[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 39 (Thursday, February 27, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Page 8952]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-4891]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-5695-6]


Air Pollution Control; Proposed Actions on Clean Air Act Grants 
to the Ventura County Air Pollution Control District

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Proposed determination with request for comments and notice of 
opportunity for public hearing.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. EPA has made a proposed determination that a 
reduction in expenditures of non-Federal funds for the Ventura County 
Air Pollution Control District (APCD) in Ventura, California is the 
result of a non-selective reduction in expenditures. This 
determination, when final, will permit Ventura County APCD to keep the 
financial assistance awarded to it by EPA for FY-96 under section 
105(c) of the Clean Air Act (CAA).

DATES: Comments and/or requests for a public hearing must be received 
by EPA at the address stated below by March 31, 1997.

ADDRESSES: All comments and/or requests for a public hearing should be 
mailed to: Sara Bartholomew, Grants and Program Integration Office 
(AIR-8), Air Division, U.S. EPA Region 9, 75 Hawthorne Street, San 
Francisco, California 94105-3901; FAX (415) 744-1076.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sara Bartholomew, Grants and Program 
Integration Office (AIR-8), Air Division, U.S. EPA Region 9, 75 
Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, California 94105-3901 at (415) 744-
1250.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the authority of Section 105 of the 
CAA, EPA provides financial assistance (grants) to the Ventura County 
APCD, whose jurisdiction includes Ventura County in southern 
California, to aid in the operation of its air pollution control 
programs. In FY-96, EPA awarded the Ventura County APCD $1,398,500, 
which represented approximately 22% of Ventura's budget.

    Section 105(c)(1) of the CAA, 42 U.S.C. 7405(c)(1), provides that 
``[n]o agency shall receive any grant under this section during any 
fiscal year when its expenditures of non-Federal funds for recurrent 
expenditures for air pollution control programs will be less than its 
expenditures were for such programs during the preceding fiscal year. 
In order for [EPA] to award grants under this section in a timely 
manner each fiscal year, [EPA] shall compare an agency's prospective 
expenditure level to that of its second preceding year.'' EPA may still 
award financial assistance to an agency not meeting this requirement, 
however, if EPA, ``after notice and opportunity for public hearing, 
determines that a reduction in expenditures is attributable to a non-
selective reduction in the expenditures in the programs of all 
Executive branch agencies of the applicable unit of Government.'' CAA 
Section 105(c)(2). These statutory requirements are repeated in EPA's 
implementing regulations at 40 CFR section 35.210(a).
    In its FY-96 Section 105 application, which EPA reviewed in early 
1996, the Ventura County APCD projected expenditures of non-Federal 
funds for recurrent expenditures (or its maintenance of effort (MOE)) 
of $4,905,690. This projected MOE was not sufficient to meet the MOE 
requirements of the CAA, i.e. it was not equal to or greater than the 
MOE for the previous year (FY-95), which was $4,928,948 according to 
the Financial Status Report (FSR) for FY-95. Furthermore, in January of 
1997 the Ventura County APCD submitted to EPA the FSR for FY-96, which 
shows that the actual FY-96 MOE was $4,588,325. This amount represents 
a shortfall of $340,623 from the MOE for FY-95. In order for the 
Ventura County APCD to be eligible to keep its FY-96 grant, EPA must 
make a determination under Sec. 105(c)(2).
    The Ventura County APCD is a single-purpose agency whose primary 
source of funding is emission fee revenue. It is the ``unit of 
Government'' for Sec. 105(c)(2) purposes. The reason for the lower MOE 
level in FY-96 is a series of efficiencies that Ventura County APCD has 
implemented. Ventura has provided to Region 9 documentation which shows 
that it has been able to reduce its administrative expenditures in its 
programs through cost saving measures which do not affect the 
performance of its air programs or reduce its expenditures for 
substantive environmental program activities. For example, Ventura has 
reduced indirect costs paid to the County by $95,000 and reduced the 
need for outside contracts by $70,000 by getting weather forecast 
information free from the Internet. These cost saving measures were 
taken not because fee revenues had declined, but because Ventura wanted 
to operate more efficiently.
    Fee revenues in Ventura APCD are, however, projected to decrease 
significantly over the next few years because emissions will decrease. 
In order to avoid a future shortfall in revenue, Ventura has taken the 
savings generated by the efficiencies and placed them in a savings or 
dedicated reserve account. This account is dedicated to support only 
the District's air program, and would be used to cover shortfalls in 
meeting its MOE requirement in future years, as needed.
    Consistent with the 105 program requirements, Ventura will not use 
federal funds to supplant local funds that are currently available for 
the program. The district will continue to operate its program at its 
current level as long as the fee revenues continue at their present 
pace. If the revenues drop, the district will tap the savings or 
reserve account to supplement fee revenue losses.
    In summary, Ventura County APCD's MOE reductions resulted from a 
series of efficiency measures and the district has created a strategy 
to offset projected future loss of fee revenues with current savings. 
EPA proposes to determine that the Ventura County APCD's lower FY-96 
MOE level meets the Section 105(c)(2) criteria as resulting from a non-
selective reduction of expenditures. Pursuant to 40 CFR Section 35.210, 
this determination will allow the Ventura County APCD to keep the funds 
received from EPA for FY-96.
    This notice constitutes a request for public comment and an 
opportunity for public hearing as required by the Clean Air Act. All 
written comments received by March 31, 1997 on this proposal will be 
considered. EPA will conduct a public hearing on this proposal only if 
a written request for such is received by EPA at the address above by 
March 31, 1997.
    If no written request for a hearing is received, EPA will proceed 
to the final determination. While notice of the final determination 
will not be published in the Federal Register, copies of the 
determination can be obtained by sending a written request to Sara 
Bartholomew at the above address.

    Dated: February 11, 1997.
David P. Howekamp,
Director, Air and Toxics Division, U.S. EPA, Region 9.
[FR Doc. 97-4891 Filed 2-26-97; 8:45 am]
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