[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 52 (Tuesday, March 18, 2003)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 12829-12831]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-6311]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[MO 176-1176a; FRL-7468-4]


Approval and Promulgation of Implementation Plans; State of 
Missouri

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Direct final rule.

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SUMMARY: EPA is announcing it is approving a revision to the Missouri 
State Implementation Plan (SIP) which pertains to updating the state's 
Air Quality Index (AQI) rule to make it consistent with the Federal 
rule. The AQI is used by states for daily air quality reporting to the 
general public. Approval of this revision will ensure consistency 
between the state and Federally-approved rules, and ensure Federal 
enforceability of the revised state rule.

DATES: This direct final rule will be effective May 19, 2003, unless 
EPA receives adverse comments by April 17, 2003. If adverse comments 
are received, EPA will publish a timely withdrawal of the direct final 
rule in the Federal Register informing the public that the rule will 
not take effect.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be mailed to Wayne Kaiser, Environmental 
Protection Agency, Air Planning and Development Branch, 901 North 5th 
Street, Kansas City, Kansas 66101.
    Copies of documents relative to this action are available for 
public inspection during normal business hours at the above-listed 
Region 7 location. The interested persons wanting to examine these 
documents should make an appointment with the office at least 24 hours 
in advance.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Wayne Kaiser at (913) 551-7603.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Through[chyph]out this document whenever 
``we,'' ``us,'' or ``our'' is used, we mean EPA. This section provides 
additional information by addressing the following questions:

What Is a SIP?
What is the Federal approval process for a SIP?
What does Federal approval of a state regulation mean to me?
What is being addressed in this document?
Have the requirements for approval of a SIP revision been met?
What action is EPA taking?

What Is a SIP?

    Section 110 of the Clean Air Act (CAA) requires states to develop 
air pollution regulations and control strategies to ensure that state 
air quality meets the national ambient air quality standards 
established by EPA. These ambient standards are established under 
section 109 of the CAA, and they currently address six criteria 
pollutants. These pollutants are: carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, 
ozone, lead, particulate matter, and sulfur dioxide.
    Each state must submit these regulations and control strategies to 
us for approval and incorporation into the Federally-enforceable SIP.
    Each Federally-approved SIP protects air quality primarily by 
addressing air pollution at its point of origin. These SIPs can be 
extensive, containing state regulations or other enforceable documents 
and supporting information such as emission inventories, monitoring 
networks, and modeling demonstrations.

What Is the Federal Approval Process for a SIP?

    In order for state regulations to be incorporated into the 
Federally-enforceable SIP, states must formally adopt the regulations 
and control strategies consistent with state and Federal requirements. 
This process generally includes a public notice, public hearing, public 
comment period, and a formal adoption by a state-authorized rulemaking 
body.
    Once a state rule, regulation, or control strategy is adopted, the 
state submits it to us for inclusion into the SIP. We must provide 
public notice and seek additional public comment regarding the proposed 
Federal action on the state submission. If adverse comments are 
received, they must be addressed prior to any final Federal action by 
us.
    All state regulations and supporting information approved by EPA 
under section 110 of the CAA are incorporated into the Federally-
approved SIP. Records of such SIP actions are maintained in the Code of 
Federal Regulations (CFR) at Title 40, Part 52, entitled ``Approval and 
Promulgation of Implementation Plans.'' The actual state regulations 
which are approved are not

[[Page 12830]]

reproduced in their entirety in the CFR outright but are ``incorporated 
by reference,'' which means that we have approved a given state 
regulation with a specific effective date.

What Does Federal Approval of a State Regulation Mean to Me?

    Enforcement of the state regulation before and after it is 
incorporated into the Federally-approved SIP is primarily a state 
responsibility. However, after the regulation is Federally approved, we 
are authorized to take enforcement action against violators. Citizens 
are also offered legal recourse to address violations as described in 
section 304 of the CAA.

What Is Being Addressed in This Document?

    On August 4, 1999 (64 FR 42530), EPA published a final rule which 
revised the Air Quality Index (AQI) used by states for daily air 
quality reporting to the general public. These requirements are 
promulgated in the Code of Federal Regulations at Part 58--Ambient Air 
Quality Surveillance, section 58.50 and Appendix G.
    The AQI (formerly called the Pollution Standards Index) is a tool 
that simplifies the reporting of air quality to the general public. The 
AQI incorporates into a single index concentrations of five criteria 
pollutants: ozone, particulate matter, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, 
and nitrogen dioxide. The scale of the index is divided into general 
categories that are associated with health messages. The scale is also 
color coded. It is usually the color that is reported during public 
messages. For example, green equates to ``good'' air quality, and 
``maroon'' equates to ``hazardous'' air quality.
    In order to keep the state rules up to date, and consistent with 
the federal rules, the state revised its existing rule which contains 
the AQI information, 10 CSR 10-6.130 Controlling Emissions During 
Episodes of High Air Pollution Potential, to adopt by reference these 
new provisions. This state action was effective November 30, 2002.
    The state also revised the rule to incorporate its updated rule 
format by changing rule section headings to read: (1) Applicability; 
(2) Definitions; (3) General Provisions; (4) Reporting and Record 
Keeping; and (5) Test Methods. A few other minor clarifications and 
corrections were made.
    The state submittal has met the public notice requirements for SIP 
submissions in accordance with 40 CFR 51.102. The submittal also 
satisfied the completeness criteria of 40 CFR part 51, appendix V. In 
addition, as explained above and in more detail in the technical 
support document which is part of this document, the revision meets the 
substantive SIP requirements of the CAA, including section 110 and 
implementing regulations.

What Action Is EPA Taking?

    We are approving as an amendment to the Missouri SIP revisions to 
rule 10 CSR 10-6.130 Controlling Emissions During Episodes of High Air 
Pollution Potential.
    We are processing this action as a final action because the 
revisions make routine changes to the existing rules which are 
noncontroversial. Therefore, we do not anticipate any adverse comments. 
Please note that if EPA receives adverse comment on part of this rule 
and if that part can be severed from the remainder of the rule, EPA may 
adopt as final those parts of the rule that are not the subject of an 
adverse comment.

Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

    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. For this 
reason, this action is also not subject to Executive Order 13211, 
``Actions Concerning Regulations That Significantly Affect Energy 
Supply, Distribution, or Use'' (66 FR 28355, May 22, 2001). This action 
merely approves 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 approves 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).
    This rule also does not have tribal implications because it will 
not have a substantial direct effect on one or more Indian tribes, on 
the relationship between the Federal Government and Indian tribes, or 
on the distribution of power and responsibilities between the Federal 
Government and Indian tribes, as specified by Executive Order 13175 (65 
FR 67249, November 9, 2000). This action also does not have Federalism 
implications because it does 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). This action 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 CAA. 
This rule also is not subject to Executive Order 13045, ``Protection of 
Children from Environmental Health Risks and Safety Risks'' (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 CAA. 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 CAA. Thus, the requirements of section 
12(d) of the National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995 
(15 U.S.C. 272 note) do not apply. 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.).
    The Congressional Review Act, 5 U.S.C. 801 et seq., as added by the 
Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996, generally 
provides that before a rule may take effect, the agency promulgating 
the rule must submit a rule report, which includes a copy of the rule, 
to each House of the Congress and to the Comptroller General of the 
United States. EPA will submit 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 United States prior 
to publication of the rule in the Federal Register. A major rule cannot 
take effect until 60 days after it is published in the Federal 
Register. This action is not a ``major rule'' as defined by 5 U.S.C. 
804(2).
    Under section 307(b)(1) of the CAA, petitions for judicial review 
of this action must be filed in the United States Court of Appeals for 
the appropriate circuit by May 19, 2003.
    Filing a petition for reconsideration by the Administrator of this 
final rule does not affect the finality of this rule for the purposes 
of judicial review nor does it extend the time within which a

[[Page 12831]]

petition for judicial review may be filed, and shall not postpone the 
effectiveness of such rule or action. This action may not be challenged 
later in proceedings to enforce its requirements. (See section 
307(b)(2).)

List of Subjects 40 CFR Part 52

    Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Carbon monoxide, 
Incorporation by reference, Intergovernmental relations, Nitrogen 
dioxide, Particulate matter, Ozone, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements, Sulfur dioxide, Volatile organic compounds.

    Dated: March 3, 2003.
James B. Gulliford,
Regional Administrator, Region 7.

    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 et seq.

Subpart AA--Missouri

    2. In Sec.  52.1320(c) the table for Chapter 6 is amended by 
revising the entry for 10-6.130 to read as follows:


Sec.  52.1320  Identification of plan.

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    (c) * * *

                                        EPA-Approved Missouri Regulations
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                                                                   State         EPA
         Missouri citation                     Title             effective     approval         Explanation
                                                                    date         date
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                                    Missouri Department of Natural Resources
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                                                  * * * * * * *
    Chapter 6--Air Quality Standards, Definitions, Sampling and Reference Methods, and Air Pollution Control
                                      Regulations for the State of Missouri
 
                                                  * * * * * * *
10-6.130..........................  Controlling Emissions          11/30/02  3/18/03 and
                                     During Episodes of High                 FR citation
                                     Air Pollution Potential.
 
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[FR Doc. 03-6311 Filed 3-17-03; 8:45 am]
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