[§264-17]  Public hearing.  Any state orcounty agency which prepares proposed plans for a major public highway projectshall provide an opportunity for a public hearing at the earliest practicabletime before the proposed plans for the project are finalized and commitmentshave been made by the state or county to the plans or the project.  The publichearing shall be conducted and notice given in an adequate manner to appriseall interested persons of the proposed routes and scope of the projects and allowan opportunity for all interested persons to submit data, views, or arguments,orally or in writing.  The public hearing required under this section may beheld in conjunction with a public hearing held on the project to meet therequirement of any federal, state or county law provided the provisions of thissection are satisfied.

The proposing agency shall satisfy anyrequirement for holding a public hearing under this section if adequate noticeof the opportunity for the public hearing on the project is given to interestedpersons and no written requests for the hearing are received by the agencywithin a reasonable time.

This section shall not apply to theconstruction of highway projects where the governor has made a formaldetermination that the construction of the project is urgently needed becauseof an emergency, a natural disaster, or a catastrophic failure. [L 1976, c 163,§1]