[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 142 (Thursday, July 24, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43724-43725]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-18854]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[CA 097-NOA; FRL-7535-3]


Adequacy Status of the San Joaquin Valley Unified Air Pollution 
Control District, California Submitted Ozone Rate of Progress Plan for 
Transportation Conformity Purposes

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of adequacy determination.

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SUMMARY: In this notice, EPA is notifying the public that we have found 
that the motor vehicle emissions budgets contained in the submitted 
Amended 2002 and 2005 Ozone Rate of Progress Plan for the San Joaquin 
Valley Unified Air Pollution Control District are adequate for 
transportation conformity purposes.
    As a result of our finding, the various transportation planning 
agencies in the San Joaquin Valley and the Federal Highway 
Administration must use the VOC and NOX motor vehicle 
emissions budgets from the Amended Rate of

[[Page 43725]]

Progress plan for future conformity determinations.

DATES: This determination is effective August 8, 2003.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: The finding is available at EPA's 
conformity Web site: http://www.epa.gov/oms/transp/traqconf.htm (once 
there, click on the ``Transportation Conformity'' link, then look for 
``Adequacy Web Pages'').
    You may also contact David Wampler, U.S. EPA, Region IX, Air 
Division AIR-2, 75 Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, CA 94105; (415) 
972-3975 or [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This notice announces our finding that the 
emissions budgets contained in the Amended 2002 and 2005 Ozone Rate of 
Progress Plan submitted by the State of California on behalf of the San 
Joaquin Valley Unified Air Pollution Control District on April 10, 
2003, are adequate for transportation conformity purposes. EPA Region 
IX made this finding in a letter to the State of California, Air 
Resources Board on July 10, 2003. We are also announcing this finding 
on our conformity Web site: http://www.epa.gov/oms/transp/traqconf.htm 
(once there, click on the ``Transportation Conformity'' link, then look 
for ``Adequacy Web Pages'').
    Transportation conformity is required by section 176(c) of the 
Clean Air Act. Our conformity rule requires that transportation plans, 
programs, and projects conform to state air quality implementation 
plans (SIPs) and establishes the criteria and procedures for 
determining whether or not they do. Conformity to a SIP means that 
transportation activities will not produce new air quality violations, 
worsen existing violations, or delay timely attainment of the national 
ambient air quality standards.
    The criteria by which we determine whether a SIP's motor vehicle 
emission budgets are adequate for conformity purposes are outlined in 
40 CFR 93.118(e)(4). One of these criteria is that the motor vehicle 
emissions budgets, when considered together with all other emission 
sources, is consistent with applicable requirements for the reasonable 
further progress plan. We have preliminarily determined that the San 
Joaquin Valley Amended 2002 and 2005 Ozone Rate of Progress plan meets 
the necessary emissions reductions and, therefore, the motor vehicle 
emissions budgets can be found adequate. Please note that an adequacy 
review is separate from EPA's completeness review, and it also should 
not be used to prejudge EPA's ultimate approval of the submitted plan 
itself. Even if we find a budget adequate, the submitted plan could 
later be disapproved.
    We have described our process for determining the adequacy of 
submitted SIP budgets in guidance (May 14, 1999 memo titled 
``Conformity Guidance on Implementation of March 2, 1999 Conformity 
Court Decision''). We followed this guidance in making our adequacy 
determination on the emissions budgets contained in the Amended 2002 
and 2005 Ozone ROP Plan for San Joaquin Valley.

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

    Dated: July 14, 2003.
Laura Yoshii,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region IX.
[FR Doc. 03-18854 Filed 7-23-03; 8:45 am]
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