National Primary Drinking Water Regulations: Minor Corrections to the Revisions to the Total Coliform Rule, 10665-10670 [2014-04173]
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Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 38 / Wednesday, February 26, 2014 / Rules and Regulations
stock. Y stock is traded on an established
securities market. Although the option is
immediately exercisable, it has no readily
ascertainable fair market value when it is
granted. Under the option, Q has the right to
purchase 100 shares of Y common stock for
$10 per share, which is the fair market value
of a Y share on the date of grant of the option.
The grant of the option is not one that
satisfies the requirements for a transaction
that is exempt from section 16(b) of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934. On
December 15, 2013, Y stock is trading at more
than $10 per share. On that date, Q fully
exercises the option, paying the exercise
price in cash, and receives 100 Y shares. Q’s
rights in the shares received as a result of the
exercise are not conditioned upon the future
performance of substantial services. Because
no exemption from section 16(b) was
available for the June 3, 2013 grant of the
option, the section 16(b) liability period
expires on December 1, 2013. Accordingly,
the section 16(b) liability period expires
before the date that Q exercises the option
and the Y common stock is transferred to Q.
Thus, the shares acquired by Q pursuant to
the exercise of the option are not subject to
a substantial risk of forfeiture under section
83(c)(3) as a result of section 16(b). As a
result, section 83(c)(3) does not preclude
taxation under section 83 when the shares
acquired pursuant to the December 15, 2013
exercise of the option are transferred to Q.
(ii) Assume the same facts as in paragraph
(i) of this Example 4 except that Q exercises
the nonstatutory option on October 30, 2013
when Y stock is trading at more than $10 per
share. The shares acquired are subject to a
substantial risk of forfeiture under section
83(c)(3) as a result of section 16(b) through
December 1, 2013.
(iii) Assume the same facts as in paragraph
(i) of this Example 4 except that on
November 5, 2013, Q also purchases 100
shares of Y common stock on the public
market. The purchase of the shares is not a
transaction exempt from section 16(b) of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Because no
exemption from section 16(b) was available
for the November 5, 2013 purchase of shares,
the section 16(b) liability period with respect
to such shares will last for a period of six
months after the November 5, 2013 purchase
of shares. Notwithstanding the non-exempt
purchase of Y common stock on November
5, 2013, the shares acquired by Q pursuant
to the December 15, 2013 exercise of the
option are not subject to a substantial risk of
forfeiture under section 83(c)(3) as a result of
section 16(b). As a result, section 83(c)(3)
does not preclude taxation under section 83
when the shares acquired pursuant to the
December 15, 2013 exercise of the option are
transferred to Q.
*
*
*
*
*
(l) Effective/applicability date. This
section applies to property transferred
on or after January 1, 2013. For rules
relating to property transferred before
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that date, see § 1.83–3 as contained in
26 CFR part 1 (as of April 1, 2012).
John Dalrymple,
Deputy Commissioner for Services and
Enforcement.
Approved: January 31, 2014.
Mark J. Mazur,
Assistant Secretary of the Treasury (Tax
Policy).
[FR Doc. 2014–03988 Filed 2–25–14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4830–01–P
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY
40 CFR Parts 141 and 142
[EPA–HQ–OW–2008–0878; FRL–9906–89–
OW]
National Primary Drinking Water
Regulations: Minor Corrections to the
Revisions to the Total Coliform Rule
Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Direct final rule.
AGENCY:
In this action, the
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
is making minor corrections to the final
Revisions to the Total Coliform Rule
(RTCR), as authorized under the Safe
Drinking Water Act, to correct
typographical errors in sections relating
to recordkeeping and State primacy
requirements, which could affect
implementation and enforcement of the
RTCR if they were left uncorrected. This
action also includes other edits to the
final rule language that are intended to
improve the understanding of the rule
and avoid confusion. This action does
not impose new requirements; rather it
clarifies what must be included in
States’ primacy applications related to
this rule and the specific records water
systems must keep.
DATES: This rule is effective on April 28,
2014 without further notice, unless EPA
receives adverse comment by March 28,
2014. If EPA receives adverse comment,
we will publish a timely withdrawal in
the Federal Register informing the
public that the rule will not take effect.
The incorporation by reference of
certain material listed in the rule was
approved by the Director of the Federal
Register as of April 15, 2013.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments,
identified by Docket ID No. EPA–HQ–
OW–2008–0878, by one of the following
methods:
• Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://
www.regulations.gov. Follow the on-line
instructions for submitting comments.
• Mail: Water Docket, Environmental
Protection Agency, Mailcode: 2822T,
SUMMARY:
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10665
1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW.,
Washington, DC 20460, Attention
Docket ID No. EPA–HQ–OW–2008–
0878.
• Hand Delivery: EPA Docket Center,
(EPA/DC) EPA West, Room 3334, 1301
Constitution Ave. NW., Washington,
DC. Such deliveries are only accepted
during the Docket’s normal hours of
operation, and special arrangements
should be made for deliveries of boxed
information.
Instructions: Direct your comments to
Docket ID No. EPA–HQ–OW–2008–
0878. EPA’s policy is that all comments
received will be included in the public
docket without change and may be
made available online at
www.regulations.gov, including any
personal information provided, unless
the comment includes information
claimed to be Confidential Business
Information (CBI) or other information
whose disclosure is restricted by statute.
Do not submit information that you
consider to be CBI or otherwise
protected through www.regulations.gov
or email. The www.regulations.gov Web
site is an ‘‘anonymous access’’ system,
which means EPA will not know your
identity or contact information unless
you provide it in the body of your
comment. If you send an email
comment directly to EPA without going
through www.regulations.gov, your
email address will be automatically
captured and included as part of the
comment that is placed in the public
docket and made available on the
Internet. If you submit an electronic
comment, EPA recommends that you
include your name and other contact
information in the body of your
comment and with any disk or CD–ROM
you submit. If EPA cannot read your
comment due to technical difficulties
and cannot contact you for clarification,
EPA may not be able to consider your
comment. Electronic files should avoid
the use of special characters, any form
of encryption, and be free of any defects
or viruses. For additional information
about EPA’s public docket visit the EPA
Docket Center homepage at https://
www.epa.gov/epahome/dockets.htm.
Docket: All documents in the docket
are listed in the www.regulations.gov
index. Although listed in the index,
some information is not publicly
available, e.g., CBI or other information
whose disclosure is restricted by statute.
Certain other material, such as
copyrighted material, will be publicly
available only in hard copy. Publicly
available docket materials are available
either electronically in
www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at
the Water Docket, EPA Docket Center,
(EPA/DC) EPA West, Room 3334, 1301
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Constitution Ave. NW., Washington,
DC. This Docket Facility is open from
8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through
Friday, excluding legal holidays. The
Docket telephone number is 202–566–
2426.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Sean Conley, Standards and Risk
Management Division, Office of Ground
Water and Drinking Water (MC–4607M),
Environmental Protection Agency, 1200
Pennsylvania Ave. NW., Washington,
DC 20460; telephone number: (202)
564–1781; email address: conley.sean@
epa.gov. For general information,
contact the Safe Drinking Water Hotline,
telephone number: (800) 426–4791. The
Safe Drinking Water Hotline is open
Monday through Friday, excluding legal
holidays, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Eastern
time.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. General Information
A. Why is EPA using a direct final rule?
EPA is publishing this direct final
rule without a prior proposed rule
because we view this as a
noncontroversial action and anticipate
no adverse comment; this action only
corrects typographical errors and makes
clarifying edits and does not impose
new requirements. However, in the
‘‘Proposed Rules’’ section of today’s
Federal Register, we are publishing a
separate document that will serve as the
proposed rule to make the corrections
and clarifying edits to the RTCR if
adverse comments are received on this
direct final rule. We will not institute a
second comment period on this action.
Any parties interested in commenting
must do so at this time. Comments
should be submitted only for the
corrections being made in this direct
final rule, not for other aspects of the
final RTCR. For further information
about commenting on this rule, see the
ADDRESSES section of this document.
If EPA receives adverse comment, we
will publish a timely withdrawal in the
Federal Register informing the public
that this direct final rule will not take
effect. We would address all public
comments in any subsequent final rule
based on the proposed rule.
B. Regulated Categories and Entities
Entities potentially regulated by the
RTCR as corrected are all public water
systems (PWSs). Regulated categories
and entities include the following:
Category
Examples of regulated entities
Industry ....................................................
Privately-owned community water systems (CWSs), transient non-community water systems
(TNCWSs), and non-transient non-community water systems (NTNCWSs).
Publicly-owned CWSs, TNCWSs, and NTNCWSs.
Federal, State, Tribal, and local governments.
This table is not intended to be
exhaustive, but rather provides a guide
for readers regarding entities regulated
by this action. This table lists the types
of entities that EPA is now aware of that
could potentially be regulated by this
action. Other types of entities not listed
in the table could also be regulated. To
determine whether your facility is
regulated by this action, you should
carefully examine the definition of
‘‘public water system’’ in § 141.2 and
the section entitled ‘‘Coverage’’ in
§ 141.3 in title 40 of the Code of Federal
Regulations (CFR), and the applicability
criteria in § 141.851(b) of the final
RTCR. If you have questions regarding
the applicability of this action to a
particular entity, consult the person
listed in the preceding FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT section.
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C. Copies of This Document and Other
Related Information
This document is available for
download at https://water.epa.gov/
lawsregs/rulesregs/sdwa/tcr/regulation_
revisions.cfm. For other related
information, see preceding discussion
on docket.
D. Minor Corrections to the Revisions to
the Total Coliform Rule (RTCR)
A. Today’s final rule corrects, as
authorized under the Safe Drinking
Water Act (SDWA), two typographical
errors in the final RTCR (78 FR 10269,
February 13, 2013) rule language. First,
this action corrects a mistaken cross-
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reference regarding water system
recordkeeping requirements for
assessment forms and documentation of
corrective actions and sanitary defects.
EPA is correcting the cross-reference at
§ 141.861(b)(1) to correctly provide that
assessments, corrective actions and
identification of sanitary defects are
required under the treatment technique
requirements of § 141.859 of the final
RTCR. The burden for these
recordkeeping requirements was
reflected in the Revised Total Coliform
Rule (see Paperwork Reduction Act,
section II.B of this notice) and in section
7 of the Economic Analysis (EA) for the
Revised Total Coliform Rule (EPA–815–
R–12–004). EPA also discussed these
requirements in the preamble to the
final RTCR on page 10295. Second,
today’s final rule also corrects the
introductory paragraph at § 142.16(q)(2)
to correctly indicate that the State’s
application for primacy must contain a
written description of all provisions
included in the subsections of the
paragraph, (q)(2)(i) through (q)(2)(ix). It
was always EPA’s intent that primacy
applications must contain a written
description of all provisions in
§ 142.16(q)(2), but when EPA added
subparagraph (q)(2)(ix) to the final rule,
EPA neglected to change the numbering
in the paragraph (2) lead-in to the list of
elements. EPA intended this to be the
case, as demonstrated in the preamble to
the final RTCR on page 10301. In
addition, the burden for this State
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activity was also included in section 7
of the EA for the RTCR. EPA is not
developing a new EA for today’s action
because the EA for the final RTCR
accounts for all costs associated with
this rule.
Today’s final rule also corrects the
numbering in § 141.855(a) by adding
subparagraph (d)(2) and reserving it, to
most simply correct a numbering error
that identified a subparagraph (d)(1)
without a subsequent (d)(2). Correcting
the numbering in this fashion will not
interfere with any cross references to
this subparagraph.
Today’s rule also includes clarifying
revisions to the language regarding
primacy applications in
§ 142.16(q)(2)(ii) to make it more clear
in the special primacy requirements
section of the rule that systems must
implement at least one of listed
additional criteria to qualify for reduced
monitoring. EPA clearly intended this to
be the case, as reflected in
§ 141.854(h)(2) for NCWSs and
§ 141.855(d) for CWSs, and in the
preamble to the final rule at page 10281
and 10282.
Next, the final rule clarifies the
situations requiring public notification
in Appendix A to Subpart Q of Part 141
to list out all of the possible reporting
violations under the RTCR that will
require Tier 3 public notice. EPA clearly
intended this to be the case, as reflected
in item (6) in Table 1 to § 141.204
(Violation Categories and Other
Situations Requiring a Tier 3 Public
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Notice), which provides that all
reporting and recordkeeping violations
under the RTCR require Tier 3 public
notice. Also, page 10294 of the preamble
to the final RTCR clearly states that Tier
3 PN is required for both monitoring
and reporting violations under the
RTCR.
Finally, the final rule clarifies the
analytical methods table at
§ 141.852(a)(5) to place the citation
‘‘Standard Methods Online 9223 B–97’’
for the Colilert analytical method in the
correct column.
These revisions do not change any
rule requirements, are consistent with
the rule requirements as intended by the
Total Coliform Rule/Distribution System
Advisory Committee that recommended
the revisions to the Total Coliform Rule,
and are intended only to clarify
requirements and reduce confusion.
II. Statutory and Executive Order
Review
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’’ under the terms of
Executive Order (EO) 12866 (58 FR
51735, October 4, 1993) and is therefore
not subject to review under the EO.
B. Paperwork Reduction Act
This action does not impose any new
information collection burden. In this
action, EPA is making minor corrections
to the final RTCR to correct
typographical errors in sections relating
to recordkeeping and State primacy
requirements and other edits to the final
rule language that are intended to
improve the understanding of the rule
and avoid confusion. The Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) has
previously approved the information
collection requirements contained in the
existing regulations (40 CFR Parts 141
and 142) under the provisions of the
Paperwork Reduction Act, 44 U.S.C.
3501 et seq. and has assigned OMB
control number 2040–0205. The OMB
control numbers for EPA’s regulations
in 40 CFR are listed in 40 CFR part 9.
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C. Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA)
The Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA)
generally requires an agency to prepare
a regulatory flexibility analysis of any
rule subject to notice and comment
rulemaking requirements under the
Administrative Procedure Act or any
other statute unless the agency certifies
that the rule will not have a significant
economic impact on a substantial
number of small entities. Small entities
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include small businesses, small
organizations, and small governmental
jurisdictions.
The RFA provides default definitions
for each type of small entity. Small
entities are defined as: (1) A small
business as defined by the Small
Business Administration’s (SBA)
regulations at 13 CFR 121.201; (2) a
small governmental jurisdiction that is a
government of a city, county, town,
school district or special district with a
population of less than 50,000; and (3)
a small organization that is any ‘‘not-forprofit enterprise which is independently
owned and operated and is not
dominant in its field.’’ However, the
RFA also authorizes an agency to use
alternative definitions for each category
of small entity, ‘‘which are appropriate
to the activities of the agency’’ after
proposing the alternative definition(s) in
the Federal Register and taking
comment (5 U.S.C. 601(3)–(5)). In
addition, to establish an alternative
small business definition, agencies must
consult with SBA’s Chief Counsel for
Advocacy.
For purposes of assessing the impacts
of the RTCR on small entities, EPA
considered small entities to be PWSs
serving 10,000 or fewer people. This is
the cut-off level specified by Congress in
the 1996 Amendments to the Safe
Drinking Water Act (SDWA) for small
system flexibility provisions. As
required by the RFA, EPA proposed
using this alternative definition in the
FR (63 FR 7620, February 13, 1998),
requested public comment, consulted
with the SBA, and finalized the
alternative definition in the agency’s
Consumer Confidence Report regulation
(63 FR 44524, August 19, 1998). As
stated in that Final Rule, the alternative
definition would be applied for all
future drinking water regulations.
After considering the economic
impacts of the minor corrections to the
RTCR on small entities, I certify that
this action will not have a significant
economic impact on a substantial
number of small entities. The costs for
recordkeeping and State primacy
requirements were accounted for and
detailed in the RTCR EA and
summarized in the preamble of the final
RTCR. A copy of the final RTCR and the
RTCR EA can be found at https://
water.epa.gov/lawsregs/rulesregs/sdwa/
tcr/regulation_revisions.cfm.
D. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act
(UMRA)
This rule does not contain a Federal
mandate under the provisions of Title II
of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act
of 1995 (UMRA), 2 U.S.C. 1531–1538.
This rule makes minor editorial
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corrections and clarifying edits to the
final RTCR. Therefore, this rule is not
subject to the requirements of sections
202 and 205 of UMRA.
This rule is also not subject to the
requirements of section 203 of UMRA
because it makes only minor corrections
and clarifying edits that will not
significantly or uniquely affect small
governments.
E. 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 as specified in
Executive Order 13132. Today’s action
makes minor corrections to the final
RTCR to correct typographical errors in
sections relating to recordkeeping and
State primacy requirements and other
edits to the final rule language that are
intended to improve the understanding
of the rule and avoid confusion. The
recordkeeping and primacy
requirements as corrected by today’s
action were included in the cost
calculations that were described in the
preamble to the final RTCR and used to
determine that Executive Order 13132
does not apply to the final RTCR.
F. Executive Order 13175: Consultation
and Coordination With Indian Tribal
Governments
This action does not have tribal
implications, as specified in Executive
Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9,
2000). This rule makes minor
corrections to the final RTCR that will
not have tribal implications. Thus,
Executive Order 13175 does not apply
to this action.
G. Executive Order 13045: Protection of
Children From Environmental Health
Risks and Safety Risks
EPA interprets Executive Order 13045
(62 FR 19885, April 23, 1997) as
applying only to those regulatory
actions that concern health or safety
risks, such that the analysis required
under section 5–501 of the EO has the
potential to influence the regulation.
This action is not subject to EO 13045
because it does not establish an
environmental standard intended to
mitigate health or safety risks.
H. Executive Order 13211: Actions That
Significantly Affect Energy Supply,
Distribution, or Use
This rule is not subject to Executive
Order 13211 (66 FR 28355, May 22,
2001) because it is not a significant
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regulatory action under Executive Order
12866.
I. National Technology Transfer and
Advancement Act
Section 12(d) of the National
Technology Transfer and Advancement
Act of 1995 (NTTAA), Public Law 104–
113, 12(d) (15 U.S.C. 272 note), directs
EPA to use voluntary consensus
standards in its regulatory activities
unless to do so would be inconsistent
with applicable law or otherwise
impractical. Voluntary consensus
standards are technical standards (e.g.,
materials specifications, test methods,
sampling procedures, and business
practices) that are developed or adopted
by voluntary consensus standards
bodies. NTTAA directs EPA to provide
Congress, through OMB, explanations
when EPA decides not to use available
and applicable voluntary consensus
standards.
This final rule makes only minor
corrections and edits that do not involve
technical standards. Therefore, EPA is
not considering the use of any voluntary
consensus standards.
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J. Executive Order 12898: Federal
Actions To Address Environmental
Justice in Minority Populations and
Low-Income Populations
Executive Order 12898 (59 FR 7629,
February 16, 1994) establishes federal
executive policy on environmental
justice. Its main provision directs
federal agencies, to the greatest extent
practicable and permitted by law, to
make environmental justice part of their
mission. Agencies must do this by
identifying and addressing, as
appropriate, any disproportionately
high and adverse human health or
environmental effects of their programs,
policies, and activities on minority
populations and low-income
populations in the United States.
EPA has determined that this action
will not have disproportionately high
and adverse human health or
environmental effects on minority or
low-income populations because it does
not affect the level of protection
provided to human health or the
environment. This rule makes minor
corrections and edits to the final RTCR
that will not have disproportionately
high and adverse human health or
environmental effects on any
population, including any minority or
low-income population.
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K. Consultations With the Science
Advisory Board, National Drinking
Water Advisory Council, and the
Secretary of Health and Human Services
In accordance with section 1412(d)
and (e) of SDWA, EPA consulted with
the Science Advisory Board (SAB),
National Drinking Water Advisory
Council (NDWAC), and the Secretary of
the U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services on the final RTCR.
Because today’s action is making only
minor corrections to the final RTCR to
correct typographical errors and other
edits to the final rule language that are
intended to improve the understanding
of the rule and avoid confusion, EPA
did not consult with the SAB, NDWAC
or the Secretary on today’s action.
L. Considerations of Impacts on
Sensitive Subpopulations as Required
by Section 1412(b)(3)(C)(i)(V) of the
1996 Amendments of SDWA
As required by Section
1412(b)(3)(C)(i)(V) of SDWA, EPA
sought public comment regarding the
effects of contamination associated with
the proposed RTCR on the general
population and sensitive
subpopulations. Sensitive
subpopulations include ‘‘infants,
children, pregnant women, the elderly,
individuals with a history of serious
illness, or other subpopulations that are
identified as likely to be at greater risk
of adverse health effects due to exposure
to contaminants in drinking water than
the general population’’ (SDWA section
1412(b)(3)(C)(i)(V), 42 U.S.C. 300g–
1(b)(3)(C)(i)(V)). As indicated in the
preamble to the final RTCR, EPA
anticipates that the requirements of the
final RTCR will help reduce pathways
of entry for fecal contamination and/or
waterborne pathogens into the
distribution system, thereby reducing
exposure and risk from these
contaminants in drinking water to the
entire general population.
Today’s final rule is making only
minor corrections to the final RTCR to
correct typographical errors and other
edits to the final rule language that are
intended to improve the understanding
of RTCR and avoid confusion and does
not alter the conclusion that the final
RTCR seeks to provide a similar level of
drinking water protection to all groups
including sensitive subpopulations.
M. Effect of Compliance With the Minor
Corrections to the RTCR on the
Technical, Financial, and Managerial
Capacity of Public Water Systems
Section 1420(d)(3) of SDWA, as
amended, requires that, in promulgating
an NPDWR, the Administrator shall
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include an analysis of the likely effect
of compliance with the regulation on
the technical, managerial and financial
(TMF) capacity of PWSs. EPA
completed an analysis of the impact of
complying with the requirements of the
RTCR on the TMF capacity of PWSs and
a detailed discussion of EPA’s analysis
was presented in chapter 8.14 of the
RTCR EA. The PWS recordkeeping
requirements as corrected by today’s
rule were included in the analysis of the
TMF capacity for the final RTCR and
therefore no changes to that analysis are
needed to accompany this action.
N. Congressional Review Act
The Congressional Review Act, 5
U.S.C. 801 et seq., as added by the Small
Business Regulatory Enforcement
Fairness Act of 1996, generally provides
that before a rule may take effect, the
agency promulgating the rule must
submit a rule report, which includes a
copy of the rule, to each House of the
Congress and to the Comptroller General
of the United States (U.S.). EPA will
submit a report containing this rule and
other required information to the U.S.
Senate, the U.S. House of
Representatives, and the Comptroller
General of the U.S. prior to publication
of the rule in the Federal Register. A
major rule cannot take effect until 60
days after it is published in the Federal
Register. This action is not a ‘‘major
rule’’ as defined by 5 U.S.C. 804(2). This
rule will be effective April 28, 2014.
List of Subjects
40 CFR Part 141
Environmental protection, Chemicals,
Incorporation by reference, Indianlands, Intergovernmental relations,
Radiation protection, Reporting and
recordkeeping requirements, Water
supply.
40 CFR Part 142
Environmental protection,
Administrative practice and procedure,
Chemicals, Indian-lands, Radiation
protection, Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements, Water supply.
Dated: February 10, 2014.
Gina McCarthy,
Administrator.
For the reasons set forth in the
preamble, Title 40 chapter 1 of the Code
of Federal Regulations is amended as
follows:
PART 141—NATIONAL PRIMARY
DRINKING WATER REGULATIONS
1. The authority citation for part 141
continues to read as follows:
■
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Authority: 42 U.S.C. 300f, 300g–1, 300g–
2, 300g–3, 300g–4, 300g–5, 300g–6, 300j–4,
300j–9, and 300j–11.
2. Appendix A to Subpart Q of Part
141 is amended by revising entries I.A.1
and I.A.2 to read as follows:
Appendix A to Subpart Q of Part 141—
NPDWR Violations and Other
Situations Requiring Public Notice 1
■
MCL/MRDL/TT violations 2
Contaminant
Tier of public
notice required
Citation
Monitoring, testing & reporting
procedure violations
Tier of public
notice required
Citation
I. Violations of National Primary Drinking Water Regulations (NPDWR): 3
A. Microbiological Contaminants
1.a Total coliform bacteria † ............................................................
1.b Total coliform (TT violations resulting from failure to perform
assessments or corrective actions, monitoring violations, and
reporting violations) ‡.
1.c Seasonal system failure to follow State-approved start-up plan
prior to serving water to the public or failure to provide certification to State ‡.
2.a Fecal coliform/E. coli † ..............................................................
2.b E. coli (MCL, monitoring, and reporting violations) ‡ ................
2.c E. coli (TT violations resulting from failure to perform level 2
Assessments or corrective action) ‡.
*
*
*
Appendix A—Endnotes
† Until March 31, 2016.
‡ Beginning April 1, 2016.
1. Violations and other situations not listed
in this table (e.g., failure to prepare
Consumer Confidence Reports), do not
require notice, unless otherwise determined
by the primacy agency. Primacy agencies
may, at their option, also require a more
stringent public notice tier (e.g., Tier 1
instead of Tier 2 or Tier 2 instead of Tier 3)
for specific violations and situations listed in
2
2
141.63(a) ........
141.860(b)(1) ..
3
3
141.21(a)–(e).
141.860(c)(1).
2
....................
141.860(b)(2) ..
3
141.860(d)(1).
141.860(d)(3).
1
1
141.63(b) ........
141.860 (a) .....
....................
....................
141.860(b)(1) ..
2
*
*
4 1,3
3
........................
*
this Appendix, as authorized under
§§ 141.202(a) and 141.203(a).
2. MCL—Maximum contaminant level,
MRDL—Maximum residual disinfectant
level, TT—Treatment technique.
3. The term Violations of National Primary
Drinking Water Regulations (NPDWR) is used
here to include violations of MCL, MRDL,
treatment technique, monitoring, and testing
procedure requirements.
4. Failure to test for fecal coliform or E. coli
is a Tier 1 violation if testing is not done after
any repeat sample tests positive for coliform.
141.21(e)
141.860(c)(2)
141.860(d)(1).
141.860(d)(2).
*
All other total coliform monitoring and
testing procedure violations are Tier 3.
*
*
*
*
*
3. Section 141.852 is amended by
revising the entry for ‘‘Total Coliforms’’
in the table in paragraph (a)(5) to read
as follows:
■
§ 141.852 Analytical methods and
laboratory certification.
(a) * * *
(5) * * *
Organism
Standard Total Coliform Fermentation Technique
................................................................................
Presence-Absence (P–A) Coliform Test ...............
................................................................................
Membrane Filtration
Methods.
........................................
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Method 1
........................................
Standard Total Coliform Membrane Filter Procedure.
................................................................................
........................................
........................................
........................................
Membrane Filtration using MI medium .................
m-ColiBlue24® Test 2 4 ..........................................
Chromocult 2 4 ........................................................
Enzyme Substrate Methods.
........................................
........................................
Colilert® .................................................................
Standard Methods 9223 B (20th ed.; 21st ed.).2 5
................................................................................
Colisure® ...............................................................
........................................
VerDate Mar<15>2010
Methodology category
Lactose Fermentation
Methods.
........................................
........................................
Total
coliforms
................................................................................
Standard Methods Online 9223 B–97.2 5
Standard Methods 9223 B (20th ed.; 21st
ed.).2 5 6
Standard Methods Online 9223 B–97.2 5 6
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Standard
ed.).2 3
Standard
Standard
ed.).2 7
Standard
Methods 9221 B.1, B.2 (20th ed.; 21st
Methods Online 9221 B.1, B.2–99.2 3
Methods 9221 D.1, D.2 (20th ed.; 21st
Methods Online 9221 D.1, D.2–99.2 7
Standard Methods 9222 B, C (20th ed.; 21st
ed.).2 4
Standard Methods Online 9222 B–97 2 4, 9222
C–97.2 4
EPA Method 1604.2
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Organism
Methodology category
Method 1
........................................
........................................
........................................
Total
coliforms
E*Colite® Test 2 .....................................................
Readycult® Test 2 ..................................................
modified Colitag® Test 2 ........................................
*
*
*
Citation 1
*
*
*
*
1 The
procedures must be done in accordance with the documents listed in paragraph (c) of this section. For Standard Methods, either editions, 20th (1998) or 21st (2005), may be used. For the Standard Methods Online, the year in which each method was approved by the Standard
Methods Committee is designated by the last two digits following the hyphen in the method number. The methods listed are the only online
versions that may be used. For vendor methods, the date of the method listed in paragraph (c) of this section is the date/version of the approved
method. The methods listed are the only versions that may be used for compliance with this rule. Laboratories should be careful to use only the
approved versions of the methods, as product package inserts may not be the same as the approved versions of the methods.
2 Incorporated by reference. See paragraph (c) of this section.
3 Lactose broth, as commercially available, may be used in lieu of lauryl tryptose broth, if the system conducts at least 25 parallel tests between lactose broth and lauryl tryptose broth using the water normally tested, and if the findings from this comparison demonstrate that the falsepositive rate and false-negative rate for total coliforms, using lactose broth, is less than 10 percent.
4 All filtration series must begin with membrane filtration equipment that has been sterilized by autoclaving. Exposure of filtration equipment to
UV light is not adequate to ensure sterilization. Subsequent to the initial autoclaving, exposure of the filtration equipment to UV light may be used
to sanitize the funnels between filtrations within a filtration series. Alternatively, membrane filtration equipment that is pre-sterilized by the manufacturer (i.e., disposable funnel units) may be used.
5 Multiple-tube and multi-well enumerative formats for this method are approved for use in presence-absence determination under this regulation.
6 Colisure® results may be read after an incubation time of 24 hours.
7 A multiple tube enumerative format, as described in Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Wastewater 9221, is approved for
this method for use in presence-absence determination under this regulation.
*
*
§ 141.855
*
*
*
[Amended]
4. Section 141.855 is amended by
adding a reserved paragraph (d)(2).
■
§ 141.861
[Amended]
5. In § 141.861, paragraph (b)(1) is
amended by removing ‘‘§ 141.858’’ and
adding in its place ‘‘§ 141.859’’.
■
monitoring and whether the State will
use all or a reduced set of the criteria
specified in §§ 141.854(h)(2) and
141.855(d)(1)(iii) of this chapter. For
each of the reduced monitoring criteria,
the State must describe how the
criterion will be evaluated to determine
when systems qualify.
*
*
*
*
*
[FR Doc. 2014–04173 Filed 2–25–14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560–50–P
PART 142—NATIONAL PRIMARY
DRINKING WATER REGULATIONS
6. The authority citation for part 142
continues to read as follows:
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 300f, 300g–1, 300g–
2, 300g–3, 300g–4, 300g–5, 300g–6, 300j–4,
300j–9, and 300j–11.
40 CFR Part 180
7. Section 142.16 is amended by
revising paragraphs (q)(2) introductory
text and (q)(2)(ii) to read as follows:
Fluxapyroxad; Pesticide Tolerances
■
■
§ 142.16
Special primacy requirements.
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*
*
*
*
*
(q) * * *
(2) The State’s application for primacy
for subpart Y must include a written
description for each provision included
in paragraphs (q)(2)(i) through (ix) of
this section.
*
*
*
*
*
(ii) Reduced Monitoring Criteria—An
indication of whether the State will
adopt the reduced monitoring
provisions of 40 CFR part 141, subpart
Y. If the State adopts the reduced
monitoring provisions, it must describe
the specific types or categories of water
systems that will be covered by reduced
VerDate Mar<15>2010
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[EPA–HQ–OPP–2012–0638; FRL–9906–70]
Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Final rule.
AGENCY:
This regulation establishes
tolerances for residues of fluxapyroxad
in or on multiple commodities which
are identified and discussed later in this
document. BASF Corporation requested
these tolerances under the Federal Food,
Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA).
DATES: This regulation is effective
February 26, 2014. Objections and
requests for hearings must be received
on or before April 28, 2014, and must
be filed in accordance with the
instructions provided in 40 CFR part
178 (see also Unit I.C. of the
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION).
SUMMARY:
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The docket for this action,
identified by docket identification (ID)
number EPA–HQ–OPP–2012–0638, is
available at https://www.regulations.gov
or at the Office of Pesticide Programs
Regulatory Public Docket (OPP Docket)
in the Environmental Protection Agency
Docket Center (EPA/DC), EPA West
Bldg., Rm. 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave.
NW., Washington, DC 20460–0001. The
Public Reading Room is open from 8:30
a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through
Friday, excluding legal holidays. The
telephone number for the Public
Reading Room is (202) 566–1744, and
the telephone number for the OPP
Docket is (703) 305–5805. Please review
the visitor instructions and additional
information about the docket available
at https://www.epa.gov/dockets.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lois
Rossi, Registration Division (7505P),
Office of Pesticide Programs,
Environmental Protection Agency, 1200
Pennsylvania Ave. NW., Washington,
DC 20460–0001; telephone number:
[(703) 305–7090; email address:
RDFRNotices@epa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
ADDRESSES:
I. General Information
A. Does this action apply to me?
You may be potentially affected by
this action if you are an agricultural
producer, food manufacturer, or
pesticide manufacturer. The following
list of North American Industrial
Classification System (NAICS) codes is
not intended to be exhaustive, but rather
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 38 (Wednesday, February 26, 2014)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 10665-10670]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-04173]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Parts 141 and 142
[EPA-HQ-OW-2008-0878; FRL-9906-89-OW]
National Primary Drinking Water Regulations: Minor Corrections to
the Revisions to the Total Coliform Rule
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Direct final rule.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: In this action, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is
making minor corrections to the final Revisions to the Total Coliform
Rule (RTCR), as authorized under the Safe Drinking Water Act, to
correct typographical errors in sections relating to recordkeeping and
State primacy requirements, which could affect implementation and
enforcement of the RTCR if they were left uncorrected. This action also
includes other edits to the final rule language that are intended to
improve the understanding of the rule and avoid confusion. This action
does not impose new requirements; rather it clarifies what must be
included in States' primacy applications related to this rule and the
specific records water systems must keep.
DATES: This rule is effective on April 28, 2014 without further notice,
unless EPA receives adverse comment by March 28, 2014. If EPA receives
adverse comment, we will publish a timely withdrawal in the Federal
Register informing the public that the rule will not take effect. The
incorporation by reference of certain material listed in the rule was
approved by the Director of the Federal Register as of April 15, 2013.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OW-
2008-0878, by one of the following methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov.
Follow the on-line instructions for submitting comments.
Mail: Water Docket, Environmental Protection Agency,
Mailcode: 2822T, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW., Washington, DC 20460,
Attention Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OW-2008-0878.
Hand Delivery: EPA Docket Center, (EPA/DC) EPA West, Room
3334, 1301 Constitution Ave. NW., Washington, DC. Such deliveries are
only accepted during the Docket's normal hours of operation, and
special arrangements should be made for deliveries of boxed
information.
Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OW-2008-
0878. EPA's policy is that all comments received will be included in
the public docket without change and may be made available online at
www.regulations.gov, including any personal information provided,
unless the comment includes information claimed to be Confidential
Business Information (CBI) or other information whose disclosure is
restricted by statute. Do not submit information that you consider to
be CBI or otherwise protected through www.regulations.gov or email. The
www.regulations.gov Web site is an ``anonymous access'' system, which
means EPA will not know your identity or contact information unless you
provide it in the body of your comment. If you send an email comment
directly to EPA without going through www.regulations.gov, your email
address will be automatically captured and included as part of the
comment that is placed in the public docket and made available on the
Internet. If you submit an electronic comment, EPA recommends that you
include your name and other contact information in the body of your
comment and with any disk or CD-ROM you submit. If EPA cannot read your
comment due to technical difficulties and cannot contact you for
clarification, EPA may not be able to consider your comment. Electronic
files should avoid the use of special characters, any form of
encryption, and be free of any defects or viruses. For additional
information about EPA's public docket visit the EPA Docket Center
homepage at https://www.epa.gov/epahome/dockets.htm.
Docket: All documents in the docket are listed in the
www.regulations.gov index. Although listed in the index, some
information is not publicly available, e.g., CBI or other information
whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Certain other material, such
as copyrighted material, will be publicly available only in hard copy.
Publicly available docket materials are available either electronically
in www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at the Water Docket, EPA Docket
Center, (EPA/DC) EPA West, Room 3334, 1301
[[Page 10666]]
Constitution Ave. NW., Washington, DC. This Docket Facility is open
from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal
holidays. The Docket telephone number is 202-566-2426.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sean Conley, Standards and Risk
Management Division, Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water (MC-
4607M), Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW.,
Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: (202) 564-1781; email address:
conley.sean@epa.gov. For general information, contact the Safe Drinking
Water Hotline, telephone number: (800) 426-4791. The Safe Drinking
Water Hotline is open Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays,
from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Eastern time.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. General Information
A. Why is EPA using a direct final rule?
EPA is publishing this direct final rule without a prior proposed
rule because we view this as a noncontroversial action and anticipate
no adverse comment; this action only corrects typographical errors and
makes clarifying edits and does not impose new requirements. However,
in the ``Proposed Rules'' section of today's Federal Register, we are
publishing a separate document that will serve as the proposed rule to
make the corrections and clarifying edits to the RTCR if adverse
comments are received on this direct final rule. We will not institute
a second comment period on this action. Any parties interested in
commenting must do so at this time. Comments should be submitted only
for the corrections being made in this direct final rule, not for other
aspects of the final RTCR. For further information about commenting on
this rule, see the ADDRESSES section of this document.
If EPA receives adverse comment, we will publish a timely
withdrawal in the Federal Register informing the public that this
direct final rule will not take effect. We would address all public
comments in any subsequent final rule based on the proposed rule.
B. Regulated Categories and Entities
Entities potentially regulated by the RTCR as corrected are all
public water systems (PWSs). Regulated categories and entities include
the following:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Category Examples of regulated entities
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Industry............................. Privately-owned community water
systems (CWSs), transient non-
community water systems
(TNCWSs), and non-transient non-
community water systems
(NTNCWSs).
Federal, State, Tribal, and local Publicly-owned CWSs, TNCWSs, and
governments. NTNCWSs.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
This table is not intended to be exhaustive, but rather provides a
guide for readers regarding entities regulated by this action. This
table lists the types of entities that EPA is now aware of that could
potentially be regulated by this action. Other types of entities not
listed in the table could also be regulated. To determine whether your
facility is regulated by this action, you should carefully examine the
definition of ``public water system'' in Sec. 141.2 and the section
entitled ``Coverage'' in Sec. 141.3 in title 40 of the Code of Federal
Regulations (CFR), and the applicability criteria in Sec. 141.851(b)
of the final RTCR. If you have questions regarding the applicability of
this action to a particular entity, consult the person listed in the
preceding FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section.
C. Copies of This Document and Other Related Information
This document is available for download at https://water.epa.gov/lawsregs/rulesregs/sdwa/tcr/regulation_revisions.cfm. For other
related information, see preceding discussion on docket.
D. Minor Corrections to the Revisions to the Total Coliform Rule (RTCR)
A. Today's final rule corrects, as authorized under the Safe
Drinking Water Act (SDWA), two typographical errors in the final RTCR
(78 FR 10269, February 13, 2013) rule language. First, this action
corrects a mistaken cross-reference regarding water system
recordkeeping requirements for assessment forms and documentation of
corrective actions and sanitary defects. EPA is correcting the cross-
reference at Sec. 141.861(b)(1) to correctly provide that assessments,
corrective actions and identification of sanitary defects are required
under the treatment technique requirements of Sec. 141.859 of the
final RTCR. The burden for these recordkeeping requirements was
reflected in the Revised Total Coliform Rule (see Paperwork Reduction
Act, section II.B of this notice) and in section 7 of the Economic
Analysis (EA) for the Revised Total Coliform Rule (EPA-815-R-12-004).
EPA also discussed these requirements in the preamble to the final RTCR
on page 10295. Second, today's final rule also corrects the
introductory paragraph at Sec. 142.16(q)(2) to correctly indicate that
the State's application for primacy must contain a written description
of all provisions included in the subsections of the paragraph,
(q)(2)(i) through (q)(2)(ix). It was always EPA's intent that primacy
applications must contain a written description of all provisions in
Sec. 142.16(q)(2), but when EPA added subparagraph (q)(2)(ix) to the
final rule, EPA neglected to change the numbering in the paragraph (2)
lead-in to the list of elements. EPA intended this to be the case, as
demonstrated in the preamble to the final RTCR on page 10301. In
addition, the burden for this State activity was also included in
section 7 of the EA for the RTCR. EPA is not developing a new EA for
today's action because the EA for the final RTCR accounts for all costs
associated with this rule.
Today's final rule also corrects the numbering in Sec. 141.855(a)
by adding subparagraph (d)(2) and reserving it, to most simply correct
a numbering error that identified a subparagraph (d)(1) without a
subsequent (d)(2). Correcting the numbering in this fashion will not
interfere with any cross references to this subparagraph.
Today's rule also includes clarifying revisions to the language
regarding primacy applications in Sec. 142.16(q)(2)(ii) to make it
more clear in the special primacy requirements section of the rule that
systems must implement at least one of listed additional criteria to
qualify for reduced monitoring. EPA clearly intended this to be the
case, as reflected in Sec. 141.854(h)(2) for NCWSs and Sec.
141.855(d) for CWSs, and in the preamble to the final rule at page
10281 and 10282.
Next, the final rule clarifies the situations requiring public
notification in Appendix A to Subpart Q of Part 141 to list out all of
the possible reporting violations under the RTCR that will require Tier
3 public notice. EPA clearly intended this to be the case, as reflected
in item (6) in Table 1 to Sec. 141.204 (Violation Categories and Other
Situations Requiring a Tier 3 Public
[[Page 10667]]
Notice), which provides that all reporting and recordkeeping violations
under the RTCR require Tier 3 public notice. Also, page 10294 of the
preamble to the final RTCR clearly states that Tier 3 PN is required
for both monitoring and reporting violations under the RTCR.
Finally, the final rule clarifies the analytical methods table at
Sec. 141.852(a)(5) to place the citation ``Standard Methods Online
9223 B-97'' for the Colilert analytical method in the correct column.
These revisions do not change any rule requirements, are consistent
with the rule requirements as intended by the Total Coliform Rule/
Distribution System Advisory Committee that recommended the revisions
to the Total Coliform Rule, and are intended only to clarify
requirements and reduce confusion.
II. Statutory and Executive Order Review
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'' under the
terms of Executive Order (EO) 12866 (58 FR 51735, October 4, 1993) and
is therefore not subject to review under the EO.
B. Paperwork Reduction Act
This action does not impose any new information collection burden.
In this action, EPA is making minor corrections to the final RTCR to
correct typographical errors in sections relating to recordkeeping and
State primacy requirements and other edits to the final rule language
that are intended to improve the understanding of the rule and avoid
confusion. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has previously
approved the information collection requirements contained in the
existing regulations (40 CFR Parts 141 and 142) under the provisions of
the Paperwork Reduction Act, 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq. and has assigned
OMB control number 2040-0205. The OMB control numbers for EPA's
regulations in 40 CFR are listed in 40 CFR part 9.
C. Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA)
The Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) generally requires an agency
to prepare a regulatory flexibility analysis of any rule subject to
notice and comment rulemaking requirements under the Administrative
Procedure Act or any other statute unless the agency certifies that the
rule will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial
number of small entities. Small entities include small businesses,
small organizations, and small governmental jurisdictions.
The RFA provides default definitions for each type of small entity.
Small entities are defined as: (1) A small business as defined by the
Small Business Administration's (SBA) regulations at 13 CFR 121.201;
(2) a small governmental jurisdiction that is a government of a city,
county, town, school district or special district with a population of
less than 50,000; and (3) a small organization that is any ``not-for-
profit enterprise which is independently owned and operated and is not
dominant in its field.'' However, the RFA also authorizes an agency to
use alternative definitions for each category of small entity, ``which
are appropriate to the activities of the agency'' after proposing the
alternative definition(s) in the Federal Register and taking comment (5
U.S.C. 601(3)-(5)). In addition, to establish an alternative small
business definition, agencies must consult with SBA's Chief Counsel for
Advocacy.
For purposes of assessing the impacts of the RTCR on small
entities, EPA considered small entities to be PWSs serving 10,000 or
fewer people. This is the cut-off level specified by Congress in the
1996 Amendments to the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) for small system
flexibility provisions. As required by the RFA, EPA proposed using this
alternative definition in the FR (63 FR 7620, February 13, 1998),
requested public comment, consulted with the SBA, and finalized the
alternative definition in the agency's Consumer Confidence Report
regulation (63 FR 44524, August 19, 1998). As stated in that Final
Rule, the alternative definition would be applied for all future
drinking water regulations.
After considering the economic impacts of the minor corrections to
the RTCR on small entities, I certify that this action will not have a
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities.
The costs for recordkeeping and State primacy requirements were
accounted for and detailed in the RTCR EA and summarized in the
preamble of the final RTCR. A copy of the final RTCR and the RTCR EA
can be found at https://water.epa.gov/lawsregs/rulesregs/sdwa/tcr/regulation_revisions.cfm.
D. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA)
This rule does not contain a Federal mandate under the provisions
of Title II of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (UMRA), 2
U.S.C. 1531-1538. This rule makes minor editorial corrections and
clarifying edits to the final RTCR. Therefore, this rule is not subject
to the requirements of sections 202 and 205 of UMRA.
This rule is also not subject to the requirements of section 203 of
UMRA because it makes only minor corrections and clarifying edits that
will not significantly or uniquely affect small governments.
E. 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 as
specified in Executive Order 13132. Today's action makes minor
corrections to the final RTCR to correct typographical errors in
sections relating to recordkeeping and State primacy requirements and
other edits to the final rule language that are intended to improve the
understanding of the rule and avoid confusion. The recordkeeping and
primacy requirements as corrected by today's action were included in
the cost calculations that were described in the preamble to the final
RTCR and used to determine that Executive Order 13132 does not apply to
the final RTCR.
F. Executive Order 13175: Consultation and Coordination With Indian
Tribal Governments
This action does not have tribal implications, as specified in
Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9, 2000). This rule makes
minor corrections to the final RTCR that will not have tribal
implications. Thus, Executive Order 13175 does not apply to this
action.
G. Executive Order 13045: Protection of Children From Environmental
Health Risks and Safety Risks
EPA interprets Executive Order 13045 (62 FR 19885, April 23, 1997)
as applying only to those regulatory actions that concern health or
safety risks, such that the analysis required under section 5-501 of
the EO has the potential to influence the regulation. This action is
not subject to EO 13045 because it does not establish an environmental
standard intended to mitigate health or safety risks.
H. Executive Order 13211: Actions That Significantly Affect Energy
Supply, Distribution, or Use
This rule is not subject to Executive Order 13211 (66 FR 28355, May
22, 2001) because it is not a significant
[[Page 10668]]
regulatory action under Executive Order 12866.
I. National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act
Section 12(d) of the National Technology Transfer and Advancement
Act of 1995 (NTTAA), Public Law 104-113, 12(d) (15 U.S.C. 272 note),
directs EPA to use voluntary consensus standards in its regulatory
activities unless to do so would be inconsistent with applicable law or
otherwise impractical. Voluntary consensus standards are technical
standards (e.g., materials specifications, test methods, sampling
procedures, and business practices) that are developed or adopted by
voluntary consensus standards bodies. NTTAA directs EPA to provide
Congress, through OMB, explanations when EPA decides not to use
available and applicable voluntary consensus standards.
This final rule makes only minor corrections and edits that do not
involve technical standards. Therefore, EPA is not considering the use
of any voluntary consensus standards.
J. Executive Order 12898: Federal Actions To Address Environmental
Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations
Executive Order 12898 (59 FR 7629, February 16, 1994) establishes
federal executive policy on environmental justice. Its main provision
directs federal agencies, to the greatest extent practicable and
permitted by law, to make environmental justice part of their mission.
Agencies must do this by identifying and addressing, as appropriate,
any disproportionately high and adverse human health or environmental
effects of their programs, policies, and activities on minority
populations and low-income populations in the United States.
EPA has determined that this action will not have
disproportionately high and adverse human health or environmental
effects on minority or low-income populations because it does not
affect the level of protection provided to human health or the
environment. This rule makes minor corrections and edits to the final
RTCR that will not have disproportionately high and adverse human
health or environmental effects on any population, including any
minority or low-income population.
K. Consultations With the Science Advisory Board, National Drinking
Water Advisory Council, and the Secretary of Health and Human Services
In accordance with section 1412(d) and (e) of SDWA, EPA consulted
with the Science Advisory Board (SAB), National Drinking Water Advisory
Council (NDWAC), and the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services on the final RTCR. Because today's action is making only
minor corrections to the final RTCR to correct typographical errors and
other edits to the final rule language that are intended to improve the
understanding of the rule and avoid confusion, EPA did not consult with
the SAB, NDWAC or the Secretary on today's action.
L. Considerations of Impacts on Sensitive Subpopulations as Required by
Section 1412(b)(3)(C)(i)(V) of the 1996 Amendments of SDWA
As required by Section 1412(b)(3)(C)(i)(V) of SDWA, EPA sought
public comment regarding the effects of contamination associated with
the proposed RTCR on the general population and sensitive
subpopulations. Sensitive subpopulations include ``infants, children,
pregnant women, the elderly, individuals with a history of serious
illness, or other subpopulations that are identified as likely to be at
greater risk of adverse health effects due to exposure to contaminants
in drinking water than the general population'' (SDWA section
1412(b)(3)(C)(i)(V), 42 U.S.C. 300g-1(b)(3)(C)(i)(V)). As indicated in
the preamble to the final RTCR, EPA anticipates that the requirements
of the final RTCR will help reduce pathways of entry for fecal
contamination and/or waterborne pathogens into the distribution system,
thereby reducing exposure and risk from these contaminants in drinking
water to the entire general population.
Today's final rule is making only minor corrections to the final
RTCR to correct typographical errors and other edits to the final rule
language that are intended to improve the understanding of RTCR and
avoid confusion and does not alter the conclusion that the final RTCR
seeks to provide a similar level of drinking water protection to all
groups including sensitive subpopulations.
M. Effect of Compliance With the Minor Corrections to the RTCR on the
Technical, Financial, and Managerial Capacity of Public Water Systems
Section 1420(d)(3) of SDWA, as amended, requires that, in
promulgating an NPDWR, the Administrator shall include an analysis of
the likely effect of compliance with the regulation on the technical,
managerial and financial (TMF) capacity of PWSs. EPA completed an
analysis of the impact of complying with the requirements of the RTCR
on the TMF capacity of PWSs and a detailed discussion of EPA's analysis
was presented in chapter 8.14 of the RTCR EA. The PWS recordkeeping
requirements as corrected by today's rule were included in the analysis
of the TMF capacity for the final RTCR and therefore no changes to that
analysis are needed to accompany this action.
N. Congressional Review Act
The Congressional Review Act, 5 U.S.C. 801 et seq., as added by the
Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996, generally
provides that before a rule may take effect, the agency promulgating
the rule must submit a rule report, which includes a copy of the rule,
to each House of the Congress and to the Comptroller General of the
United States (U.S.). EPA will submit a report containing this rule and
other required information to the U.S. Senate, the U.S. House of
Representatives, and the Comptroller General of the U.S. prior to
publication of the rule in the Federal Register. A major rule cannot
take effect until 60 days after it is published in the Federal
Register. This action is not a ``major rule'' as defined by 5 U.S.C.
804(2). This rule will be effective April 28, 2014.
List of Subjects
40 CFR Part 141
Environmental protection, Chemicals, Incorporation by reference,
Indian-lands, Intergovernmental relations, Radiation protection,
Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Water supply.
40 CFR Part 142
Environmental protection, Administrative practice and procedure,
Chemicals, Indian-lands, Radiation protection, Reporting and
recordkeeping requirements, Water supply.
Dated: February 10, 2014.
Gina McCarthy,
Administrator.
For the reasons set forth in the preamble, Title 40 chapter 1 of
the Code of Federal Regulations is amended as follows:
PART 141--NATIONAL PRIMARY DRINKING WATER REGULATIONS
0
1. The authority citation for part 141 continues to read as follows:
[[Page 10669]]
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 300f, 300g-1, 300g-2, 300g-3, 300g-4,
300g-5, 300g-6, 300j-4, 300j-9, and 300j-11.
0
2. Appendix A to Subpart Q of Part 141 is amended by revising entries
I.A.1 and I.A.2 to read as follows:
Appendix A to Subpart Q of Part 141--NPDWR Violations and Other
Situations Requiring Public Notice \1\
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
MCL/MRDL/TT violations \2\ Monitoring, testing & reporting
---------------------------------------- procedure violations
---------------------------------------
Contaminant Tier of public Tier of public
notice Citation notice Citation
required required
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I. Violations of National Primary Drinking Water Regulations (NPDWR): \3\
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A. Microbiological Contaminants
1.a Total coliform bacteria 2 141.63(a)............. 3 141.21(a)-(e).
[dagger].
1.b Total coliform (TT 2 141.860(b)(1)......... 3 141.860(c)(1).
violations resulting from
failure to perform
assessments or corrective
actions, monitoring
violations, and reporting
violations) [Dagger].
.............. ...................... .............. 141.860(d)(1).
1.c Seasonal system failure 2 141.860(b)(2)......... 3 141.860(d)(3).
to follow State-approved
start-up plan prior to
serving water to the public
or failure to provide
certification to State
[Dagger].
2.a Fecal coliform/E. coli 1 141.63(b)............. \4\ 1,3 141.21(e)
[dagger].
2.b E. coli (MCL, 1 141.860 (a)........... 3 141.860(c)(2)
monitoring, and reporting
violations) [Dagger].
.............. ...................... .............. 141.860(d)(1).
.............. ...................... .............. 141.860(d)(2).
2.c E. coli (TT violations 2 141.860(b)(1)......... .............. ......................
resulting from failure to
perform level 2 Assessments
or corrective action)
[Dagger].
* * * * * * *
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Appendix A--Endnotes
[dagger] Until March 31, 2016.
[Dagger] Beginning April 1, 2016.
1. Violations and other situations not listed in this table
(e.g., failure to prepare Consumer Confidence Reports), do not
require notice, unless otherwise determined by the primacy agency.
Primacy agencies may, at their option, also require a more stringent
public notice tier (e.g., Tier 1 instead of Tier 2 or Tier 2 instead
of Tier 3) for specific violations and situations listed in this
Appendix, as authorized under Sec. Sec. 141.202(a) and 141.203(a).
2. MCL--Maximum contaminant level, MRDL--Maximum residual
disinfectant level, TT--Treatment technique.
3. The term Violations of National Primary Drinking Water
Regulations (NPDWR) is used here to include violations of MCL, MRDL,
treatment technique, monitoring, and testing procedure requirements.
4. Failure to test for fecal coliform or E. coli is a Tier 1
violation if testing is not done after any repeat sample tests
positive for coliform. All other total coliform monitoring and
testing procedure violations are Tier 3.
* * * * *
0
3. Section 141.852 is amended by revising the entry for ``Total
Coliforms'' in the table in paragraph (a)(5) to read as follows:
Sec. 141.852 Analytical methods and laboratory certification.
(a) * * *
(5) * * *
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Organism
-------------------------- Methodology category Method \1\ Citation \1\
Total coliforms
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Lactose Fermentation Standard Total Coliform Standard Methods 9221 B.1,
Methods. Fermentation Technique. B.2 (20th ed.; 21st ed.).2
3
........................ ............................. Standard Methods Online 9221
B.1, B.2-99.2 3
........................ Presence-Absence (P-A) Standard Methods 9221 D.1,
Coliform Test. D.2 (20th ed.; 21st ed.).2
7
........................ ............................. Standard Methods Online 9221
D.1, D.2-99.2 7
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Membrane Filtration Standard Total Coliform Standard Methods 9222 B, C
Methods. Membrane Filter Procedure. (20th ed.; 21st ed.).2 4
........................ ............................. Standard Methods Online 9222
B-97 2 4, 9222 C-97.2 4
........................ Membrane Filtration using MI EPA Method 1604.\2\
medium.
........................ m-ColiBlue24[supreg] Test 2 4 ............................
........................ Chromocult 2 4............... ............................
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Enzyme Substrate Methods Colilert[supreg]............. Standard Methods 9223 B
(20th ed.; 21st ed.).2 5
........................ ............................. Standard Methods Online 9223
B-97.2 5
........................ Colisure[supreg]............. Standard Methods 9223 B
(20th ed.; 21st ed.).2 5 6
........................ ............................. Standard Methods Online 9223
B-97.2 5 6
[[Page 10670]]
........................ E*Colite[supreg] Test \2\.... ............................
........................ Readycult[supreg] Test \2\... ............................
........................ modified Colitag[supreg] Test ............................
\2\.
* * * * * * *
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ The procedures must be done in accordance with the documents listed in paragraph (c) of this section. For
Standard Methods, either editions, 20th (1998) or 21st (2005), may be used. For the Standard Methods Online,
the year in which each method was approved by the Standard Methods Committee is designated by the last two
digits following the hyphen in the method number. The methods listed are the only online versions that may be
used. For vendor methods, the date of the method listed in paragraph (c) of this section is the date/version
of the approved method. The methods listed are the only versions that may be used for compliance with this
rule. Laboratories should be careful to use only the approved versions of the methods, as product package
inserts may not be the same as the approved versions of the methods.
\2\ Incorporated by reference. See paragraph (c) of this section.
\3\ Lactose broth, as commercially available, may be used in lieu of lauryl tryptose broth, if the system
conducts at least 25 parallel tests between lactose broth and lauryl tryptose broth using the water normally
tested, and if the findings from this comparison demonstrate that the false-positive rate and false-negative
rate for total coliforms, using lactose broth, is less than 10 percent.
\4\ All filtration series must begin with membrane filtration equipment that has been sterilized by autoclaving.
Exposure of filtration equipment to UV light is not adequate to ensure sterilization. Subsequent to the
initial autoclaving, exposure of the filtration equipment to UV light may be used to sanitize the funnels
between filtrations within a filtration series. Alternatively, membrane filtration equipment that is pre-
sterilized by the manufacturer (i.e., disposable funnel units) may be used.
\5\ Multiple-tube and multi-well enumerative formats for this method are approved for use in presence-absence
determination under this regulation.
\6\ Colisure[supreg] results may be read after an incubation time of 24 hours.
\7\ A multiple tube enumerative format, as described in Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and
Wastewater 9221, is approved for this method for use in presence-absence determination under this regulation.
* * * * *
Sec. 141.855 [Amended]
0
4. Section 141.855 is amended by adding a reserved paragraph (d)(2).
Sec. 141.861 [Amended]
0
5. In Sec. 141.861, paragraph (b)(1) is amended by removing ``Sec.
141.858'' and adding in its place ``Sec. 141.859''.
PART 142--NATIONAL PRIMARY DRINKING WATER REGULATIONS
0
6. The authority citation for part 142 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 300f, 300g-1, 300g-2, 300g-3, 300g-4,
300g-5, 300g-6, 300j-4, 300j-9, and 300j-11.
0
7. Section 142.16 is amended by revising paragraphs (q)(2) introductory
text and (q)(2)(ii) to read as follows:
Sec. 142.16 Special primacy requirements.
* * * * *
(q) * * *
(2) The State's application for primacy for subpart Y must include
a written description for each provision included in paragraphs
(q)(2)(i) through (ix) of this section.
* * * * *
(ii) Reduced Monitoring Criteria--An indication of whether the
State will adopt the reduced monitoring provisions of 40 CFR part 141,
subpart Y. If the State adopts the reduced monitoring provisions, it
must describe the specific types or categories of water systems that
will be covered by reduced monitoring and whether the State will use
all or a reduced set of the criteria specified in Sec. Sec.
141.854(h)(2) and 141.855(d)(1)(iii) of this chapter. For each of the
reduced monitoring criteria, the State must describe how the criterion
will be evaluated to determine when systems qualify.
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 2014-04173 Filed 2-25-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
