[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 128 (Tuesday, July 7, 2009)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 32091-32092]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-15947]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 80

[EPA-HQ-OAR-2005-0161; FRL-8927-3]
RIN 2060-A081


Regulation of Fuels and Fuel Additives: Changes to Renewable Fuel 
Standard Program; Extension of Comment Period

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Proposed rule; extension of comment period.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (``EPA'') is 
announcing an extension of the public comment period for the proposed 
rule ``Regulation of Fuels and Fuel Additives: Changes to Renewable 
Fuel Standard Program'' (the proposed rule is hereinafter referred to 
as ``RFS2''). EPA published a notice of proposed rulemaking, which 
included a request for comment, in the Federal Register on May 26, 
2009. The public comment period was to end on July 27, 2009--60 days 
after publication in the Federal Register. The purpose of this document 
is to extend the comment period an additional 60 days until September 
25, 2009. This extension of the comment period is provided to allow the 
public additional time to provide comment on the proposed rule.

DATES: The comment period for the proposed rule published May 26, 2009 
(74 FR 24904) is extended. Written comments must be received on or 
before September 25, 2009.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-
OAR-2005-0161, by one of the following methods:
     http://www.regulations.gov: Follow the on-line 
instructions for submitting comments.
     E-mail: [email protected].
     Mail: Air and Radiation Docket and Information Center, 
Environmental Protection Agency, Mailcode: 2822T, 1200 Pennsylvania 
Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460. In addition, please mail a copy of 
your comments on the information collection provisions to the Office of 
Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget 
(OMB), Attn: Desk Officer for EPA, 725 17th St., NW., Washington, DC 
20503.
     Hand Delivery: EPA Docket Center, EPA West Building, Room 
3334, 1301 Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20004. 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-HQ-OAR-
2005-0161. 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. For additional information about EPA's public 
docket visit the EPA Docket Center homepage at http://www.epa.gov/epahome/dockets.htm. For additional instructions on submitting 
comments, please refer to the notice of proposed rulemaking (Section 
XI, Public Participation, of the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of 
the proposed rulemaking document).

How Can I Access the Docket?

    All documents in the docket are listed in the http://www.regulations.gov index. Although listed in the index, some 
information is not publicly available, e.g., CBI or other information 
whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Certain other material, such 
as copyrighted material, will be publicly available only in hard copy. 
Publicly available docket materials are available either electronically 
in www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at the Air and Radiation Docket 
and Information Center, EPA/DC, EPA West,

[[Page 32092]]

Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, DC. The Public 
Reading Room is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through 
Friday, excluding legal holidays. The telephone number for the Public 
Reading Room is (202) 566-1744, and the telephone number for the Air 
Docket is (202) 566-1742.

How Can I Get Copies of This Document, the Proposed Rule, and Other 
Related Information?

    The EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket ID 
No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2005-0161. The EPA has also developed a Web site for the 
proposed RFS2 rule, including the notice of proposed rulemaking, at: 
http://www.epa.gov/otaq/renewablefuels/index.htm. Please refer to the 
notice of proposed rulemaking for detailed information on accessing 
information related to the proposal.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Julia MacAllister, Office of 
Transportation and Air Quality, Assessment and Standards Division, 
Environmental Protection Agency, 2000 Traverwood Drive, Ann Arbor, MI 
48105; telephone number: (734) 214-4131; Fax number: (734) 214-4816; E-
mail address: [email protected], or Assessment and Standards 
Division Hotline; telephone number (734) 214-4636; E-mail address: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Background: In a separate notice of proposed 
rulemaking, EPA proposed a regulation to implement changes to the 
Renewable Fuel Standard program as mandated by the Clean Air Act (as 
amended by Sections 201, 202, and 210 of the Energy Independence and 
Security Act of 2007). The revised statutory requirements specify the 
volumes of cellulosic biofuel, biomass-based diesel, advanced biofuel, 
and total renewable fuel that must be used in transportation fuel each 
year, with the volumes increasing over time. The rule proposed 
regulations designed to ensure that refiners, blenders, and importers 
of gasoline and diesel would use enough renewable fuel each year so 
that the four volume requirements of the Energy Independence and 
Security Act would be met with renewable fuels that also meet the 
required lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions performance standards. The 
RFS2 proposed rule describes the standards that would apply to these 
parties, the lifecycle greenhouse gas modeling, and the renewable fuels 
that would qualify for compliance. The proposed regulations also make a 
number of changes to the current Renewable Fuel Standard program while 
retaining many elements of the compliance and trading system already in 
place.
    Extension of Comment Period: EPA received requests for an extension 
of the RFS2 public comment period from various parties ranging from 60 
to 120 days. EPA also received a request to not extend the comment 
period, and to continue with the schedule as proposed. After 
considering all of these comments, EPA has determined that an extension 
of the comment period would provide the public adequate time to provide 
meaningful comment on the proposed rule. However, this need must be 
balanced against our desire to finalize and implement the new standards 
in a timely manner. EPA believes that an additional 60 days is an 
appropriate amount of time to balance these needs. Accordingly, the 
public comment period for the RFS2 proposed rulemaking is extended 
until September 25, 2009. EPA does not anticipate any further extension 
of the comment period at this time.

    Dated: June 30, 2009.
Gina McCarthy,
Assistant Administrator, Office of Air and Radiation.
[FR Doc. E9-15947 Filed 7-6-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P