SLIDE 1: Welcome back to TxDOT’s Historic Preservation webinar series! This webinar is all about how TxDOT and consulting parties have agreed to simplify the historic preservation process. 
SLIDE 2: This is the second of seven webinars about our commitments to Historic Preservation at TxDOT. The goal with this webinar series is to provide you with all the information you need to become an informed participant in the Section 106 process. The previous webinar is a great place to start for an overview of TxDOT’s historic preservation process. Be sure to download the handouts for links to other helpful resources and a glossary of terms we use throughout the series. 
SLIDE 3: In this webinar, we’ll first learn why we use legal agreements in the preservation process and look at an example of how we use them. By the end of the webinar, you’ll see how these tools help us work through the historic preservation process efficiently and consistently.
SLIDE 4: TxDOT plans around 600 projects per year, and several hundred of them require some level of environmental review. That’s a LOT of reviews! One way we manage so many reviews is to simplify the process. We identify which projects need the most attention and which can be reviewed quickly. We clearly define the process with formal agreements so our review is consistent across project types. 
TxDOT uses two legal agreements for historic preservation. The first is called the Programmatic Agreement, or PA for short, and applies to projects that involve Federal Highway Administration funding or approvals. It describes how TxDOT will comply with Section 106, of the National Historic Preservation Act. The second is called the Memorandum of Understanding, or MOU. It describes how TxDOT will comply with the Antiquities Code of Texas for projects without Federal involvement or funding.
These agreements are written specifically for TxDOT and our projects.
SLIDE 5: One of the biggest benefits of the PA and the MOU is that they streamline TxDOT’s historic preservation process, which is intended to protect historic resources like historic buildings, other historic structures like bridges and depression-era roadside parks, and important archeological sites. The PA and MOU identify classes of projects that we can approve quickly, like replacing traffic signals or doing routine maintenance on bridges because they have little or no potential to harm cultural resources. Since TxDOT completes hundreds of projects like these a year, the agreements clear the way for us to focus on the more complicated projects that could actually impact cultural resources.
In essence, these agreements give TxDOT archeologists and historians the power to make certain decisions without waiting for approval from the Federal Highway Administration--FHWA--or The Texas Historical Commission --THC. This is because FHWA and THC have already given their approval by signing these agreements in the first place. This gets projects built quicker and makes the environmental review process more predictable and reliable.
In turn, this saves TxDOT—and you, the tax payer—time and money. 
SLIDE 6: More complex projects, like expanding a road through a rural community, are more likely to impact cultural resources-- your family’s old ranch, for instance. When a project like this comes up for review, the PA and MOU lay out a clear process. TxDOT employees are trained to carry out these agreements, which do a number of things.
For example, they define the size of the study and survey areas for different classes of projects. Under the PA, these are always larger for history than they are for archeology because history considers factors other than where ground disturbance will occur such as visual impacts—for example, imagine the way that replacing a historic bridge with a modern concrete bridge could affect the feel of an adjacent historic neighborhood. The PA and MOU define just how far from the construction area TxDOT looks, depending on the type of project.
Another thing they do is set professional qualification standards for archeologists and historians, to make sure all work is high-quality and that it will satisfy the requirements of cultural resource laws. 
Most importantly for you, the agreements lay out how TxDOT coordinates projects with consulting parties. So, if you receive an email or letter from TxDOT asking you to help identify cultural resources, please respond! Think about it this way: When we reach out to you, it’s because we really need your help on a project that may impact important sites in your community. 
SLIDE 7: The PA and MOU agreements only apply to TxDOT projects. Other state and federal agencies may have different legal agreements and processes to carry out their historic preservation responsibilities. 
SLIDE 8: To better explain how we use the legal agreements, let’s apply them to an example project. 
Suppose our engineers tell us they have a new roadway project that will use FHWA funding. Right away, because it is federally-funded, we know we’re going to use the PA to guide our review process. [CLICK] The project will repave an existing road, with no other changes. TxDOT looks at the PA and sees that we have already determined that this category of work has no potential to impact cultural resources, because the work does not go outside the existing street footprint and does not involve any digging. Therefore, no additional historic preservation review is needed. TxDOT records this determination in our files, which completes the process.
SLIDE 9: Now let’s say TxDOT also plans to build new concrete sidewalks along the roadway. Everything is in TxDOT’s existing right-of-way, but this will still require some digging and installation work.
[CLICK] According to the PA, the archeologist sees that while this category of work could conceivably impact archeological resources , the amount of planned ground disturbance is so small that that it has minimal potential to do so. Like the projects with no potential at all, this is also already agreed to in the PA and MOU. The archeologist will check for red flags, like the presence of a previously-reported site, but if they don’t see anything that gives them pause, they note this in TxDOT’s files, and this completes their historic preservation review. 
[CLICK] Using the PA, the architectural historian also sees that this category of work could impact above-ground historic resources. Sidewalks can change the character of historic roads or historic districts by building something new. In our example, they find no historic properties, so they document their research and complete their historic preservation review. 
[CLICK] With reviews complete, TxDOT finds that the project will not affect cultural resources.
SLIDE 10 Now let’s complicate things a little more. So far, our roadway project involves repaving the road and building new sidewalks. [CLICK] Suppose TxDOT also wants to widen a section of the road for a new intersection with a right turn lane. [CLICK] This means we need to purchase new land, or right-of-way, for the new turn lane, and do even more ground disturbance. According to the PA, this category of work has the potential to affect both above and below-ground cultural resources.
[CLICK] This causes us to take a close look at the project. The archeologist evaluates the potential that resources could be present in their APE, and depending on the outcome of that evaluation, they may either conduct fieldwork to look for below-ground resources in the project area, or determine that such resources are unlikely--for example because the area was heavily disturbed by previous earthmoving. 
[CLICK] The architectural historian notices a few buildings near the intersection in their APE that look old. Like the archeologist, they will evaluate the project and determine what type of research they need to address the project. 
The research these specialists do will tell them if there are below-ground resources like archeological sites or above-ground resources like historic roads or buildings in the project area. If they don’t find any cultural resources in the APE, Section 106 is complete. If they do find a resource, then Section 106 continues. TxDOT then contacts consulting parties and interested groups to discuss the project and works toward a solution that avoids or minimizes impacts to cultural resources. 
SLIDE 11: The MOU process is similar to the PA process. Remember, the MOU outlines how TxDOT reviews non-federalized projects that may impact cultural resources. The law requiring this review is called the Antiquities Code of Texas. 
One big difference between the MOU and PA is that the Area of Potential Effect, or APE, for non-federal projects is usually much smaller for the historians. This is because the ACT only applies to properties on state-owned land (like TxDOT’s roadways), as well as cemeteries, courthouses, and designated State Antiquities Landmarks. Archeologists are always only concerned with ground disturbance, so the APE is similar under both agreements.
The MOU lists some projects types that are exempt from review. Most of the work TxDOT does under the MOU is for archeology and historic bridges.
SLIDE 12 The historic preservation process can be confusing. In addition to streamlining the way TxDOT historians and archeologists complete reviews, we are actively working to better inform and include the public in the process. At the end of the day, it’s about protecting important cultural resources and preserving your community’s history! 
We encourage you to participate by sharing your knowledge of your community’s past. TxDOT professionals are here to listen to you and your concerns.
SLIDE 13 Here are a few key takeaways about legal agreements. 
TxDOT has two legal agreements that streamline our historic preservation review. 
The PA is for federal projects and the MOU is for state projects. Both are tailored specifically to TxDOT. 
The agreements allow TxDOT to focus on the complicated projects that may impact cultural resources in your communities. 
These agreements work because they are based on trust, including yours! TxDOT has used legal agreements like these for more than two decades. Every five years, we revisit our preservation program and update the agreements, a process that is open to public input. We want to hear from you.
SLIDE 14: Thanks for listening to this webinar on streamlining the historic preservation process at TxDOT. Watch the other webinars and check out the video description below for links to helpful online resources and handouts. Head to TxDOT’s Beyond the Road website for videos, podcasts, and story maps about the interesting resources we’ve uncovered during our projects. Sign up for our newsletter and learn more about how you can get involved.