Release of Draft Policy Assessment for the Reconsideration of the Ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards, 15940-15941 [2023-05237]

Download as PDF 15940 Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 50 / Wednesday, March 15, 2023 / Proposed Rules Dated: March 13, 2023. J.W. Mauger, Rear Admiral, U.S. Coast Guard, Commander, First Coast Guard District. [FR Doc. 2023–05380 Filed 3–14–23; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 9110–04–P ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY 40 CFR Part 50 [EPA–HQ–OAR–2018–0279; FRL–9545–04– OAR] Release of Draft Policy Assessment for the Reconsideration of the Ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). ACTION: Draft policy assessment; notice of availability. AGENCY: On or about March 1, 2023, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is making available to the public a revised draft document titled, Policy Assessment for the Reconsideration of the Ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards, External Review Draft Version 2 (Draft PA). This draft document was prepared as a part of the current reconsideration of the 2020 final decision on the national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) for ozone (O3). When final, the PA is intended to ‘‘bridge the gap’’ between the scientific and technical information assessed in the 2020 Integrated Science Assessment for Ozone and Related Photochemical Oxidants (2020 ISA), as well as any air lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with PROPOSALS1 SUMMARY: VerDate Sep<11>2014 17:13 Mar 14, 2023 Jkt 259001 quality, exposure and risk analyses available in the reconsideration, and the judgments required of the Administrator. The primary and secondary O3 NAAQS are set to protect the public health and the public welfare from O3 and other photochemical oxidants in ambient air. DATES: Comments must be received on or before April 14, 2023. ADDRESSES: You may send comments on the draft PA, identified by Docket ID No. EPA–HQ–OAR–2018–0279, by any of the following methods: • Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov/ (our preferred method). Follow the online instructions for submitting comments. • Mail: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, EPA Docket Center, Office of Air and Radiation Docket, Mail Code 28221T, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20460. • Hand Delivery or Courier (by scheduled appointment only): EPA Docket Center, WJC West Building, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20004. The Docket Center’s hours of operations are 8:30 a.m.–4:30 p.m., Monday–Friday (except Federal Holidays). Instructions: All submissions received must include the Docket ID No. for this notice. Comments received may be posted without change to https:// www.regulations.gov, including any personal information provided. For detailed instructions on sending comments, see the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document. The draft document described here will be available on the EPA’s website at https://www.epa.gov/naaqs/ozone-o3air-quality-standards. The documents PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 4702 Sfmt 4702 will be accessible under ‘‘Policy Assessments’’ for the current review. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Leigh Meyer, Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards, (Mail Code C504–06), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Research Triangle Park, NC 27711; telephone number: 919–541–5587, fax number: 919–541– 0237; or email: meyer.leigh@epa.gov, or Mary Hutson, Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards, (Mail Code C504–06), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Research Triangle Park, NC 27711; telephone number: 919–541–0715, fax number: 919–541– 0237; or email: hutson.mary@epa.gov. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: I. General Information Written Comments Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA–HQ–OAR–2018– 0279, at https://www.regulations.gov (our preferred method), or the other methods identified in the ADDRESSES section. Once submitted, comments cannot be edited or removed from the docket. The EPA may publish any comment received to its public docket. Do not submit to EPA’s docket at https://www.regulations.gov any information you consider to be Confidential Business Information (CBI), Proprietary Business Information (PBI), 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 E:\FR\FM\15MRP1.SGM 15MRP1 EP15MR23.005</GPH> This document is published under the authority of 5 U.S.C. 552(a). Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 50 / Wednesday, March 15, 2023 / Proposed Rules contents located outside of the primary submission (i.e., on the web, cloud, or other file sharing system). Please visit https://www.epa.gov/dockets/ commenting-epa-dockets for additional submission methods; the full EPA public comment policy; information about CBI, PBI, or multimedia submissions; and general guidance on making effective comments. lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with PROPOSALS1 II. Information About the Documents Two sections of the Clean Air Act (CAA or the Act) govern the establishment and revision of the NAAQS. Section 108 directs the Administrator to identify and list certain air pollutants and then issue ‘‘air quality criteria’’ for those pollutants. The air quality criteria are to ‘‘accurately reflect the latest scientific knowledge useful in indicating the kind and extent of all identifiable effects on public health or welfare which may be expected from the presence of such pollutant in the ambient air . . .’’ (CAA section 108(a)(2)). Under section 109 of the Act, the EPA is then to establish primary (health-based) and secondary (welfare-based) NAAQS for each pollutant for which the EPA has issued air quality criteria. Section 109(d)(1) of the Act requires periodic review and, if appropriate, revision of existing air quality criteria. Revised air quality criteria are to reflect advances in scientific knowledge on the effects of the pollutant on public health and welfare. Under the same provision, the EPA is also to periodically review and, if appropriate, revise the NAAQS, based on the revised air quality criteria. The Act additionally requires appointment of an independent scientific review committee that is to periodically review the existing air quality criteria and NAAQS and to recommend any new standards and revisions of existing criteria and standards as may be appropriate (CAA section 109(d)(2)(A)–(B)). Since the early 1980s, the requirement for an independent scientific review committee has been fulfilled by the Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee (CASAC). In December 2020, the EPA announced its decision to retain the primary and secondary O3 standards, without revision (85 FR 87256, December 31, 2020). On October 29, 2021, the Agency announced its decision to reconsider the 2020 O3 NAAQS final action.1 In its 1 The press release for this announcement is available at https://www.epa.gov/ground-levelozone-pollution/epa-reconsider-previousadministrations-decision-retain-2015-ozone. VerDate Sep<11>2014 17:13 Mar 14, 2023 Jkt 259001 announcement of the reconsideration, the Agency explained that it would reconsider the 2020 decision to retain 2015 standards based on the existing scientific record. In support of the reconsideration, the EPA is developing an updated PA. The PA, when final, serves to ‘‘bridge the gap’’ between the scientific and technical information in the 2020 ISA and any air quality, exposure and risk analyses available in the reconsideration, and the judgements required of the Administrator. In April 2022, the EPA made available to the public and to the CASAC Ozone Review Panel a prior version of this draft PA. After receiving a briefing from the EPA on the draft document (87 FR 19501, April 4, 2022), the Panel issued a memo indicating that the Panel would pause its review to deliberate on whether a fuller discussion of the science was needed prior to its review of the draft PA.2 Following that deliberation, the Panel engaged in a fuller discussion of the scientific information at a number of public meetings (87 FR 41309, July 12, 2022; 87 FR 60394, October 5, 2022). Based on this discussion, the CASAC determined ‘‘that the existing scientific evidence summarized in the 2020 ISA provides a scientifically sound foundation for the Agency’s reconsideration of the 2020 Ozone NAAQS decision’’ and that it was not recommending that the 2020 ISA be reopened or revised.3 The CASAC’s letter to the Agency regarding its review of the 2020 ISA included comments that referenced the PA. Consideration of those comments led to the development of this second version of the draft PA for the reconsideration, which is announced in this notice of availability. The draft PA largely builds upon the information presented in the 2020 ISA, the 2020 PA and additional analyses that informed the 2020 decision. This draft PA will be available on or about March 1, 2023, on the EPA’s website at https://www.epa.gov/naaqs/ ozone-o3-air-quality-standards. The EPA is soliciting advice and recommendations from the CASAC by means of a review of this draft 2 May 13, 2022, letter from Elizabeth A. Sheppard, Chair, Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee, to CASAC Ozone Review Panel Members. Re: CASAC Ozone Review Panel Meeting. Available at: https://casac.epa.gov/ords/sab/ f?p=105:19:17341438189034:::19:P19_ ID:972#materials. 3 November 22, 2022, letter from Elizabeth A. Sheppard, Chair, Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee, to Administrator Michael S. Regan. Re: CASAC Review of the EPA’s Integrated Science Assessment (ISA) for Ozone and Related Photochemical Oxidants (Final Report—April 2020). EPA–CASAC–23–001. Available at: https:// casac.epa.gov/ords/sab/f?p=105:18: 8476900499267:::RP,18:P18_ID:2614. PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 4702 Sfmt 4702 15941 document in an upcoming public meeting of the CASAC. Information about this public meeting, including the dates and location, was published as a separate notice in the Federal Register on February 13, 2023 (88 FR 9275). Following the CASAC meeting, the EPA will consider comments received from the CASAC and the public in preparing the final PA. The draft document briefly described above does not represent and should not be construed to represent any final EPA policy, viewpoint, or determination. The EPA will consider any public comments submitted in response to this notice when revising the document. Panagiotis Tsirigotis, Director, Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards. [FR Doc. 2023–05237 Filed 3–14–23; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6560–50–P GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION 48 CFR Part 538 [GSAR Case 2022–G514; Docket No. GSA– GSAR–2023–0009; Sequence No. 1] RIN 3090–AK58 General Services Administration Acquisition Regulation; Standardizing Federal Supply Schedule Clause and Provision Prescriptions Office of Acquisition Policy, General Services Administration (GSA). ACTION: Proposed rule. AGENCY: The General Services Administration is proposing to amend the General Services Administration Acquisition Regulation (GSAR) to clarify when GSAR clauses apply to Federal Supply Schedule contracts. DATES: Interested parties should submit written comments to the Regulatory Secretariat Division at the address shown below on or before May 15, 2023 to be considered in the formation of the final rule. ADDRESSES: Submit comments in response to GSAR Case 2022–G514 to: https://www.regulations.gov via the Federal eRulemaking portal by searching for ‘‘GSAR Case 2022–G514’’. Select the link ‘‘Comment Now’’ that corresponds with GSAR Case 2022– G514. Follow the instructions provided at the ‘‘Comment Now’’ screen. Please include your name, company name (if any), and ‘‘GSAR Case 2022–G514’’ on your attached document. If your comment cannot be submitted using https://www.regulations.gov, call or SUMMARY: E:\FR\FM\15MRP1.SGM 15MRP1

Agencies

[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 50 (Wednesday, March 15, 2023)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 15940-15941]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-05237]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 50

[EPA-HQ-OAR-2018-0279; FRL-9545-04-OAR]


Release of Draft Policy Assessment for the Reconsideration of the 
Ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Draft policy assessment; notice of availability.

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

SUMMARY: On or about March 1, 2023, the Environmental Protection Agency 
(EPA) is making available to the public a revised draft document 
titled, Policy Assessment for the Reconsideration of the Ozone National 
Ambient Air Quality Standards, External Review Draft Version 2 (Draft 
PA). This draft document was prepared as a part of the current 
reconsideration of the 2020 final decision on the national ambient air 
quality standards (NAAQS) for ozone (O3). When final, the PA 
is intended to ``bridge the gap'' between the scientific and technical 
information assessed in the 2020 Integrated Science Assessment for 
Ozone and Related Photochemical Oxidants (2020 ISA), as well as any air 
quality, exposure and risk analyses available in the reconsideration, 
and the judgments required of the Administrator. The primary and 
secondary O3 NAAQS are set to protect the public health and 
the public welfare from O3 and other photochemical oxidants 
in ambient air.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before April 14, 2023.

ADDRESSES: You may send comments on the draft PA, identified by Docket 
ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2018-0279, by any of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov/ 
(our preferred method). Follow the online instructions for submitting 
comments.
     Mail: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, EPA Docket 
Center, Office of Air and Radiation Docket, Mail Code 28221T, 1200 
Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20460.
     Hand Delivery or Courier (by scheduled appointment only): 
EPA Docket Center, WJC West Building, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution 
Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20004. The Docket Center's hours of 
operations are 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m., Monday-Friday (except Federal 
Holidays).
    Instructions: All submissions received must include the Docket ID 
No. for this notice. Comments received may be posted without change to 
https://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information 
provided. For detailed instructions on sending comments, see the 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document. The draft document 
described here will be available on the EPA's website at https://www.epa.gov/naaqs/ozone-o3-air-quality-standards. The documents will be 
accessible under ``Policy Assessments'' for the current review.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Leigh Meyer, Office of Air Quality 
Planning and Standards, (Mail Code C504-06), U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency, Research Triangle Park, NC 27711; telephone number: 
919-541-5587, fax number: 919-541-0237; or email: [email protected], 
or Mary Hutson, Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards, (Mail 
Code C504-06), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Research Triangle 
Park, NC 27711; telephone number: 919-541-0715, fax number: 919-541-
0237; or email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. General Information

Written Comments

    Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2018-
0279, at https://www.regulations.gov (our preferred method), or the 
other methods identified in the ADDRESSES section. Once submitted, 
comments cannot be edited or removed from the docket. The EPA may 
publish any comment received to its public docket. Do not submit to 
EPA's docket at https://www.regulations.gov any information you 
consider to be Confidential Business Information (CBI), Proprietary 
Business Information (PBI), 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

[[Page 15941]]

contents located outside of the primary submission (i.e., on the web, 
cloud, or other file sharing system). Please visit https://www.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets for additional submission methods; the 
full EPA public comment policy; information about CBI, PBI, or 
multimedia submissions; and general guidance on making effective 
comments.

II. Information About the Documents

    Two sections of the Clean Air Act (CAA or the Act) govern the 
establishment and revision of the NAAQS. Section 108 directs the 
Administrator to identify and list certain air pollutants and then 
issue ``air quality criteria'' for those pollutants. The air quality 
criteria are to ``accurately reflect the latest scientific knowledge 
useful in indicating the kind and extent of all identifiable effects on 
public health or welfare which may be expected from the presence of 
such pollutant in the ambient air . . .'' (CAA section 108(a)(2)). 
Under section 109 of the Act, the EPA is then to establish primary 
(health-based) and secondary (welfare-based) NAAQS for each pollutant 
for which the EPA has issued air quality criteria. Section 109(d)(1) of 
the Act requires periodic review and, if appropriate, revision of 
existing air quality criteria. Revised air quality criteria are to 
reflect advances in scientific knowledge on the effects of the 
pollutant on public health and welfare. Under the same provision, the 
EPA is also to periodically review and, if appropriate, revise the 
NAAQS, based on the revised air quality criteria.
    The Act additionally requires appointment of an independent 
scientific review committee that is to periodically review the existing 
air quality criteria and NAAQS and to recommend any new standards and 
revisions of existing criteria and standards as may be appropriate (CAA 
section 109(d)(2)(A)-(B)). Since the early 1980s, the requirement for 
an independent scientific review committee has been fulfilled by the 
Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee (CASAC).
    In December 2020, the EPA announced its decision to retain the 
primary and secondary O3 standards, without revision (85 FR 
87256, December 31, 2020). On October 29, 2021, the Agency announced 
its decision to reconsider the 2020 O3 NAAQS final 
action.\1\ In its announcement of the reconsideration, the Agency 
explained that it would reconsider the 2020 decision to retain 2015 
standards based on the existing scientific record. In support of the 
reconsideration, the EPA is developing an updated PA. The PA, when 
final, serves to ``bridge the gap'' between the scientific and 
technical information in the 2020 ISA and any air quality, exposure and 
risk analyses available in the reconsideration, and the judgements 
required of the Administrator.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ The press release for this announcement is available at 
https://www.epa.gov/ground-level-ozone-pollution/epa-reconsider-previous-administrations-decision-retain-2015-ozone.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    In April 2022, the EPA made available to the public and to the 
CASAC Ozone Review Panel a prior version of this draft PA. After 
receiving a briefing from the EPA on the draft document (87 FR 19501, 
April 4, 2022), the Panel issued a memo indicating that the Panel would 
pause its review to deliberate on whether a fuller discussion of the 
science was needed prior to its review of the draft PA.\2\ Following 
that deliberation, the Panel engaged in a fuller discussion of the 
scientific information at a number of public meetings (87 FR 41309, 
July 12, 2022; 87 FR 60394, October 5, 2022). Based on this discussion, 
the CASAC determined ``that the existing scientific evidence summarized 
in the 2020 ISA provides a scientifically sound foundation for the 
Agency's reconsideration of the 2020 Ozone NAAQS decision'' and that it 
was not recommending that the 2020 ISA be reopened or revised.\3\ The 
CASAC's letter to the Agency regarding its review of the 2020 ISA 
included comments that referenced the PA. Consideration of those 
comments led to the development of this second version of the draft PA 
for the reconsideration, which is announced in this notice of 
availability. The draft PA largely builds upon the information 
presented in the 2020 ISA, the 2020 PA and additional analyses that 
informed the 2020 decision. This draft PA will be available on or about 
March 1, 2023, on the EPA's website at https://www.epa.gov/naaqs/ozone-o3-air-quality-standards. The EPA is soliciting advice and 
recommendations from the CASAC by means of a review of this draft 
document in an upcoming public meeting of the CASAC. Information about 
this public meeting, including the dates and location, was published as 
a separate notice in the Federal Register on February 13, 2023 (88 FR 
9275). Following the CASAC meeting, the EPA will consider comments 
received from the CASAC and the public in preparing the final PA.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \2\ May 13, 2022, letter from Elizabeth A. Sheppard, Chair, 
Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee, to CASAC Ozone Review Panel 
Members. Re: CASAC Ozone Review Panel Meeting. Available at: https://casac.epa.gov/ords/sab/f?p=105:19:17341438189034:::19:P19_ID:972#materials.
    \3\ November 22, 2022, letter from Elizabeth A. Sheppard, Chair, 
Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee, to Administrator Michael S. 
Regan. Re: CASAC Review of the EPA's Integrated Science Assessment 
(ISA) for Ozone and Related Photochemical Oxidants (Final Report--
April 2020). EPA-CASAC-23-001. Available at: https://casac.epa.gov/ords/sab/f?p=105:18:8476900499267:::RP,18:P18_ID:2614.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The draft document briefly described above does not represent and 
should not be construed to represent any final EPA policy, viewpoint, 
or determination. The EPA will consider any public comments submitted 
in response to this notice when revising the document.

Panagiotis Tsirigotis,
Director, Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards.
[FR Doc. 2023-05237 Filed 3-14-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
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