[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 139 (Thursday, July 18, 1996)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 37390-37393]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-18203]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52

[CA 071-0005a; FRL-5464-6]


Approval and Promulgation of Implementation Plans; California 
State Implementation Plan Revision, El Dorado County Air Pollution 
Control District, Placer County Air Pollution Control District, and 
Ventura County Air Pollution Control District

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Direct final rule.

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SUMMARY: EPA is taking direct final action on revisions to the 
California State Implementation Plan (SIP). The revisions concern rules 
from the following air districts: El Dorado County Air Pollution 
Control District (EDCAPCD), Placer County Air Pollution Control 
District (PCAPCD), and Ventura County Air Pollution Control District 
(VCAPCD). This approval action will incorporate these rules into the 
federally approved SIP. The intended effect of approving these rules is 
to regulate emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in 
accordance with the requirements of the Clean Air Act, as amended in 
1990 (CAA or the Act). The rules control VOC emissions from adhesives 
and sealants, architectural coatings, and wood products coatings. Thus, 
EPA is finalizing the approval of these revisions into the California 
SIP under provisions of the CAA regarding EPA action on SIP submittals, 
SIPs for national primary and secondary ambient air quality standards 
and plan requirements for nonattainment areas.

DATES: This action is effective on September 16, 1996 unless adverse or 
critical comments are received by August 19, 1996. If the effective 
date is delayed, a timely notice will be published in the Federal 
Register.

ADDRESSES: Copies of the rule revisions and EPA's evaluation report for 
each rule are available for public inspection at EPA's Region IX office 
during normal business hours. Copies of the submitted rule revisions 
are available for inspection at the following locations:

Rulemaking Section (A-5-3), Air and Toxics Division, U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency, Region IX, 75 Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, CA 
94105.
Environmental Protection Agency, Air Docket (6102), 401 ``M'' Street, 
S.W., Washington, D.C. 20460.
California Air Resources Board, Stationary Source Division, Rule 
Evaluation Section, 2020 ``L'' Street, Sacramento, CA 92123-1095.
El Dorado County Air Pollution Control District, 2850 Fairlane Court, 
Placerville, CA 95667.
Placer County Air Pollution Control District, 11464 B Avenue, Auburn, 
CA 95603.
Ventura County Air Pollution Control District, 669 County Square Drive, 
Ventura, CA 93003.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Nikole Reaksecker, Rulemaking Section 
(A-5-3), Air and Toxics Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 
Region IX, 75 Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, CA 94105, Telephone: 
(415) 744-1187.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Applicability

    The rules being approved into the California SIP include: EDCAPCD 
Rule 236--Adhesives, EDCAPCD Rule 215--Architectural Coatings, EDCAPCD 
Rule 237--Wood Products Coatings, PCAPCD Rule 235--Adhesives, PCAPCD 
Rule 218--Architectural Coatings, and VCAPCD Rule 74.20--Adhesives and 
Sealants. These rules were submitted by the California Air Resources 
Board (CARB) to EPA on October 13, 1995, May 24, 1995, November 30, 
1994, and November 18, 1993.

Background

    On March 3, 1978, EPA promulgated a list of ozone nonattainment 
areas under the provisions of the Clean Air Act, as amended in l977 
(1977 Act or pre-amended Act), that included the Sacramento Metro 
(including portions of El Dorado and Placer counties) and Ventura 
County areas. 43 FR 8964, 40 CFR 81.305. On May 26, 1988, EPA notified 
the Governor of California, pursuant to section 110(a)(2)(H) of the 
1977 Act, that the EDCAPCD, PCAPCD and VCAPCD portions of the 
California SIP were inadequate to attain and maintain the ozone 
standard and requested that deficiencies in the existing SIP be 
corrected (EPA's SIP-

[[Page 37391]]

Call). On November 15, 1990, the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 were 
enacted. Pub. L. 101-549, 104 Stat. 2399, codified at 42 U.S.C. 7401-
7671q. In amended section 182(a)(2)(A) of the CAA, Congress statutorily 
adopted the requirement that nonattainment areas fix their deficient 
reasonably available control technology (RACT) rules for ozone and 
established a deadline of May 15, 1991 for states to submit corrections 
of those deficiencies.
    Section 182(a)(2)(A) applies to areas designated as nonattainment 
prior to enactment of the amendments and classified as marginal or 
above as of the date of enactment. It requires such areas to adopt and 
correct RACT rules pursuant to pre-amended section 172 (b) as 
interpreted in pre-amendment guidance.1 EPA's SIP-Call used that 
guidance to indicate the necessary corrections for specific 
nonattainment areas. The Sacramento Metro Area and the Ventura County 
Area are classified as severe;2 therefore, these areas were 
subject to the RACT fix-up requirement and the May 15, 1991 deadline.
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    \1\ Among other things, the pre-amendment guidance consists of 
those portions of the proposed post-1987 ozone and carbon monoxide 
policy that concern RACT, 52 FR 45044 (November 24, 1987); ``Issues 
Relating to VOC Regulation Cutpoints, Deficiencies, and Deviations, 
Clarification to Appendix D of November 24, 1987 Federal Register 
Notice'' (Blue Book) (notice of availability was published in the 
Federal Register on May 25, 1988); and the existing control 
technique guidelines (CTGs).
    \2\ The Sacramento Metro and the Ventura County Areas retained 
their designation of nonattainment and were classified by operation 
of law pursuant to sections 107(d) and 181(a) upon the date of 
enactment of the CAA. See 55 FR 56694 (November 6, 1991). The 
Sacramento Metro Area was reclassified from serious to severe on 
April 25, 1995 [60 FR 20237].
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    The State of California submitted many revised RACT rules for 
incorporation into its SIP. The following table includes the dates that 
the districts adopted the rules, the dates that CARB submitted the 
rules to EPA, and the dates that the rules were found complete pursuant 
to EPA's completeness criteria that are set forth in 40 CFR part 51 
Appendix V.3
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    \3\ EPA adopted the completeness criteria on February 16, 1990 
(55 FR 5830) and, pursuant to section 110(k)(1)(A) of the CAA, 
revised the criteria on August 26, 1991 (56 FR 42216).

------------------------------------------------------------------------
              Rule                  Adoption    Submittal   Completeness
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EDCAPCD 215 Architectural                                               
 Coatings.......................      9/27/94     11/30/94       1/30/95
EDCAPCD 236 Adhesives...........      7/25/95     10/13/95      11/28/95
EDCAPCD 237 Wood Products                                               
 Coatings.......................      6/27/95     10/13/95      11/28/95
PCAPCD 218 Architectural                                                
 Coatings.......................       2/9/95      5/24/95       7/24/95
PCAPCD 235 Adhesives............       6/8/95     10/13/95      11/28/95
VCAPCD 74.20 Adhesives and                                              
 Sealants.......................       6/8/93     11/18/93      12/23/93
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    This notice addresses EPA's direct-final action for the above-
mentioned rules.
    These rules control VOC emissions from adhesives, architectural 
coatings, and wood products coatings. VOCs contribute to the production 
of ground level ozone and smog. These rules were originally adopted as 
part of the districts' effort to achieve the National Ambient Air 
Quality Standard (NAAQS) for ozone and in response to EPA's SIP-Call 
and the section 182(a)(2)(A) CAA requirement. The following is EPA's 
evaluation and final action for these rules.

EPA Evaluation and Action

    In determining the approvability of a VOC rule, EPA must evaluate 
the rule for consistency with the requirements of the CAA and EPA 
regulations, as found in section 110 and Part D of the CAA and 40 CFR 
part 51 (Requirements for Preparation, Adoption, and Submittal of 
Implementation Plans). The EPA interpretation of these requirements, 
which forms the basis for today's action, appears in the various EPA 
policy guidance documents listed in footnote 1. Among those provisions 
is the requirement that a VOC rule must, at a minimum, provide for the 
implementation of RACT for stationary sources of VOC emissions. This 
requirement was carried forth from the pre-amended Act.
    For the purpose of assisting state and local agencies in developing 
RACT rules, EPA prepared a series of Control Technique Guideline (CTG) 
documents. The CTGs are based on the underlying requirements of the Act 
and specify the presumptive norms for what is RACT for specific source 
categories. Under the CAA, Congress ratified EPA's use of these 
documents, as well as other Agency policy, for requiring States to 
``fix-up'' their RACT rules. See section 182(a)(2)(A). EDCAPCD Rules 
215, 236, and 237, PCAPCD Rules 218 and 235, and VCAPCD Rule 74.20 
control emissions from source categories for which EPA has not 
finalized CTGs. Accordingly, these rules were evaluated against the 
interpretation of EPA policy found in the Blue Book, referred to in 
footnote 1, and against other EPA policy including the EPA Region 9/
CARB document entitled: Guidance Document for Correcting VOC Rule 
Deficiencies (April 1991). EDCAPCD Rule 237 was also evaluated against 
EPA's draft CTG for wood furniture finishing and cleaning operations, 
released for comments on September 7, 1995 in the Federal Register, 60 
FR 46595. EDCAPCD Rule 215 and PCAPCD Rule 218 were evaluated against 
the CARB/CAPCOA Suggested Control Measure for Architectural Coatings 
(July 1989). In general, these guidance documents have been set forth 
to ensure that VOC rules are fully enforceable and strengthen or 
maintain the SIP.
    EDCAPCD's submitted Rule 215--Architectural Coatings--covers the 
Lake Tahoe and the Mountain Counties Air Basin portions of the SIP. 
Rule 215 includes the following major provisions:
     exemptions for coatings manufactured for use outside the 
District, coatings supplied in containers with capacities of one liter 
or less, and emulsion-type bituminous pavement sealers,
     VOC content limits for architectural coatings,
     prohibitions of sale and specification, and
     storage and labelling requirements.
    EDCAPCD's submitted Rule 236--Adhesives--is a new rule for El 
Dorado County that includes the following major provisions:
     VOC content limits for adhesives, adhesive primers, and 
aerosol adhesives,
     capture and control efficiency requirements for add-on 
exhaust control systems,
     application equipment requirements, and
     recordkeeping and record retention requirements.
    EDCAPCD's submitted Rule 237--Wood Products Coatings--is a new rule 
for El Dorado County that includes the following major provisions:

[[Page 37392]]

     application equipment requirements,
     VOC content limits for wood products coatings and 
strippers,
     capture and control efficiency requirements for add-on 
exhaust control systems,
     a prohibition of specification, and
     surface preparation, clean-up, labeling and recordkeeping 
requirements.
    PCAPCD's submitted Rule 218--Architectural Coatings--covers the 
Lake Tahoe, the Sacramento Valley, and the Mountain Counties Air Basin 
portions of the SIP. Rule 218 is a new rule for the Lake Tahoe and the 
Sacramento Valley Air Basins. The rule includes the following major 
provisions:
     exemptions for coatings manufactured for use outside the 
District, coatings supplied in containers with capacities of one liter 
or less, and emulsion-type bituminous pavement sealers,
     VOC content limits for architectural coatings,
     prohibitions of sale and specification, and
     labelling and recordkeeping requirements.
    PCAPCD's submitted Rule 235--Adhesives--is a new rule covering only 
the Sacramento Valley Air Basin portion of Placer County. Rule 235 
includes the following major provisions:
     exemptions for low specific operations,
     VOC content limits for adhesives, primers, sealants, 
aerosol adhesives, surface preparation solvents, and clean-up 
materials,
     capture and control efficiency requirements for add-on 
exhaust control systems,
     prohibitions of sales and specification, and
     recordkeeping and record retention requirements.
    VCAPCD's submitted Rule 74.20--Adhesives and Sealants--is a new 
rule for Ventura County that includes the following major provisions:
     reactive organic compound (ROC) content limits for 
adhesives, sealants, primers, adhesive aerosols, surface preparation 
materials, and clean-up solvents,
     surface preparation, storage, clean-up, and stripping 
requirements,
     capture and control efficiency requirements for add-on 
exhaust control systems,
     restricted use of 1,1,1-trichloroethane and methylene 
chloride,
     prohibitions of sales and specification,
     exemptions for specific operations, and
     monitoring, recordkeeping and record retention 
requirements.
    EPA has evaluated the submitted rules and has determined that they 
are consistent with the CAA, EPA regulations, and EPA policy. 
Therefore, EDCAPCD Rule 236--Adhesives, EDCAPCD Rule 215--Architectural 
Coatings, EDCAPCD Rule 237--Wood Products Coatings, PCAPCD Rule 235--
Adhesives, PCAPCD Rule 218--Architectural Coatings, and VCAPCD Rule 
74.20--Adhesives and Sealants, are being approved under section 
110(k)(3) of the CAA as meeting the requirements of section 110(a) and 
Part D.
    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 September 16, 1996, unless, within 30 days of its 
publication, 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 notice that will 
withdraw the final action. All public comments received will then be 
addressed in a subsequent final rule based on this action serving as a 
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 September 16, 1996.

Regulatory Process

    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. Secs. 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 
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).

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 or plan 
revision, the State and any affected local or tribal governments have 
elected to adopt the program provided for under Part D 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. The rules being approved by this action will impose no 
new requirements because affected sources are already subject to these 
regulations under State law. Therefore, 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.
    This action has been classified as a Table 3 action for signature 
by the Regional Administrator under the procedures published in the 
Federal Register on January 19, 1989 (54 FR 2214-2225), as revised by a 
July 10, 1995 memorandum from Mary Nichols, Assistant Administrator for 
Air and Radiation. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has 
exempted this regulatory action from Executive Order 12866 review.

[[Page 37393]]

Submission to Congress and the General Accounting Office

    Under section 801(a)(1)(A) of the Administrative Procedure Act 
(APA) as amended by the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness 
Act of 1996, EPA submitted a report containing this rule and other 
required information to the U.S. Senate, the U.S. House of 
Representatives and the Comptroller General of the General Accounting 
Office prior to publication of this rule in today's Federal Register. 
This rule is not a ``major rule'' as defined by section 804(2) of the 
APA as amended.

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

    Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Hydrocarbons, 
Incorporation by reference, Intergovernmental relations, 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 18, 1996.
Felicia Marcus,
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 paragraphs 
(c)(194)(i)(A)(5), (207)(i)(B)(3), (220)(i)(B)(1), and (225)(i) (B)(4) 
and (C)(1) to read as follows:


Sec. 52.220   Identification of plan.

* * * * *
    (c) * * *
    (194) * * *
    (i) * * *
    (A) * * *
    (5) Rule 74.20, adopted on June 8, 1993.
* * * * *
    (207) * * *
    (i) * * *
    (B) * * *
    (3) Rule 215, adopted on September 27, 1994.
* * * * *
    (220) * * *
    (i) * * *
    (B) * * *
    (1) Rule 218, adopted on February 9, 1995.
* * * * *
    (225) * * *
    (i) * * *
    (B) * * *
    (4) Rule 235, adopted on June 8, 1995.
* * * * *
    (C) * * *
    (1) Rules 236 and 237, adopted on July 25, 1995 and June 27, 1995, 
respectively.
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 96-18203 Filed 7-17-96; 8:45 am]
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