[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 165 (Tuesday, August 26, 2003)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 51185-51187]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-21586]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[CA 245-0403a; FRL-7535-2]


Revisions to the California State Implementation Plan, San Diego 
County Air Pollution Control District

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Direct final rule.

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SUMMARY: EPA is taking direct final action to approve a revision to the 
San Diego County Air Pollution Control District (SDCAPCD) portion of 
the California State Implementation Plan (SIP). This revision concerns 
volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions from the transfer of organic 
compounds to mobile transport tanks. We are approving a local rule that 
regulates this emission source under the Clean Air Act as amended in 
1990 (CAA or the Act). We are approving local rules that regulate these 
emission sources under the Clean Air Act as amended in 1990 (CAA or the 
Act).

DATES: This rule is effective on October 27, 2003 without further 
notice, unless EPA receives adverse comments by September 25, 2003. If 
we receive such comment, we will publish a timely withdrawal in the 
Federal Register to notify the public that this rule will not take 
effect.

ADDRESSES: Mail comments to Andy Steckel, Rulemaking Office Chief (AIR-
4), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region IX, 75 Hawthorne 
Street, San Francisco, CA 94105, [email protected].
    You can inspect copies of the submitted SIP revision and EPA's 
technical support document (TSD) at our Region IX office during normal 
business hours. You may also see copies of the submitted SIP revision 
at the following locations:

Environmental Protection Agency, Air Docket (6102), Ariel Rios 
Building, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20460.
California Air Resources Board, Stationary Source Division, Rule 
Evaluation Section, 1001 ``I'' Street, Sacramento, CA 95814.
San Diego County Air Pollution Control District, 9150 Chesapeake Drive, 
San Diego, CA 92123.

    A copy of the rule may also be available via the Internet at http://www.arb.ca.gov/drdb/drdbltxt.htm. Please be advised that this is not 
an EPA Web site and may not contain the same version of the rule that 
was submitted to EPA.

[[Page 51186]]


FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Al Petersen, U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency, Region IX, (415) 947-4118.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document, ``we,'' ``us'' and 
``our'' refer to EPA.

Table of Contents

I. The State's Submittal
    A. What rule did the State submit?
    B. Are there other versions of this rule?
    C. What is the purpose of the submitted rule revisions?
 II. EPA's Evaluation and Action
    A. How is EPA evaluating the rule?
    B. Does the rule meet the evaluation criteria?
    C. EPA recommendation to further improve the rule
    D. Proposed action and public comment
III. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

I. The State's Submittal

A. What Rule Did the State Submit?

    Table 1 lists the rule we are approving with the date that it was 
amended by the local air agency and submitted by the California Air 
Resources Board (CARB).

                                            Table 1.--Submitted Rule
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
             Local agency                  Rule No.               Rule title              Amended     Submitted
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SDCAPCD...............................            61.2  Transfer of Organic Compounds       7/26/00     12/11/00
                                                         into Mobile Transport Tanks.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    On February 8, 2001, this rule submittal was found to meet the 
completeness criteria in 40 CFR part 51 appendix V, which must be met 
before formal EPA review.

B. Are There Other Versions of This Rule?

    We approved a version of Rule 61.2 into the SIP on June 30, 1993 
(58 FR 34906).

C. What Is the Purpose of the Submitted Rule Revisions?

    The purpose is to make the following revisions:
    [sbull] 61.2(b)(2): Decreased is the threshold of 5,000,000 gallons 
per year or less to 500,000 gallons per year or less for bulk plants 
existing before March 1, 1984 for exemption from the requirement to use 
a vapor recovery unit or vapor disposal unit. The exemption only 
applies to vapors emitted during transfer of organic liquids, not 
subject to this rule, into a mobile transport tank that previously 
transported volatile organic compounds (VOCs).
    [sbull] 61.2(b)(6): Added is a threshold of 21,000 gallons per year 
or less for the exemption of U.S. military ships from the requirements 
for no fugitive liquid leaks, for vapor concentration not exceeding 500 
parts per million by volume (ppmv) measured as propane or 1,375 ppmv 
measured as methane, and for the liquid to enter less than six inches 
from the bottom of a mobile transport truck.
    [sbull] 61.2(d): Revised and specified in detail are test 
procedures on mobile transport tanks and vapor emission control 
systems. Added are tests for vapor fugitive emissions. The TSD has more 
information about this rule.

II. EPA's Evaluation and Action

A. How Is EPA Evaluating the Rule?

    Generally, SIP rules must be enforceable (see section 110(a) of the 
CAA), must require Reasonably Available Control Technology (RACT) for 
major sources in nonattainment areas (see section 182(a)(2)(A)), and 
must not relax existing requirements (see sections 110(l) and 193). The 
SDCAPCD regulates a severe ozone nonattainment area and must fulfill 
RACT. See 40 CFR part 81. Guidance and policy documents that we used to 
define specific enforceability and RACT requirements include the 
following:
    [sbull] Requirements for Preparation, Adoption, and Submittal of 
Implementation Plans, U.S. EPA, 40 CFR part 51.
    [sbull] Portions of the proposed post-1987 ozone and carbon 
monoxide policy that concern RACT, 52 FR 45044 (November 24, 1987).
    [sbull] Issues Relating to VOC Regulation Cutpoints, Deficiencies, 
and Deviations, EPA (May 25, 1988) (the Bluebook).
    [sbull] Guidance Document for Correcting Common VOC & Other Rule 
Deficiencies, EPA Region 9 (August 21, 2001) (the Little Bluebook).

B. Does the Rule Meet the Evaluation Criteria?

    The rule is improved, enforceable, on balance more stringent than 
the SIP Rule and does not relax the SIP. The requirements section of 
the rule fulfills RACT. The rule should be given full approval.

C. EPA Recommendation to Further Improve the Rule

    The TSD describes an additional rule revision that does not affect 
EPA's current action but is recommended for the next time the local 
agency modifies the rule.

D. Public Comment and Final Action

    As authorized in section 110(k)(3) of the CAA, EPA is fully 
approving the submitted rules because we believe they fulfill all 
relevant requirements. We do not think anyone will object to this 
approval, so we are finalizing it without proposing it in advance. 
However, in the Proposed Rules section of this Federal Register, we are 
simultaneously proposing approval of the same submitted rules. If we 
receive adverse comments by September 25, 2003, we will publish a 
timely withdrawal in the Federal Register to notify the public that the 
direct final approval will not take effect and we will address the 
comments in a subsequent final action based on the proposal. If we do 
not receive timely adverse comments, the direct final approval will be 
effective without further notice on October 27, 2003. This will 
incorporate these rules into the federally enforceable SIP.

III. 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).

[[Page 51187]]

    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 Clean 
Air Act. 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 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 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. section 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. 
section 804(2).
    Under section 307(b)(1) of the Clean Air Act, petitions for 
judicial review of this action must be filed in the United States Court 
of Appeals for the appropriate circuit by October 27, 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 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 in 40 CFR Part 52

    Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Incorporation by 
reference, Intergovernmental relations, Ozone, Reporting and 
recordkeeping requirements, Volatile organic compound.

    Dated: July 8, 2003.
Wayne Nastri,
Regional Administrator, Region IX.


0
Part 52, chapter I, title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations is 
amended as follows:

PART 52--[AMENDED]

0
1. The authority citation for Part 52 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.

Subpart F--California

0
2. Section 52.220 is amended by adding paragraph (c)(285)(i)(E) to read 
as follows:


Sec.  52.220  Identification of plan.

* * * * *
    (c) * * *
    (285) * * *
    (i) * * *
    (E) San Diego County Air Pollution Control District.
    (1) Rule 61.2, amended on July 26, 2000.
* * * * *

[FR Doc. 03-21586 Filed 8-25-03; 8:45 am]
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