Proposed Rule2023-27514
Air Plan Revisions; California; Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District
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
December 15, 2023
Issuing agencies
Environmental Protection Agency
Abstract
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to approve a revision to the Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District (SMAQMD) portion of the California State Implementation Plan (SIP) concerning a rule submitted to address section 185 of the Clean Air Act (CAA or the Act). We are taking comments on this proposal and plan to follow with a final action.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 88 Issue 240 (Friday, December 15, 2023)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 240 (Friday, December 15, 2023)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 86870-86872]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2023-27514]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[EPA-R09-OAR-2023-0588; FRL-11585-01-R9]
Air Plan Revisions; California; Sacramento Metropolitan Air
Quality Management District
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Proposed rule.
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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to
approve a revision to the Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality
Management District (SMAQMD) portion of the California State
Implementation Plan (SIP) concerning a rule submitted to address
section 185 of the Clean Air Act (CAA or the Act). We are taking
comments on this proposal and plan to follow with a final action.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before January 16, 2024.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R09-
OAR-2023-0588 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)
[[Page 86871]]
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 a disability 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: Mae Wang, EPA Region IX, 75 Hawthorne
St., San Francisco, CA 94105. By phone: (415) 947-4137 or by email at
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#285f49464f0645494d684d5849064f475e"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="6413050a034a090501240114054a030b12">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document, ``we,'' ``us'' and
``our'' refer to the EPA.
Table of Contents
I. The State's Submittal
A. What rule did the State submit?
B. Are there other versions of this rule?
C. What is the purpose of the submitted rule?
II. The EPA's Evaluation and Action
A. How is the EPA evaluating the rule?
B. Does the rule meet the evaluation criteria?
C. The EPA's Recommendations to Further Improve the Rule
D. Proposed Action and Public Comment
III. Incorporation by Reference
IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
I. The State's Submittal
A. What rule did the State submit?
Table 1 lists the rule addressed by this proposal with the date
that it was amended by the local air agency and submitted by the
California Air Resources Board (CARB).
Table 1--Submitted Rule
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Local agency Rule # Rule title Amended Submitted
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SMAQMD.......................... 307 Clean Air Act Penalty Fees. 03/23/2023 05/11/2023
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On November 6, 2023, the EPA determined that the submittal for
SMAQMD Rule 307 met the completeness criteria in 40 CFR part 51
Appendix V, which must be met before formal EPA review.
B. Are there other versions of this rule?
We approved an earlier version of Rule 307 into the SIP on August
26, 2003 (68 FR 51184). The SMAQMD adopted revisions to the SIP-
approved version on March 23, 2023, and CARB submitted them to us on
May 11, 2023. If we take final action to approve the March 23, 2023
version of Rule 307, this version will replace the previously approved
version of this rule in the SIP.
C. What is the purpose of the submitted rule?
Under sections 182(d)(3), (e), (f) and 185 of the Act, states with
ozone nonattainment areas classified as ``Severe'' or ``Extreme'' are
required to submit a SIP revision that requires major stationary
sources of volatile organic compounds (VOC) or oxides of nitrogen
(NO<INF>X</INF>) emissions in the area to pay a fee if the area fails
to attain the standard by the attainment date. The required SIP
revision must provide for annual payment of the fees, computed in
accordance with CAA section 185(b).
The Sacramento Metro ozone nonattainment area has been classified
as Severe for the 1-hour, 1997, and 2008 ozone National Ambient Air
Quality Standards (NAAQS). Additionally, on January 17, 2023 (88 FR
2541), the EPA issued a finding that the State of California failed to
submit CAA section 185 fee programs for the 2008 ozone NAAQS for
portions of the Sacramento Metro nonattainment area, including the
portion under the jurisdiction of the SMAQMD. The SMAQMD submitted Rule
307 to satisfy the requirement to submit a CAA section 185 fee program
for each federal ozone NAAQS for which the Sacramento Metro area is
classified as Severe or Extreme.
II. The EPA's Evaluation and Action
A. How is the EPA evaluating the rule?
Rules in the SIP must be enforceable (see CAA section 110(a)(2)),
must not interfere with applicable requirements concerning attainment
and reasonable further progress or other CAA requirements (see CAA
section 110(l)), and must not modify certain SIP control requirements
in nonattainment areas without ensuring equivalent or greater emissions
reductions (see CAA section 193). The EPA is also evaluating the rule
for consistency with the statutory requirements of CAA section 185.
Guidance and policy documents that we used to evaluate
enforceability, revision/relaxation and rule stringency requirements
for the applicable criteria pollutants include the following:
1. ``State Implementation Plans; General Preamble for the
Implementation of Title I of the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990,''
57 FR 13498 (April 16, 1992); 57 FR 18070 (April 28, 1992).
2. ``Issues Relating to VOC Regulation Cutpoints, Deficiencies,
and Deviations,'' EPA, May 25, 1988 (the Bluebook, revised January
11, 1990).
3. ``Guidance Document for Correcting Common VOC & Other Rule
Deficiencies,'' EPA Region 9, August 21, 2001 (the Little Bluebook).
B. Does the rule meet the evaluation criteria?
This rule meets CAA requirements and is consistent with relevant
guidance regarding enforceability and SIP revisions. The EPA's
technical support document (TSD) has more information on our
evaluation.
C. The EPA's Recommendations to Further Improve the Rule
The TSD includes recommendations for the next time the local agency
modifies the rule.
D. Proposed Action and Public Comment
As authorized in section 110(k)(3) of the Act, the EPA proposes to
fully approve submitted Rule 307 because it fulfills all relevant
requirements. We will accept comments from the public on this proposal
until January 16, 2024. If we take final action to approve the
submitted rule, our final action will incorporate this rule into the
federally enforceable SIP. Our final action to approve SMAQMD Rule 307
will also remove the EPA's obligation to promulgate a FIP associated
with the January 17, 2023 action.
III. Incorporation by Reference
In this rule, the EPA is proposing to include in a final EPA rule
regulatory text that includes incorporation by reference. In accordance
with
[[Page 86872]]
requirements of 1 CFR 51.5, the EPA is proposing to incorporate by
reference SMAQMD Rule 307, Clean Air Act Penalty Fees, amended on March
23, 2023, which addresses the CAA section 185 fee program requirements.
The EPA has made, and will continue to make, these materials available
through <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a> and at the EPA Region IX Office
(please contact the person identified in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
CONTACT section of this preamble for more information).
IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
Under the Clean Air Act, the Administrator is required to approve a
SIP submission that complies with the provisions of the Act and
applicable federal regulations. 42 U.S.C. 7410(k); 40 CFR 52.02(a).
Thus, in reviewing SIP submissions, the EPA's role is to approve state
choices, provided that they meet the criteria of the Clean Air Act.
Accordingly, this proposed action merely proposes to approve state law
as meeting federal requirements and does not impose additional
requirements beyond those imposed by state law. For that reason, this
proposed 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 14094 (88 FR 21879, April 11, 2023);
<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.);
<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 subject to Executive Order 13045 (62 FR 19885,
April 23, 1997) because it proposes to approve a state program;
<bullet> Is not a significant regulatory action subject to
Executive Order 13211 (66 FR 28355, May 22, 2001); and
<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.
In addition, the SIP 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).
Executive Order 12898 (Federal Actions To Address Environmental
Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations, 59 FR 7629,
Feb. 16, 1994) directs Federal agencies to identify and address
``disproportionately high and adverse human health or environmental
effects'' of their actions on minority populations and low-income
populations to the greatest extent practicable and permitted by law.
The EPA defines environmental justice (EJ) as ``the fair treatment and
meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color,
national origin, or income with respect to the development,
implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and
policies.'' The EPA further defines the term fair treatment to mean
that ``no group of people should bear a disproportionate burden of
environmental harms and risks, including those resulting from the
negative environmental consequences of industrial, governmental, and
commercial operations or programs and policies.''
The State did not evaluate environmental justice considerations as
part of its SIP submittal; the CAA and applicable implementing
regulations neither prohibit nor require such an evaluation. The EPA
did not perform an EJ analysis and did not consider EJ in this action.
Consideration of EJ is not required as part of this action, and there
is no information in the record inconsistent with the stated goal of
E.O. 12898 of achieving environmental justice for people of color, low-
income populations, and Indigenous peoples.
List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52
Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Incorporation by
reference, Intergovernmental relations, Nitrogen oxides, Ozone,
Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Volatile organic compounds.
Dated: December 8, 2023.
Martha Guzman Aceves,
Regional Administrator, Region IX.
[FR Doc. 2023-27514 Filed 12-14-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
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