Rule2026-10760
Air Plan Approval; California; San Joaquin Valley Unified Air Pollution Control District; Ventura County Air Pollution Control District; South Coast Air Quality Management District; Oil and Gas Production; Volatile Organic Compounds
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
May 29, 2026
Effective
June 29, 2026
Issuing agencies
Environmental Protection Agency
Abstract
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking final action to approve revisions to the San Joaquin Valley Unified Air Pollution Control District (SJVUAPCD), Ventura County Air Pollution Control District (VCAPCD), and South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) portions of the California State Implementation Plan (SIP). These revisions concern emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from crude oil and natural gas production facilities. We are approving local rules that regulate these emission sources under the Clean Air Act (CAA or "Act").
Full Text
<html>
<head>
<title>Federal Register, Volume 91 Issue 103 (Friday, May 29, 2026)</title>
</head>
<body><pre>
[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 103 (Friday, May 29, 2026)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 31918-31920]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-10760]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[EPA-R09-OAR-2024-0175; FRL-11888.1-01-R9]
Air Plan Approval; California; San Joaquin Valley Unified Air
Pollution Control District; Ventura County Air Pollution Control
District; South Coast Air Quality Management District; Oil and Gas
Production; Volatile Organic Compounds
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Final rule.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking final
action to approve revisions to the San Joaquin Valley Unified Air
Pollution Control District (SJVUAPCD), Ventura County Air Pollution
Control District (VCAPCD), and South Coast Air Quality Management
District (SCAQMD) portions of the California State Implementation Plan
(SIP). These revisions concern emissions of volatile organic compounds
(VOCs) from crude oil and natural gas production facilities. We are
approving local rules that regulate these emission sources under the
Clean Air Act (CAA or ``Act'').
DATES: This rule is effective June 29, 2026.
ADDRESSES: The EPA has established a docket for this action under
Docket ID No. EPA-R09-OAR-2024-0175. All documents in the docket are
listed on the <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a> website. Although listed in
the index, some information is not publicly available, e.g.,
Confidential Business Information (CBI) 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 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: Nicole Law, EPA Region IX, 75
Hawthorne St., San Francisco, CA 94105. By phone: (415) 947-4126 or by
email at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#e7ab8690c9a98e84888b82a7829786c9808891"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="d599b4a2fb9bbcb6bab9b095b0a5b4fbb2baa3">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document, ``we,'' ``us,''
and ``our'' refer to the EPA.
Table of Contents
I. Proposed Action
II. Public Comments and EPA Responses
III. EPA Action
IV. Incorporation by Reference
V. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
I. Proposed Action
On May 3, 2024, (89 FR 36729), the EPA proposed to approve the
following rules into the California SIP.
[[Page 31919]]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Agency Rule No. Rule title Amended/revised Submitted
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SJVUAPCD............................ 4409 Components at Light Crude Oil 06/15/2023 10/13/2023
Production Facilities, Natural
Gas Production Facilities, and
Natural Gas Processing
Facilities.
SJVUAPCD............................ 4623 Storage of Organic Liquids..... 06/15/2023 10/13/2023
SJVUAPCD............................ 4401 Steam-Enhanced Crude Oil 06/15/2023 10/13/2023
Production Wells.
VCAPCD.............................. 71.1 Crude Oil Production and 07/11/2023 01/10/2024
Separation.
SCAQMD.............................. 463 Organic Liquid Storage......... 05/05/2023 10/13/2023
SCAQMD.............................. 1178 Further Reductions of VOC 09/01/2023 02/14/2024
Emissions from Storage Tanks
at Petroleum Facilities.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
We proposed to approve these rules because we determined that they
comply with the relevant CAA requirements. Our proposed action contains
more information on the rules and our evaluation. Our proposed action
also proposed to approve California Code of Regulations, Title 17,
Division 3, Chapter 1, Subchapter 10 Climate Change, Article 4
Subarticle 13: Greenhouse Gas Emission Standards for Crude Oil and
Natural Gas Facilities (``CARB Oil and Gas Rule'') as well as the
Reasonably Available Control Technology (RACT) requirement for the 2008
and 2015 ozone NAAQS for sources covered by the EPA's 2016 Control
Techniques Guidelines for the Oil and Natural Gas Industry (``2016 Oil
and Gas CTG''). We plan to finalize action on these components in a
separate final rulemaking.
II. Public Comments and EPA Responses
The EPA's proposed action provided a 30-day public comment period.
During the comment period we received two comment letters. The first
comment letter was submitted by Voices in Solidarity Against Oil in
Neighborhoods, Central California Environmental Justice Network,
FracTracker Alliance, the Center for Biological Diversity, and
Earthjustice. The second comment letter was submitted by Earthjustice,
Physicians for Social Responsibility Los Angeles, Center for Biological
Diversity, San Francisco Bay Physicians for Social Responsibility,
FracTracker Alliance, Voices in Solidarity Against Oil in
Neighborhoods, SanDiego350--Climate Change Action, Friends of the Earth
US, Central California Environmental Justice Network, The Climate
Center, Oil and Gas Action Network, and Labor Network for
Sustainability. Both letters provide comments on the CARB Oil and Gas
Rule and RACT determination, but no comments pertain specifically to
the local air district rules. Nothing in the submitted comments
suggests that the rules are not SIP strengthening and should not be
approved into the California SIP. All comments received will be
addressed when we finalize action on the CARB Oil and Gas Rule and the
accompanying RACT determinations for the 2016 Oil and Gas CTG.
III. EPA Action
No comments were submitted that change our assessment of the
approvability of the rules as described in our proposed action.
Therefore, as authorized in section 110(k)(3) of the Act, the EPA is
approving these rules into the California SIP. The EPA is not at this
time determining whether the rules, combined with the CARB Oil and Gas
Rule, meet the RACT requirement for covered sources. The newly
submitted versions of the six local air district rules will replace the
previously approved versions of rules in the SIP. We previously
approved earlier versions of the six local air rules as follows:
SJVUAPCD Rule 4409 on March 23, 2006 (71 FR 14652), SJVUAPCD Rule 4623
on September 13, 2005 (70 FR 53936), SJVUAPCD Rule 4401 on November 16,
2011 (76 FR 70886), VCAPCD Rule 71.1 on August 4, 1994 (59 FR 39690),
SCAQMD Rule 463 on March 28, 2013 (78 FR 18853), and SCAQMD Rule 1178
on August 28, 2007 (72 FR 49196).
IV. Incorporation by Reference
In this rule, the EPA is finalizing regulatory text that includes
incorporation by reference. In accordance with requirements of 1 CFR
51.5, the EPA is finalizing the incorporation by reference of SJVUAPCD
Rule 4409, ``Components at Light Crude Oil Production Facilities,
Natural Gas Production Facilities, and Natural Gas Processing
Facilities'' (amended June 15, 2023); SJVUAPCD Rule 4623, ``Storage of
Organic Liquids'' (amended June 15, 2023); and SJVUAPCD Rule 4401,
``Steam-Enhanced Crude Oil Production Wells'' (amended June 15, 2023).
The EPA is also incorporating by reference VCAPCD Rule 71.1, ``Crude
Oil Production and Separation'' (revised July 11, 2023); SCAQMD Rule
463, ``Organic Liquid Storage'' (amended May 5, 2023); and SCAQMD Rule
1178, ``Further Reductions of VOC Emissions from Storage Tanks at
Petroleum Facilities'' (amended September 1, 2023). These rules
regulate VOC emissions from crude oil and natural gas facilities. The
EPA has made, and will continue to make, these documents 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).
V. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
Under the CAA, 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 CAA. 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 Order 12866 (58
FR 51735, October 4, 1993);
<bullet> Is not subject to Executive Order 14192 (90 FR 9065,
February 6, 2025) because SIP actions are exempt from review under
Executive Order 12866;
<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);
[[Page 31920]]
<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 CAA.
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).
This action is subject to the Congressional Review Act, and the EPA
will submit a rule report to each House of the Congress and to the
Comptroller General of the United States. This action is not a ``major
rule'' as defined by 5 U.S.C. 804(2).
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 July 28, 2026. 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 52
Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Incorporation by
reference, Intergovernmental relations, Ozone, Reporting and
recordkeeping requirements, Volatile organic compounds.
Dated: April 16, 2026.
Michael Martucci,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region IX.
For the reasons stated in the preamble, the EPA amends 40 CFR part
52 as follows:
PART 52--APPROVAL AND PROMULGATION OF IMPLEMENTATION PLANS
0
1. The authority citation for part 52 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.
Subpart F--California
0
2. Section 52.220 is amended by adding paragraphs (c)(189)(i)(B)(4),
(c)(337)(i)(A)(4) and (5), (c)(345)(i)(A)(4), (c)(402)(i)(A)(3),
(c)(411)(i)(F)(2), (c)(612)(i)(B), (c)(619)(i)(A)(2) through (4),
(c)(619)(i)(B), and (c)(626)(i)(B) to read as follows:
Sec. 52.220 Identification of plan--in part.
* * * * *
(c) * * *
(189) * * *
(i) * * *
(B) * * *
(4) Previously approved on August 4, 1994, in paragraph
(c)(189)(i)(B)(1) of this section and now deleted with replacement in
(c)(626)(i)(B)(1) of this section: Rule 71.1, adopted on June 16, 1992.
* * * * *
(337) * * *
(i) * * *
(A) * * *
(4) Previously approved on September 19, 2005, in paragraph
(c)(337)(i)(A)(1) of this section and now deleted with replacement in
(c)(619)(i)(A)(4) of this section: Rule 4623, amended on May 19, 2005.
(5) Previously approved on July 15, 2005, in paragraph
(c)(337)(i)(A)(2) of this section and now deleted with replacement in
(c)(619)(i)(A)(3) of this section: Rule 4409, adopted on April 20,
2005.
* * * * *
(345) * * *
(i) * * *
(A) * * *
(4) Previously approved on August 28, 2007, in paragraph
(c)(345)(i)(A)(2) of this section and now deleted with replacement in
(c)(612)(i)(B)(1) of this section: Rule 1178, amended on April 7, 2006.
* * * * *
(402) * * *
(i) * * *
(A) * * *
(3) Previously approved on November 16, 2011, in paragraph
(c)(402)(i)(A)(1) of this section and now deleted with replacement in
(c)(619)(i)(A)(2) of this section: Rule 4401, adopted on June 16, 2011.
* * * * *
(411) * * *
(i) * * *
(F) * * *
(2) Previously approved on March 28, 2013, in paragraph
(c)(411)(i)(F)(1) of this section and now deleted with replacement in
(c)(619)(i)(B)(1) of this section: Rule 463, amended on November 4,
2011.
* * * * *
(612) * * *
(i) * * *
(B) South Coast Air Quality Management District.
(1) Rule 1178, ``Further Reductions of VOC Emissions from Storage
Tanks at Petroleum Refineries,'' amended on September 1, 2023.
(2) [Reserved]
* * * * *
(619) * * *
(i) * * *
(A) * * *
(2) Rule 4401, ``Steam-Enhanced Crude Oil Production Wells,''
amended on June 15, 2023.
(3) Rule 4409, ``Components at Light Crude Oil Production
Facilities, Natural Gas Production Facilities, and Natural Gas
Processing Facilities,'' amended on June 15, 2023.
(4) Rule 4623, ``Storage of Organic Liquids,'' amended on June 15,
2023.
(B) South Coast Air Quality Management District.
(1) Rule 463, ``Organic Liquid Storage,'' amended on May 5, 2023.
(2) [Reserved]
* * * * *
(626) * * *
(i) * * *
(B) Ventura County Air Pollution Control District.
(1) Rule 71.1, ``Crude Oil Production and Separation,'' revised on
July 11, 2023.
(2) [Reserved]
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 2026-10760 Filed 5-28-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
</pre><script data-cfasync="false" src="/cdn-cgi/scripts/5c5dd728/cloudflare-static/email-decode.min.js"></script></body>
</html>Indexed from Federal Register on May 29, 2026.
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.