[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 237 (Friday, December 8, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Page 77025]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-31333]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-6913-6]


Notice of Settlement Extension: National Ambient Air Quality 
Standard; Sulfur Oxides Remand

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of settlement extension.

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SUMMARY: In 1998, the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. 
Circuit remanded EPA's decision to not revise the National Ambient Air 
Quality Standard for sulfur oxides for further explanation by EPA. 
American Lung Association v. Browner, 134 F. 3d 388 (D.C. Cir. 1998). 
Subsequently, the American Lung Association (ALA) and EPA agreed that 
EPA would propose a response to the court's remand by summer, 1999 and 
that EPA would finalize its response to the remand by the end of the 
year 2000. In exchange, ALA agreed to not file a petition for rehearing 
en banc with the court and to not pursue any mandatory duty or 
unreasonable delay claims regarding the remand prior to January, 2001.
    In September 1999, EPA and ALA met to discuss the status of the 
remand and agreed to extend the summer, 1999 deadline until January 15, 
2000.
    Since that time EPA and ALA have continued discussions and EPA has 
continued to work on the remand. As a result, EPA and ALA have agreed 
that by the end of 2000, EPA will publish a notice in the Federal 
Register describing the status of the remand and related activities and 
soliciting appropriate comment. For its part, ALA has agreed not to 
pursue any mandatory duty or unreasonable delay claims regarding the 
remand prior to January, 2001.

    Dated: December 1, 2000.
Anna Wolgast,
Acting General Counsel.
[FR Doc. 00-31333 Filed 12-7-00; 8:45 am]
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