[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 53 (Friday, March 17, 2000)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 14506-14510]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-6566]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[FL-83-1-200009; FRL-6561-4]


Approval and Promulgation of Implementation Plans; Florida: 
Approval of Revisions to the Florida State Implementation Plan

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Proposed rule.

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SUMMARY: EPA is proposing to approve revisions to the Florida State 
Implementation Plan (SIP) submitted on December 10, 1999, by the State 
of Florida through the Florida Department of Environmental Protection 
(FDEP). This submittal consists of revisions to the ozone air quality 
maintenance plans for the Jacksonville (Duval County) and Southeast 
Florida (Broward, Dade, and Palm Beach Counties) areas to remove the 
emission reduction credits attributable to the Motor Vehicle Inspection 
Program (MVIP) from the future year emission projections contained in 
those plans. Florida submitted technical amendments to this revision on 
January 18, 2000. For the Jacksonville and Southeast Florida areas, 
this revision updates the control strategy by removing emissions credit

[[Page 14507]]

for the MVIP, and as such, transportation conformity must be 
redetermined by the Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs) within 
18 months of the final approval of this action.

DATES: Comments on EPA's proposed action must be received by April 17, 
2000.

ADDRESSES: All comments should be addressed to Joey LeVasseur at the 
EPA, Region 4 Air Planning Branch, 61 Forsyth Street, SW, Atlanta, 
Georgia 30303.
    Copies of the State submittal are available at the following 
addresses for inspection during normal business hours:
    Environmental Protection Agency, Atlanta Federal Center, Region 4 
Air Planning Branch, 61 Forsyth Street S.W., Atlanta, Georgia 30303-
3104.
    Florida Department of Environmental Protection, Twin Towers Office 
Building, 2600 Blair Stone Road, Tallahassee, Florida 32399-2400.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joey LeVasseur at 404/562-9035 (E-
mail: [email protected]).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The following sections: Background, Analysis 
of the State's Submittal, and Final Action, provide additional 
information concerning the revisions to the ozone air quality 
maintenance plans for the Jacksonville and Southeast Florida areas to 
remove the emission reduction credits attributable to the MVIP from the 
future year emission projections contained in those plans.

I. Background

    Upon enactment of the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990, the 
Jacksonville and Southeast Florida areas were classified as 
nonattainment for the one-hour ozone national ambient air quality 
standard (NAAQS). On November 16, 1992, the State of Florida submitted 
comprehensive inventories for volatile organic compound (VOC), oxides 
of nitrogen (NOX), and carbon monoxide emissions from the 
Jacksonville and Southeast Florida areas. The inventories include 
biogenic, area, stationary, and mobile source emissions using 1990 as 
the base year for calculations to demonstrate NAAQS attainment and 
maintenance. The 1990 inventory is considered representative of 
attainment conditions because the one-hour ozone NAAQS was not violated 
during 1990. By 1993, both areas were able to demonstrate attainment of 
the one-hour ozone NAAQS and were able to show compliance with other 
requirements of the Clean Air Act as amended in 1990 (CAA) for 
redesignation.
    On June 23, 1993, the State of Florida through the FDEP requested 
that the Jacksonville area be redesignated from a transitional ozone 
nonattainment area to attainment and on November 8, 1993, the State of 
Florida requested that the Southeast Florida area be redesignated from 
moderate ozone nonattainment to attainment. Approval of the ozone 
maintenance plans into the SIP, in conjunction with EPA's redesignation 
of the two areas to attainment with respect to the 1-hour ozone NAAQS, 
became effective March 6, 1995, for the Jacksonville area and March 25, 
1995, for the Southeast Florida area (40 CFR 81.310).
    The ozone maintenance plans for the two areas, developed pursuant 
to section 175A of the CAA and approved in the SIP, accounted for the 
MVIP in the mobile source emissions projections. The MVIP began April 
1, 1991, in Duval, Palm Beach and Dade Counties and May 1, 1991, in 
Broward County. Currently, the MVIP is a centralized basic inspection 
and maintenance program. The program utilizes an idle emissions test to 
monitor vehicles' emission compliance.

II. Analysis of State's Submittal

    On December 10, 1999, FDEP submitted a revision to the SIP for the 
ozone air quality maintenance plans for the Jacksonville and Southeast 
Florida areas to remove the emission reduction credits attributable to 
the MVIP from the future year emission projections contained in those 
plans. Specifically this action involves a recalculation of the motor 
vehicle emissions budgets (budgets) for the areas, eliminating the 
credit for the MVIP. In this submittal, the State originally used the 
MOBILE 5b model to project mobile source emissions for 2005. The mobile 
source budgets in the maintenance plan were calculated using the MOBILE 
5a model, however the same version of the model must be used for 
comparisons of mobile source emissions. Subsequently, on January 18, 
2000, the State submitted technical amendments to the mobile source 
emission projection calculations. The State recalculated the 2005 
mobile source emissions using the MOBILE 5a model. The change in 
emissions using the MOBILE 5a versus MOBILE 5b models for 2005 was 
negligible.
    The Transportation Conformity regulations, promulgated on November 
24, 1993, established the criteria and procedures for determining 
conformity of transportation activities to the SIP. Under these 
provisions and Title I of the CAA, states may revise their emissions 
budgets at any time through the standard SIP revision process, provided 
that the revised emissions budgets will not adversely affect attainment 
and maintenance of the ozone NAAQS for any milestone year in the 
required time frame. The conformity rule provides states with the 
option to revise the emissions budgets to reallocate emissions among 
sources or between pollutants and their precursors so long as this 
budget maintains total emissions for the area below the attainment 
inventory levels.
    In addition, the SIP revision must not have an adverse impact on 
maintenance of the NAAQS for any criteria pollutant. Guidance on this 
issue is contained in a memorandum dated September 17, 1993, from 
Michael Shapiro, Acting Assistant Administrator for Air and Radiation 
entitled, ``State Implementation Plan Requirements for Areas Submitting 
Requests for Redesignation to Attainment of the Ozone and Carbon 
Monoxide National Ambient Air Quality Standards on or after November 
15, 1992.'' This memo states:
    As a general policy, a State may not relax the adopted and 
implemented SIP upon the area's redesignation to attainment. States 
should continue to implement existing control strategies in order to 
maintain the standard. However, section 175A recognizes that States 
may be able to move SIP measures to the contingency plan upon 
redesignation if the State can adequately demonstrate that such 
action will not interfere with maintenance of the standard.

    In this revision, Florida demonstrates that the area can maintain 
the one-hour ozone NAAQS without the implementation of the MVIP. The 
EPA has reviewed the State's emissions inventory and modeling analyses 
and finds that they meet applicable guidance and requirements. 
Therefore, the State has made the necessary demonstration that the MVIP 
is not necessary to maintain the one-hour ozone NAAQS and that 
attainment of the NAAQS for any other pollutant will not be affected by 
removing the MVIP from the SIP. In accordance with EPA's November 15, 
1992, policy, the State must include the MVIP as a contingency measure 
in the maintenance plan for the redesignated area, which it has done.
    Tables 1 through Table 5, presented after the text in this 
subsection, list the revised budgets and the emissions for point, area, 
biogenic, on-road mobile and non-road mobile sources. The motor vehicle 
emission budgets are derived as a percentage of the 1990 on road 
emissions inventories. Upon final EPA approval, these budgets are to be 
used by the local metropolitan planning organizations and 
transportation authorities to assure that transportation

[[Page 14508]]

plans, programs, and projects are consistent with, and conform to, the 
long-term maintenance of the NAAQS in the Jacksonville and Southeast 
Florida areas. Emissions inventories and budgets for the Jacksonville 
area (Duval County) are listed in Table 1. For the Southeast Florida 
area (Broward, Dade, and Palm Beach), the emissions inventories and 
budgets are based on the three-county totals which are listed in Table 
5. However, in practice, the conformity test can be made for each 
county on the basis of its county-specific portion of the budget. For 
the purposes of conformity, allocation of the emissions inventories and 
budgets for Broward, Dade, and Palm Beach Counties are listed in Table 
2 through Table 4, respectively.

                                   Duval County.--Emissions Inventory Summary
                                                 [Tons per day]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                         VOC                       NOX
                          Category                           ---------------------------------------------------
                                                                  1990         2005         1990         2005
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Point.......................................................        15.60        21.16       101.16        98.40
Area........................................................        51.25        39.24         8.37        14.67
On-Road Mobile..............................................        82.49        44.30        61.40        52.10
Non-Road Mobile.............................................        24.63        29.41        21.07        23.74
Biogenic....................................................       126.70       126.70         0.30         0.30
                                                             ---------------------------------------------------
    Total...................................................       300.67       260.81       192.30       189.21
Motor Vehicle Emission Budget...............................          n/a        44.30          n/a        52.10
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


                                  Broward County.--Emissions Inventory Summary
                                                 [Tons per day]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                         VOC                       NOX
                          Category                           ---------------------------------------------------
                                                                  1990         2005         1990         2005
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Point.......................................................        15.20        14.16       109.20        85.16
Area........................................................        55.60        35.03         6.90         8.21
On-Road Mobile..............................................       109.80        55.60        80.20        65.20
Non-Road Mobile.............................................        37.80        47.95        28.40        36.98
Biogenic....................................................       174.50       174.50         1.80         1.80
                                                             ---------------------------------------------------
    Total...................................................       392.90       327.24       226.50       197.35
Motor Vehicle Emission Budget...............................          n/a       104.35          n/a        76.19
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                                    Dade County.--Emissions Inventory Summary
                                                 [Tons per day]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                         VOC                       NOX
                          Category                           ---------------------------------------------------
                                                                  1990         2005         1990         2005
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Point.......................................................        11.46         8.59        41.30        32.00
Area........................................................       161.00       107.18        12.52        15.30
On-Road Mobile..............................................       156.60        87.30       117.70       100.80
Non-Road Mobile.............................................        65.11        77.86        36.30        56.52
Biogenic....................................................       211.30       211.30         3.00         3.00
                                                             ---------------------------------------------------
    Total...................................................       605.47       492.23       210.82       207.62
Motor Vehicle Emission Budget...............................          n/a       148.77          n/a       111.82
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                                 Palm Beach County.--Emissions Inventory Summary
                                                 [Tons per day]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                         VOC                       NOX
                          Category                           ---------------------------------------------------
                                                                  1990         2005         1990         2005
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Point.......................................................         1.26         1.51        37.78        34.54
Area........................................................        84.06        78.29         4.19         5.03
On-Road Mobile..............................................        70.20        46.40        56.58        55.60
Non-Road Mobile.............................................        26.05        32.54        18.27        25.35
Biogenic....................................................       399.60       399.60         2.40         2.40
                                                             ---------------------------------------------------
    Total...................................................       581.17       558.34       119.22       122.92
Motor Vehicle Emission Budget...............................          n/a        66.69          n/a        56.58
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


[[Page 14509]]


              Total 3--County (Broward, Dade, and Palm Beach Counties) Emissions Inventory Summary
                                                 [Tons per day]
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                                                                         VOC                       NOx
                          Category                           ---------------------------------------------------
                                                                  1990         2005         1990         2005
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Point.......................................................        27.92        24.26       188.28       151.70
Area........................................................       300.66       220.50        23.61        28.54
On-Road Mobile..............................................       336.60       189.30       254.48       221.60
Non-Road Mobile.............................................       128.96       158.35        82.97       118.85
Biogenic....................................................       785.40       785.40         7.20         7.20
                                                             ---------------------------------------------------
    Total...................................................     1,579.54     1,377.81       556.54       527.89
Motor Vehicle Emission Budget...............................          n/a       319.81          n/a       244.59
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Table 6 provides a comparison of the motor vehicle emissions 
budgets for VOC and NOX for the Jacksonville and Southeast 
Florida areas with and without the emissions credits attributed to 
MVIP.

                    Jacksonville and Southeast Florida Areas--Motor Vehicle Emissions Budget
                                                 [Tons per day]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                     2005
                                                             ---------------------------------------------------
                            Area                                  With MVIP credits       Without MVIP credits
                                                             ---------------------------------------------------
                                                                  VOC          NOX          VOC          NOX
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jacksonville................................................        48.30        59.10        44.30        52.10
    Broward County..........................................       104.35        76.19       104.35        76.19
    Dade County.............................................       148.77       111.82       148.77       111.82
    Palm Beach County.......................................        66.69        53.75        66.69        56.58
Southeast Florida...........................................       319.81       241.76       319.81       244.59
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    In summary, the budgets remain the same as the previous budgets 
allocated for Dade and Broward Counties. For Palm Beach County, the 
budget allocation for VOC is the same as the previous budget. In this 
submittal, the State of Florida increased the Palm Beach County motor 
vehicles emissions budget for NOX from 53.75 tpd to 56.58 
tpd, which is 100 percent of the 1990 on-road emissions inventory 
allocated for Palm Beach County. The State is allowed to allocate up to 
100 percent of the 1990 on-road emissions inventory for use as the 
motor vehicle emissions budget. The Duval County air quality 
maintenance plan did not explicitly set forth conformity budgets for 
VOC or NOX. For this SIP revision, the State is requesting 
that the conformity budgets for Duval County be set at 44.30 tpd for 
VOC and 52.10 for NOX, effective upon final approval of this 
revision. These levels are less than the 1990 on-road emissions 
inventory levels of 82.49 tpd for VOC and 61.40 tpd for NOX.
    Although the motor vehicle emission budgets do not change for all 
of the counties, the MPOs for all four counties must redetermine 
conformity within 18 months of the effective date for this SIP 
revision. This is required because the existing conformity 
determinations considered emission reduction credits from the MVIP 
control strategy.

Proposed Action

    The EPA proposes to approve the aforementioned changes to the SIP.

Administrative Requirements

    Under Executive Order 12866 (58 FR 51735, October 4, 1993), this 
action is not a ``significant regulatory action'' and therefore is not 
subject to review by the Office of Management and Budget. This action 
merely proposes to approve state law as meeting federal requirements 
and imposes no additional requirements beyond those imposed by state 
law. Accordingly, the Administrator certifies that this rule will not 
have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small 
entities under the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.). 
Because this rule proposes to approve pre-existing requirements under 
state law and does not impose any additional enforceable duty beyond 
that required by state law, it does not contain any unfunded mandate or 
significantly or uniquely affect small governments, as described in the 
Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (Public Law 104-4). For the same 
reason, this rule also does not significantly or uniquely affect the 
communities of tribal governments, as specified by Executive Order 
13084 (63 FR 27655, May 10, 1998). This rule will not have substantial 
direct effects on the states, on the relationship between the national 
government and the states, or on the distribution of power and 
responsibilities among the various levels of government, as specified 
in Executive Order 13132 (64 FR 43255, August 10, 1999), because it 
merely approves a state rule implementing a federal standard, and does 
not alter the relationship or the distribution of power and 
responsibilities established in the Clean Air Act. This rule also is 
not subject to Executive Order 13045 (62 FR 19885, April 23, 1997), 
because it is not economically significant.
    In reviewing SIP submissions, EPA's role is to approve state 
choices, provided that they meet the criteria of the Clean Air Act. In 
this context, in the absence of a prior existing requirement for the 
State to use voluntary consensus standards (VCS), EPA has no authority 
to disapprove a SIP submission for failure to use VCS. It would thus be 
inconsistent with applicable law for EPA, when it reviews a SIP 
submission, to use VCS in place of a SIP submission that otherwise 
satisfies the provisions of the Clean Air Act. Thus, the requirements 
of section 12(d) of the National Technology Transfer and

[[Page 14510]]

Advancement Act of 1995 (15 U.S.C. 272 note) do not apply. As required 
by section 3 of Executive Order 12988 (61 FR 4729, February 7, 1996), 
in issuing this rule, EPA has taken the necessary steps to eliminate 
drafting errors and ambiguity, minimize potential litigation, and 
provide a clear legal standard for affected conduct. EPA has complied 
with Executive Order 12630 (53 FR 8859, March 15, 1988) by examining 
the takings implications of the rule in accordance with the ``Attorney 
General's Supplemental Guidelines for the Evaluation of Risk and 
Avoidance of Unanticipated Takings'' issued under the Executive Order. 
This rule does not impose an information collection burden under the 
provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et 
seq.).

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

    Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Carbon monoxide, 
Hydrocarbons, Intergovernmental relations, Nitrogen dioxide, Ozone, 
Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.


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

    Dated: March 7, 2000.
A. Stanley Meiburg,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 4.
[FR Doc. 00-6566 Filed 3-16-00; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P