERC’s work to draft and file the computational-load Reliability Standards and the updated Rules of Procedure/registry criteria by December 31, 2026. In parallel, hydropower stakeholders will be watching how NEPA categorical-exclusion eligibility is applied in individual cases that fall within (or outside) the new parameters described by FERC on July 16.

Sources

• FERC — News release: FERC Fast-Tracks Reviews to Accelerate Actions at Hydropower Projects (July 16, 2026; Items H-1 & H-2)
• NERC — Large Loads Action Plan (computational/large-load reliability context)
• American Public Power Association (APPA) — NERC Submits Letter to FERC Tied to Large Load Activities (March 22, 2026)

What the proposal would change

The proposed rule would give EPA more flexibility on when to publish and request comments on draft environmental assessments, findings of no significant impact, and environmental impact statements. It would also loosen scoping timing, including allowing scoping to begin before a notice of intent is published, and would remove a 15-day notice requirement for optional scoping meetings. EPA also wants a faster process for adding, amending, or adopting categorical exclusions from other agencies.

EPA says the update would align its procedures with recent statutory and court changes, including the Fiscal Responsibility Act and the Supreme Court’s Seven County decision, while keeping other environmental laws in place. The agency also says the revisions would improve clarity and consistency after the Council on Environmental Quality rescinded its NEPA regulations.

Why Section 309 matters

EPA’s Section 309 role is separate from its own project reviews. Under the Clean Air Act, EPA reviews draft environmental impact statements prepared by other federal agencies and makes those reviews public. EPA says those reviews focus on avoiding and mitigating significant environmental impacts and on whether an EIS includes enough information. That means the proposal could affect how EPA comments on roads, energy projects, water infrastructure, and other major federal actions.

What to watch next

This is still a proposal, not a final rule. The immediate deadline is July 27, when comments close. EPA can still revise the text before issuing any final version.

Sources

• Federal Register proposed rule text (public inspection)
• EPA: Section 309 review process overview
• E&E News report on EPA NEPA proposal