Attainment Date Extension for the South Coast, California 2012 Annual PM2.5 Fine Particulate Matter Nonattainment Area

Issuing agencies

Abstract

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or "Agency") is granting an extension of the "Serious" area attainment date for the Los Angeles-South Coast Air Basin ("South Coast Air Basin" or "South Coast") nonattainment area for the 2012 annual fine particulate matter less than or equal to 2.5 [micro]m in diameter (PM<INF>2.5</INF>) national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) from December 31, 2025, to December 31, 2030, based on a determination that the State has satisfied the statutory criteria for this extension.

Full Text

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<title>Federal Register, Volume 91 Issue 189 (Thursday, October 1, 2026)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 189 (Thursday, October 1, 2026)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 62316-62319]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-20097]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R09-OAR-2026-3664; FRL-13379-02-R9]


Attainment Date Extension for the South Coast, California 2012 
Annual PM2.5 Fine Particulate Matter Nonattainment Area

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Final action.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or ``Agency'') 
is granting an extension of the ``Serious'' area attainment date for 
the Los Angeles-South Coast Air Basin (``South Coast Air Basin'' or 
``South Coast'') nonattainment area for the 2012 annual fine 
particulate matter less than or equal to 2.5 [micro]m in diameter 
(PM<INF>2.5</INF>) national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) from 
December 31, 2025, to December 31, 2030, based on a determination that 
the State has satisfied the statutory criteria for this extension.

DATES: This action is effective November 2, 2026.

ADDRESSES: The EPA has established a docket for this action under 
Docket ID No. EPA-R09-OAR-2026-3664. 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: Ashley Graham, Geographic Strategies 
and Modeling Section (AIR-2-2), EPA Region IX, 75 Hawthorne Street, San 
Francisco, CA 94105; telephone number: (415) 972-3877; email address: 
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#9afde8fbf2fbf7b4fbe9f2f6ffe3e8daffeafbb4fdf5ec"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="650217040d04084b04160d09001c17250015044b020a13">[email&#160;protected]</span></a>.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document, the use of ``we,'' 
``us,'' or ``our'' is intended to refer to the EPA. We use multiple 
abbreviations and terms in this action. While this list may not be 
exhaustive, for ease of reading and for reference purposes, the EPA 
defines the following terms and acronyms here:

CAA or Act Clean Air Act
CARB California Air Resources Board
EPA or Agency Environmental Protection Agency
MSM most stringent measures
NAAQS national ambient air quality standards
PM2.5 particulate matter less than or equal to 2.5 [micro]m in 
diameter
SCAQMD or District South Coast Air Quality Management District
SIP State implementation plan

Table of Contents

I. Executive Summary
    A. What Action is the EPA Taking?
    B. What is the Legal Authority and What are the Requirements?
II. Background and Summary of the Proposed Action
III. Public Comments and Responses
IV. Final Action
V. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

I. Executive Summary

A. What action is the EPA taking?

    The EPA is granting an extension of the Serious area attainment 
date for the South Coast Air Basin nonattainment area for the 2012 
PM<INF>2.5</INF> NAAQS from December 31, 2025, to December 31, 2030, 
based on a determination that the State has satisfied the statutory 
criteria for this extension.

B. What is the Legal Authority and what are the requirements?

    The EPA is granting the State's request for an attainment date 
extension pursuant to CAA section 188(e).
    Under section 188(e) of the Act, a State may apply to the EPA for 
an extension of the Serious area attainment date by up to five years, 
which the EPA may grant if the State satisfies certain conditions. 
Before the EPA may extend the attainment date for a Serious area under 
CAA section 188(e), the State must:
    (1) Demonstrate that attainment by the Serious area attainment date 
is impracticable;
    (2) Demonstrate that it has complied with all requirements and 
commitments

[[Page 62317]]

pertaining to the area in the implementation plan;
    (3) Demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Administrator that the 
plan for the area includes the ``most stringent measures'' (MSM) that 
are included in the implementation plan of any State or are achieved in 
practice in any State, and can feasibly be implemented in the area;
    (4) Submit a modeled attainment demonstration showing attainment of 
the NAAQS in the area by the most expeditious alternative date 
practicable; and
    (5) Apply for an extension of the attainment date beyond the 
Serious area attainment date.\1\
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    \1\ CAA section 188(e) and 40 CFR 51.1005(b). For a discussion 
of the EPA's interpretation of the requirements of CAA section 
188(e), see 81 FR 58010, 58094 through 58097 (Aug. 24, 2016), and 59 
FR 41998, 42002 (Aug. 16, 1994).
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II. Background and Summary of the Proposed Action

    On June 11, 2026,\2\ the EPA proposed to grant a request from the 
State of California, submitted to the EPA on August 6, 2024,\3\ for an 
extension of the Serious area attainment date for the 2012 annual 
PM<INF>2.5</INF> NAAQS for the South Coast Air Basin from December 31, 
2025, to December 31, 2030. We proposed to grant the State's request 
for an extension of the area's attainment date based on a proposed 
determination that the State has satisfied the requirements for such 
extensions in Clean Air Act (CAA or ``Act'') section 188(e). In our 
proposed rule, we provided background information on the 
PM<INF>2.5</INF> NAAQS, area designations and related State 
implementation plan (SIP) revision requirements under the CAA, relevant 
EPA guidance, and the EPA's implementing regulations for the 
PM<INF>2.5</INF> NAAQS, referred to as the ``PM<INF>2.5</INF> SIP 
Requirements Rule.'' \4\ The proposed rule also provided a detailed 
discussion of the rationale for our proposed action.\5\
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    \2\ 91 FR 35445 (June 11, 2026).
    \3\ Letter dated August 5, 2024, from Steven S. Cliff, Executive 
Officer, California Air Resources Board (CARB), to Martha Guzman, 
Regional Administrator, EPA Region IX, with enclosures (submitted 
electronically on August 6, 2024). Among the enclosures included 
with the State's request for an attainment date extension was the 
``South Coast Air Basin Attainment Plan for the 2012 Annual 
PM<INF>2.5</INF> Standard'' (``2024 South Coast PM<INF>2.5</INF> 
Plan'' or ``Plan''), adopted by the South Coast Air Quality 
Management District (SCAQMD or ``District'') on June 7, 2024, and by 
CARB on June 27, 2024. SCAQMD is the local air district with primary 
responsibility for developing a plan to attain the 2012 annual 
PM<INF>2.5</INF> NAAQS in the South Coast nonattainment area. The 
District works cooperatively with CARB in preparing these plans. The 
2024 South Coast PM<INF>2.5</INF> Plan addresses the Serious area 
nonattainment plan requirements for the 2012 annual PM<INF>2.5</INF> 
NAAQS in the South Coast nonattainment area.
    \4\ ``Fine Particulate Matter National Ambient Air Quality 
Standards: State Implementation Plan Requirements.'' 81 FR 58010 
(Aug. 24, 2016).
    \5\ 91 FR 35445 (June 11, 2026).
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III. Public Comments and Responses

    The public comment period for the proposed rulemaking opened on 
June 11, 2026, the date of its publication in the Federal Register, and 
closed on July 13, 2026.\6\ During this period, the EPA received two 
comment submissions from individual members of the public 
<SUP>7 8</SUP> and a comment submission from SCAQMD.\9\ Additionally, 
SCAQMD notified the EPA via email of a typographical error in the 
proposed action.\10\ The three comment submissions and email from 
SCAQMD are included in the docket for this action. The comment 
submission from SCAQMD is supportive of the EPA's proposal to grant the 
attainment date extension and does not require a response. 
Additionally, one of comments received from the public is not germane 
to our action and also does not require a response.\11\ A summary of 
the remaining comment submissions and our responses thereto follow.
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    \6\ Id.
    \7\ Comment submission received July 9, 2026, from Steven 
Singleton to Docket ID No. EPA-R09-OAR-2026-3664.
    \8\ Comment submission received July 13, 2026, from Silvio 
Mazzella Jr. to Docket No. EPA-R09-OAR-2026-3664. This comment fails 
to identify any specific issue that is germane to our proposed 
action.
    \9\ Comment submission received July 10, 2026, to Docket ID No. 
EPA-R09-OAR-2026-3664, attaching a letter dated July 9, 2026, from 
Wayne Nastri, Executive Officer, South Coast Air Quality Management 
District, to Mike Martucci, Acting Regional Administrator, U.S. 
Environmental Protection Agency, Region IX, Subject: ``Re: EPA 
Docket ID No. EPA-R09-OAR-2026-3664.''
    \10\ Email dated June 10, 2026, from Sang-Mi Lee, SCAQMD, to 
Ashley Graham, EPA Region IX, Subject: ``Attainment Date 
Extension.''
    \11\ See footnote 7.
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    Comment 1: The commenter states that the ``population-exposed'' 
factor under CAA section 188(e) ``does not receive comparable treatment 
in the preamble'' to the other discretionary CAA section 188(e) factors 
and that such factor ``warrants an explicit finding.'' The commenter 
asserts that the monitoring data in Table 2 of the EPA's proposal 
``shows the highest design values [are] concentrated at sites 
historically associated with environmental justice communities. . 
.[and] the record would benefit from an affirmative statement of who is 
exposed at the highest concentrations and for how long the extension 
leaves them there.'' The commenter acknowledges that this factor is 
discretionary but asserts that ``its omission from the preamble leaves 
no basis in the record for evaluating the extension's distributional 
impact,'' and requests that the EPA supplement the record.
    Response 1: As discussed in our proposal, the ``population exposed 
to concentrations in excess of the standard'' is among five factors 
identified in CAA section 188(e) that ``the Administrator may 
consider'' when determining whether to grant an attainment date 
extension for a Serious PM<INF>2.5</INF> nonattainment area.\12\ The 
proposal details the nature and extent of the nonattainment problem in 
the South Coast nonattainment area and the technological and economic 
feasibility of additional measures given the measures already adopted 
by CARB and the District. We concluded that ``[t]hese factors generally 
support a longer time frame for attainment.'' Because consideration of 
these additional factors in approving an attainment date extension 
under CAA section 188(e) is discretionary, we believe that the record 
in our proposal is sufficient to approve the extension.
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    \12\ 91 FR 35445, 35454 (June 11, 2026).
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    Nonetheless, as discussed in the EPA's proposal and as required 
pursuant to CAA section 188(e), California's request for an attainment 
date extension for the South Coast Air Basin for the 2012 
PM<INF>2.5</INF> NAAQS was accompanied by a revised attainment plan for 
the area, referred to herein as the 2024 South Coast PM<INF>2.5</INF> 
Plan. To meet the attainment planning requirements of the Act, the Plan 
includes, among other things, information on the spatial distributions 
of PM<INF>2.5</INF> concentrations across the nonattainment area, both 
historically and as projected in the future.\13\ Additionally, although 
not required, Chapter 7 of the Plan, includes the State's analysis of 
the distribution of air quality impacts across the South Coast Air 
Basin on various communities.\14\ The 2024 South Coast PM<INF>2.5</INF> 
Plan is included in the docket and is therefore

[[Page 62318]]

part of the record for this action. Thus, this information has been 
publicly available as the Agency has considered the State's extension 
request. It was also publicly available during the State's public 
process.
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    \13\ 2024 South Coast PM<INF>2.5</INF> Plan, Chapter 2 (``Air 
Quality'') and Chapter 5 (``Future Air Quality'').
    \14\ Note that on January 21, 2025, President Trump issued 
Executive Order (E.O.) 14173, ``Ending Illegal Discrimination and 
Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity'', directing Federal agencies to 
end illegal preferences in agency decision-making (90 FR 8633, Jan. 
31, 2025). One of the effects of E.O. 14173 is that it revoked E.O. 
12898 of February 11, 1994, ``Federal Actions to Address 
Environmental Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income 
Populations,'' which had previously directed Federal agencies to 
identify and address disproportionately high and adverse human 
health or environmental effects of their actions on minority and 
low-income populations to the greatest extent practicable and 
permitted by law (59 FR 7629, Feb. 16, 1994).
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    Comment 2: The commenter requests clarification regarding the 
connection between the EPA's action on the extension request and the 
pending review of the attainment demonstration. The commenter notes 
that the EPA's proposed rule does not provide a docket number or 
expected timeline for action on the Plan and asserts that the record 
would be strengthened by providing such information ``so the public can 
track whether the underlying 2030 demonstration is confirmed before the 
extension period elapses.''
    Response 2: As noted in the EPA's proposed action, the CAA does not 
require the EPA to act on the submitted attainment demonstration as a 
precondition to granting the extension, and we intend to act on the 
2024 South Coast PM<INF>2.5</INF> Plan in a future action.\15\ The EPA 
is reviewing the submitted attainment plan for the South Coast for the 
2012 annual PM<INF>2.5</INF> NAAQS. We will solicit public comment on 
our proposed action on the Plan, and the EPA's proposed action will be 
made available at <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a> and will include a docket 
number for submitting and tracking public comment submissions.
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    \15\ 91 FR 35445, 35449 and 35453 (June 11, 2026).
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    Comment 3: Noting that the four measures adopted by the District to 
meet the MSM requirement must be fully implemented by January 1, 2030, 
the commenter asserts that there is limited time between when the 
measures must be implemented and when the effects of these measures 
will be assessed (i.e., the proposed December 31, 2030 extended 
attainment deadline). The commenter asks that the EPA ``consider 
requesting or committing to an interim reporting checkpoint, such as a 
2028 progress update, so that emissions performance data can inform 
course correction well before the extension period closes rather than 
only at its end.''
    Response 3: As discussed in the EPA's proposed action, the EPA has 
interpreted the Act to require implementation of MSM as expeditiously 
as practicable and no later than one year before the extended Serious 
area attainment date identified by the State in its extension 
request.\16\ In this case, the State requested an extension of the 
attainment date under CAA section 188(e) to December 31, 2030. Thus, 
the State must provide for implementation of MSM no later than January 
1, 2030.
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    \16\ 81 FR 58010, 58097 (Aug. 24, 2016).
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    To that end, we note that all four of the measures identified as 
MSM in the Plan are in effect in the South Coast Air Basin as the 
SCAQMD began implementing and enforcing the measures following approval 
by its Governing Board on September 5, 2025.\17\ Specifically, 
amendments to Rule 445 and the Rule 1133 series, amended to achieve 
additional PM<INF>2.5</INF> reductions pursuant to control measures 
BCM-18 and BCM-10, respectively, are already being fully implemented. 
Amendments to Rules 223 and 1138, amended to achieve additional 
PM<INF>2.5</INF> reductions pursuant to control measures BCM-08 and 
BCM-12, respectively, do include future compliance dates; however, all 
future compliance dates in these rules occur before the January 1, 2030 
MSM implementation deadline.
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    \17\ CARB subsequently adopted the rule amendments in February 
2026. As noted in footnote 63 of the EPA's proposal, these measures 
include BCM-08, ``Emissions Reductions from Livestock Waste at 
Confined Animal Facilities;'' BCM-10, ``Emission Reductions from 
Direct Land Application of Chipped and Ground Uncomposted 
Greenwaste;'' BCM-12, ``Further Emission Reductions from Commercial 
Cooking;'' and BCM-18, ``Further Emission Reductions from Wood 
Burning Fireplaces and Wood Stoves.'' 91 FR 35445, 35453 (June 11, 
2026).
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    Additionally, where the rule amendments include future compliance 
dates, SCAQMD's staff reports accompanying the rule amendments explain 
the District's justification for the later deadline. For example, 
SCAQMD explains that Rule 223 establishes a separate compliance 
timeline for the newly affected dairy facilities to allow sufficient 
time for these facilities to prepare and submit a permit application 
per the requirement in the rule,\18\ and that the 12-month grace period 
extending the exemption thresholds in Rule 1138 was included to provide 
owners or operators of chain-driven charbroilers time to acquire 
compliant equipment.\19\ We find these justifications to be reasonable 
and that the Plan provides for implementation of MSM as expeditiously 
as practicable.
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    \18\ SCAQMD, ``Final Staff Report, Proposed Amended Rule 223--
Requirements For Confined Animal Facilities, September 2025,'' p. 2-
2.
    \19\ SCAQMD, ``Final Staff Report, Proposed Amended Rule 1138--
Control of Emissions from Restaurant Operations, September 2025,'' 
p. 2-2.
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    To the extent that the commenter is concerned about the emissions 
reductions from these measures being achieved as envisioned, we note 
that CAA section 189(c) requires that the State's attainment plan for 
the South Coast for the 2012 PM<INF>2.5</INF> NAAQS contain 
quantitative milestones which are to be achieved every three years 
until the area is redesigned attainment and which demonstrate 
reasonable further progress toward attainment by the applicable 
attainment date. Quantitative milestones are required to provide an 
objective means to evaluate progress toward attainment. The CAA also 
requires a State to submit, within 90 days after each three-year 
quantitative milestone date, a milestone report that includes technical 
support sufficient to document completion statistics for appropriate 
milestones.
    The State discusses its quantitative milestones to demonstrate 
continued compliance with the SIP for the South Coast for the 2012 
PM<INF>2.5</INF> NAAQS in Chapter 6 (``Federal Clean Air Act 
Requirements'') of the 2024 South Coast PM<INF>2.5</INF> Plan. The plan 
includes quantitative milestones for the years 2025, 2028, and 2031. 
With regard to a progress update in 2028 requested by the commenter, we 
note that SCAQMD has committed to report on the ``[a]doption and 
implementation of applicable PM<INF>2.5</INF> Plan measures according 
to the schedule specified in Chapter 4,'' which includes the four MSM 
measures listed in Table 4-2 and discussed in greater detail elsewhere 
in Chapter 4 (``Control Strategy'') of the Plan. Thus, the District has 
already committed to a 2028 interim checkpoint as requested by the 
commenter.
    Comment 4: The commenter requests clarification on whether the EPA 
independently evaluated the State's choice of a December 31, 2030 
attainment date as opposed to an earlier date or if the maximum 
extension was granted solely on the basis of the State's evaluation.
    Response 4: As discussed in the EPA's proposal, CAA section 188(e) 
requires that at the time of its application for an attainment date 
extension, the State must submit a demonstration of attainment by the 
most expeditious alternative date practicable.\20\ For the purposes of 
evaluating the State's extension request for the South Coast for the 
2012 PM<INF>2.5</INF> NAAQS, we reviewed the 2024 South Coast 
PM<INF>2.5</INF> Plan to ensure that it contains the requisite 
demonstration, including the State's demonstration of attainment by 
2030 and analysis concluding that attainment by 2029 would not be 
possible. Based on our review of the 2024 South Coast PM<INF>2.5</INF> 
Plan, we find that the State had made such a submission.
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    \20\ 91 FR 35445, 35449 (June 11, 2026).
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    Comment 5: In its email dated June 10, 2026, SCAQMD notes that the 
proposed rule contains a typographical error when referring to the 
Moderate

[[Page 62319]]

area plan commitment for the 2012 annual PM<INF>2.5</INF> NAAQS. 
Specifically, the EPA's proposal indicates that the EPA had approved 
the District's commitment to achieve 7 tpd of direct PM<INF>2.5</INF> 
emissions reductions by the 2022 reasonable further progress year, 
whereas SCAQMD notes that the proposal should have indicated 7 tpd of 
NO<INF>X</INF> emissions reductions.
    Response 5: The commenter correctly identifies a mistake in the 
proposal. While in several instances the EPA's June 11, 2026 proposal 
correctly refers to the commitment as having been for 7 tpd of 
NO<INF>X</INF> emissions reductions, in one instance, the proposal 
indicates that the commitment was for 7 tpd of direct PM<INF>2.5</INF> 
emissions reductions.\21\ The reference to direct PM<INF>2.5</INF> 
instead of NO<INF>X</INF> was in error.\22\ The EPA's evaluation of 
whether the State had complied with all requirements and commitments in 
the implementation plan was appropriately based on our analysis of the 
NO<INF>X</INF> emissions reductions achieved in relation to the State's 
7 tpd NO<INF>X</INF> emissions reduction commitment. Thus, this error 
is harmless in that it did not have an impact on our determination. We 
appreciate the commenter bringing this mistake to our attention.
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    \21\ Id. at 35451. The language in the proposal referred to by 
the commenter is as follows: ``As part of the EPA's November 9, 2020 
final action on the 2016 PM<INF>2.5</INF> Plan, the EPA approved, 
among other things, the District's commitment to achieve 7 tpd of 
direct PM<INF>2.5</INF> emission reductions from these or substitute 
measures by the 2022 RFP milestone year.''
    \22\ See 85 FR 40026, 40040 (July 2, 2020).
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IV. Final Action

    For the reasons discussed in this final action, the EPA is granting 
the State's request for an extension of the Serious area attainment 
date from December 31, 2025, to December 31, 2030, based on a 
conclusion that the State has satisfied the requirements for such an 
extension in CAA section 188(e).

V. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

    Additional information about these statutes and Executive orders 
can be found at <a href="https://www.epa.gov/laws-regulations/laws-and-executive-orders">https://www.epa.gov/laws-regulations/laws-and-executive-orders</a>.

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 an Executive Order 14192 regulatory action 
because this action is not significant under Executive Order 12866.

C. Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA)

    This action does not impose an information collection burden under 
the PRA because this action does not impose additional requirements 
beyond those imposed by State law.

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. 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. This action does not impose additional requirements 
beyond those imposed by State law. Accordingly, no additional costs to 
State, local, or Tribal governments, or to the private sector, will 
result from this action.

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: Coordination With Indian Tribal Governments

    This action does not have Tribal implications. It will neither 
impose substantial direct costs on federally recognized Tribal 
governments nor preempt Tribal law. Thus, Executive Order 13175 does 
not apply to this action.

H. Executive Order 13045: Protection of Children From Environmental 
Health Risks and Safety Risks

    The EPA interprets Executive Order 13045 as applying only 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 concern an environmental 
health risk or safety risk.

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 and Advancement Act (NTTAA)

    Section 12(d) of the NTTAA directs the EPA to use voluntary 
consensus standards in its regulatory activities unless to do so would 
be inconsistent with applicable law or otherwise impractical. The EPA 
believes that this action is not subject to the requirements of section 
12(d) of the NTTAA because application of those requirements would be 
inconsistent with the CAA.

K. Congressional Review Act (CRA)

    This action is subject to the CRA, 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. Petitions for 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 November 30, 2026. Filing a petition for 
reconsideration by the Administrator of this final action 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 CAA section 307(b)(2)).

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

    Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Ammonia, 
Incorporation by reference, Intergovernmental relations, Nitrogen 
oxides, Particulate matter, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, 
Sulfur oxides, Volatile organic compounds.

    Dated: September 22, 2026.
Michael Martucci,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region IX.
[FR Doc. 2026-20097 Filed 9-30-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P


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