Air Plan Approval; California; San Joaquin Valley Unified Air Pollution Control District; South Coast Air Quality Management District, 3736-3738 [2022-00810]

Download as PDF 3736 Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 16 / Tuesday, January 25, 2022 / Proposed Rules performance of any representations or commitments made to the Director by a parent or affiliate of the operator or professional services provider). ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY § 52.36 What access does the Comptroller General have to records kept by operators and professional services providers? [EPA–R09–OAR–2021–0846; FRL–9304–01– R9] The Comptroller General of the National Park Service, or an authorized representative of the Comptroller General, may access and examine all pertinent records, books, documents, and papers of the operator, professional services provider, and any subcontractor, parent, or affiliate of the operator or professional services provider (but with respect to parents and affiliates, only to the extent necessary to confirm the validity and performance of any representations or commitments made to the Director by a parent or affiliate of the operator or professional services provider) going back five years from the closing date of the last fiscal year of the operator or professional service provider. Subpart E—Miscellaneous § 52.40 Does this part affect concession contracts under part 51 of this chapter? No, nothing in this part modifies the terms or conditions of any existing concession contract or the ability of the Director to enter into concession contracts under part 51 of this chapter. The 1998 Act (as that term is defined in part 51 of this chapter) remains in effect. § 52.41 Does the VEIA expire? Yes. The Director may not award a contract under the VEIA after December 16, 2023. § 52.42 Severability. A determination that any provision of this part is unlawful will not affect the validity of the remaining provisions. Shannon A. Estenoz, Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks. [FR Doc. 2022–01254 Filed 1–24–22; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4312–52–P 40 CFR Part 52 Air Plan Approval; California; San Joaquin Valley Unified Air Pollution Control District; South Coast Air Quality Management District Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). ACTION: Proposed rule. AGENCY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to approve revisions to the San Joaquin Valley Unified Air Pollution Control District (SJVUAPCD) and South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) portions of the California State Implementation Plan (SIP). These revisions concern emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and oxides of nitrogen (NOX) from flares. We are proposing to approve these local rules to regulate these emission sources under the Clean Air Act (CAA or the Act). We are taking comments on this proposal and plan to follow with a final action. DATES: Comments must be received on or before February 24, 2022. ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA–R09– OAR–2021–0846 at https:// www.regulations.gov. For comments submitted at Regulations.gov, follow the online instructions for submitting comments. Once submitted, comments cannot be edited or removed from Regulations.gov. The EPA may publish any comment received to its public docket. Do not submit electronically any information you consider to be Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Multimedia submissions (audio, video, etc.) must be accompanied by a written comment. The written comment is considered the official comment and should include discussion of all points you wish to SUMMARY: make. The EPA will generally not consider comments or comment contents located outside of the primary submission (i.e., on the web, cloud, or other file sharing system). For additional submission methods, please contact the person identified in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section. For the full EPA public comment policy, information about CBI or multimedia submissions, and general guidance on making effective comments, please visit https://www.epa.gov/dockets/ commenting-epa-dockets. If you need assistance in a language other than English or if you are a person with disabilities 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: Donnique Sherman, EPA Region IX, 75 Hawthorne St., San Francisco, CA 94105. By phone: (415) 947–4129 or by email at sherman.donnique@epa.gov. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document, ‘‘we,’’ ‘‘us’’ and ‘‘our’’ refer to the EPA. Table of Contents I. The State’s Submittal A. What rules did the State submit? B. Are there other versions of these rules? C. What is the purpose of the submitted rule revisions? II. The EPA’s Evaluation and Action A. How is the EPA evaluating the rules? B. Do the rules meet the evaluation criteria? C. The EPA’s Recommendations to Further Improve the Rules D. Public Comment and Proposed Action III. Incorporation by Reference IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews I. The State’s Submittal A. What rules did the State submit? Table 1 lists the rules addressed by this proposal with the dates that they were adopted or amended by the local air agencies and submitted by the California Air Resources Board (CARB) to the EPA. khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with PROPOSALS TABLE 1—SUBMITTED RULES Adopted/ amended Local agency Rule No. Rule title SCAQMD ............... SJVUAPCD ............ 1118.1 .................... 4311 ....................... Control of Emissions from Non-Refinery Flares ............................. Flares .............................................................................................. Under CAA section 110(k)(1), the EPA must determine whether a SIP submittal meets the minimum completeness criteria established in 40 CFR part 51, appendix V for an official SIP submittal VerDate Sep<11>2014 16:04 Jan 24, 2022 Jkt 256001 on which the EPA is obligated to take action. If the EPA does not make an affirmative determination of completeness or incompleteness within six months of receipt of a SIP submittal, PO 00000 Frm 00038 Fmt 4702 Sfmt 4702 01/04/2019 12/17/2020 Submitted 04/24/2019 03/12/2021 the submittal is deemed to be complete by operation of law. The submitted rules listed in Table 1 were deemed complete by operation of law on the following dates: October 24, 2019 (SCAQMD Rule E:\FR\FM\25JAP1.SGM 25JAP1 Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 16 / Tuesday, January 25, 2022 / Proposed Rules II. The EPA’s Evaluation and Action 1118.1), and September 12, 2021 (SJVUAPCD Rule 4311). khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with PROPOSALS B. Are there other versions of these rules? There are no previous versions of SCAQMD Rule 1118.1 in the SIP. SCAQMD locally adopted this rule on January 4, 2019, and CARB submitted it to us on April 24, 2019. We approved an earlier version of SJVUAPCD Rule 4311 into the SIP on November 3, 2011 (76 FR 68106). The SJVUAPCD adopted revisions to the SIP-approved version on December 17, 2020, and CARB submitted them to us on March 12, 2021. If we take final action to approve the December 17, 2020 version of Rule 4311, this version will replace the previously approved version of this rule in the SIP. C. What is the purpose of the submitted rule revisions? Emissions of NOX and VOCs contribute to the production of groundlevel ozone, which harms human health and the environment. Section 110(a) of the CAA requires states to submit regulations that control NOX emissions. The submitted rules set further requirements to control NOX and other emissions from flares. A description of these rules follows, and a more complete list of revisions and rule discussion can be found in the technical support documents (TSDs) and submitted district staff reports and rules for this rulemaking: • SCAQMD Rule 1118.1 was adopted to fulfill reasonably available control technology (RACT) requirements for non-refinery flares and to facilitate the transition of the NOX RECLAIM (Regional Clean Air Incentives Market) program to a command-and-control regulatory structure. Rule 1118.1 is designed to reduce NOX and VOC emissions from non-refinery flares. The proposed rule establishes capacity thresholds for existing flares and emission limits for NOX, VOC, and carbon monoxide (CO) for new, replaced, or relocated non-refinery flares. • SJVUAPCD amended Rule 4311 to fulfill SJVUAPCD’s control measure commitments in their 2018 PM2.5 Plan and their 2016 Ozone Plan, for reducing flare emissions. SJVUAPCD amended Rule 4311 to require owners and operators of flares to install Ultra Low NOX (ULN) flaring technologies and to encourage alternative uses of waste gas. Some of the revisions include establishing annual throughput thresholds that flares must not exceed, and adding a compliance schedule for meeting annual throughput limits. VerDate Sep<11>2014 16:04 Jan 24, 2022 Jkt 256001 A. How is the EPA evaluating the rules? Rules in the SIP must be enforceable (see CAA section 110(a)(2)), must not interfere with applicable requirements concerning attainment and reasonable further progress or other CAA requirements (see CAA section 110(l)), and must not modify certain SIP control requirements in nonattainment areas without ensuring equivalent or greater emissions reductions (see CAA section 193). Generally, SIP rules must require RACT for each major source of NOX in ozone nonattainment areas classified as moderate or above (see CAA sections 182(b)(2) and 182(f)). The SCAQMD and SJVUAPCD regulate ozone nonattainment areas classified as Extreme for the 2008 8-hour ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS), and the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS (40 CFR 81.305). Therefore, these rules must implement RACT. Guidance and policy documents that we used to evaluate enforceability, revision/relaxation and rule stringency requirements for the applicable criteria pollutants include the following: 1. ‘‘State Implementation Plans; General Preamble for the Implementation of Title I of the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990,’’ 57 FR 13498 (April 16, 1992); 57 FR 18070 (April 28, 1992). 2. ‘‘Issues Relating to VOC Regulation Cutpoints, Deficiencies, and Deviations,’’ EPA, May 25, 1988 (the Bluebook, revised January 11, 1990). 3. ‘‘Guidance Document for Correcting Common VOC & Other Rule Deficiencies,’’ EPA Region 9, August 21, 2001 (the Little Bluebook). B. Do the rules meet the evaluation criteria? These rules meet CAA requirements and are consistent with relevant guidance regarding enforceability, RACT, and SIP revisions. The TSDs have more information on our evaluation. C. The EPA’s Recommendations To Further Improve the Rules The TSDs include recommendations for the next time the local agencies modify their rules. D. Public Comment and Proposed Action As authorized in section 110(k)(3) of the Act, the EPA proposes to fully approve the submitted rules because they fulfill all relevant requirements. We will accept comments from the public on this proposal until February PO 00000 Frm 00039 Fmt 4702 Sfmt 4702 3737 24, 2022. If we take final action to approve the submitted rules, our final action will incorporate these rules into the federally enforceable SIP. III. Incorporation by Reference In this rule, the EPA is proposing to include in a final EPA rule regulatory text that includes incorporation by reference. In accordance with requirements of 1 CFR 51.5, the EPA is proposing to incorporate by reference the SCAQMD rule and the SJVUAPCD rule described in Table 1 of this preamble. The EPA has made, and will continue to make, these materials available through https:// www.regulations.gov and at the EPA Region IX Office (please contact the person identified in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of this preamble for more information). IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews Under the Clean Air Act, the Administrator is required to approve a SIP submission that complies with the provisions of the Act and applicable Federal regulations. 42 U.S.C. 7410(k); 40 CFR 52.02(a). Thus, in reviewing SIP submissions, the EPA’s role is to approve state choices, provided that they meet the criteria of the Clean Air Act. Accordingly, this proposed action merely proposes to approve state law as meeting Federal requirements and does not impose additional requirements beyond those imposed by state law. For that reason, this proposed action: • Is not a ‘‘significant regulatory action’’ subject to review by the Office of Management and Budget under Executive Orders 12866 (58 FR 51735, October 4, 1993) and 13563 (76 FR 3821, January 21, 2011); • Does not impose an information collection burden under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.); • Is certified as not having a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities under the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.); • Does not contain any unfunded mandate or significantly or uniquely affect small governments, as described in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104–4); • Does not have federalism implications as specified in Executive Order 13132 (64 FR 43255, August 10, 1999); • Is not an economically significant regulatory action based on health or safety risks subject to Executive Order 13045 (62 FR 19885, April 23, 1997); E:\FR\FM\25JAP1.SGM 25JAP1 3738 Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 16 / Tuesday, January 25, 2022 / Proposed Rules • Is not a significant regulatory action subject to Executive Order 13211 (66 FR 28355, May 22, 2001); • Is not subject to requirements of Section 12(d) of the National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995 (15 U.S.C. 272 note) because application of those requirements would be inconsistent with the Clean Air Act; and • Does not provide the EPA with the discretionary authority to address disproportionate human health or environmental effects with practical, appropriate, and legally permissible methods under Executive Order 12898 (59 FR 7629, February 16, 1994). In addition, the SIP is not approved to apply on any Indian reservation land or in any other area where the EPA or an Indian tribe has demonstrated that a tribe has jurisdiction. In those areas of Indian country, the rule does not have tribal implications and will not impose substantial direct costs on tribal governments or preempt tribal law as specified by Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9, 2000). List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52 Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Incorporation by reference, Intergovernmental relations, Nitrogen dioxide, Ozone, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Volatile organic compounds. (Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.) Dated: January 11, 2022. Martha Guzman Aceves, Regional Administrator, Region IX. DATES: See Unit INFORMATION. I. under SUPPLEMENTARY The docket for this action, identified by docket identification (ID) number EPA–HQ–OPP–2021–0831, is available at https:// www.regulations.gov. That docket contains historical information and this Federal Register document; it does not contain the draft proposed rule. Please note that due to the public health concerns related to COVID–19, the EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC) and Reading Room is open to visitors by appointment only. For the latest status information on EPA/DC services and docket access, visit https:// www.epa.gov/dockets. ADDRESSES: Carolyn Schroeder, Pesticide ReEvaluation Division (7508P), Office of Pesticide Programs, Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: (202) 566–2376; email address: schroeder.carolyn@ epa.gov. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: BILLING CODE 6560–50–P I. What action is EPA taking? 40 CFR Part 171 [EPA–HQ–OPP–2021–0831; FRL–9134.1– 02–OCSPP] RIN 2070–AL01 Notification of Submission to the Secretary of Agriculture; Pesticides; Certification of Pesticide Applicators; Further Extension to Expiration Date of Certification Plans Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). ACTION: Notification of submission to the Secretary of Agriculture. AGENCY: This document notifies the public as required by the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) that the EPA Administrator has forwarded to the Secretary of the SUMMARY: VerDate Sep<11>2014 16:04 Jan 24, 2022 Jkt 256001 II. Do any statutory and Executive Order reviews apply to this notification? No. This document is merely a notification of submission to the Secretary of USDA. As such, none of the regulatory assessment requirements apply to this document. List of Subjects in Part 171 Environmental protection, Applicator competency, Agricultural worker safety, Certified applicator, Pesticide safety training, Pesticide worker safety, Pesticides and pests, Restricted use pesticides. Dated: January 19, 2022. Michal Freedhoff, Assistant Administrator, Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention. [FR Doc. 2022–01289 Filed 1–24–22; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6560–50–P ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY 40 CFR Part 282 [EPA–R04–UST–2020–0696; FRL: 9057–01– R4] FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: [FR Doc. 2022–00810 Filed 1–24–22; 8:45 am] ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with PROPOSALS United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) a draft proposed rulemaking regulatory document concerning ‘‘Pesticides; Certification of Pesticide Applicators; Further Extension to Expiration Date of Certification Plans (RIN 2070–AL01).’’ The draft regulatory document is not available to the public until after it has been signed and made available by EPA. Frm 00040 Fmt 4702 Sfmt 4702 Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). ACTION: Proposed rule. AGENCY: The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976 (RCRA), as amended, authorizes the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to grant approval to states to operate their underground storage tank (UST) programs in lieu of the Federal program. The Commonwealth of Kentucky (Commonwealth or State) applied to the EPA for final approval to its UST Program on October 7, 2019, and on September 16, 2020, the EPA published a final determination and approval of the Commonwealth’s UST Program. This action proposes to codify the EPA’s prior approval of the Commonwealth’s UST Program and to incorporate by reference approved provisions of the Commonwealth’s statutes and regulations. DATES: Comments on this proposed rule must be received on or before February 24, 2022. ADDRESSES: Comments may be submitted by one of the following methods: • Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov (our SUMMARY: FIFRA section 25(a)(2)(A) requires the EPA Administrator to provide the Secretary of USDA with a copy of any draft proposed rule at least 60 days before signing it in proposed form for publication in the Federal Register. The draft proposed rule is not available to the public until after it has been signed by EPA. If the Secretary of USDA comments in writing regarding the draft proposed rule within 30 days after receiving it, then the EPA Administrator shall include the comments of the Secretary of USDA and the EPA Administrator’s response to those comments with the proposed rule that publishes in the Federal Register. If the Secretary of USDA does not comment in writing within 30 days after receiving the draft proposed rule, then the EPA Administrator may sign the proposed rule for publication in the Federal Register any time after the 30-day period. PO 00000 Commonwealth of Kentucky: Codification and Incorporation by Reference of Approved State Underground Storage Tank Program E:\FR\FM\25JAP1.SGM 25JAP1

Agencies

[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 16 (Tuesday, January 25, 2022)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 3736-3738]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-00810]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R09-OAR-2021-0846; FRL-9304-01-R9]


Air Plan Approval; California; San Joaquin Valley Unified Air 
Pollution Control District; South Coast Air Quality Management District

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Proposed rule.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to 
approve revisions to the San Joaquin Valley Unified Air Pollution 
Control District (SJVUAPCD) and South Coast Air Quality Management 
District (SCAQMD) portions of the California State Implementation Plan 
(SIP). These revisions concern emissions of volatile organic compounds 
(VOCs) and oxides of nitrogen (NOX) from flares. We are 
proposing to approve these local rules to regulate these emission 
sources under the Clean Air Act (CAA or the Act). We are taking 
comments on this proposal and plan to follow with a final action.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before February 24, 2022.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R09-
OAR-2021-0846 at https://www.regulations.gov. For comments submitted at 
Regulations.gov, follow the online instructions for submitting 
comments. Once submitted, comments cannot be edited or removed from 
Regulations.gov. The EPA may publish any comment received to its public 
docket. Do not submit electronically any information you consider to be 
Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information whose 
disclosure is restricted by statute. Multimedia submissions (audio, 
video, etc.) must be accompanied by a written comment. The written 
comment is considered the official comment and should include 
discussion of all points you wish to make. The EPA will generally not 
consider comments or comment contents located outside of the primary 
submission (i.e., on the web, cloud, or other file sharing system). For 
additional submission methods, please contact the person identified in 
the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section. For the full EPA public 
comment policy, information about CBI or multimedia submissions, and 
general guidance on making effective comments, please visit https://www.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets. If you need assistance in a 
language other than English or if you are a person with disabilities 
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: Donnique Sherman, EPA Region IX, 75 
Hawthorne St., San Francisco, CA 94105. By phone: (415) 947-4129 or by 
email at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document, ``we,'' ``us'' and 
``our'' refer to the EPA.

Table of Contents

I. The State's Submittal
    A. What rules did the State submit?
    B. Are there other versions of these rules?
    C. What is the purpose of the submitted rule revisions?
II. The EPA's Evaluation and Action
    A. How is the EPA evaluating the rules?
    B. Do the rules meet the evaluation criteria?
    C. The EPA's Recommendations to Further Improve the Rules
    D. Public Comment and Proposed Action
III. Incorporation by Reference
IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

I. The State's Submittal

A. What rules did the State submit?

    Table 1 lists the rules addressed by this proposal with the dates 
that they were adopted or amended by the local air agencies and 
submitted by the California Air Resources Board (CARB) to the EPA.

                                            Table 1--Submitted Rules
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                     Adopted/
         Local agency                    Rule No.                 Rule title          amended        Submitted
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SCAQMD.......................  1118.1......................  Control of               01/04/2019      04/24/2019
                                                              Emissions from Non-
                                                              Refinery Flares.
SJVUAPCD.....................  4311........................  Flares.............      12/17/2020      03/12/2021
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Under CAA section 110(k)(1), the EPA must determine whether a SIP 
submittal meets the minimum completeness criteria established in 40 CFR 
part 51, appendix V for an official SIP submittal on which the EPA is 
obligated to take action. If the EPA does not make an affirmative 
determination of completeness or incompleteness within six months of 
receipt of a SIP submittal, the submittal is deemed to be complete by 
operation of law. The submitted rules listed in Table 1 were deemed 
complete by operation of law on the following dates: October 24, 2019 
(SCAQMD Rule

[[Page 3737]]

1118.1), and September 12, 2021 (SJVUAPCD Rule 4311).

B. Are there other versions of these rules?

    There are no previous versions of SCAQMD Rule 1118.1 in the SIP. 
SCAQMD locally adopted this rule on January 4, 2019, and CARB submitted 
it to us on April 24, 2019.
    We approved an earlier version of SJVUAPCD Rule 4311 into the SIP 
on November 3, 2011 (76 FR 68106). The SJVUAPCD adopted revisions to 
the SIP-approved version on December 17, 2020, and CARB submitted them 
to us on March 12, 2021. If we take final action to approve the 
December 17, 2020 version of Rule 4311, this version will replace the 
previously approved version of this rule in the SIP.

C. What is the purpose of the submitted rule revisions?

    Emissions of NOX and VOCs contribute to the production 
of ground-level ozone, which harms human health and the environment. 
Section 110(a) of the CAA requires states to submit regulations that 
control NOX emissions. The submitted rules set further 
requirements to control NOX and other emissions from flares. 
A description of these rules follows, and a more complete list of 
revisions and rule discussion can be found in the technical support 
documents (TSDs) and submitted district staff reports and rules for 
this rulemaking:
     SCAQMD Rule 1118.1 was adopted to fulfill reasonably 
available control technology (RACT) requirements for non-refinery 
flares and to facilitate the transition of the NOX RECLAIM 
(Regional Clean Air Incentives Market) program to a command-and-control 
regulatory structure. Rule 1118.1 is designed to reduce NOX 
and VOC emissions from non-refinery flares. The proposed rule 
establishes capacity thresholds for existing flares and emission limits 
for NOX, VOC, and carbon monoxide (CO) for new, replaced, or 
relocated non-refinery flares.
     SJVUAPCD amended Rule 4311 to fulfill SJVUAPCD's control 
measure commitments in their 2018 PM2.5 Plan and their 2016 
Ozone Plan, for reducing flare emissions. SJVUAPCD amended Rule 4311 to 
require owners and operators of flares to install Ultra Low 
NOX (ULN) flaring technologies and to encourage alternative 
uses of waste gas. Some of the revisions include establishing annual 
throughput thresholds that flares must not exceed, and adding a 
compliance schedule for meeting annual throughput limits.

II. The EPA's Evaluation and Action

A. How is the EPA evaluating the rules?

    Rules in the SIP must be enforceable (see CAA section 110(a)(2)), 
must not interfere with applicable requirements concerning attainment 
and reasonable further progress or other CAA requirements (see CAA 
section 110(l)), and must not modify certain SIP control requirements 
in nonattainment areas without ensuring equivalent or greater emissions 
reductions (see CAA section 193).
    Generally, SIP rules must require RACT for each major source of 
NOX in ozone nonattainment areas classified as moderate or 
above (see CAA sections 182(b)(2) and 182(f)). The SCAQMD and SJVUAPCD 
regulate ozone nonattainment areas classified as Extreme for the 2008 
8-hour ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS), and the 
2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS (40 CFR 81.305). Therefore, these rules must 
implement RACT.
    Guidance and policy documents that we used to evaluate 
enforceability, revision/relaxation and rule stringency requirements 
for the applicable criteria pollutants include the following:
    1. ``State Implementation Plans; General Preamble for the 
Implementation of Title I of the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990,'' 57 
FR 13498 (April 16, 1992); 57 FR 18070 (April 28, 1992).
    2. ``Issues Relating to VOC Regulation Cutpoints, Deficiencies, and 
Deviations,'' EPA, May 25, 1988 (the Bluebook, revised January 11, 
1990).
    3. ``Guidance Document for Correcting Common VOC & Other Rule 
Deficiencies,'' EPA Region 9, August 21, 2001 (the Little Bluebook).

B. Do the rules meet the evaluation criteria?

    These rules meet CAA requirements and are consistent with relevant 
guidance regarding enforceability, RACT, and SIP revisions. The TSDs 
have more information on our evaluation.

C. The EPA's Recommendations To Further Improve the Rules

    The TSDs include recommendations for the next time the local 
agencies modify their rules.

D. Public Comment and Proposed Action

    As authorized in section 110(k)(3) of the Act, the EPA proposes to 
fully approve the submitted rules because they fulfill all relevant 
requirements. We will accept comments from the public on this proposal 
until February 24, 2022. If we take final action to approve the 
submitted rules, our final action will incorporate these rules into the 
federally enforceable SIP.

III. Incorporation by Reference

    In this rule, the EPA is proposing to include in a final EPA rule 
regulatory text that includes incorporation by reference. In accordance 
with requirements of 1 CFR 51.5, the EPA is proposing to incorporate by 
reference the SCAQMD rule and the SJVUAPCD rule described in Table 1 of 
this preamble. The EPA has made, and will continue to make, these 
materials available through https://www.regulations.gov and at the EPA 
Region IX Office (please contact the person identified in the FOR 
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of this preamble for more 
information).

IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

    Under the Clean Air Act, the Administrator is required to approve a 
SIP submission that complies with the provisions of the Act and 
applicable Federal regulations. 42 U.S.C. 7410(k); 40 CFR 52.02(a). 
Thus, in reviewing SIP submissions, the EPA's role is to approve state 
choices, provided that they meet the criteria of the Clean Air Act. 
Accordingly, this proposed action merely proposes to approve state law 
as meeting Federal requirements and does not impose additional 
requirements beyond those imposed by state law. For that reason, this 
proposed action:
     Is not a ``significant regulatory action'' subject to 
review by the Office of Management and Budget under Executive Orders 
12866 (58 FR 51735, October 4, 1993) and 13563 (76 FR 3821, January 21, 
2011);
     Does not impose an information collection burden under the 
provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.);
     Is certified as not having a significant economic impact 
on a substantial number of small entities under the Regulatory 
Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.);
     Does not contain any unfunded mandate or significantly or 
uniquely affect small governments, as described in the Unfunded 
Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-4);
     Does not have federalism implications as specified in 
Executive Order 13132 (64 FR 43255, August 10, 1999);
     Is not an economically significant regulatory action based 
on health or safety risks subject to Executive Order 13045 (62 FR 
19885, April 23, 1997);

[[Page 3738]]

     Is not a significant regulatory action subject to 
Executive Order 13211 (66 FR 28355, May 22, 2001);
     Is not subject to requirements of Section 12(d) of the 
National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995 (15 U.S.C. 272 
note) because application of those requirements would be inconsistent 
with the Clean Air Act; and
     Does not provide the EPA with the discretionary authority 
to address disproportionate human health or environmental effects with 
practical, appropriate, and legally permissible methods under Executive 
Order 12898 (59 FR 7629, February 16, 1994).
    In addition, the SIP is not approved to apply on any Indian 
reservation land or in any other area where the EPA or an Indian tribe 
has demonstrated that a tribe has jurisdiction. In those areas of 
Indian country, the rule does not have tribal implications and will not 
impose substantial direct costs on tribal governments or preempt tribal 
law as specified by Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9, 
2000).

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

    Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Incorporation by 
reference, Intergovernmental relations, Nitrogen dioxide, Ozone, 
Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Volatile organic compounds.

(Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.)

    Dated: January 11, 2022.
Martha Guzman Aceves,
Regional Administrator, Region IX.
[FR Doc. 2022-00810 Filed 1-24-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
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