[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 55 (Monday, March 22, 2004)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 13234-13236]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-6301]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[CA 287-0416a; FRL-7636-7]


Revisions to the California State Implementation Plan, Yolo-
Solano Air Quality Management District

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Direct final rule.

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SUMMARY: EPA is taking direct final action to approve revisions to the 
Yolo-Solano Air Quality Management District (YSAQMD) portion of the 
California State Implementation Plan (SIP). These revisions concern 
general provisions and definitions and volatile organic compound (VOC) 
emissions from adhesive operations. We are approving local rules that 
clarify other YSAQMD regulations and that regulate these emission 
sources under the Clean Air Act as amended in 1990 (CAA or the Act).

DATES: This rule is effective on May 21, 2004, without further notice, 
unless EPA receives adverse comments by April 21, 2004. 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: Send comments to Andy Steckel, Rulemaking Office Chief (AIR-
4), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region IX, 75 Hawthorne 
Street, San Francisco, CA 94105-3901, or e-mail to 
[email protected], or submit comments at http://www.regulations.gov.
    You can inspect copies of the submitted SIP revisions, EPA's 
technical support documents (TSDs), and public comments at our Region 
IX office during normal business hours by appointment. You may also see 
copies of the submitted SIP revisions by appointment at the following 
locations:
    Air and Radiation Docket and Information Center, U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency, Room B-102, 1301 Constitution Avenue, NW., (Mail 
Code 6102T), Washington, DC 20460.
    California Air Resources Board, Stationary Source Division, Rule 
Evaluation Section, 1001 ``I'' Street, Sacramento, CA 95814.
    Yolo-Solano Air Quality Management District, 1947 Galileo Court, 
Suite 103, Davis, CA 95616.
    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 website and may not contain the same version of the rule that 
was submitted to EPA.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Yvonne Fong, EPA Region IX, (415) 947-
4117, [email protected].

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

Table of Contents

I. The State's Submittal
    A. What rules Did the State submit?
    B. Are there other versions of these rules?
    C. What is the purpose of the rule revisions?
II. EPA's Evaluation and Action.
    A. How is EPA evaluating the rules?

[[Page 13235]]

    B. Do the rules meet the evaluation criteria?
    C. EPA recommendations to further improve the rules.
    D. Public comment and final action.
III. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

I. The State's Submittal

A. What Rules Did the State Submit?

    Table 1 lists the rules we are approving with the dates that they 
were adopted by the local air agency and submitted by the California 
Air Resources Board (CARB).

                                            Table 1.--Submitted Rules
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                             Rule
              Local agency                           Rule title              Adopted        Submitted
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
YSAQMD..................................       1.1   General Provisions and             08/13/97        07/26/00
                                                      Definitions.
YSAQMD..................................      2.33   Adhesive Operations........        03/12/03        06/05/03
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    On October 4, 2000 and July 18, 2003, the submittals of Rule 1.1 
and 2.33, respectively, were 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 These Rules?

    Submitted Rule 1.1 was intended to replace versions of Rule 1.1, 
Title, and Rule 1.2, Definitions, that we approved into the SIP on May 
31, 1972 (37 FR 10856) and January 26, 1982 (44 FR 3550), respectively. 
The YSAQMD adopted revisions to the SIP-approved versions on December 
8, 1993 and August 13, 1997 and CARB submitted them to us on March 29, 
1994 and July 26, 2000, respectively. While we can act on only the most 
recently submitted version, we have reviewed materials provided with 
the previous submittal.
    We approved a version of Rule 2.33 into the SIP on February 12, 
1996 (61 FR 5288). The YSAQMD adopted this revision to the SIP-approved 
version on March 12, 2003 and CARB submitted it to us on June 5, 2003.

C. What Is the Purpose of the Rule Revisions?

    VOCs help produce ground-level ozone and smog, which harm human 
health and the environment. Section 110(a) of the CAA requires states 
to submit regulations that control VOC emissions. Rule 2.33 limits 
emissions of VOCs from the application of adhesives, adhesive primers, 
sealants, sealant primers, and from any solvent use associated with the 
application of these products. Rule 1.1 clarifies other YSAQMD air 
pollution regulations. The TSDs have more information about these 
rules.

II. EPA's Evaluation and Action

A. How Is EPA Evaluating the Rules?

    Generally, SIP rules must be enforceable (see section 110(a) of the 
Act), 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 
YSAQMD regulates an ozone nonattainment area (see 40 CFR part 81), so 
Rule 2.33 must fulfill RACT. RACT is not applicable to general 
regulations like Rule 1.1 which do not contain standards regulating 
specific sources.
    Guidance and policy documents that we used to help evaluate 
specific enforceability and RACT requirements consistently include the 
following:
    1. Portions of the proposed post-1987 ozone and carbon monoxide 
policy that concern RACT, 52 FR 45044, November 24, 1987.
    2. ``Issues Relating to VOC Regulation Cutpoints, Deficiencies, and 
Deviations,'' EPA, May 25, 1988 (the Bluebook).
    3. ``Guidance Document for Correcting Common VOC & Other Rule 
Deficiencies,'' EPA Region 9, August 21, 2001 (the Little Bluebook).
    4. ``Determination of Reasonably Available Control Technology and 
Best Available Retrofit Control Technology for Adhesives and 
Sealants,'' CARB, December 1998.

B. Do the Rules Meet the Evaluation Criteria?

    We believe these rules are consistent with the relevant policy and 
guidance regarding enforceability, RACT, and SIP relaxations. The TSDs 
have more information on our evaluation.

C. EPA Recommendations To Further Improve the Rules

    The TSDs describe additional rule revisions that do not affect 
EPA's current action but are recommended for the next time the local 
agency modifies the rules.

D. Public Comment and Final Action

    As authorized in section 110(k)(3) of the Act, 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 April 21, 2004, 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 May 21, 2004. This will incorporate these 
rules into the federally enforceable SIP.
    Please note that if EPA receives adverse comment on an amendment, 
paragraph, or section of this rule and if that provision may be severed 
from the remainder of the rule, EPA may adopt as final those provisions 
of the rule that are not the subject of an adverse comment.

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

[[Page 13236]]

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 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. 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 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 May 21, 2004. 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 compounds.

    Dated: March 1, 2004.
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 paragraphs (c)(280)(i)(C) and 
(c)(316)(i)(E) to read as follows:


Sec.  52.220  Identification of plan.

* * * * *
    (c) * * *
    (280) * * *
    (i) * * *
    (C) Yolo-Solano Air Quality Management District.
    (1) Rule 1.1, revised on August 13, 1997.
* * * * *
    (316) * * *
    (i) * * *
    (E) Yolo-Solano Air Quality Management District.
    (1) Rule 2.33, revised on March 12, 2003.
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 04-6301 Filed 3-19-04; 8:45 am]
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