Rule2026-10768
Designation of Areas for Air Quality Planning Purposes; Michigan; Technical Amendment
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 Detroit, Michigan area was redesignated to attainment of the 2015 ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) on May 19, 2023. On December 5, 2025, the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit vacated the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) redesignation of the Detroit area. Therefore, pursuant to the Court's decision, the EPA is making a technical amendment to the part 81 listing for the Detroit area to reflect the area's designation as nonattainment for the 2015 ozone NAAQS, with a classification of Moderate.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 91 Issue 103 (Friday, May 29, 2026)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 103 (Friday, May 29, 2026)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 31953-31954]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-10768]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 81
[EPA-R05-OAR-2022-0004; FRL-13336-01-R5]
Designation of Areas for Air Quality Planning Purposes; Michigan;
Technical Amendment
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Final rule.
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SUMMARY: The Detroit, Michigan area was redesignated to attainment of
the 2015 ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) on May
19, 2023. On December 5, 2025, the United States Court of Appeals for
the Sixth Circuit vacated the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's)
redesignation of the Detroit area. Therefore, pursuant to the Court's
decision, the EPA is making a technical amendment to the part 81
listing for the Detroit area to reflect the area's designation as
nonattainment for the 2015 ozone NAAQS, with a classification of
Moderate.
DATES: This final rule is effective on June 29, 2026.
ADDRESSES: The EPA has established a docket for this action under
Docket ID No. EPA-R05-OAR-2022-0004. 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, i.e.,
Confidential Business Information (CBI), Proprietary Business
Information (PBI), 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 either
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 information.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Eric Svingen, Environmental Engineer,
Air and Radiation Division (AR-18J), Environmental Protection Agency,
Region 5, 77 West Jackson Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois 60604, telephone
number: (312) 353-4489, email address: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#1566637c7b72707b3b70677c76557065743b727a63"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="e89b9e81868f8d86c68d9a818ba88d9889c68f879e">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document whenever ``we,''
``us,'' or ``our'' is used, we mean the EPA.
I. Background Information
The EPA designated the Detroit, Michigan area (Detroit area) as
Marginal nonattainment for the 2015 ozone NAAQS on June 4, 2018 (83 FR
25776) (effective August 3, 2018). The Detroit area includes
Livingston, Macomb, Monroe, Oakland, St. Clair, Washtenaw, and Wayne
Counties. On February 1, 2023 (88 FR 6633), the EPA determined that the
Detroit area failed to attain the 2015 ozone NAAQS by its Marginal
attainment date of August 3, 2021, based on the area's design value as
of the attainment date (i.e., monitoring data from 2018-2020). As a
result of that determination, the area was reclassified by operation of
law to Moderate nonattainment. On January 3, 2022, the Michigan
Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy submitted a request
to redesignate the Detroit area to attainment of the 2015 ozone NAAQS
based on monitored attainment of the NAAQS for the 2019-2021 time
period. On May 19, 2023 (88 FR 32594), the EPA finalized redesignation
of the Detroit area to attainment of the 2015 ozone NAAQS.
On July 17, 2023, Sierra Club petitioned the United States Court of
Appeals for the Sixth Circuit (Court) for review of this action. On
December 5, 2025, the Court concluded that EPA erred with respect to
its legal interpretation of Clean Air Act (CAA) section
107(d)(3)(E)(v), which requires that a State ``has met'' all
requirements applicable to the area as a prerequisite to redesignation.
The Court vacated the EPA's redesignation of the Detroit area and
issued its mandate in the case on February 24, 2026. See Sierra Club v.
EPA, 161 F.4th 934 (6th Cir. 2025). The EPA is therefore amending 40
CFR 81.323 to reflect the Court's decision.
II. Final Action
The EPA is amending the listing in 40 CFR 81.323 to indicate that
the Detroit area is designated as nonattainment for the 2015 ozone
NAAQS, with a classification of Moderate.
III. 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 not a significant regulatory action and was
therefore not submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB)
for review.
B. Executive Order 14192: Unleashing Prosperity Through Deregulation
This action is not subject to Executive Order 14192 because it is
taken pursuant to a decision of the United States Court of Appeals for
the Sixth Circuit and merely reflects the Court's action in reinstating
the area's previous designation, an action that affects the attainment
status of a geographical area, and is exempt from review under
Executive Order 12866.
C. Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA)
This rule does not impose an information collection burden under
the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501
et seq.).
D. 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 (5
U.S.C. 601 et seq.). This action will not impose any requirements on
small entities beyond those imposed by state law.
E. 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.
F. 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.
G. Executive Order 13175: Consultation and Coordination With Indian
Tribal Governments
This rule does not have Tribal implications, as specified in
Executive Order 13175. It will not have substantial direct effects on
Tribal governments. Thus, Executive Order 13175 does not apply to this
rule.
H. Executive Order 13045: Protection of Children From Environmental
Health and Safety Risks
This action is not subject to Executive Order 13045 because it is
not 3(f)(1) significant as defined in Executive Order 12866, and
because the EPA does not believe the environmental health or safety
risks addressed by this action present a disproportionate risk to
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children because it approves a State program.
I. 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.
J. National Technology Transfer Advancement Act
This rulemaking does not involve technical standards.
K. Congressional Review Act
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).
L. Judicial Review
Under section 307(b)(1) of the CAA, petitions for judicial review
of this action must be filed in the United States Court of Appeals for
the appropriate circuit by July 28, 2026. Filing a petition for
reconsideration by the Administrator of this final rule does not affect
the finality of this rule 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, Air pollution control, National parks,
Wilderness areas.
Dated: May 19, 2026.
Anne Vogel,
Regional Administrator, Region 5.
For the reasons stated in the preamble, title 40 CFR part 81 is
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.
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2. Section 81.323 is amended by revising the entry for Detroit, MI in
the table entitled ``Michigan-2015 8-Hour Ozone NAAQS [Primary and
Secondary]'' to read as follows:
Sec. 81.323 Michigan.
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Michigan-2015 8-Hour Ozone NAAQS
[Primary and Secondary]
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Designation Classification
Designated area\1\ ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Date \2\ Type Date \2\ Type
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Detroit, MI................... .................. Nonattainment......... March 1, 2023.... Moderate
Livingston County.
Macomb County.
Monroe County.
Oakland County.
St. Clair County.
Washtenaw County.
Wayne County.
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\1\ Includes any Indian country in each county or area, unless otherwise specified. The 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.
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[FR Doc. 2026-10768 Filed 5-28-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
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