[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 250 (Thursday, December 30, 2004)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 78312-78315]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-28501]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[NM-44-1-7603a; FRL-7856-3]


Approval and Promulgation of Air Quality Implementation Plans; 
New Mexico; Recodification and SIP Renumbering of the New Mexico 
Administrative Code for Albuquerque/Bernalillo County

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Direct final rule.

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SUMMARY: The EPA is approving a State Implementation Plan (SIP) 
revision submitted by the Governor of New Mexico on May 2, 2003. The 
submittal revises the numbering and format of New Mexico's Albuquerque/
Bernalillo County SIP and contains no substantive changes to the 
regulations. We are approving these revisions in accordance with the 
requirements of the Federal Clean Air Act (the Act).

DATES: This rule is effective on February 28, 2005 without further 
notice, unless EPA receives relevant adverse comment by January 31, 
2005. If EPA receives such comment, EPA will publish a timely 
withdrawal in the Federal Register informing the public that this rule 
will not take effect.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by File ID No. NM-44-1-
7603a, by one of the following methods:
    Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the 
on-line instructions for submitting comments.
    US EPA Region 6 ``Contact Us'' Web site: http://epa.gov/region6/r6coment.htm. Please click on ``6PD'' (Multimedia) and select ``Air'' 
before submitting comments.
    E-mail: Mr. Thomas Diggs at [email protected]. Please also cc 
the person listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section below.
    Fax: Mr. Thomas Diggs, Chief, Air Planning Section (6PD-L), at 214-
665-7263.
    Mail: Mr. Thomas Diggs, Chief, Air Planning Section (6PD-L), 
Environmental Protection Agency, 1445 Ross Avenue, Suite 1200, Dallas, 
Texas 75202-2733.
    Hand or Courier Delivery: Mr. Thomas Diggs, Chief, Air Planning 
Section (6PD-L), Environmental Protection Agency, 1445 Ross Avenue, 
Suite 1200, Dallas, Texas 75202-2733. Such deliveries are accepted only 
between the hours of 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. weekdays, except for legal 
holidays. Special arrangements should be made for deliveries of boxed 
information.
    Instructions: Please include the text ``Public comment on File ID 
No. NM-44-1-7603a'' in the subject line of the first page of your 
comments. EPA's policy is that all comments received will be included 
in the public file without change, including any personal information 
provided, unless the comment includes information claimed to be 
Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information the 
disclosure of which is restricted by statute. Do not submit information 
through regulations.gov or e-mail if you believe that it is CBI or 
otherwise protected from disclosure. Regulations.gov is an ``anonymous 
access'' system, which means EPA will not know your identity or contact 
information unless you provide it in the body of your comment. If you 
send an e-mail comment directly to EPA without going through 
regulations.gov, your e-mail address will be automatically captured and 
included as part of the comment that is placed in the public file and 
made available on the Internet. If you submit an electronic comment, 
EPA recommends that you include your name and other contact information 
in the body of your comment and with any disk or CD-ROM you submit. If 
EPA cannot read your comment due to technical difficulties and cannot 
contact you for clarification, EPA may not be able to consider your 
comment. Electronic files should avoid the use of special characters, 
any form of encryption, and be free of any defects or viruses.
    Official File: Copies of the documents relevant to this action are 
in the official file which is available at the Air Planning Section 
(6PD-L), Environmental Protection Agency, 1445 Ross Avenue, Suite 700, 
Dallas, Texas 75202-2733. The file will be made available by 
appointment for public inspection in the Region 6 FOIA Review Room 
between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. weekdays except for legal 
holidays. Contact the person listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION 
CONTACT paragraph below or Mr. Bill Deese at 214-665-7253 to make an 
appointment. If possible, please make the appointment at least two 
working days in advance of your visit. There will be a 15 cent per page 
fee for making photocopies of documents. On the day of the visit, 
please check in at the EPA Region 6 reception area at 1445 Ross Avenue, 
Suite 700, Dallas, Texas.
    Copies of any State submittals and EPA's technical support document 
are also available for public inspection at the State Air Agency listed 
below during official business hours by appointment: Albuquerque 
Environmental Health Department, Air Pollution Control Division, One 
Civic Plaza, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87103.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Carrie Paige, Air Planning Section 
(6PD-L), EPA Region 6, 1445 Ross Avenue, Dallas, Texas 75202-2733, 
telephone (214) 665-6521; fax number 214-665-7263; e-mail address 
[email protected].

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

Outline

I. The State's Submittal
    A. What Revision Did the State Submit?
    B. What is a SIP?
II. EPA's Evaluation
    A. What is the Federal approval process for a SIP?
    B. What does Federal approval of a SIP mean to me?
    C. How is EPA Evaluating this Revision?
III. Final Action
IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

I. The State's Submittal

A. What Revision Did the State Submit?

    On May 2, 2003, the State of New Mexico submitted revisions to the 
New Mexico--Albuquerque/Bernalillo County SIP. These revisions apply to

[[Page 78313]]

sections of the New Mexico Administrative Code (NMAC) for Albuquerque/
Bernalillo County that have been reformatted and renumbered.

B. What Is a SIP?

    Section 110 of the Act requires states to develop air pollution 
regulations and control strategies to ensure that state air quality 
meets the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) that EPA has 
established.
    Each state must submit these regulations and control strategies to 
us for approval and incorporation into the federally enforceable SIP. 
Each federally approved SIP is designed to protect air quality. These 
SIPs can be extensive, containing state regulations or other 
enforceable documents and supporting information such as emission 
inventories, monitoring networks, and modeling demonstrations.

II. EPA's Evaluation

A. What Is the Federal Approval Process for a SIP?

    When a state wants to incorporate its regulations into the 
federally enforceable SIP, the state must formally adopt the 
regulations and control strategies consistent with state and Federal 
requirements. This process includes a public notice, a public hearing, 
a public comment period, and a formal adoption by a state-authorized 
rulemaking body.
    Once a state adopts a rule, regulation, or control strategy, the 
state may submit the adopted provisions to us and request that we 
include these provisions in the federally enforceable SIP. We must then 
decide on an appropriate Federal action, provide public notice on this 
action, and seek additional public comment regarding this action. If we 
receive relevant adverse comments, we must address them prior to taking 
a final action.
    Under section 110 of the Act, when we approve all state regulations 
and supporting information, those state regulations and supporting 
information become a part of the federally approved SIP. You can find 
records of these SIP actions in the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 
at Title 40, part 52, entitled ``Approval and Promulgation of 
Implementation Plans.'' The actual state regulations that we approved 
are not reproduced in their entirety in the CFR but are ``incorporated 
by reference,'' which means that we have approved a given state 
regulation with a specific effective date.

B. What Does Federal Approval of a SIP Mean to Me?

    A state may enforce state regulations before and after we 
incorporate those regulations into a federally approved SIP. After we 
incorporate those regulations into a federally approved SIP, both EPA 
and the public may also take enforcement action against violators of 
these regulations.

C. How Is EPA Evaluating This Revision?

    The Technical Support Document (TSD) prepared for this rule 
provides two tables that show the current and newly reformatted 
versions of the NMAC. These tables allow the reviewer to cross-
reference the renumbering of the NMAC. After thorough evaluation and 
comparison with the current SIP, we have confirmed that all sections 
are accounted for, the revisions are administrative in nature, limited 
to renumbering of existing sections and parts, and do not weaken the 
existing SIP.

III. Final Action

    The EPA is approving the aforementioned changes to New Mexico's 
Albuquerque/Bernalillo County SIP because the revisions are consistent 
with the Act and EPA regulatory requirements. The EPA is publishing 
this rule without prior proposal because the EPA views this as a non-
controversial submittal and anticipates no adverse comments. However, 
in the proposed rules section of this Federal Register publication, EPA 
is publishing a separate document that will serve as the proposal to 
approve the SIP revision should adverse comments be filed. This rule 
will be effective February 28, 2005 without further notice, unless EPA 
receives relevant adverse comment by January 31, 2005.
    If the EPA receives such comments, then EPA will publish a document 
withdrawing the final rule and informing the public that the rule will 
not take effect. All public comments received will then be addressed in 
a subsequent final rule based on the proposed rule. The EPA will not 
institute a second comment period. Parties interested in commenting 
should do so at this time. If no such comments are received, the public 
is advised that this rule will be effective on February 28, 2005, and 
no further action will be taken on the proposed rule.

IV. 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 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,

[[Page 78314]]

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 February 28, 2005. 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 40 CFR Part 52

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

    Dated: December 16, 2004.
Richard E. Greene,
Regional Administrator, Region 6.

0
40 CFR part 52 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 GG--New Mexico

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2. In Sec.  52.1620(c), the two tables are amended as follows:
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a. In the first table entitled ``EPA Approved New Mexico Regulations,'' 
by removing the centered heading, ``New Mexico Administrative Code 
(NMAC) Title 20--Environment Protection Chapter 11--Albuquerque/
Bernalillo County Air Quality Control Board (AQCB),'' and by removing 
the entry for Part 03, Transportation Conformity.
0
b. By revising the second table entitled ``EPA Approved Albuquerque/
Bernalillo County, NN Regulations,'' to read as follows:


Sec.  52.1620  Identification of plan.

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    (c) * * *
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                                               EPA Approved Albuquerque/Bernalillo County, NN Regulations
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                                                               State approval/
        State citation                Title/subject            effective date              EPA approval date                      Explanation
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                                             Albuquerque/Bernalillo County, Air Quality Control Regulations
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Regulation No. 8.............  Airborne Particulate Matter  02/17/83............  02/23/93, 58 FR 10970..............  Only Section 8.03, Soil
                                                                                                                        Disturbance, in SIP.
Section 21...................  Permit Fees................  01/23/79............  04/10/80, 45 FR 24460..............
------------------------------
       New Mexico Administrative Code (NMAC) Title 20--Environment Protection, Chapter 11--Albuquerque/Bernalillo County Air Quality Control Board
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Part 1 (20.11.1 NMAC)........  General Provisions.........  10/01/02............  12/30/04 [Insert FR page where
                                                                                   document begins].
Part 3 (20.11.3 NMAC)........  Transportation Conformity..  07/01/98............  07/08/99, 64 FR 36786..............  No action taken on Sections
                                                                                                                        I.2.3, II.2.4, II.7.3-7.6,
                                                                                                                        II.16.5, II.18.1.B, II.19.1.A,
                                                                                                                        and II.22.2.
Part 4 (20.11.4 NMAC)........  General Conformity.........  10/01/02............  12/30/04 [Insert FR page where
                                                                                   document begins].
Part 5 (20.11.5 NMAC)........  Visible Air Contaminants...  01/01/03............  12/30/04 [Insert FR page where
                                                                                   document begins].
Part 6 (20.11.6 NMAC)........  Emergency Action Plan......  10/01/02............  12/30/04 [Insert FR page where
                                                                                   document begins].
Part 7 (20.11.7 NMAC)........  Variance Procedure.........  10/01/02............  12/30/04 [Insert FR page where
                                                                                   document begins].
Part 21 (20.11.21 NMAC)......  Open Burning...............  10/01/02............  12/30/04 [Insert FR page where
                                                                                   document begins].
Part 22 (20.11.22 NMAC)......  Woodburning................  10/01/02............  12/30/04 [Insert FR page where
                                                                                   document begins].
Part 40 (20.11.40 NMAC)......  Source Registration........  10/01/02............  12/30/04 [Insert FR page where
                                                                                   document begins].
Part 41 (20.11.41 NMAC)......  Authority to Construct.....  10/01/02............  12/30/04 [Insert FR page where
                                                                                   document begins].
Part 43 (20.11.43 NMAC)......  Stack Height Requirements..  10/01/02............  12/30/04 [Insert FR page where
                                                                                   document begins].
Part 60 (20.11.60 NMAC)......  Permitting in Nonattainment  10/01/02............  12/30/04 [Insert FR page where
                                Areas.                                             document begins].

[[Page 78315]]

 
Part 61 (20.11.61 NMAC)......  Prevention of Significant    10/01/02............  12/30/04 [Insert FR page where
                                Deterioration.                                     document begins].
Part 63 (20.11.63 NMAC)......  New Source Performance       10/01/02............  12/30/04 [Insert FR page where
                                Standards for Stationary                           document begins].
                                Sources.
Part 64 (20.11.64 NMAC)......  Emission Standards for       10/01/02............  12/30/04 [Insert FR page where
                                Hazardous Air Pollutants                           document begins].
                                for Stationary Sources.
Part 65 (20.11.65 NMAC)......  Volatile Organic Compounds.  10/01/02............  12/30/04 [Insert FR page where
                                                                                   document begins].
Part 66 (20.11.66 NMAC)......  Process Equipment..........  10/01/02............  12/30/04 [Insert FR page where
                                                                                   document begins].
Part 67 (20.11.67 NMAC)......  Equipment, Emissions,        10/01/02............  12/30/04 [Insert FR page where
                                Limitations.                                       document begins].
Part 68 (20.11.68 NMAC)......  Incinerators and             04/01/02............  12/30/04 [Insert FR page where
                                Crematories.                                       document begins].
Part 90 (20.11.90 NMAC)......  Administration,              10/01/02............  12/30/04 [Insert FR page where
                                Enforcement, and                                   document begins].
                                Inspection.
Part 100 (20.11.100 NMAC)....  Motor Vehicle Inspection--   10/01/02............  12/30/04 [Insert FR page where
                                Decentralized.                                     document begins].
Part 102 (20.11.102 NMAC)....  Oxygenated Fuels...........  10/01/02............  12/30/04 [Insert FR page where
                                                                                   document begins].
Part 103 (20.11.103 NMAC)....  Motor Vehicle Visible        10/01/02............  12/30/04 [Insert FR page where
                                Emissions.                                         document begins].
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[FR Doc. 04-28501 Filed 12-29-04; 8:45 am]
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