[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 161 (Monday, August 21, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43468-43469]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-20599]



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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[CA105-5-6895; FRL-5280-7]


Congressional Action Rescinding California Federal Implementation 
Plans; Cancellation of Public Hearing

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of Congressional action; rescission of Federal 
implementation plans; cancellation of public hearing.

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SUMMARY: In response to recently enacted legislation, EPA is announcing 


[[Page 43469]]
the rescission of the Federal implementation plans (FIPs), including 
the regulations issued on February 14, 1995, but not published in the 
Federal Register. EPA is also cancelling a public hearing regarding 
certain of the FIP control measures, which had been scheduled for June 
21, 1995, in Diamond Bar, California.
    The FIPs, including the regulations, were issued to attain, by the 
applicable statutory deadlines, the national ambient air quality 
standards (NAAQS) for ozone in the Sacramento and Ventura nonattainment 
areas, and to attain the NAAQS for ozone and carbon monoxide (CO) in 
the South Coast nonattainment area.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Julia Barrow (415) 744-2434, at the 
Office of Federal Planning (A-1-2), Air and Toxics Division, U.S. EPA, 
Region IX, 75 Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, California, 94105-3901.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In this document, EPA is announcing the 
rescission of the California FIPs, including the regulations, issued on 
February 14, 1995, but not published in the Federal Register. The FIPs 
were prepared in response to court orders requiring EPA to promulgate 
plans and control measures sufficient to attain the ozone NAAQS in 
Sacramento and Ventura and the ozone and CO NAAQS in the South Coast 
(Los Angeles) area of California.
    On April 10, 1995, legislation was enacted relating to the FIPs 
(Public Law 104-6, Defense Supplemental Appropriation, H.R. 889). 
Chapter VII of Title II of this legislation includes the following 
section:

    The Congress finds that the 1990 amendments to the Clean Air Act 
(Public Law 101-549) superseded prior requirements of the Clean Air 
Act regarding the demonstration of attainment of national ambient 
air quality standards for the South Coast, Ventura, and Sacramento 
areas of California and thus eliminated the obligation of the 
Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to promulgate a 
Federal implementation plan under section 110(e) (sic) of the Clean 
Air Act for those areas. Upon the enactment of this Act, any Federal 
implementation plan that has been promulgated by the Administrator 
of the Environmental Protection Agency under the Clean Air Act for 
the South Coast, Ventura, or Sacramento areas of California pursuant 
to a court order or settlement shall be rescinded and shall have no 
further force and effect.

    EPA believes that this section of the legislation effectively 
rescinded and voided the FIP attainment demonstrations and FIP 
regulations (proposed at 59 FR 23263-23605, May 5, 1994, and issued on 
February 14, 1995, as 40 CFR 52 Subpart GGG), by operation of law upon 
enactment. However, to the extent that Congress may have intended EPA 
to act pursuant to the legislation, EPA hereby announces that it has 
withdrawn the FIP notice of final rulemaking, including the FIP 
regulations in their entirety (40 CFR 52.2950 to 52.2975, 40 CFR 
52.3002, and 40 CFR part 52, subpart GGG, appendixes A and B).
    In its final FIP notice, EPA combined action promulgating the FIP 
with action on certain California state implementation plan (SIP) 
provisions. In light of the Congressional action voiding the FIP, EPA 
has had to recast the SIP rulemaking to separate it from the FIP. In 
the Proposed Rules and Final Rules sections of this issue of the 
Federal Register, EPA reissues proposed and final actions on California 
SIP provisions which were also issued on February 14, 1995, in 
association with the FIP action.

    Dated: August 14, 1995.
Carol M. Browner,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 95-20599 Filed 8-18-95; 8:45 am]
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