[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 83 (Monday, May 1, 1995)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 21045-21047]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-10613]



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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[CA 122-1-6982a; FRL-5198-5]


Approval and Promulgation of Implementation Plans; California 
State Implementation Plan Revision, Santa Barbara County Nonattainment 
Area, Transportation Control Measure Replacement

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Direct final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking direct 
final action to approve a revision to the California State 
Implementation Plan (SIP) for ozone for Santa Barbara County, which was 
submitted to EPA on November 14, 1994. This direct final approval 
action deletes a transportation control measure (TCM) from the 
federally-approved 1982 California ozone SIP and replaces it with a TCM 
from the state-adopted 1994 California ozone SIP. The intended effect 
of direct final approval of this SIP revision is to control emissions 
of ozone precursors in accordance with the requirements of the Clean 
Air Act, as amended in 1990 (CAA or 1990 Act).

DATES: This direct final action is effective on June 30, 1995 unless 
adverse or critical comments are received by May 31, 1995. If the 
effective date is delayed, a timely notice will be published in the 
Federal Register.

ADDRESSES: Copies of the State submittal and EPA's technical support 
document are available for public inspection at EPA's Region IX office 
during normal business hours. Copies of the submitted SIP revision are 
available for inspection at the following locations:

Mobile Sources Section (A-2-1), Air and Toxics Division, U.S. 
Environmental Protection Agency, Region IX, 75 Hawthorne Street, San 
Francisco, CA 94105
Environmental Protection Agency, Air Docket (6102), ANR 443, 401 ``M'' 
Street SW., Washington, DC 20460
California Air Resources Board, 2020 ``L'' Street, Sacramento, CA 92123
Santa Barbara County Air Pollution Control District, 26 Castillian 
Drive B-23, Goleta, CA 93117

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Deborah Schechter, Mobile Sources 
Section, Air and Toxics Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 
Region IX, 75 Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, CA 94105, Telephone: 
(415) 744-1227.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    On March 3, 1978, Santa Barbara County was designated an ozone 
nonattainment area by EPA under the provisions of the Clean Air Act, as 
amended in 1977. 43 FR 8964, 40 CFR 81.305. On December 31, 1982 the 
State of California submitted the 1982 ozone SIP for Santa Barbara 
County.
    EPA approved California's 1982 ozone SIP for Santa Barbara County 
and published the Federal Register document on December 20, 1983 (48 FR 
56215). The 1982 Santa Barbara County SIP, or Air Quality Attainment 
Plan (AQAP), submitted in 1982 included nine TCMs. One of these was the 
Goleta Transit Center, a transit center with limited park-and-ride 
capability in downtown Goleta. No emission reduction credit was claimed 
for this TCM in the 1982 AQAP. According to the Santa Barbara County 
Association of Governments (SBCAG), the Goleta Transit Center and its 
ancillary park-and-ride lot were constructed in 1980 and operated until 
1985. The facilities were closed and sold by the Santa Barbara 
Metropolitan Transit District (SBMTD) in October 1985 due to 
insufficient usage.
    On November 15, 1990, the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 (1990 
Act) were enacted. Pub. L. 101-549, 104 Stat. 2399, codified at 42 
U.S.C. 7401-7671q. On November 14, 1994, the California Air Resources 
Board (CARB) submitted the 1994 ozone SIP to EPA. The portion of this 
SIP for the Santa Barbara County nonattainment area, the 1994 Clean Air 
Plan (CAP), stated that the TCMs in the 1994 CAP superseded those in 
the 1982 AQAP. The 1994 CAP was adopted by the Santa Barbara County Air 
Pollution Control District (SBAPCD) on November 2, 1994 and later by 
CARB on November 14, 1994.
    On January 18, 1995, the SBAPCD provided a letter to EPA requesting 
expedited rulemaking action to replace the Goleta Transit Center TCM in 
the 1982 AQAP with TCM-5, Improve Commuter Public Transit Service, in 
the 1994 CAP.
    In a letter to the State dated March 24, 1995, EPA found the 
submittal of TCM-5 complete.

II. Summary and Evaluation of SIP Revision

    Section 176(c) of the Clean Air Act (CAA) prohibits any 
metropolitan planning organization (MPO) designated under section 134 
of title 23 of the United States Code, from approving any 
transportation project, program, or plan which does not conform to a 
SIP approved under section 110 of the CAA. The federal transportation 
conformity regulation (40 CFR part 51, subpart T) implements the 
transportation-related requirements of section 176(c). Section 51.418 
of the regulation requires the transportation plan and program to 
provide for the timely implementation of transportation control 
measures (TCMs) from the applicable federally-approved implementation 
plan. A TCM is defined in section 51.392 as any measure that is 
specifically identified and committed to in the applicable 
implementation plan that is either one of the types listed in section 
108 of the CAA, or any other measure for the purpose of reducing 
emissions or concentration of air pollutants from transportation 
sources by reducing vehicle use or changing traffic flow or congestion 
conditions. [[Page 21046]] 
    Under the federal transportation conformity rule, before an MPO or 
the Department of Transportation (DOT) can approve a transportation 
plan or program, a conformity determination must be made which shows 
timely implementation of all of the TCMs in the approved SIP and 
demonstrates that all obstacles to TCM implementation have been 
removed. In the case of Santa Barbara County, the nine TCMs identified 
in the 1982 SIP must meet the timely implementation criterion in order 
for the transportation plan and program to be approved and projects to 
be funded. Because the Goleta Transit Center was implemented but was 
later discontinued, this TCM cannot be found to meet the criterion of 
timely implementation.
    The preamble to the conformity regulation at 58 FR 62198 states 
that if the original project sponsor or the cooperative planning 
process decides not to implement the TCM or decides to replace it with 
another TCM, a SIP revision which removes the TCM will be necessary 
before plans and programs may be found in conformity. (In order to be 
approved by EPA, such a SIP revision must include substitute measures 
that achieve emissions reductions sufficient to meet all applicable 
requirements of the CAA, including section 110(l).)
    In order to meet the requirement of the conformity regulation for 
timely implementation of TCMs and to enable FHWA to approve SBCAG's 
transportation plan and program, Santa Barbara County and the State of 
California have opted to revise the SIP to delete the Goleta Transit 
Center TCM from the SIP and replace the measure with an alternative TCM 
for which timely implementation can be demonstrated. On November 14, 
1994, California submitted a SIP revision for Santa Barbara County 
which replaces the Goleta Transit Center TCM with TCM-5, Improve 
Commuter Public Transit Service.
    The state-adopted 1994 SIP commits to implement the following 
levels of transit service associated with TCM-5:
    1. SBMTD Isla Vista/Santa Barbara City College (SBCC) Express 
Service: SBMTD will continue to operate an express bus line between 
Isla Vista and SBCC (about 25 miles). The service was initiated in 
September 1993.
    2. SBMTD Downtown Waterfront Shuttle Service and Expansion: SBMTD 
will continue to provide electric shuttle service along State Street 
and on the Waterfront in the City of Santa Barbara. In addition, SBMTD 
will purchase two additional electric-powered buses to expand this 
service.
    3. APCD Clean Air Express and Expansion: The SBAPCD will continue 
to operate compressed natural gas (CNG) commuter bus service from the 
northern county and Ventura County into Santa Barbara. Four new buses, 
for a total of nine, will be added to this service.
    4. Santa Maria Area Transit (SMAT) New Service Lines and Expansion: 
SMAT will maintain new Route 6 which was added in 1993. Another route, 
Route 7, will be added to this service. In addition, SMAT will purchase 
one new CNG bus to serve Route 7.
    5. Santa Ynez Transit Expansion: A new electric bus will be 
purchased for expansion of fixed route service in the Santa Ynez 
Valley.
    6. Santa Barbara Rail Service Expansion (AMTRAK): Two additional 
trains per day are planned between Santa Barbara and San Diego. 
Improvements to the existing Santa Barbara rail station have also been 
programmed to support the service expansion.
    The SIP anticipates a reduction of 3,301 daily vehicle trips, or a 
total of 45,410 daily VMT in 1996 from the implementation of TCM-5. The 
reduction in vehicle trips and VMT is estimated to lead to emission 
reductions of 36.2 kg ROG/day and 73.1 kg NOX/day in 1996. The 
1982 ozone SIP took no emission reduction credit for the Goleta Transit 
Center. SBMTD survey data indicated that an average of seven persons 
per day were using the transit center and the park-and-ride lot was 
providing free parking for patrons of nearby businesses. Because TCM-5 
is expected to result in significantly greater reductions in vehicle 
trips, VMT, and emissions than the Goleta Transit Center, the SIP 
revision does not weaken the federally-approved 1982 SIP.

III. EPA's Action

    This action approves TCM-5, contained in the California ozone SIP 
for Santa Barbara County submitted to EPA by the State of California on 
November 14, 1994. The action also deletes the Goleta Transit Center 
from the 1982 ozone SIP. This latter TCM is no longer subject to the 
timely implementation criterion of the conformity regulation. EPA has 
evaluated the submitted TCM and has determined that it is consistent 
with the CAA, EPA regulations, and EPA policy. Therefore, TCM-5 in 
Santa Barbara's SIP revision is being approved under section 110(k)(3) 
of the CAA as meeting the requirements of sections 110(a) and (l) and 
part D. Today's action does not affect the remainder of the submitted 
1994 ozone SIP revision for Santa Barbara County. EPA will take 
separate action on the bulk of Santa Barbara's 1994 ozone SIP revision 
in future rulemaking.
    Nothing in this action should be construed as permitting or 
allowing or establishing a precedent for any future implementation 
plan. Each request for revision to the state implementation plan shall 
be considered separately in light of specific technical, economic, and 
environmental factors and in relation to relevant statutory and 
regulatory requirements.
    EPA is publishing this notice without prior proposal because the 
Agency views this as a noncontroversial amendment and anticipates no 
adverse comments. However, in a separate document in this Federal 
Register publication, the EPA is proposing to approve the SIP revision 
should adverse or critical comments be filed. This action will be 
effective June 30, 1995, unless, by May 31, 1995, adverse or critical 
comments are received.
    If the EPA receives such comments, this action will be withdrawn 
before the effective date by publishing a subsequent document that will 
withdraw the final action. All public comments received will then be 
addressed in a subsequent final rule based a separate proposed rule. 
The EPA will not institute a second comment period on this action. Any 
parties interested in commenting on this action should do so at this 
time. If no such comments are received, the public is advised that this 
action will be effective June 30, 1995.

IV. Regulatory Process

    This action has been classified as a Table 2 Action by the Regional 
Administrator under the procedures published in the Federal Register on 
January 19, 1989 (54 FR 2214-2225), as revised by an October memorandum 
from Michael H. Shapiro, Acting Assistant Administrator for Air and 
Radiation.
    Under the Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. 600 et seq., EPA 
must prepare a regulatory flexibility analysis assessing the impact of 
any proposed or final rule on small entities. 5 U.S.C. 603 and 604. 
Alternatively, EPA may certify that the rule will not have a 
significant impact on a substantial number of small entities. Small 
entities include small businesses, small not-for-profit enterprises and 
government entities with jurisdiction over population of less than 
50,000.
    SIP approvals under sections 110 and 301(a) and subchapter I, Part 
D of the CAA do not create any new requirements, but simply approve 
[[Page 21047]] requirements that the State is already imposing. 
Therefore, because the Federal SIP-approval does not impose any new 
requirements, I certify that it does not have a significant impact on 
any small entities affected. Moreover, due to the nature of the 
Federal-state relationship under the CAA, preparation of a regulatory 
flexibility analysis would constitute Federal inquiry into the economic 
reasonableness of state action. The CAA forbids EPA to base its actions 
concerning SIPs on such grounds. Union Electric Co. v. U.S. E.P.A., 427 
U.S. 246, 256-66 (S. Ct. 1976); 42 U.S.C. 7410 (a)(2). The OMB has 
exempted this action from review under Executive Order 12866.

V. Unfunded Mandates

    Under sections 202, 203 and 205 of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act 
of 1995 (``Unfunded Mandates Act''), signed into law on March 22, 1995, 
EPA must undertake various actions in association with proposed or 
final rules that include a Federal mandate that may result in estimated 
costs of $100 million or more to the private sector, or to State, 
local, or tribal governments in the aggregate.
    Through submission of this state implementation plan revision, the 
State and any affected local or tribal governments have elected to 
adopt the program provided for under sections 110 and 182(b) of the 
Clean Air Act. These rules may bind State, local, and tribal 
governments to perform certain actions and also require the private 
sector to perform certain duties. To the extent that the rules being 
approved by this action will impose any mandate upon the State, local, 
or tribal governments either as the owner or operator of a source or as 
a regulator, or would impose any mandate upon the private sector, EPA's 
action will impose no new requirements; such sources are already 
subject to these requirements under State law. Accordingly, no 
additional costs to State, local, or tribal governments, or to the 
private sector, result from this action. EPA has also determined that 
this direct final action does not include a mandate that may result in 
estimated costs of $100 million or more to State, local, or tribal 
governments in the aggregate or to the private sector.

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

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

    Note: Incorporation by reference of the State Implementation 
Plan for the State of California was approved by the Director of the 
Federal Register on July 1, 1982.

    Dated: April 19, 1995.
Jeff Zelikson,
Acting Regional Administrator.

    Subpart F of part 52, chapter I, title 40 of the Code of Federal 
Regulations is amended as follows:

PART 52--[AMENDED]

    1. The authority citation for part 52 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401-7671q.

Subpart F--California

    2. Section 52.220 is amended by adding paragraph (c)(211) to read 
as follows:


Sec. 52.220  Identification of plan.

* * * * *
    (c) * * *
    (211) Revised Clean Air Plans for ozone for the following APCDs 
submitted on November 14, 1994, by the Governor's designee.
    (i) Incorporation by reference.
    (A) Santa Barbara Air Pollution Control District
    (1) TCM-5, Improve Commuter Public Transit Service, adopted on 
November 2, 1994
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 95-10613 Filed 4-28-95; 8:45 am]
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