[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 226 (Monday, November 24, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 62592-62593]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-30820]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-5927-1]


Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; 
Comment Request; Regulation of Fuels and Fuel Additives, Fuel Quality 
Regulations for Highway Diesel Fuel Sold in 1993 and Later Calendar 
Years ICR Renewal

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 
et seq.), this notice announces that EPA is planning to submit the 
following proposed and/or continuing Information Collection Request 
(ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB): Regulation of Fuels 
and Fuel Additives, Fuel Quality Regulations for Highway Diesel Fuel 
Sold in 1993 and Later Calendar Years; EPA ICR # 1718.02; OMB No. 2060-
0308; expires 3/31/98. Before submitting the ICR to OMB for review and 
approval, EPA is soliciting comments on specific aspects of the 
proposed information collection as described below.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before January 23, 1998.

ADDRESSES: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Enforcement 
and Compliance Assurance, Office of Regulatory Enforcement (2242A), 401 
M Street SW, Washington, D.C. 20460. Copies of the ICR can be obtained 
free of charge by contacting Ervin Pickell as provided below.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ervin Pickell, Telephone: (303) 969-
6485; Facsimile number: (303) 969-6490; E-MAIL: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

    Affected entities: Entities potentially affected by this action are 
those who act as the transferor or the transferee of red dyed low 
sulfur highway diesel fuel. This is generally fuel terminals, truck 
distributors of such product and tax exempt end users.
    Title: Regulation of Fuels and Fuel Additives, Fuel Quality 
Regulations for Highway Diesel Fuel Sold in 1993 and Later Years (OMB 
Control number 2060-0308; EPA ICR # 1718.02.) expiring 03/31/98.
    Abstract: Section 211(g)(2) of the Clean Air Act (CAA) provides 
that no person shall introduce or cause or allow the introduction into 
any motor vehicle of diesel fuel which contains a concentration of 
sulfur in excess of 0.05% by weight, or which fails to meet a stated 
cetane index or an alternative aromatic level to be prescribed by the 
Administrator. Section 211(i) of the CAA prohibits the manufacture, 
sale, supply, transport or introduction into commerce of motor vehicle 
diesel fuel which fails to meet the quality requirements. The Act 
required the Administrator to promulgate regulations to ``implement and 
enforce'' the quality requirements. Congress specifically provided that 
``The Administrator may require manufacturers and importers of diesel 
fuel not intended for use in motor vehicles to dye such fuel * * * to 
segregate it from motor vehicle diesel fuel.'' The regulatory 
requirements promulgated by EPA are found at 40 CFR Sec. 80.29. The dye 
requirement for high sulfur fuel was required by EPA to help enforce 
the requirement that only low sulfur diesel be used for highway 
vehicles. The dye is an important deterrence to violating the 
Congressionally mandated requirement, especially given the very large 
economic incentive to violate the law (high sulfur diesel is cheaper to 
produce and there are no highway taxes associated with it). Because the 
Internal Revenue Service promulgated a red dye requirement that covers 
both untaxed high sulfur diesel fuel (for off-road use) and untaxed low 
sulfur highway diesel fuel sold to tax-exempt entities, it was 
necessary for the EPA to include in its dye provisions a requirement 
that product transfer documents for the relatively low volume of dyed 
low sulfur fuel that is introduced into commerce state that the product 
is low sulfur tax exempt fuel. Otherwise, the EPA dye requirement would 
have been rendered meaningless since the Agency would not have been 
able to distinguish red dyed high sulfur product from red dyed low 
sulfur tax exempt product. EPA believes the requirement is also useful 
to distributors and end users in assuring their compliance. Since the 
IRS, not the EPA, requires the dye to be added to low sulfur tax exempt 
diesel fuel, the only EPA requirement subject to the ICR is the 
requirement that the customary business practice (CBP) product transfer 
document from the terminal (where the dye is added) to the tax exempt 
end user state that the fuel is dyed low sulfur tax exempt fuel. EPA 
allows industry to use preprinted product codes to provide the 
information. For this limited category of diesel fuel transactions the 
recordkeeping requirement is mandatory and is authorized by section 211 
of the CAA 42 U.S.C. 7545, section 114 of the CAA, 42 U.S.C. 7414 and 
section 208 of the CAA, 42 U.S.C. 7542 and 40 CFR Sec. 80.29. 
Confidentiality provisions are found at 40 CFR Part 2. The requirement, 
which has been in effect for several years, imposes almost no 
measurable annual burden on the affected parties. The transfer 
documents carrying the information are CBP documents. The information 
is preprinted and the truckers and end users have no measurable hourly 
burden associated with receiving and maintaining these CBP documents. 
The proposed ICR utilizes assumptions that are only slightly different 
from the original ICR. The burden statements below mention the basic 
assumptions used.
    An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required 
to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a 
currently valid OMB control number. The OMB control numbers for EPA's 
regulations are listed in 40 CFR part 9 and 48 CFR Chapter 15.
    In addition to this information, you may obtain a copy of the draft 
ICR supporting statement as provided above.
    All parties that must maintain records under the regulation have a 
5 year retention requirement.
    The EPA would like to solicit comments to:
    (i) Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is 
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, 
including whether the information will have practical utility;
    (ii) Evaluate the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden 
of the proposed collection of information, including the validity of 
the methodology and assumptions used;
    (iii) Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information 
to be collected; and
    (iv) Minimize the burden of the collection of information on those 
who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated 
electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic 
submission of responses.
    Burden Statement: For highway diesel fuel terminals the dyed status 
of diesel fuel is reflected in CBP documents that were prepared before 
the diesel sulfur rule was promulgated. There are about

[[Page 62593]]

1,843 entities that add dye to low sulfur non-taxed fuel. The frequency 
of response is estimated to be about 170 loads of fuel released per 
year per terminal. Total burden for all terminals is about 87 hours per 
year. There are no annual operating costs, purchased service costs or 
capital costs.
    Hourly burdens for truckers who transport dyed low sulfur diesel 
fuel: These parties transfer the CBP product transfer documents, which 
is no change from the business practice before the rule's requirement 
was promulgated. There is no measurable hourly burden per response. The 
proposed ICR assumes that about 1,200 truckers haul about 261 loads of 
non-taxed low sulfur diesel fuel per year, and that the CBP transfer 
documents that were used before the diesel sulfur rule was promulgated 
reflect the dyed status of the diesel fuel. As a result, there are no 
measurable additional operating costs, purchased services or capital 
costs.
    Hourly burdens for end users (wholesale-purchaser-consumers of non-
taxed low sulfur diesel fuel): These parties receive the transfer 
documents CBP. There is no measurable hourly burden per response. The 
proposed ICR assumes that about 20,000 end users receive paperwork an 
average of about 15 times each. There are no measurable operating 
costs, purchased services or capital costs.
    Burden means the total time, effort, or financial resources 
expended by persons to generate, maintain, retain, or disclose or 
provide information to or for a Federal agency. This includes the time 
needed to review instructions; develop, acquire, install, and utilize 
technology and systems for the purposes of collecting, validating, and 
verifying information, processing and maintaining information, and 
disclosing and providing information; adjust the existing ways to 
comply with any previously applicable instructions and requirements; 
train personnel to be able to respond to a collection of information; 
search data sources; complete and review the collection of information; 
and transmit or otherwise disclose the information.

    Dated: November 7, 1997.
Sylvia K. Lowrance,
Principal Deputy Assistant Administrator, Office of Enforcement and 
Compliance Assurance.
[FR Doc. 97-30820 Filed 11-21-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P