Rule2022-02463
Determination To Defer Sanctions; Arizona; Maricopa County; Power Plants
Primary source
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Published
February 8, 2022
Effective
February 8, 2022
Issuing agencies
Environmental Protection Agency
Abstract
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is making an interim final determination that the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) has submitted a revised rule on behalf of the Maricopa County Air Quality Department (MCAQD or County) that corrects deficiencies in its Clean Air Act (CAA or Act) state implementation plan (SIP) provisions concerning ozone nonattainment requirements for controlling oxides of nitrogen (NO<INF>X</INF>) at power plants. This determination is based on a proposed approval, published elsewhere in this Federal Register, of MCAQD's Rule 322 regulating that source category. The effect of this interim final determination is that the imposition of sanctions that were triggered by a previous disapproval by the EPA in 2020 is now deferred. If the EPA finalizes its approval of MCAQD's submission, relief from these sanctions will become permanent.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 87 Issue 26 (Tuesday, February 8, 2022)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 26 (Tuesday, February 8, 2022)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 7042-7044]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2022-02463]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[EPA-R09-OAR-2022-0107; FRL-9426-03-R9]
Determination To Defer Sanctions; Arizona; Maricopa County; Power
Plants
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Interim final determination.
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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is making an interim
final determination that the Arizona Department of Environmental
Quality (ADEQ) has submitted a revised rule on behalf of the Maricopa
County Air Quality Department (MCAQD or County) that corrects
deficiencies in its Clean Air Act (CAA or Act) state implementation
plan (SIP) provisions concerning ozone nonattainment requirements for
controlling oxides of nitrogen (NO<INF>X</INF>) at power plants. This
determination is based on a proposed approval, published elsewhere in
this Federal Register, of MCAQD's Rule 322 regulating that source
category. The effect of this interim final determination is that the
imposition of sanctions that
[[Page 7043]]
were triggered by a previous disapproval by the EPA in 2020 is now
deferred. If the EPA finalizes its approval of MCAQD's submission,
relief from these sanctions will become permanent.
DATES: This determination is effective on February 8, 2022. However,
comments will be accepted on or before March 10, 2022.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R09-
OAR-2022-0107 at <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>. For comments submitted at
<a href="http://Regulations.gov">Regulations.gov</a>, follow the online instructions for submitting
comments. Once submitted, comments cannot be edited or removed from
<a href="http://Regulations.gov">Regulations.gov</a>. The EPA may publish any comment received to its public
docket. Do not submit electronically any information you consider to be
Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information whose
disclosure is restricted by statute. Multimedia submissions (audio,
video, etc.) must be accompanied by a written comment. The written
comment is considered the official comment and should include
discussion of all points you wish to make. The EPA will generally not
consider comments or comment contents located outside of the primary
submission (i.e., on the web, cloud, or other file sharing system). For
additional submission methods, please contact the person identified in
the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section. For the full EPA public
comment policy, information about CBI or multimedia submissions, and
general guidance on making effective comments, please visit <a href="https://www.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets">https://www.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets</a>. If you need assistance in a
language other than English or if you are a person with disabilities
who needs a reasonable accommodation at no cost to you, please contact
the person identified in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kevin Gong, EPA Region IX, 75
Hawthorne St., San Francisco, CA 94105. By phone: (415) 972-3073 or by
email at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#d9beb6b7bef7b2bcafb0b799bca9b8f7beb6af"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="7710181910591c12011e193712071659101801">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document, ``we,'' ``us,''
and ``our'' refer to the EPA.
Table of Contents
I. Background
II. The EPA's Evaluation and Action
III. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
I. Background
On July 20, 2020 (85 FR 43692), the EPA issued a final disapproval
for MCAQD's Rule 322 that had been submitted by the ADEQ to the EPA for
inclusion into the Arizona SIP. The 2020 action addressed the
requirement that the MCAQD implement reasonably available control
technology (RACT) for emissions sources in ozone nonattainment areas
under the Act. In that action, we determined that the Rule 322
submittal included several deficiencies that precluded our approval of
the rule into the SIP, and thus failed to implement RACT. Therefore,
our 2020 action included a disapproval of the SIP revision under title
I, part D of the Act, relating to requirements for nonattainment areas.
Pursuant to section 179 of the CAA and our regulations at 40 CFR 52.31,
this disapproval action under title I, part D started a sanctions clock
for imposition of offset sanctions 18 months after the action's
effective date of August 19, 2020, and highway sanctions 6 months
later.
On June 23, 2021, the MCAQD revised Rule 322 and on June 24, 2021,
ADEQ submitted the SIP revision to the EPA for approval into the
Arizona SIP. The revision is intended to address the disapproval issues
under title I, part D that we identified in our 2020 action. In the
Proposed Rules section of this Federal Register, we have proposed
approval of the revised MCAQD Rule 322. Based on this proposed approval
action, we are also taking this interim final determination, effective
on publication, to defer imposition of the offset sanctions and highway
sanctions that were triggered by our 2020 action's disapproval, because
we believe that the 2020 submittal corrects the deficiencies that
triggered such sanctions.
The EPA is providing the public with an opportunity to comment on
this deferral of sanctions. If comments are submitted that change our
assessment described in this interim final determination and the
proposed full approval of MCAQD Rule 322 with respect to the title I,
part D deficiencies identified in our 2020 action, we would take final
action to lift this deferral of sanctions under 40 CFR 52.31. If no
comments are submitted that change our assessment, then all sanctions
and any sanction clocks triggered by our 2020 action would be
permanently terminated on the effective date of our final approval of
MCAQD Rule 322.
II. The EPA's Evaluation and Action
We are making an interim final determination to defer CAA section
179 sanctions associated with our disapproval action on July 20, 2020,
of MCAQD Rule 322 with respect to the requirements of part D of title I
of the CAA. This determination is based on our concurrent proposal to
fully approve Rule 322, which resolves the deficiencies that triggered
sanctions under section 179 of the CAA.
Because the EPA has preliminarily determined that MCAQD's submittal
of Rule 322 addresses the deficiencies under part D of title I of the
CAA identified in our 2020 action and is fully approvable, relief from
sanctions should be provided as quickly as possible. Therefore, the EPA
is invoking the good cause exception under the Administrative Procedure
Act (APA) in not providing an opportunity for comment before this
action takes effect (5 U.S.C. 553(b)(3)). However, by this action, the
EPA is providing the public with a chance to comment on the EPA's
determination after the effective date, and the EPA will consider any
comments received in determining whether to reverse such action.
The EPA believes that notice-and-comment rulemaking before the
effective date of this action is impracticable and contrary to the
public interest. The EPA has reviewed the State's submittal and,
through its proposed action, is indicating that it is more likely than
not that the State has submitted a revision to the SIP that corrects
deficiencies under part D of the Act that were the basis for the action
that started the sanctions clocks. Therefore, it is not in the public
interest to impose sanctions. The EPA believes that it is necessary to
use the interim final rulemaking process to defer sanctions while the
EPA completes its rulemaking process on the approvability of the
State's submittal. Moreover, with respect to the effective date of this
action, the EPA is invoking the good cause exception to the 30-day
notice requirement of the APA because the purpose of this notice is to
relieve a restriction (5 U.S.C. 553(d)(1)).
III. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
This action defers sanctions and imposes no additional
requirements. For that reason, this action:
<bullet> Is not a ``significant regulatory action'' subject to
review by the Office of Management and Budget under Executive Orders
12866 (58 FR 51735, October 4, 1993) and 13563 (76 FR 3821, January 21,
2011);
<bullet> Does not impose an information collection burden under the
provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.);
<bullet> Is certified as not having a significant economic impact
on a substantial number of small entities under the Regulatory
Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.);
[[Page 7044]]
<bullet> Does not contain any unfunded mandate or significantly or
uniquely affect small governments, as described in the Unfunded
Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-4);
<bullet> Does not have federalism implications as specified in
Executive Order 13132 (64 FR 43255, August 10, 1999);
<bullet> Is not an economically significant regulatory action based
on health or safety risks subject to Executive Order 13045 (62 FR
19885, April 23, 1997);
<bullet> Is not a significant regulatory action subject to
Executive Order 13211 (66 FR 28355, May 22, 2001);
<bullet> Is not subject to requirements of Section 12(d) of the
National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995 (15 U.S.C. 272
note) because application of those requirements would be inconsistent
with the Clean Air Act; and
<bullet> Does not provide the EPA with the discretionary authority
to address disproportionate human health or environmental effects with
practical, appropriate, and legally permissible methods under Executive
Order 12898 (59 FR 7629, February 16, 1994).
<bullet> Is not approved to apply on any Indian reservation land or
in any other area where the EPA or an Indian tribe has demonstrated
that a tribe has jurisdiction. In those areas of Indian country, the
rule does not have tribal implications and will not impose substantial
direct costs on tribal governments or preempt tribal law as specified
by Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9, 2000).
<bullet> Is subject to the Congressional Review Act (CRA), 5 U.S.C.
801 et seq., and the EPA will submit a rule report to each House of the
Congress and to the Comptroller General of the United States. The CRA
allows the issuing agency to make a rule effective sooner than
otherwise provided by the CRA if the agency makes a good cause finding
that notice and comment rulemaking procedures are impracticable,
unnecessary or contrary to the public interest (5 U.S.C. 808(2)). The
EPA has made a good cause finding for this rule as discussed in section
II of this preamble, including the basis for that finding.
Under section 307(b)(1) of the CAA, petitions for judicial review
of this action must be filed in the United States Court of Appeals for
the appropriate circuit by April 11, 2022. Filing a petition for
reconsideration by the EPA Administrator of this final rule does not
affect the finality of this rule for the purpose of judicial review nor
does it extend the time within which petition for judicial review may
be filed, and shall not postpone the effectiveness of such rule or
action. This action may not be challenged later in proceedings to
enforce its requirements (see CAA section 307(b)(2)).
List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52
Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Carbon monoxide,
Incorporation by reference, Intergovernmental relations, Oxides of
nitrogen, Ozone, Particulate matter, Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements.
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.
Dated: February 1, 2022.
Martha Guzman Aceves,
Regional Administrator, Region IX.
[FR Doc. 2022-02463 Filed 2-7-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
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