Rule2022-28319
Finding of Failure To Attain and Reclassification of Las Vegas Area as Moderate for the 2015 Ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standard
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
January 5, 2023
Effective
January 5, 2023
Issuing agencies
Environmental Protection Agency
Abstract
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or Agency) is determining that the Las Vegas, Nevada nonattainment area ("Las Vegas") failed to attain the 2015 ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) by the applicable attainment date. The effect of failing to attain by the applicable attainment date is that Las Vegas is being reclassified by operation of law as "Moderate" nonattainment for the 2015 ozone NAAQS on January 5, 2023, the effective date of this final rule. Accordingly, the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection (NDEP) must submit State Implementation Plan (SIP) revisions and implement controls to satisfy the statutory and regulatory requirements for Moderate areas for the 2015 ozone NAAQS according to the deadlines established in this final rule.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 88 Issue 3 (Thursday, January 5, 2023)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 3 (Thursday, January 5, 2023)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 775-783]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2022-28319]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 81
[EPA-R09-OAR-2022-0525; FRL-9961-02-R9]
Finding of Failure To Attain and Reclassification of Las Vegas
Area as Moderate for the 2015 Ozone National Ambient Air Quality
Standard
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Final rule.
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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or Agency) is
determining that the Las Vegas, Nevada nonattainment area (``Las
Vegas'') failed to attain the 2015 ozone National Ambient Air Quality
Standard (NAAQS) by the applicable attainment date. The effect of
failing to attain by the applicable attainment date is that Las Vegas
is being reclassified by operation of law as ``Moderate'' nonattainment
for the 2015 ozone NAAQS on January 5, 2023, the effective date of this
final rule. Accordingly, the Nevada Division of Environmental
Protection (NDEP) must submit State Implementation Plan (SIP) revisions
and implement controls to satisfy the statutory and regulatory
requirements for Moderate areas for the 2015 ozone NAAQS according to
the deadlines established in this final rule.
DATES: The effective date of this rule is January 5, 2023.
ADDRESSES: The EPA has established a public docket for this action at
<a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a> under Docket ID No. EPA-R09-OAR-2022-0525.
Although listed in the docket index, some information is not publicly
available, e.g., Confidential Business Information or other information
whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Certain other material, such
as copyrighted material, is not placed on the internet and will be
publicly available only in hard copy form. Publicly available docket
materials are available through <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>, or please
contact the person identified in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT
section for additional availability information. 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: Karina O'Connor, Air Planning Office
(AIR-2), EPA Region IX, 75 Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, CA 94105;
By
[[Page 776]]
phone: (775) 434-8176 or by email at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#4d222e222323223f63262c3f24232c0d283d2c632a223b"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="701f131f1e1e1f025e1b1102191e11301500115e171f06">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Table of Contents
The following is an outline of the Preamble.
I. Proposed Actions
A. Proposed Determination of Failure To Attain by the Attainment
Date
B. Proposed Moderate Area SIP Submission and Controls
Implementation Deadlines
II. Responses to Comments and Final Action
A. Determination of Failure To Attain and Reclassification
B. Moderate Area SIP Submission and Implementation Deadlines
C. Final Action
III. Good Cause Exemption Under the Administrative Procedure Act
(APA) for Immediate Effective Date
IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
A. Executive Order 12866: Regulatory Planning and Review and
Executive Order 13563: Improving Regulation and Regulatory Review
B. Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA)
C. Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA)
D. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA)
E. Executive Order 13132: Federalism
F. Executive Order 13175: Consultation and Coordination With
Indian Tribal Governments
G. Executive Order 13045: Protection of Children From
Environmental Health and Safety Risks
H. Executive Order 13211: Actions That Significantly Affect
Energy Supply, Distribution, or Use
I. National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act (NTTAA)
J. Executive Order 12898: Federal Actions To Address
Environmental Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income
Populations
K. Congressional Review Act (CRA)
L. Judicial Review
I. Proposed Actions
A. Proposed Determination of Failure To Attain by the Attainment Date
On July 22, 2022, the EPA proposed to determine that Las Vegas
failed to attain the 2015 ozone NAAQS by the applicable attainment date
and did not qualify for a 1-year attainment date extension. Under Clean
Air Act (CAA or ``Act'') section 181, the EPA has a statutory
obligation to determine whether the Marginal nonattainment area
attained the 2015 ozone NAAQS by August 3, 2021, the applicable
attainment date.\1\ The proposed determination was based upon complete,
quality-assured and certified ozone air quality monitoring data that
showed that the 8-hour ozone design value (DV) for the area exceeded
0.070 parts per million (ppm) for the period 2018-2020, i.e., the
area's DV as of the attainment date. The EPA proposed that Las Vegas
would be reclassified as a Moderate nonattainment area by operation of
law on the effective date of a final action finding that the area
failed to attain the 2015 ozone NAAQS by the applicable attainment date
for Marginal areas.\2\
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\1\ 87 FR 43764 (July 22, 2022).
\2\ CAA section 181(b)(2)(A).
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B. Proposed Moderate Area SIP Submission and Controls Implementation
Deadlines
In the July 2022 proposal, the EPA solicited comment on adjusting
the due dates, in accordance with CAA section 182(i), for submission
and implementation deadlines for all SIP requirements that apply to Las
Vegas.\3\ Under CAA section 181(b)(2), Marginal nonattainment areas
that fail to attain the 2015 ozone NAAQS by the applicable attainment
date will be reclassified as Moderate by operation of law upon the
effective date of the final determination. Once Las Vegas is
reclassified as Moderate, NDEP must subsequently submit a SIP revision
that satisfies the air quality planning requirements for a Moderate
area under CAA section 182(b).
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\3\ See CAA sections 172(c)(1) and 182(a) and (b), and 40 CFR
51.1300 et seq.
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The EPA proposed to align the submission deadline for all Moderate
area SIP elements for Las Vegas with the proposed January 1, 2023,
deadline for other areas being reclassified from Marginal to Moderate
in the EPA's national determination for Marginal areas under the 2015
ozone NAAQS.\4\ The EPA adopted this approach previously for Marginal
areas reclassified as Moderate for failure to timely attain the 2008
ozone NAAQS and in recent actions for the 2008 and 2015 ozone NAAQS to
achieve consistency among required SIP submissions for areas facing a
similarly compressed timeframe between the effective date of
reclassification and the Moderate area attainment date.\5\
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\4\ Proposed Rule--Determinations of Attainment by the
Attainment Date, Extensions of the Attainment Date, and
Reclassification of Areas Classified as Marginal for the 2015 Ozone
National Ambient Air Quality Standards (81 FR 21842, April 13,
2022).
\5\ Final Rule--Determinations of Attainment by the Attainment
Date, Extensions of the Attainment Date, and Reclassification of
Several Areas for the 2008 Ozone National Ambient Air Quality
Standards (81 FR 26697, 26705, May 4, 2016). Final Rule--
Determinations of Attainment by the Attainment Date, Extensions of
the Attainment Date, and Reclassification of Areas Classified as
Marginal for the 2015 Ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards
(87 FR 60897, October 7, 2022).
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The EPA's implementing regulations for the 2015 ozone NAAQS require
that, for areas initially classified as Moderate or higher, a state
shall provide for implementation of reasonable available control
technology (RACT) as expeditiously as practicable but no later than
January 1 of the fifth year after the effective date of designation,
which corresponds with the beginning of the attainment year for
initially classified Moderate areas (i.e., January 1, 2023).\6\ The
modeling and attainment demonstration requirements for 2015 ozone NAAQS
nonattainment areas classified Moderate or higher require that a state
must provide for implementation of all control measures needed for
attainment no later than the beginning of the attainment year ozone
season, notwithstanding any alternative deadline established per 40 CFR
51.1312.\7\ For reclassified areas, the EPA's implementing regulations
for the 2015 ozone NAAQS require that the state shall provide for
implementation of RACT as expeditiously as practicable, but no later
than the start of the attainment year ozone season associated with the
area's new attainment deadline, or January 1 of the third year after
the associated SIP submission deadline, whichever is earlier; or the
deadline established by the Administrator in the final action issuing
the area reclassification.\8\ The EPA requested comment on the proposed
January 1, 2023, reasonably available control measures (RACM)/RACT
implementation deadline. This proposed deadline is the same as the
single RACT implementation deadline for all areas initially classified
Moderate per 40 CFR 51.1312(a)(3) in the national rulemaking and would
require implementation of any identified RACM/RACT at the beginning of
the Las Vegas Moderate area's attainment year ozone season (January 1,
2023) to influence the area's air quality and 2021-2023 attainment DV.
The proposed RACT implementation deadline would also align with the
proposed SIP submission deadline of January 1, 2023, and ensure that
any control measures needed for attainment, including RACM, would be
submitted no later than when those controls are required to be
implemented.
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\6\ See 40 CFR 51.1312(a)(3)(i).
\7\ See 40 CFR 51.1308(d).
\8\ See 40 CFR 51.1312(a)(3)(ii).
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A ``Basic'' vehicle inspection and maintenance program (I/M
program) is required for all urbanized Moderate areas under the 2015
ozone NAAQS. The Las Vegas nonattainment area is currently operating I/
M programs as part
[[Page 777]]
of its maintenance plan for the 1971 carbon monoxide standard for which
the area had been classified as Serious nonattainment and subsequently
redesignated.\9\ With respect to the implementation deadline for any
revisions to the current I/M program that may be necessary, if Clark
County Department of Environment and Sustainability (``Clark County
DES'') and NDEP intend to use emissions reductions from a revised I/M
program for the 2015 ozone NAAQS, they would need to have such
revisions fully established and start testing as expeditiously as
practicable but no later than January 1, 2023. However, if the state
does not intend to rely upon emissions reductions from a revised I/M
program in the Moderate area attainment or reasonable further progress
(RFP) demonstrations, the EPA proposed to allow the I/M program to be
fully implemented no later than 4 years after the effective date of
reclassification.
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\9\ See the July 2022 proposal for more background information
on I/M SIP requirements (87 FR 43764, 43769-43770).
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II. Responses to Comments and Final Action
The public comment period for the EPA's July 2022 proposal closed
on August 22, 2022. The EPA requested comment on the determination of
failure to attain and subsequent reclassification from Marginal to
Moderate as well as the Moderate area SIP revision and implementation
deadlines. The two comment letters received during this period can be
found in the docket for this action. In the first letter, the Clark
County DES disagrees with the EPA's proposed reclassification and the
associated timelines for the SIP revision and implementation. In the
second letter, Earthjustice, on behalf of Sierra Club, supports all
aspects of the EPA's proposal but expresses a concern about review of
wildfires under the Exceptional Events Rule (EER).
A. Determination of Failure To Attain and Reclassification
The EPA received adverse comments on its proposal to determine that
Las Vegas failed to attain by the applicable attainment date and to
reclassify the area as Moderate from the Clark County DES.
Comment: Clark County DES stated opposition to the proposed
reclassification of Las Vegas as Moderate, indicating that the area is
heavily impacted by ozone precursors originating from upwind states and
asserting that as a result, further actions taken by the State to
address Moderate area planning requirements are unlikely to
significantly improve air quality in Las Vegas.
Response: The EPA disagrees that Las Vegas should not be
reclassified as Moderate. The EPA has a mandatory duty under CAA
section 181(b)(2)(A) to determine whether Las Vegas attained by its
attainment date of August 3, 2021, based on the area's design value as
of the attainment date. The CAA also requires that any area that the
EPA finds has not attained the standard by the attainment deadline
shall be reclassified by operation of law to the higher of the next
``higher'' classification (e.g., Marginal to Moderate, Moderate to
Serious, etc.) or the classification applicable to the area's DV.
Further, the Agency's mandatory duty to make determinations of
attainment or failure to attain the NAAQS exists regardless of the
nature or effect of transported ozone on monitored air quality in a
given nonattainment area.\10\
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\10\ Cf. Sierra Club v. EPA, 294 F.3d 155 (D.C. Cir. 2002)
(rejecting the EPA's decision not to reclassify a downwind
nonattainment area that failed to timely attain due to transported
pollution from upwind states).
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Under the EPA regulations at 40 CFR part 50, Appendix U, the 2015
ozone NAAQS is attained at a monitoring site when the three-year
average of the annual fourth-highest daily maximum eight-hour average
ozone concentration (i.e., the DV) is less than or equal to 0.070 ppm.
When the DV is less than or equal to 0.070 ppm at each regulatory
ambient air quality monitoring site within the area, the area is deemed
to be meeting the NAAQS. If the DV is greater than 0.070 ppm at any
site in the area, the area is deemed to be violating the NAAQS. Four
monitoring sites in Las Vegas have design values greater than 0.070 ppm
(the highest design value measured in the area is 0.074 ppm) for the
2018-2020 period; \11\ therefore, the EPA must determine that the area
failed to attain the standard by the August 3, 2021, Marginal
attainment deadline and reclassify the area as Moderate as required by
section 181(b)(2) of the CAA.
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\11\ AQS report AMP480_2054242.pdf dated 20221025.
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Comment: Clark County DES strongly disagreed with the EPA's
nonconcurrence on exceptional event (EE) demonstrations submitted in
support of Clark County DES's requested determination of attainment or,
alternatively, a 1-year attainment date extension for the Las Vegas
area for the 2015 ozone NAAQS.
Response: The EPA disagrees that its nonconcurrence with regard to
Clark County DES' EE demonstrations was incorrect. The 2016 EER applies
to data showing exceedances or violations of an air quality standard
for purposes of qualifying regulatory determinations (i.e., having
``regulatory significance''), and requires that, if a state
demonstrates to the EPA's satisfaction that an exceptional event meets
the requirements of the EER, the EPA shall exclude the data from use in
determinations of exceedances and violations with respect to such
regulatory determinations.\12\ In addition to having regulatory
significance and meeting certain procedural requirements for submitting
an EE demonstration, the demonstration must include: (1) a narrative
conceptual model describing the event(s) causing the exceedance or
violation, (2) a demonstration of a clear causal relationship between
the event and the monitored exceedance or violation, (3) analyses
comparing the event-influenced concentration to concentrations at the
same monitoring site at other times to support the clear causal
relationship; (4) a demonstration that the event was both not
reasonably controllable and not reasonably preventable; and (5) a
demonstration that the event was caused by human activity that is
unlikely to recur at a particular location or was a natural event.\13\
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\12\ 81 FR 68216 (October 3, 2016).
\13\ See 40 CFR 50.14(c)(3)(iv).
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Of the seventeen EE demonstrations submitted by Clark County DES,
the EPA first reviewed three wildfire events and two stratospheric
ozone intrusion (SOI) events, based on the regulatory significance and
critical potential effect on design values and 2020 data of these five
events. As more fully discussed in the EE technical support documents
included in the docket to this rulemaking, the EPA ultimately found
that none of the five demonstrations fully satisfied all of the EER
criteria required for the EPA to concur; specifically, the EPA
determined that each of the five demonstrations did not sufficiently
show a clear causal relationship between the specific events and the
monitored exceedances. This conclusion was based on the technical
review of extensive information presented in the demonstrations, such
as meteorological data, fire and stratospheric ozone intrusion
information and analyses, trajectory analysis, ground level monitoring
data, and statistical modeling analysis. The technical data and
analyses presented did not support that event emissions were
transported to the Clark County
[[Page 778]]
monitoring sites and influenced air quality sufficiently to cause
exceedances of the 2015 ozone NAAQS, and therefore did not satisfy the
clear causal relationship criterion of the EER.
The EPA notified Clark County DES of its decision to nonconcur on
the five demonstrations on April 11, 2022. As a result of the
nonconcurrences on the five demonstrations, the remaining
demonstrations submitted by Clark County DES, even if concurred upon,
would not have resulted in an attaining DV or air quality that would
have met the criterion for an attainment date extension. Therefore, the
remaining EE demonstrations no longer had regulatory significance, as
required by the 2016 EER, and were not reviewed by the EPA.
Comment: Clark County DES expressed concerns about the increasing
impact of western wildfires and associated smoke on air quality in Las
Vegas, noting that control of wildfires and the transport of the
emissions were out of their jurisdiction and control. The commenter
requested that the EPA consider changes to the EER and EE guidance to
clearly define what qualifies as a wildfire-related EE because normal
levels of wildfire smoke have changed. Another commenter expressed
concern that implementation of the EER undermines the goals of the
attaining the NAAQS because wildfire occurrences are becoming more
frequent.
Response: The EPA recognizes that many areas in the West are
experiencing more intense wildfire activity, in large part driven by
severe drought conditions that are affecting nearly ninety percent of
the region.\14\ The EPA recognizes that these wildfire impacts are
generally outside of the control of local air quality agencies, like
Clark County DES. Indeed, the purpose of the EER and related guidance
is to exclude these types of air quality impacts, i.e., naturally
occurring events that can affect air quality but that are not
reasonably controllable using techniques that tribal, state or local
air agencies may implement in order to attain and maintain the NAAQS,
to avoid imposing unreasonable planning or implementation requirements
on air quality agencies. Additionally, as noted in 40 CFR 50.1(n), a
wildfire occuring predominantly on wildland is defined as a natural
event, and the definition of natural events at 40 CFR 50.1(k) clarifies
that such events may recur at the same location. Therefore, the EER
continues to allow for exclusion of data affected by more frequent
wildfires, presuming those events otherwise meet the requirements of
the EER.
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\14\ Fact Sheet: The Biden-Harris Administration Acts to Address
the Growing Wildfire Threat, The White House (June 30, 2021),
<a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/06/30/fact-sheet-the-biden-harris-administration-acts-to-address-the-growing-wildfire-threat/">https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/06/30/fact-sheet-the-biden-harris-administration-acts-to-address-the-growing-wildfire-threat/</a>. While heat waves and droughts do not
directly cause pollutant emissions and are not themselves considered
exceptional events, they can combine with or exacerbate the effects
of events that do meet the requirements, provisions, and criteria of
the EER.
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The EPA acknowledges the complexity and intricacies of regional
conditions prevalent across the country and is committed to continuing
to provide clarification and assistance to states as the EER is
implemented and through communications between the Regions and the
states to ensure that these regional conditions are adequately
addressed. However, to the extent that the commenters suggest the EPA
revisit the EER and EE guidance in this rulemaking, either to provide
additional clarifications or because of a commenter's concern that
implementation of the EER undermines attainment of the NAAQS, the EPA
believes that doing so is beyond the scope of this rulemaking to
determine whether Las Vegas attained by its Marginal area attainment
date.
While we acknowledge that wildfires have become more common in the
West, we reiterate that the EPA carefully examined Clark County DES' EE
demonstrations, and, as described in more detail above and in the EE
technical support documents included in the docket to this rulemaking,
found that the EE demonstrations submitted by Clark County DES did not
sufficiently establish a clear causal relationship between wildfire
emissions and ozone concentrations during the three identified wildfire
exceedance events reviewed by the EPA. The EPA's evaluation of the
``clear causal relationship'' criterion did not rely on the frequency
of events, and therefore an increasing frequency or intensity of
wildfires were not considered in the EPA's nonconcurrence
determinations issued with respect to the Clark County DES wildfire
demonstrations.
Comment: In identifying the local impacts from increased wildfires,
Clark County DES also highlighted the need for federal action to
research, prevent, and contain these wildfires.
Response: We recognize that many areas in the West are experiencing
more wildfire activity, as well as drought conditions and high
temperatures. The White House and many executive agencies, including
the EPA, are committed to devoting federal resources to study and
reduce these wildfire impacts to the extent possible. For example, land
managers, landowners, air agencies and communities may be able to
lessen the impacts of wildfires by working collaboratively to take
steps to minimize fuel loading in areas vulnerable to fire. There are
specific Department of the Interior \15\ and United States Forest
Service \16\ federal plans to increase fuel load minimization efforts
in areas at high risk of wildfire. The recently passed Bipartisan
Infrastructure Law \17\ and Inflation Reduction Act \18\ further direct
agencies and provides funding for such efforts at the federal level as
well as at state, tribal, local and private landowner levels.\19\ For
example, the White House recently outlined a plan to leverage $8
billion from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to improve wildfire
response capabilities by bolstering the wildland firefighting workforce
and utilizing data and technology to better detect and respond to
wildfires, among other tools to strengthen prevention, preparedness,
mitigation, and response efforts to wildfires.\20\ It is important to
note that the EPA is not a land management agency, and therefore land
management techniques to prevent and control wildfires are outside of
our jurisdiction. However, we work closely with other federal agencies
including the United States Forest Service on multiple interagency
groups to discuss the use of prescribed fires and other land management
control techniques.
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\15\ See <a href="https://www.doi.gov/sites/doi.gov/files/bil-5-year-wildfire-risk-mmt-plan.04.2022.owf_.final_.pdf">https://www.doi.gov/sites/doi.gov/files/bil-5-year-wildfire-risk-mmt-plan.04.2022.owf_.final_.pdf</a>.
\16\ See <a href="https://www.fs.usda.gov/sites/default/files/Confronting-Wildfire-Crisis.pdf">https://www.fs.usda.gov/sites/default/files/Confronting-Wildfire-Crisis.pdf</a>.
\17\ Inflation Reduction Act, Public Law 117-169 available at
<a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/house-bill/5376/text">https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/house-bill/5376/text</a>.
\18\ Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, Public Law 117-58,
available at <a href="https://www.congress.gov/117/plaws/publ58/PLAW-117publ58.pdf">https://www.congress.gov/117/plaws/publ58/PLAW-117publ58.pdf</a>.
\19\ Inflation Reduction Act, Public Law 117-169 available at
<a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/house-bill/5376/text">https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/house-bill/5376/text</a>.
\20\ See Fact Sheet: ``The Biden-Harris Administration Acts to
Address the Growing Wildfire Threat'', The White House (June 30,
2021), <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/06/30/fact-sheet-the-biden-harris-administration-acts-to-address-the-growing-wildfire-threat/">https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/06/30/fact-sheet-the-biden-harris-administration-acts-to-address-the-growing-wildfire-threat/</a>; Fact Sheet: President Biden
Signs Executive Order to Strengthen America's Forests, Boost
Wildfire Resilience, and Combat Global Deforestation The White House
(April 22, 2022), https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/
statements-releases/2022/04/22/fact-sheet-president-biden-signs-
executive-order-to-strengthen-americas-forests-boost-wildfire-
resilience-and-combat-global-deforestation/
#:~:text=To%20strengthen%20America's%20forests20and,growth%%20forests
%20on%20federal%20lands.
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From an air quality perspective, the EPA has multiple Air Sensor
Loan Programs to help bolster local air quality monitoring efforts. One
example of this is the Wildfire Smoke Air Monitoring
[[Page 779]]
Technology (WSMART) Pilot program.\21\ The WSMART program allows state,
local, or tribal air agencies to loan one of two types of stationary
sampling systems to supplement air quality data in smoke-impacted
communities. In addition, the EPA regularly deploys air quality experts
to large smoke events, where they help predict, analyze, and
communicate smoke impacts from fires, along with other air experts, to
the public.\22\ The EPA is also involved in numerous research efforts.
Current research includes a study on the safety and efficacy of using
Do-It-Yourself air cleaners, which are in-home air filtration devices
made by attaching an air filter to a box fan, as an alternative to
other air cleaners. A second study is research on the use of N95 masks
to protect against wildfire smoke when used with varying levels of
instruction.\23\ This research helps us understand the safety and
efficacy of different tools the public can use to protect themselves.
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\21\ Wildfire Smoke Air Monitoring Response Technology (WSMART)
Pilot, EPA, <a href="https://www.epa.gov/air-sensor-toolbox/wildfire-smoke-air-monitoring-response-technology-wsmart-pilot">https://www.epa.gov/air-sensor-toolbox/wildfire-smoke-air-monitoring-response-technology-wsmart-pilot</a>.
\22\ Air Resource Advisor Deployments, Interagency Wildland Fire
Air Quality Response Program, <a href="https://www.wildlandfiresmoke.net/ara/deployments">https://www.wildlandfiresmoke.net/ara/deployments</a>.
\23\ When research results are published, they will appear on
the EPA's Wildland Fire Research to Protect Health and the
Environment page, <a href="https://www.epa.gov/air-research/wildland-fire-research-protect-health-and-environment">https://www.epa.gov/air-research/wildland-fire-research-protect-health-and-environment</a>.
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Federal agencies will continue to engage on various fronts to
address wildfires and the associated impacts, and the EPA will continue
to incorporate the tools and research information to work with Clark
County DES and others toward protecting the environment and human
health.
B. Moderate Area SIP Submission and Implementation Deadlines
The EPA received one supportive comment from the Sierra Club and
adverse comments from Clark County DES on our proposed deadlines, which
are addressed as follows. We acknowledge that meeting a January 1,
2023, SIP submission and RACM/RACT implementation deadline will be
challenging. As discussed in our responses, the options for
establishing deadlines within the CAA framework of attainment
timeframes and RACT implementation requirements are constrained. We
also note that a state may at any time request--and the EPA must
grant--a voluntary reclassification under CAA section 181(b)(3). As a
general matter, the EPA remains committed to working closely with
affected states to help them prepare their SIP revisions in a timely
manner. One additional comment, regarding future contingency measures
policy is also addressed below.
Comment: Regarding the EPA's proposed January 1, 2023, SIP
submission deadline for Clark County's Moderate area SIP revision, the
commenter states that the deadline was without a rational basis because
the EPA knows NDEP cannot meet the deadline, and further asserts that
the proposed deadline is not specifically mandated by the CAA or the
EPA's regulations. The commenter observed that the proposed deadline
would be less than three months from final area reclassification, which
they note is less than the planning timeframe allowed for initially
designated areas (up to, e.g., 3 years for RFP demonstrations) or for
reclassified areas under 40 CFR 51.1312(a)(2)(ii), which allows up to 2
years for RACT SIPs. Clark County DES did not request a specific
deadline but was concerned that the proposed submission deadline was
unachievable given the timing and need for development of the plan and
the need for providing the public with opportunity to comment, also
noting that the EPA's delayed rulemaking in this action has contributed
to the planning burden on the nonattainment area.
The commenter disagrees with the EPA's exercise of discretion under
CAA section 182(i) to provide for consistency among the required SIP
submissions by harmonizing the SIP submission and RACT SIP
implementation deadlines, claiming the EPA has not yet shown that its
exercise of discretion is ``necessary or appropriate'' under the Act.
Further, the commenter requests that the EPA use its general
regulatory authorities under CAA section 301(a)(1) to harmonize the SIP
submission deadlines and the attainment date on the grounds that
Congress intended for the EPA to give adequate time for states to
implement control measures before facing sanctions or additional bump-
ups. The commenter notes that the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals has
held that an agency's statutory interpretation must ``avoid unnecessary
hardship or surprise to affected parties and remains within the general
statutory bounds prescribed.''
Response: The EPA acknowledges the short planning timeframe
available to NDEP and Clark County DES for the newly reclassified Las
Vegas Moderate area, and that delays in this rulemaking, including
additional time needed to review the EE demonstrations described above,
have contributed to this shortened timeframe. We further acknowledge
that the available timeframe here will present significant challenges
to Clark County DES, but we believe that our approach here is
consistent with prior determination and reclassification actions and
with the confines of the CAA. Further, we maintain that the aligned SIP
submission and RACT implementation deadline established in this final
action best addresses the regulatory requirement under 40 CFR
51.1312(a)(3)(ii) that RACT be implemented as expeditiously as
practicable, but no later than the start of the attainment year ozone
season associated with the area's new attainment deadline--in this
case, January 1, 2023, for the Las Vegas area.
We note that first and foremost, the primary purpose of title I of
the CAA and subpart 2 in particular is the expeditious attainment of
the NAAQS in all areas. We do not agree that the Act provides support
for the notion that the overriding goal of these statutory provisions
is to provide adequate time to states for implementing control
measures, or that our proposed SIP submission and implementation
deadlines would result in ``unnecessary hardship or surprise'' that
exceeds permissible bounds. The plain language of the CAA mandates that
the Las Vegas area be reclassified as Moderate as a matter of law
because the area failed to attain the NAAQS by its Marginal attainment
date. The Act, and its implementing regulations, further mandate that,
once reclassified, the area's new attainment date is August 3, 2024.
The State, in this case, has been on notice since December 2020
that there was a possibility that Las Vegas would be reclassified,
given the preliminary air quality data for the time period relevant to
attainment demonstrations (2018-2020). Moreover, the EPA shared with
the State in April of this year that we did not agree with the state's
exceptional events demonstrations, paving the way for a finding that
the area did not attain and would be reclassified. A state need not
wait until EPA's finding and reclassification is made effective before
beginning to develop an attainment plan for a higher classification of
an air quality standard. At the time of the proposed finding and
reclassification for Las Vegas, there was nearly two full years until
the area's attainment date, including the entire attainment year ozone
season of 2023.
Given these facts and circumstances, we think it is appropriate and
necessary to establish deadlines that would result in the most
expeditious schedule for adopting and implementing control
[[Page 780]]
measures, as we have in similarly situated areas all over the country,
in order to provide Las Vegas with the best chance of timely attainment
by its new 2024 attainment deadline. It is not appropriate, when there
is still time to affect whether the area will timely attain, to delay
the area's SIP submission or implementation deadlines, such that none
of the controls adopted or implemented could ever affect whether the
area attained by its next attainment deadline. We also therefore do not
think CAA section 301(a)(1)'s gap-filling authority is needed or
appropriate here, where CAA section 182(i) provides the EPA with the
specific authority to establish new deadlines for areas that are
reclassified for failing to timely attain by their attainment date.
Areas initially classified as Moderate under the 2015 ozone NAAQS
were required to prepare and submit SIP revisions by deadlines relative
to the effective date of the nonattainment designation (i.e., August 3,
2018), which ranged from 2 to 3 years after the effective date of
designation (e.g., 2 years for the RACT SIP, and 3 years for the
attainment plan with RACM and attainment demonstration). These SIP
submission deadlines preceded the RACT implementation deadline (i.e.,
as expeditiously as practicable but no later than January 1 of the 5th
year after the effective date of designations) and have the practical
effect of ensuring that SIPs requiring control measures needed for
attainment, including RACM, would be submitted prior to when those
controls are required to be implemented--in this case, no later than
the beginning of the Moderate area attainment year. i.e., January 1,
2023.
Section 181(b)(2)(A) of the CAA requires that within 6 months
following the applicable attainment date, the EPA shall determine
whether an ozone nonattainment area attained the ozone standard, and
those areas that failed to attain and were not granted a 1-year
attainment date extension are reclassified by operation of law.
Although Congress did not articulate specific SIP submission deadlines
for reclassified areas in the Act, it provided the EPA with authority
under CAA section 182(i) to adjust any related deadlines for
requirements under CAA sections 182(b) through (d) ``. . . to the
extent such adjustment is necessary or appropriate to assure
consistency among the required submissions.'' Notably, explicitly
excluded from CAA section 182(i) is authority to adjust attainment
dates.\24\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\24\ CAA section 182(i)(``. . . the Administrator may adjust any
applicable deadlines (other than attainment dates) . . .'').
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The area classifications and attainment date framework established
in Table 1 of CAA section 181(a)(1) and interpreted by 40 CFR 51.1303
inherently constrains the planning and implementation timeframe for
reclassified areas, particularly for lower area classifications. The
time increments between the Marginal and Moderate, and the Moderate and
Serious area statutory attainment dates are only three years. These
short timeframes are further constrained by the RACT implementation
deadline for reclassified areas. Consistent with the RACT requirements
of 40 CFR 51.1312(a)(3)(ii), the EPA proposed a RACT implementation
deadline for the reclassified Las Vegas Moderate area corresponding
with the beginning of the area's attainment year ozone season (i.e.,
January 1, 2023). Aligning the RACT implementation and SIP submission
deadlines ensures that SIPs requiring control measures needed for
attainment, including RACM, are submitted no later than when those
controls are required to be implemented.\25\ The combination of
constraints dictated by the statutory and regulatory requirements for
reclassified ozone areas, particularly at the lower classifications,
are a primary cause of the compressed timeframe for SIP development and
implementation.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\25\ See 87 FR 21842, 21856 (April 13, 2022).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The EPA also notes that voluntary reclassification provides a way
for states to anticipate and manage the tight timeframes for SIP
development for nonattainment areas. An air agency can request--and the
EPA must grant--a voluntary reclassification under CAA section
181(b)(3), which resets the area's attainment date into the future, and
would therefore likely provide more time and flexibility for developing
and submitting required SIP revisions. Of particular benefit for states
is the longer timeframe to prepare RACT analyses and adopt SIP
revisions for voluntarily reclassified areas, which could result in
states determining that additional controls are reasonable and in turn
help expedite air quality improvements in these areas.
Thus, while we recognize that Clark County DES may face difficulty
in meeting the submission and implementation deadlines in this final
rule, we continue to believe our proposed approach is consistent with
the CAA and our regulations. As a reclassified Moderate area, Las Vegas
is required to attain the 2015 ozone NAAQS by August 3, 2024, and per
Congress's clear statutory instruction in CAA section 182(i), the EPA
may not alter attainment deadlines for reclassified areas. Given the
competing considerations outlined above and the remaining planning
options available for Clark County, we maintain that the deadlines
imposed by the final action are reasonable, and an appropriate exercise
of the EPA's discretion under CAA section 182(i).
Comment: Regarding the proposed January 1, 2023, RACT
implementation deadline for reclassified Moderate areas, the EPA
received comments from Clark County DES stating that the deadline was
unreasonable, and/or the resulting compressed timeframe provided
insufficient time for RACT SIP development and implementation by
affected sources. The commenter contended that the RACT implementation
deadline would not provide enough time for the area to adopt new
measures and also allow time for the EPA to approve the measures into
the SIP, making them federally enforceable before the implementation
deadline. The commentor argued that it is inappropriate to ask sources
to make capital investments for new control measures before the EPA
approves the SIP because they could have additional requirements to
meet. Finally, the commenter considered the EPA's reliance upon the
Moderate area attainment date to justify the RACT SIP submission
deadline as not rational because the RACT SIP requirement is
independent from attainment planning.
Response: As discussed previously, the EPA considers the compressed
planning and RACT implementation timeframe for reclassified Moderate
areas to be largely dictated by the area classifications and attainment
date framework established in the CAA, and the regulatory RACT
implementation deadline for reclassified areas--in this case, January
1, 2023, for the reclassified Las Vegas Moderate area. The EPA
recognizes that measures that states identify as ``reasonably
available'' and that affected sources must implement are directly tied
to the amount of time provided by the EPA in establishing a due date
within the statutory and regulatory constraints discussed previously,
which includes the time needed for EPA to approve these measures into
the SIP. Therefore, an area may be limited to RACM and RACT measures
that are already on the books or well into the state's adoption process
and might not generate additional emissions reductions. However,
delaying the implementation deadline
[[Page 781]]
for RACT will not make it more likely that the area will attain by its
attainment date. The deadline the EPA is finalizing is already the
beginning of the last year in that any emissions reductions could
influence an area's DV as of their next attainment date.
Moreover, a states' obligation to adopt and implement RACT are not
conditioned in any way on the EPA's action on those SIP revisions.
There are no provisions of the CAA that permit states an extension of
time to adopt SIP revisions or require implementation of control
measures based on the timing of the EPA's action on the state's
submissions. It is the state's obligation to adopt control measures and
to implement those measures in order to attain the NAAQS, and the more
expeditiously those controls are adopted and implemented, the likelier
Las Vegas is to timely attain.
To the extent that the commenter does not think it will be possible
to implement any controls beyond what has already been federally
approved and recognizes that additional controls are necessary for that
area to reach attainment, the area may, as discussed previously,
exercise the option to request a voluntary reclassification, which the
EPA must approve. The EPA cannot, under the CAA, reclassify ozone areas
based on its presumption that an area will not attain or is unlikely to
attain by the attainment date; but states are fully within their rights
to recognize this and put themselves in a better position for longer
planning and implementation timeframes.
Finally, the EPA disagrees with the commenter that it would be
irrational to consider the attainment deadline when determining the
proper RACT implementation deadline. The CAA and the EPA's regulations
require the agency to consider the attainment date when determining the
RACT implementation deadline.\26\ Moreover, although the EPA considers
the requirement to adopt RACT to be generally independent of attainment
planning requirements, the EPA does not take the position that the RACT
implementation requirement is fully independent of all other attainment
planning requirements. The purpose of generally considering the RACT
implementation requirement independent of attainment planning,
particularly after reclassification to a higher standard, is to ensure
continued progress toward and maintenance of attainment for those areas
with more difficult air quality problems.\27\ A nonattainment area is
not required to submit certain attainment planning demonstrations,
e.g., attainment and RFP demonstrations, if the EPA finds that the area
is in fact attaining the standard, with the caveat that those
demonstrations will be required if the area again violates the
standard.\28\ RACT implementation, however, would still be required in
the event that attainment could be demonstrated.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\26\ See e.g., Clean Air Act 182(b)(2); 40 CFR
51.1312(a)(3)(ii).
\27\ See 81 FR 58010, 58081 (August 24, 2016).
\28\ See Memo from John Seitz, ``Reasonable Further Progress,
Attainment Demonstration, and Related Requirements for Ozone
Nonattainment Areas Meeting the Ozone National Ambient Air Quality
Standard'' (1995).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
With respect to the Las Vegas area, in contrast, attainment has not
been demonstrated and the nonattainment area will be required to submit
all SIP planning requirements for Moderate nonattainment areas in
addition to RACT implementation. Given this context, considering the
attainment deadline when determining the optimal timeline for RACT
implementation is a reasonable exercise of discretion in ensuring
continued progress towards attainment.
Comment: In the remaining comment received from Clark County DES,
the commenter asked that any future guidance on development and
implementation of contingency measures not be applicable to the Las
Vegas Moderate SIP for the 2015 ozone standard due to the short
timeframe for SIP development.
Response: The EPA recognizes that many states are seeking guidance
from the EPA on contingency measures, and as noted by the commenter,
the EPA intends to release draft guidance on contingency measures for
public review in the coming months. We appreciate the concerns
expressed by the commenter and note that this comment is outside of the
scope of this current rulemaking. Clark County DES will have an
opportunity to comment on the draft guidance when it is released for
public comment in the future, and the EPA is committed to continuing to
support Clark County DES during the development of the Moderate area
plan for Las Vegas.
C. Final Action
Pursuant to CAA section 181(b)(2) and after considering comments
received, the EPA is finalizing its proposed determination that Las
Vegas failed to attain the 2015 ozone NAAQS by the applicable
attainment date of August 3, 2021. Therefore, upon the effective date
of this final action, Las Vegas will be reclassified, by operation of
law, as Moderate for the 2015 ozone NAAQS. Once reclassified as
Moderate, Las Vegas will be required to attain the standard ``as
expeditiously as practicable'' but no later than 6 years after the
initial designation as nonattainment, which in this case would be no
later than August 3, 2024. If the area attains the 2015 ozone NAAQS
prior to the Moderate area attainment date, NDEP may request
redesignation to attainment, provided the state can demonstrate at a
minimum that the other criteria under CAA section 107(d)(3)(E) are
met.\29\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\29\ More information about redesignation is available at
<a href="https://www.epa.gov/ground-level-ozone-pollution/redesignation-and-clean-data-policy-cdp">https://www.epa.gov/ground-level-ozone-pollution/redesignation-and-clean-data-policy-cdp</a>.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Pursuant to CAA section 182(i) and after considering comments
received, the EPA is finalizing its proposed deadlines for the Las
Vegas Moderate area SIP revisions and implementation of RACM/RACT for
the 2015 ozone NAAQS. SIP revisions required for the newly reclassified
Las Vegas Moderate area, including the I/M SIP revision, must be
submitted no later than January 1, 2023, and RACM/RACT for these areas
must be implemented as expeditiously as practicable, but no later than
the same date.\30\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\30\ In addition to EPA Region 9's technical assistance, the
EPA's Office of Transportation and Air Quality recently provided new
guidance for performance standard modeling that is required for I/M
SIPs for the 2015 ozone NAAQS. See EPA's I/M website for additional
information at <a href="http://www.epa.gov/state-and-local-transportation/vehicle-emissions-inspection-and-maintenance-im">www.epa.gov/state-and-local-transportation/vehicle-emissions-inspection-and-maintenance-im</a>.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
For any revisions to the current I/M program that may be necessary,
the EPA is finalizing an implementation deadline of no later than 4
years after the effective date of reclassification if the state does
not intend to rely upon emissions reductions from a revised Basic I/M
program in the Moderate area attainment or RFP demonstrations. The EPA
received no comments on the implementation deadline for the Basic I/M
program in Las Vegas.
III. Good Cause Exemption Under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA)
for Immediate Effective Date
Under APA section 553(d)(3), 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3), an agency may make
a rule immediately effective ``for good cause found and published with
the rule.'' The EPA believes that there is ``good cause'' to make this
rule effective upon publication in the Federal Register to avoid any
additional delay in development and implementation of the SIP
requirements under 182(b), given the closeness to the beginning of the
2023 ozone season and the proximity of EPA's final action to the
submission and implementation deadlines described in this rule. While
EPA acknowledges and
[[Page 782]]
addresses comments related to the compressed timeline associated with
this action elsewhere in this notice, the agency believes that
establishing an effective date of this action simultaneous with the
date of publication will reconcile the competing statutory interests by
minimizing a potentially impractical outcome in which the area might
otherwise be subject to Moderate nonattainment area statutory and
regulatory deadlines that would already have passed prior to the normal
30 days post-publication effective date.
As described above, when 2020 monitoring data became available
showing that the Las Vegas area may not have attained the 2015 ozone
NAAQS, nor be eligible for a one-year extension, Clark County DES had
every reason to anticipate and prepare for reclassification. In
addition, EPA notified Clark County DES in April 2022 that it did not
agree with the area's exceptional events demonstrations, published its
proposed rule for this reclassification on July 22, 2022, and is
providing direct notice to the state and county of this final action
simultaneous with signature of this rule. Accordingly, the EPA finds
that the preparation time actually available to the state and the need
to reconcile the statutory interest in reclassification with the
deadlines for submission of Moderate area SIP revisions and compliance
with RACT implementation requirements, constitute good cause under 5
U.S.C. 553(d)(3) to make this final action effective upon publication.
IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
A. Executive Order 12866: Regulatory Planning and Review and Executive
Order 13563: Improving Regulation and Regulatory Review
This action is exempt from review by the Office of Management and
Budget (OMB) because it responds to the CAA requirement to determine
whether areas designated nonattainment for an ozone NAAQS attained the
standard by the applicable attainment date, and to take certain steps
for areas that failed to attain.
B. Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA)
This rule does not impose any new information collection burden
under the PRA not already approved by the Office of Management and
Budget. This action does not contain any information collection
activities and serves only to make final: (1) determinations that the
Las Vegas Marginal nonattainment area failed to attain the 2015 ozone
standards by the August 3, 2021, attainment date where such areas will
be reclassified as Moderate nonattainment for the 2015 ozone standards
by operation of law upon the effective date of the final
reclassification action; and (2) adjust any applicable implementation
deadlines.
C. Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA)
I certify that this action will not have a significant economic
impact on a substantial number of small entities under the RFA. This
action will not impose any requirements on small entities. The
determination of failure to attain the 2015 ozone standards (and
resulting reclassifications), do not in and of themselves create any
new requirements beyond what is mandated by the CAA. This final action
would require the state to adopt and submit SIP revisions to satisfy
CAA requirements and would not itself directly regulate any small
entities.
D. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA)
This action does not contain any unfunded mandate as described in
UMRA, 2 U.S.C. 1531-1538 and does not significantly or uniquely affect
small governments. The action imposes no enforceable duty on any state,
local or tribal governments or the private sector.
E. Executive Order 13132: Federalism
This action does not have federalism implications. It will not have
substantial direct effects on the states, on the relationship between
the national government and the states, or on the distribution of power
and responsibilities among the various levels of government. The
division of responsibility between the federal government and the
states for purposes of implementing the NAAQS is established under the
CAA.
F. Executive Order 13175: Consultation and Coordination With Indian
Tribal Governments
The Las Vegas Tribe of Paiute Indians of the Las Vegas Indian
Colony have areas of Indian country located within the Las Vegas Valley
nonattainment area for the 2015 ozone NAAQS. The EPA has concluded that
this final rule may have implications for this tribe for the purposes
of Executive Order 13175 but would not impose substantial direct costs
upon the tribes, nor would it preempt tribal law. A tribe that is part
of an area that is reclassified from Marginal to Moderate nonattainment
is not required to submit a tribal implementation plan revision to
address new Moderate area requirements.\31\ However, the NNSR major
source threshold and offset requirements will change for stationary
sources seeking preconstruction permits in any nonattainment areas
newly reclassified as Moderate (Section II.D.1 of the proposed rule),
including on tribal lands within these nonattainment areas.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\31\ See 87 FR 21842, 21846 (April 13, 2022).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Given the potential implications, the EPA contacted tribal
officials early in the process of developing our proposed rule to
provide an opportunity to have meaningful and timely input into its
development. In a letter dated July 16, 2021, the EPA invited the Las
Vegas Tribe of Paiute Indians of the Las Vegas Indian Colony to consult
on our evaluation and determination of whether the Las Vegas
nonattainment area attained or failed to attain by its Marginal area
attainment date and notified the Las Vegas Tribe of Paiute Indians of
the Las Vegas Indian Colony of the proposed action. The tribe did not
comment or request consultation.
G. Executive Order 13045: Protection of Children From Environmental
Health and Safety Risks
The EPA interprets Executive Order 13045 as applying to those
regulatory actions that concern environmental health or safety risks
that the EPA has reason to believe may disproportionately affect
children, per the definition of ``covered regulatory action'' in
section 2-202 of the Executive Order. This action is not subject to
Executive Order 13045 because it does not establish an environmental
standard intended to mitigate health or safety risks.
H. Executive Order 13211: Actions That Significantly Affect Energy
Supply, Distribution, or Use
This action is not subject to Executive Order 13211 because it is
not a significant regulatory action under Executive Order 12866.
I. National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act (NTTAA)
This rulemaking does not involve technical standards.
J. Executive Order 12898: Federal Actions To Address Environmental
Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations
Executive Order 12898 establishes federal executive policy on
environmental justice. Its main provision directs federal agencies, to
the greatest extent practicable and permitted by law, to make
[[Page 783]]
environmental justice part of their mission by identifying and
addressing, as appropriate, disproportionately high and adverse human
health or environmental effects of their programs, policies, and
activities on minority populations and low-income populations in the
United States. There is no information in the record indicating that
this action would be inconsistent with the stated goals of Executive
Order 12898 of achieving environmental justice for people of color,
low-income populations, and indigenous peoples.
K. Congressional Review Act (CRA)
This rule is exempt from the CRA because it is a rule of particular
applicability. The rule makes factual determinations for specific
entities and does not directly regulate any entities. The determination
of failure to attain the 2015 ozone NAAQS (and resulting
reclassification), do not in themselves create any new requirements
beyond what is mandated by the CAA.
L. Judicial Review
Under section 307(b)(1) of the Clean Air Act, petitions for
judicial review of this action must be filed in the United States Court
of Appeals for the appropriate circuit by March 6, 2023. Filing a
petition for reconsideration by the Administrator of this final rule
does not affect the finality of this action for the purposes of
judicial review nor does it extend the time within which a 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 section 307(b)(2).)
List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 81
Environmental protection, Administrative practice and procedure,
Air pollution control, Designations and classifications,
Intergovernmental relations, Nitrogen oxides, Ozone, Reporting and
recordkeeping requirements, and Volatile organic compounds.
Dated: December 22, 2022.
Martha Guzman Aceves,
Regional Administrator, Region IX.
For the reasons stated in the preamble, part 81, title 40, chapter
1 of the Code of Federal Regulations are amended as follows:
PART 81--DESIGNATION OF AREAS FOR AIR QUALITY PLANNING PURPOSES
0
1. The authority citation for part 81 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401, et seq.
Subpart C--Section 107 Attainment Status Designations
0
2. Section 81.329 is amended in the table for ``Nevada--2015 8-Hour
Ozone NAAQS [Primary and Secondary]'' by revising the entry for ``Las
Vegas, NV'' to read as follows:
Sec. 81.329 Nevada.
* * * * *
Nevada--2015 8-Hour Ozone NAAQS
[Primary and Secondary]
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Designation Classification
Designated area \1\ ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Date \2\ Type Date \2\ Type
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Las Vegas, NV.................... ............................ Nonattainment............... January 5, 2023............. Moderate.
Clark County (part)
That portion of Clark County
that lies in hydrographic
area 212.\3\
Las Vegas Tribe of Paiute
Indians of the Las Vegas
Indian Colony.
* * * * * * *
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ Includes any Indian country in each county or area, unless otherwise specified. EPA is not determining the boundaries of any area of Indian country
in this table, including any area of Indian country located in the larger designation area. The inclusion of any Indian country in the designation
area is not a determination that the state has regulatory authority under the Clean Air Act for such Indian country.
\2\ This date is August 3, 2018, unless otherwise noted.
\3\ Hydrographic areas are shown on the State of Nevada Division of Water Resources' map titled Water Resources and Inter-basin Flows (September 1971).
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 2022-28319 Filed 1-3-23; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
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This is legal information, not legal advice. Laws vary by jurisdiction and change frequently. Always verify current law with official sources and consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction for advice on your specific situation.