Notice2024-31128
California State Motor Vehicle and Engine Pollution Control Standards; Advanced Clean Cars II; Waiver of Preemption; Notice of Decision
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 6, 2025
Issuing agencies
Environmental Protection Agency
Abstract
The Environmental Protection Agency ("EPA") is providing notice of its decision granting the California Air Resources Board's ("CARB's") request for a waiver of Clean Air Act preemption for its Advanced Clean Cars II ("ACC II") regulations. EPA's decision was issued under the authority of the Clean Air Act ("CAA" or "Act") section 209.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 90 Issue 3 (Monday, January 6, 2025)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 3 (Monday, January 6, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 642-643]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-31128]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[EPA-HQ-OAR-2023-0292; FRL-11010-02-OAR]
California State Motor Vehicle and Engine Pollution Control
Standards; Advanced Clean Cars II; Waiver of Preemption; Notice of
Decision
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of decision.
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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (``EPA'') is providing
notice of its decision granting the California Air Resources Board's
(``CARB's'') request for a waiver of Clean Air Act preemption for its
Advanced Clean Cars II (``ACC II'') regulations. EPA's decision was
issued under the authority of the Clean Air Act (``CAA'' or ``Act'')
section 209.
DATES: Petitions for review must be filed by March 7, 2025.
ADDRESSES: EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket ID
EPA-HQ-OAR-2023-0292. All documents relied upon in making this
decision, including those submitted to EPA by CARB, are contained in
the public docket. Publicly available docket materials are available
either electronically through <a href="http://www.regulations.gov">www.regulations.gov</a> or in hard copy at
the EPA Docket Center, WJC West Building, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution
Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20004. The Docket Center's hours of operation
are 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.; generally, it is open Monday through
Friday, except Federal holidays. The electronic mail (email) address
for the EPA Docket Center is: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#60014d010e044d124d240f030b0514200510014e070f16"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="88e9a5e9e6eca5faa5cce7ebe3edfcc8edf8e9a6efe7fe">[email protected]</span></a>. An electronic
version of the public docket is available through the Federal
government's electronic public docket and comment system. You may
access EPA dockets at <a href="http://www.regulations.gov">http://www.regulations.gov</a>. After opening the
<a href="http://www.regulations.gov">www.regulations.gov</a> website, enter EPA-HQ-OAR-2023-0292 in the ``Enter
Keyword or ID'' fill-in box to view documents in the record. Although a
part of the official docket, the public docket does not include
Confidential Business Information (``CBI'') or other information whose
disclosure is restricted by statute.
EPA's Office of Transportation and Air Quality (``OTAQ'') maintains
a web page that contains general information on its review of
California waiver and authorization requests. Included on that page are
links to prior waiver Federal Register notices, some of which are cited
in this notice; the page can be accessed at: <a href="https://www.epa.gov/state-and-local-transportation/vehicle-emissions-california-waivers-and-authorizations">https://www.epa.gov/state-and-local-transportation/vehicle-emissions-california-waivers-and-authorizations</a>.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Michael Olechiw, Office of
Transportation and Air Quality, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency,
2000 Traverwood Drive, Ann Arbor, MI 48105. Telephone: 734-214-4297.
Email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#1655777a7f707964787f773b41777f607364653b7778723b5763627e79647f6c77627f7978655673667738717960"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="2a694b46434c455844434b077d4b435c4f5859074b444e076b5f5e42455843504b5e434544596a4f5a4b044d455c">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On December 26, 2023, EPA published a
Federal Register notice announcing its receipt of CARB's waiver
request. In that notice, EPA invited public comment on California's
waiver request and an opportunity to present testimony at a public
hearing.\1\ EPA held a public hearing on January 10, 2024, and the
written comment period closed on February 27, 2024.\2\ EPA has
considered all comments submitted to the public docket on this matter.
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\1\ 88 FR 88908 (December 26, 2023).
\2\ A transcript of the public hearing is located at EPA-HQ-OAR-
2023-0292-0056 and all written comments are also located at
<a href="http://regulations.gov">regulations.gov</a> at EPA-HQ-OAR-2023-0292.
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On December 17, 2024, I signed a Decision Document granting
California a waiver of preemption pursuant to section 209(b) of the
CAA, as amended, 42 U.S.C. 7543(b), for regulations applicable to new
2026 and subsequent model year (MY) California on-road light- and
medium-duty vehicles, hereafter the Advanced Clean Cars II (``ACC II'')
regulations.\3\ The ACC II program includes a series of requirements
regarding California's low emission vehicle (``LEV'') IV regulation and
a series of requirements regarding its zero-emission vehicle (``ZEV'')
program.\4\ The LEV IV requirements include, for example, applying
exhaust and evaporative emission fleet-average standards solely to
vehicles powered by internal combustion engines and excluding ZEVs from
the fleet calculation. The LEV IV requirements reduce the maximum
allowed exhaust and evaporative emission rates from
[[Page 643]]
vehicles under the existing fleet-average standard and aim to reduce
cold-start emissions by applying the emissions standards to a broader
range of in-use driving conditions. The ZEV requirements of ACC II
include, for example, a requirement for vehicle manufacturers to sell
increasing percentages of ZEVs beginning with the 2026 MY.
Manufacturers can meet up to 20 percent of their sales requirements
using plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEVs) that meet specified requirements.
A comprehensive description of California's ACC II program can be found
in the Decision Document for this waiver and in materials submitted to
the Docket by CARB.
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\3\ EPA's Decision Document can be found at EPA-HQ-OAR-2023-
0292. In addition to the Decision Document, EPA prepared a
Supplemental Response to Comments document that is also part of the
Administrator's waiver decision. The Supplemental Response to
Comments document can also be found at EPA-HQ-OAR-2023-0292.
\4\ EPA's waiver decision includes the entire ACC II regulatory
text that can be found in Attachment 7 to CARB's May 22, 2023, ACC
II waiver request (the ACC II Waiver Support Document) found at EPA-
HQ-OAR-2023-0292-0034. (CARB's entire waiver submission to EPA is
found at EPA-HQ-OAR-2023-0292). The specific regulatory provisions
under EPA's waiver consideration can be found at footnote 36 to the
ACC II Waiver Support Document.
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Section 209(b) of the Act provides that the Administrator, after
notice and opportunity for public hearing, shall waive Federal
preemption for California to enforce new motor vehicle emission
standards and accompanying enforcement procedures unless certain
criteria are met. The criteria for denying such a waiver include
consideration of whether California arbitrarily and capriciously
determined that its standards are, in the aggregate, at least as
protective of public health and welfare as the applicable Federal
standards; whether California does not need such State standards to
meet compelling and extraordinary conditions; and whether such State
standards and accompanying enforcement procedures are not consistent
with section 202(a) of the Act.
CARB determined that these standards and accompanying enforcement
procedures do not cause California's standards, in the aggregate, to be
less protective to public health and welfare than the applicable
Federal standards. The administrative record, including information
presented to me by parties opposing California's waiver, did not
demonstrate that California arbitrarily or capriciously reached this
protectiveness determination. Therefore, based on the record, I cannot
find California's determination to be arbitrary and capricious under
section 209(b)(1)(A).
CARB has demonstrated the existence of compelling and extraordinary
conditions justifying the need for such State standards. The
administrative record, including information presented to me by parties
opposing California's waiver request, did not demonstrate that
California does not need such State standards to meet compelling and
extraordinary conditions. Thus, based on the record, I cannot deny the
waiver based on section 209(b)(1)(B).
CARB has submitted information that its emission standards and test
procedures are technologically feasible, present no inconsistency with
Federal requirements, and are consistent with section 202(a) of the
Act. The administrative record, including information presented to me
by parties opposing California's waiver request, did not satisfy the
burden of persuading EPA that the standards are not consistent with
section 202(a). Thus, based on the record, I cannot deny the waiver
based on section 209(b)(1)(C).
Accordingly, I hereby granted the waiver requested by California.
Section 307(b)(1) of the CAA governs judicial review of final
actions by the EPA. Petitions for review must be filed by March 7,
2025.
As with past waiver decisions, this action is not a rule as defined
by Executive Order 12866. Therefore, it is exempt from review by the
Office of Management and Budget as required for rules and regulations
by Executive Order 12866.
In addition, this action is not a rule as defined in the Regulatory
Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. 601(2). Therefore, EPA has not prepared a
supporting regulatory flexibility analysis addressing the impact of
this action on small business entities.
The Congressional Review Act, 5 U.S.C. 801 et seq., as added by the
Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996, does not
apply because this action is not a rule, for purposes of 5 U.S.C.
804(3).
Michael S. Regan,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2024-31128 Filed 1-3-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
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