Environmental Protection Agency April 1, 2014 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to approve several revisions to the Texas State Implementation Plan (SIP) related to the Texas Minor New Source Review (NSR) Standard Permits (SP) Program. First, EPA is approving revisions submitted by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ, or Commission) on January 3, 2000, and March 11, 2011, expanding the Texas SP Program to include the Rule Standard Permit (Rule SP). The EPA is also proposing to approve a revision to the Texas SIP submitted by the TCEQ on February 1, 2006, for a specific Rule SP, the Rule Standard Permit for Pollution Control Projects (Rule SP for PCP) as meeting the requirements for a Minor NSR SIP revision. Finally, because EPA is proposing to approve the Rule SP for PCP, EPA is also proposing to approve a severable portion of the January 3, 2000, submittal concerning the Texas Senate Bill 7 (SB7) permitting program for grandfathered and electing electric generating facilities (EGFs). All of the Texas SB7 EGFs permitting program provisions have been approved as part of the Texas NSR SIP except for this severable portion. This severable portion allowing for the use of the Rule SP for PCP for permitting of collateral emission increases is being proposed for approval as meeting the requirements for a Minor NSR SIP revision. EPA is proposing these actions under section 110 of the Federal Clean Air Act (the Act or CAA) through a direct final rulemaking.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is providing notice that it has responded to a petition for reconsideration of a rule published in the Federal Register on August 5, 2013, that promulgated the initial air quality designations for the 2010 Primary Sulfur Dioxide (SO2) National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) for certain areas in the United States. The rule is titled, ``Air Quality Designations for the 2010 SO2 Primary NAAQS.'' Subsequent to publishing the rule, the EPA received three petitions requesting that the EPA reconsider its designation decisions for certain areas. This document announces the EPA's response to one of those petitions: a petition from U.S. Steel requesting the EPA to reconsider its designation decision for Detroit, Michigan. A subsequent document will announce the EPA's response to the other two petitions. The EPA carefully considered the U.S. Steel's petition and supporting information, along with information contained in the rulemaking docket, in reaching its decision on the petition. The EPA denied the U.S. Steel's petition for reconsideration in a letter to the petitioner dated March 11, 2014. The letter explains the EPA's reasons for the denial. The petitioner also requested that the EPA stay the effectiveness of the designations rule, pending reconsideration. Because the EPA denied the reconsideration request, the EPA also denied the stay request.