EPA Proposes 2027 Construction General Permit for Public Comment

Key Takeaways

• What Happened? The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently published its proposed 2027 National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Construction General Permit (CGP) for public comment. The proposal would replace the current 2022 CGP, which will expire in February 2027, and includes targeted changes addressing (1) the Supreme Court’s decision in City and County of San Francisco v. EPA, (2) submission of Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plans (SWPPPs) when seeking coverage, (3) sediment basin stabilization measures, and (4) purported streamlining of certain permit requirements.
• Who Is Impacted? When it goes into effect in 2027, the permit will affect construction site operators that obtain CGP coverage in areas where EPA administers the NPDES program, including Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Mexico, and the District of Columbia. Longer term, the proposal may influence state construction stormwater permits as states renew their own general permits.
• Next Steps? Developers, builders, contractors, companies that commission substantial construction projects, and trade associations should consider submitting public comments by the (recently extended) September 17, 2026 deadline. Find EPA’s proposed 2027 CGP and accompanying fact sheet here.

Background

The Clean Water Act (CWA) generally requires NPDES permit coverage for stormwater discharges associated with construction activities that disturb one or more acres of land, as well as smaller construction activities that are part of a common plan of development or sale that will ultimately disturb one or more acres. Most construction stormwater discharges are regulated under general permits, which authorize them on a categorical basis.

EPA’s CGP applies where EPA, rather than an authorized state, serves as the NPDES permitting authority. Although the federal CGP’s coverage is limited, states often look to the federal permit when developing or renewing their own construction stormwater permits. Simply put, the final permit will impact updates to construction general permits issued in states where EPA is not the permitting authority.

Significant Proposed Changes

1. EPA proposes to revise water quality-based requirements in an attempt to implement San Francisco. The draft permit proposes an approach to implement City and County of San Francisco v. EPA, 604 U.S. 334 (2025), in which a B&D team led by Principal Drew Silton secured a major CWA victory on behalf of San Francisco. In San Francisco, the Supreme Court held that the CWA does not authorize EPA to impose “end-result” permit requirements in NPDES permits that make permitholders responsible for the overall quality of receiving waterbodies. In this proposed CGP, EPA acknowledged that its 2022 CGP “includes language that could be considered the type of end-result provision addressed in the San Francisco decision.”

EPA thus proposes to remove a narrative condition in the 2022 CGP requiring discharges to be “controlled as necessary to meet applicable water quality standards.” Instead, EPA has proposed more specific conditions tied to characteristics of the discharge itself. For example, EPA’s proposed changes intend to clarify that discharge conditions in Part 3.1 would be “limited to pollutants associated with construction activity” by changing “floating solids” to “floating, settled, or suspended solids.” Observing these conditions in the discharge could trigger corrective action. EPA previously added similar conditions in its 2025 CGP modification for newly eligible projects in Lands of Exclusive Federal Jurisdiction; the 2027 proposal would extend those conditions to all CGP permittees.

2. Operators to submit SWPPP information with the Notice of Intent. EPA proposes a consequential administrative change to the permit: an operator submitting a Notice of Intent (NOI) to obtain coverage would need to provide either its full SWPPP, a webpage where the SWPPP remains available throughout CGP coverage, or the SWPPP site map together with the signed SWPPP certification. EPA says a submitted SWPPP would serve as a reference and would not provide a definitive basis for compliance determinations because SWPPPs change during construction.

Although several states require submission of a SWPPP with the NOI, EPA has not to date required this of operators. This proposal could give EPA immediate access to information that operators generally provide only upon request or during an inspection. Before submitting SWPPP materials, including site maps or certifications, operators may want to establish procedures to identify information that is appropriately protected from disclosure and to determine which of EPA’s submission options best fits their projects.

3. New requirements affecting sediment basins and site stabilization. For operators that use sediment basins, EPA proposes to require stabilization before stormwater is first directed to the basin. At a minimum, operators would need to stabilize the embankment and side slopes following construction. EPA developed this proposal after finding certain sediment releases associated with use of newly excavated basins before sufficient stabilization.

4. Permit streamlining measures. The proposed permit would clarify that perimeter controls are necessary only in areas that could receive stormwater from disturbed areas, simplify stabilization deadlines for sites in arid, semi-arid, and drought-stricken areas, and provide additional flexibility when unforeseeable snow or frozen ground makes compliance with ordinary stabilization deadlines impracticable.

5. Reduced dewatering monitoring and reporting burdens. The existing CGP requires daily turbidity monitoring when dewatering discharges reach certain sensitive waters and quarterly reporting of weekly averages. EPA specifically requests comment on whether longer-term, continuous dewatering operations should qualify for less frequent monitoring. One option would allow weekly monitoring after more than three days of continuous discharge if the average turbidity during the first three days does not exceed the applicable benchmark. EPA also seeks input on reducing duplicative quarterly reporting where multiple operators coordinate monitoring at the same site and on reporting obligations when no dewatering discharge occurs during a quarter.

EPA seeks input on all provisions in the proposed CGP, but expressly requests input on the SWPPP submission requirement, the new water quality-based conditions implementing San Francisco, turbidity reporting for sites with multiple operators, and potential monitoring flexibility for longer-term dewatering.

Public Comment and Next Steps

EPA is soliciting public comments on the proposed 2027 CGP and its accompanying fact sheet through September 17, 2026. Operators, trade associations, and other entities that are currently or potentially affected may consider submitting public comments. Existing 2022 CGP permittees should monitor the status of EPA’s final permit and consider transition steps.

At the time of this writing, EPA is not planning to hold a public hearing, but interested parties may request one pursuant to 40 C.F.R. § 124.12. For more information on, or assistance with, the public commenting process, please contact the authors.

Beveridge & Diamond’s Water practice helps clients navigate NPDES permitting, construction stormwater compliance, enforcement, and regulatory developments affecting major projects. B&D’s water lawyers also represent clients in significant cases addressing emerging issues under the Clean Water Act.