CRS-116 



General Accounting Office recently found differences among three District 

 offices. Average processing time ranged from 168 days for the Baltimore Dis- 

 trict offices to 203 days for the Philadelphia District office. 162 / Yet the 

 nationwide average for all District offices is 128 days, according to the 

 Corps. 163 / 



In addition, in Massachusetts, the Corps only reviews a very small per- 

 centage of all applications. The State reviews 3,000 applications a year 

 while the Corps District office averages 250 per year for the entire New Eng- 

 land region. Several managers thought the States could do a better permit 

 review job at a lower cost than the Federal program. The States, according 

 to these individuals, have fewer bureaucratic procedures and are more aware 

 of local situations and conditions. 



But the States do not want the Federal presence to disappear. The Min- 

 nesota manager best stated this when he said that his State is sometimes 

 faced with an application that should be denied, but rejection is not polit- 

 ically feasible. The Federal agencies have been very cooperative in backing 

 the State by denying the permit, he said. The Massachusetts manager saw the 

 most useful role of the Corps as being able to step in and police the program. 

 Thus, In the ideal situation they would like to see the Corps participate 

 on a selective basis, with the State helping to determine how selections are 

 made . 



162 / U.S. General Accounting Office. Managerial Changes Needed to Speed 

 Up Processing Permits for Dredging Projects. CED-80-71, June 9, 1980. Wash- 

 ington, 1980. p. 15. 



163 / U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Impact Analysis, Draft, p. 40. 



