[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 192 (Thursday, October 4, 2007)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 56707-56708]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-19626]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R03-OAR-2007-0794; FRL-8478-8]


Approval and Promulgation of Air Quality Implementation Plans; 
Maryland; Amendments to the Control of VOC Emissions From Consumer 
Products

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Proposed rule.

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SUMMARY: EPA is proposing to approve a State Implementation Plan (SIP) 
revision submitted by the State of Maryland. This SIP revision pertains 
to the control of volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions from 
consumer products. This action is being taken under the Clean Air Act 
(CAA).

DATES: Written comments must be received on or before November 5, 2007.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID Number EPA-
R03-OAR-2007-0794 by one of the following methods:
    A. http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the on-line instructions for 
submitting comments.
    B. E-mail: [email protected].
    C. Mail: EPA-R03-OAR-2007-0794, Marilyn Powers, Acting Chief, Air 
Quality Planning Branch, Mailcode 3AP21, U.S. Environmental Protection 
Agency, Region III, 1650 Arch Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103.
    D. Hand Delivery: At the previously-listed EPA Region III address. 
Such deliveries are only accepted during the Docket's normal hours of 
operation, and special arrangements should be made for deliveries of 
boxed information.
    Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. EPA-R03-OAR-
2007-0794. EPA's policy is that all comments received will be included 
in the public docket without change, and may be made available online 
at http://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information 
provided, unless the comment includes information claimed to be 
Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information whose 
disclosure is restricted by statute. Do not submit information that you 
consider to be CBI or otherwise protected through http://www.regulations.gov or e-mail. The http://www.regulations.gov Web site 
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 http://www.regulations.gov, your e-mail address will be 
automatically captured and included as part of the comment that is 
placed in the public docket 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.
    Docket: All documents in the electronic docket are listed in the 
http://www.regulations.gov index. Although listed in the index, some 
information is not publicly available, i.e., CBI or other information 
whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Certain other material, such 
as copyrighted material, is not placed on the Internet and will be 
publicly available only in hard copy form. Publicly available docket 
materials are available either electronically in http://www.regulations.gov or in hard copy during normal business hours at the 
Air Protection Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 
III, 1650 Arch Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103. Copies of the 
State submittal are available at the Maryland Department of the 
Environment, 1800 Washington Boulevard, Suite 705, Baltimore, Maryland 
21230.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rose Quinto, (215) 814-2182, or by e-
mail at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On June 18, 2007, the Maryland Department of 
Environment (MDE) submitted a revision to its SIP. The SIP revision 
(Maryland SIP 07-08) includes amendments to the control of VOC 
emissions from consumer products (COMAR 26.11.32).

I. Background

    Consumer and commercial products are defined as products sold to 
retail customers for personal, household, or automotive use, and 
products marketed by wholesale distributors for use by commercial or 
institutional organizations. VOC emissions from these products come 
from the evaporation of propellant and organic solvents during use. 
Consumer and commercial products comprise a variety of goods, including 
personal care products, household products,

[[Page 56708]]

automotive aftermarket products, insecticides, coatings, and other 
miscellaneous products.
    Maryland adopted the consumer products regulation based on the 2001 
Ozone Transport Commission (OTC) model rule in 2003 that was based on 
the California Air Resources Board (CARB) rule. EPA approved the 
Maryland consumer products regulation on December 9, 2003 (68 FR 
68523). In July 2005, CARB amended the 2001 OTC model rule adding 14 
new categories. In 2006, the OTC developed an updated model rule based 
on the 2005 CARB amendments. Maryland adopted the updated 2006 OTC 
model rule on June 8, 2007 with an effective date of June 18, 2007 to 
incorporate the changes in the 2005 CARB rule.

II. Summary of SIP Revision

    Maryland's amended consumer products regulation incorporates the 
changes made by CARB. These amendments affect 18 categories of consumer 
products. Fourteen categories are new, including subcategories with new 
product category definitions and VOC limits; one previously regulated 
category with a more restrictive VOC limit, and two previously 
regulated categories with additional requirements. The compliance date 
for the new standards is January 1, 2009.
    The new categories are the following: (1) Adhesive remover with 
four subcategories: Floor or wall covering, gasket or thread locking, 
general purpose, and specialty; (2) anti-static product; (3) electrical 
cleaner; (4) electronic cleaner; (6) fabric refresher; (7) footwear or 
leather care product; (8) hair styling product that will incorporate 
hair styling gel and include additional forms of hair styling products 
(i.e., liquid, semi-solid, and pump spray) but does not include hair 
spray product or hair mousse; (9) graffiti remover; (10) shaving gel; 
(11) toilet/urinal care product; and (12) wood cleaner. The previously 
regulated category with a more restrictive limit is contact adhesive 
that has been separated into 2 subcategories: general purpose and 
special purpose. The previously regulated categories with additional 
requirements are air fresheners and general purpose degreasers.

III. Proposed Action

    EPA is proposing to approve the Maryland SIP revision for the 
control of VOC emissions from consumer products (COMAR 26.11.32) 
submitted on June 18, 2007. EPA is soliciting public comments on the 
issues discussed in this document. These comments will be considered 
before taking final action.

IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

    Under Executive Order 12866 (58 FR 51735, October 4, 1993), this 
proposed 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 proposes to approve state law as meeting Federal 
requirements and imposes no additional requirements beyond those 
imposed by state law. Accordingly, the Administrator certifies that 
this proposed 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 proposes to approve 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 (Pub. L. 104-4). This proposed rule also does 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), nor will it 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), because it 
merely proposes to approve a state rule implementing a Federal 
requirement, and does not alter the relationship or the distribution of 
power and responsibilities established in the CAA. This proposed rule 
also is not subject to Executive Order 13045 (62 FR 19885, April 23, 
1997), because it approves a state rule implementing a Federal 
standard.
    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. As required by section 3 of 
Executive Order 12988 (61 FR 4729, February 7, 1996), in issuing this 
proposed rule, EPA has taken the necessary steps to eliminate drafting 
errors and ambiguity, minimize potential litigation, and provide a 
clear legal standard for affected conduct. EPA has complied with 
Executive Order 12630 (53 FR 8859, March 15, 1988) by examining the 
takings implications of the rule in accordance with the ``Attorney 
General's Supplemental Guidelines for the Evaluation of Risk and 
Avoidance of Unanticipated Takings'' issued under the executive order. 
This proposed rule pertaining to the amendments of Maryland's consumer 
products regulation, does not impose an information collection burden 
under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 
3501 et seq.).

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

    Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Ozone, Reporting 
and recordkeeping requirements, Volatile organic compounds.

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

    Dated: September 25, 2007.
Donald S. Welsh,
Regional Administrator, Region III.
[FR Doc. E7-19626 Filed 10-3-07; 8:45 am]
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