[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 156 (Wednesday, August 13, 2014)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 47377-47380]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-17331]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R05-OAR-2013-0046; FRL-9913-15-Region 5]


Approval and Promulgation of Air Quality Implementation Plans; 
Illinois; Amendments to Vehicle Inspection and Maintenance Program for 
Illinois

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is approving a state 
implementation plan (SIP) revision submitted by the Illinois 
Environmental Protection Agency on November 29, 2012, concerning the 
state's vehicle inspection and maintenance (I/M) program in the Chicago 
and Metro-East St. Louis ozone nonattainment areas in Illinois. The 
revision amends I/M program requirements in the active control measures 
portion of the ozone SIP to reflect changes that have been implemented 
at the state level since EPA fully approved the I/M program on February 
22, 1999. The submittal also includes a demonstration under section 
110(l) of the Clean Air Act (CAA) addressing lost emission reductions 
associated with the program changes.

DATES: This final rule is effective on September 12, 2014.

ADDRESSES: EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket ID 
No. EPA-R05-OAR-2013-0046. All documents in the docket are listed in 
the www.regulations.gov Web site. Although listed in the index, some 
information is not publicly available, e.g., Confidential Business 
Information 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 through www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at the 
Environmental Protection Agency, Region 5, Air and Radiation Division, 
77 West Jackson Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois 60604. This facility is 
open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding 
Federal holidays. We recommend that you telephone Francisco J. Acevedo, 
Mobile Source Program Manager, at (312) 886-6061, before visiting the 
Region 5 office.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Francisco J. Acevedo, Mobile Source 
Program Manager, Control Strategies Section, Air Programs Branch (AR-
18J), Environmental Protection Agency, Region 5, 77 West Jackson 
Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois 60604, (312) 886-6061, 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document whenever ``we,'' 
``us,'' or ``our'' is used, we mean EPA. This SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION 
section is arranged as follows:

I. What is being addressed by this document?
II. What is our response to comments received on the notice of 
proposed rulemaking?
III. What action is EPA taking?
IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

I. What is being addressed by this document?

    On November 14, 2013, at 78 FR 68378, EPA proposed to approve into 
the state's Federally-approved SIP several regulatory changes to the 
previously approved I/M program operating in the Chicago and Metro-East 
St. Louis ozone nonattainment areas in Illinois. The most significant 
changes to the Illinois I/M program took effect beginning on February 
1, 2007 and include:
     The elimination of the IM240 transient mode exhaust test 
for all vehicles beginning February 1, 2007.
     The elimination of the evaporative system integrity (gas 
cap pressure) test for all on-board diagnostics (OBD) compliant 
vehicles beginning February 1, 2007.
     The replacement of the computer-matching enforcement 
mechanism with a registration denial based system beginning January 1, 
2008.
     The elimination of the steady-state idle exhaust and 
evaporative integrity (gas cap pressure) testing for all vehicles 
beginning February 1, 2012.
     The exemption of pre-2007 model year (MY) heavy-duty 
vehicles (HDVs) with gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) between 8,501 
and 14,000 pounds beginning February 1, 2012.
     The exemption of all HDVs with a GVWR greater than 14,000 
pounds as of February 1, 2012.
     The requirement of OBD pass/fail testing for all 2007 and 
newer OBD-compliant HDVs.
    In addition to the changes discussed above, the November 29, 2012, 
submittal included a number of minor revisions to the program that do 
not have a significant impact on overall program operations or the 
emissions reductions associated with it. A full list of the regulatory 
changes submitted by Illinois for EPA approval includes:
     VEIL of 2005, as amended, 625 ILCS 5/13C (Public Act 94-
526 enacted on

[[Page 47378]]

August 10, 2005; Public Act 94-848 enacted on June 9, 2006; Public Act 
97-106, enacted on July 14, 2011).
     Revisions to 35 Ill. Adm. Code 240 (R11-19 effective March 
18, 2011 (35 Ill. Reg. 5552 (April 1, 2011)); R12-12 effective February 
1, 2012 (36 Ill. Reg. 1066 (January 27, 2012)).
     Revisions to 35 Ill. Adm. Code 276 effective June 28, 2011 
(35 Ill. Reg. 11268) and January 30, 2012 (36 Ill. Reg. 2257).

II. What is our response to comments received on the notice of proposed 
rulemaking?

    The November 14, 2013, proposal provided a 30-day review and 
comment period. The comment period closed on December 16, 2013. EPA 
received comments from two parties during the public comment period. 
One was supportive of our proposed action. We are responding to the 
second commenter who disagreed with our action.
    Comment. The commenter notes that the primary concern with EPA's 
proposed approval of Illinois' SIP revision is ensuring it is not 
counter-productive to compliance of the National Ambient Air Quality 
Standards (NAAQS). The commenter states that compliance with these 
standards should be a prerequisite for considering such revisions to 
ensure timely attainment of all applicable NAAQS. The commenter further 
claims that the SIP revision would limit Illinois' ability to reduce 
its precursor emissions, interfere with attainment of multiple NAAQS, 
and place additional burden on neighboring states.
    Response. States have primary responsibility for deciding how to 
attain and maintain the NAAQS. In reviewing SIP submissions, EPA's role 
is to approve state choices, provided that they meet minimum criteria 
set by the CAA or any applicable EPA regulations. To ensure that 
impacts on the NAAQS are considered, any change submitted to EPA for 
approval must include a demonstration of non-interference with the 
NAAQS, pursuant to section 110(l) of the CAA. In the absence of an 
attainment demonstration, to demonstrate non-interference with any 
applicable NAAQS or requirement of the CAA under section 110(l), EPA's 
policy is that states may substitute equivalent emissions reductions to 
compensate for any change to a SIP approved program, to ensure that 
actual emissions in the air are not increased. Allowing states to use 
substitute equivalent emissions to address section 110(l) provides 
states with flexibility, while not interfering with attainment or 
maintenance of the NAAQS. The compensating equivalent reductions must 
represent permanent emissions reductions achieved in a contemporaneous 
time frame to the change of the existing SIP control measure, in order 
to ensure that there is no degradation of air quality.
    As outlined in EPA's proposed approval, Illinois' SIP revision 
includes such a demonstration using equivalent emissions reductions 
achieved through the shutdown of permitted emission sources to 
compensate for emission reduction losses resulting from changes to the 
I/M program that was approved into the SIP in 1999 (64 FR 8517 (Feb. 
22, 1999). In the Chicago nonattainment area, Illinois identified 1,168 
facilities with permitted volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions and 
687 facilities with permitted nitrogen oxides (NOX) 
emissions that have permanently closed and have expired permits that 
have been revoked.
    In the Metro-East St. Louis nonattainment area, Illinois identified 
82 facilities with permitted VOC emissions and 39 facilities with 
permitted NOX emissions that have permanently closed and 
have expired permits that have been revoked. These sources all ceased 
operations within the same timeframe of Illinois implementing the 
revisions to the I/M program. At this point, these sources have all 
been shutdown for at least two years.
    EPA has a well-established policy that reactivation of a 
permanently shutdown facility will be treated as operation of a new 
source for purposes of Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) 
review. See In the Matter of Monroe Electric Generating Plant, Entergy 
Louisiana, Inc. Proposed Operating Permit, Petition No. 6-99-2, Order 
Partially Granting and Partially Denying Petition for Objection to 
Permit (June 11, 1999) at p.8 & n.9 (citing authorities). In general, 
whether a shutdown is treated as permanent depends on the facts and 
circumstances, although shutdowns of more than two years or that result 
in removal of a source from the state's emissions inventory are 
presumed to be permanent.
    EPA has determined, for the sources identified in the record as 
part of Illinois' submission, that these sources are permanently 
shutdown for purposes of PSD. Any restart of operations, and associated 
emissions, at these sites will be treated as a new sources, subject to 
the requirements of the PSD program. In addition, the state's 110(l) 
demonstration indicates that the reductions achieved by the source 
shutdowns occurred during the same timeframe as the increased emissions 
from the modified I/M program. As a result, EPA believes it is 
reasonable for Illinois to use the reductions in actual emissions of 
ozone precursors resulting from the shutdown of these sources as 
offsets for any increases in emissions of ozone precursors associated 
with the changes to the I/M program.
    A review of Illinois' 110(l) demonstration shows that the emissions 
reductions of both VOC and NOX emissions far exceed the 
increase in emissions resulting from the revised I/M program. EPA finds 
that the net result of these changes will not interfere with attainment 
and maintenance of the ozone, or other, NAAQS.
    Comment. The same commenter also included an analysis that it 
claims demonstrates that the changes to the Illinois I/M program 
resulted in an increase in precursor emissions for ozone. The commenter 
further states that the increase in emissions resulting from the 
Illinois I/M program changes alone (or largely) was responsible for the 
monitored violation of the 2008 ozone standard at the Zion, IL monitor. 
The commenter points to a photochemical modeling analysis conducted by 
the commenter, showing that the decreased effectiveness in the emission 
reduction potential of the Illinois I/M program equates to an increase 
in ozone concentrations. The commenter argues that because the State 
has been implementing the modified program since 2007, any analysis 
should not be based solely on emissions modeling or speculative 
results, but supported by actual monitoring data that demonstrates 
compliance with the applicable air quality standards as well. The 
commenter points to multiple monitored violations of the standard that 
have occurred in Illinois subsequent to these I/M program changes, and 
claims that such monitored violations provide strong indication that 
the current controls and current approved SIP are inadequate to support 
attainment of the 2008 ozone standard and are also insufficient to 
support attainment of the 2012 standard for fine particles as well.
    Response. The commenter's photochemical modeling analysis 
referenced above only reflects the impacts of the changes made to the 
Illinois I/M program. The analysis however fails to take into 
consideration the emissions reductions achieved through the shutdown of 
permitted emission sources that Illinois relies on to compensate for 
the emission reduction losses resulting from changes to the February 
22, 1999, SIP approved I/M program. When the compensating emission 
reductions being used by

[[Page 47379]]

Illinois to address 110(l) are taken into account in the commenter's 
analysis, the direct link between the violating monitoring data and the 
I/M program changes claimed by the commenter can no longer be 
supported. The compensating emission reductions of both VOC and 
NOX emissions far exceed the increase in emissions resulting 
from the revised I/M program and ensure that there is no net increase 
in precursor emissions resulting from the approval of the I/M program 
changes. EPA believes that, had the commenter modeled the ozone impact 
of the combined increased emissions from the I/M revision and the 
decrease in emissions from the offsetting emission reductions, the 
commenter would have modeled a net decrease in peak downwind ozone 
concentrations. In addition, Illinois' analysis also shows that the 
emission reduction losses resulting from the changes to the I/M program 
continue to significantly decline through 2025 while the compensating 
emission reductions being relied on during the same time period do not. 
The commenter's claims that Illinois' current control measures and 
current approved SIP are inadequate to support attainment of the 2008 
ozone and 2012 fine particle standards are outside the scope of this 
action. As stated before, any SIP revision submitted to EPA for 
consideration needs to include a demonstration of non-interference with 
the NAAQS under section 110(l) of the CAA to ensure that impacts on the 
NAAQS are considered. Illinois' SIP revision included such a 
demonstration and EPA has determined that Illinois' use of substitute 
emission reductions does not affect timely attainment of all applicable 
NAAQS.

III. What action is EPA taking?

    EPA is approving the revisions to the Illinois ozone SIP submitted 
on November 29, 2012, concerning the I/M program in Illinois. EPA finds 
that the revisions meet all applicable requirements and will not 
interfere with reasonable further progress or attainment of any of the 
national ambient air quality standards.

IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

    Under the CAA, the Administrator is required to approve a SIP 
submission that complies with the provisions of the CAA and applicable 
Federal regulations 42 U.S.C. 7410(k); 40 CFR 52.02(a). Thus, in 
reviewing SIP submissions, EPA's role is to approve state choices, 
provided that they meet the criteria of the CAA. Accordingly, this 
action merely approves state law as meeting Federal requirements and 
does not impose additional requirements beyond those imposed by state 
law. For that reason, this action:
     Is not a ``significant regulatory action'' subject to 
review by the Office of Management and Budget under Executive Order 
12866 (58 FR 51735, October 4, 1993);
     Does not impose an information collection burden under the 
provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.);
     Is certified as not having a significant economic impact 
on a substantial number of small entities under the Regulatory 
Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.);
     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);
     does not have Federalism implications as specified in 
Executive Order 13132 (64 FR 43255, August 10, 1999);
     is not an economically significant regulatory action based 
on health or safety risks subject to Executive Order 13045 (62 FR 
19885, April 23, 1997);
     is not a significant regulatory action subject to 
Executive Order 13211 (66 FR 28355, May 22, 2001);
     is not subject to requirements of Section 12(d) of the 
National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995 (15 U.S.C. 272 
note) because application of those requirements would be inconsistent 
with the CAA; and
     does not provide EPA with the discretionary authority to 
address, as appropriate, disproportionate human health or environmental 
effects, using practicable and legally permissible methods, under 
Executive Order 12898 (59 FR 7629, February 16, 1994).
    In addition, this rule does not have tribal implications as 
specified by Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9, 2000), 
because the SIP is not approved to apply in Indian country located in 
the state, and EPA notes that it will not impose substantial direct 
costs on tribal governments or preempt tribal law.
    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 action 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 CAA, petitions for judicial review 
of this action must be filed in the United States Court of Appeals for 
the appropriate circuit by October 14, 2014. Filing a petition for 
reconsideration by the Administrator of this final rule does not affect 
the finality of this action 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, Nitrogen oxides, Ozone, 
Volatile organic compounds.

    Dated: June 23, 2014.
Susan Hedman,
Regional Administrator, Region 5.

    40 CFR part 52 is amended as follows:

PART 52--APPROVAL AND PROMULGATION OF IMPLEMENTATION PLANS

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

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


0
2. Section 52.720 is amended by adding paragraph (c)(200) to read as 
follows:


Sec.  52.720  Identification of plan.

* * * * *
    (c) * * *
    (200) On November 29, 2012, the Illinois Environmental Protection 
Agency submitted a request to revise Illinois' vehicle inspection and 
maintenance (I/M) program to reflect changes that have been made to the 
program since EPA fully approved the I/M program on February 22, 1999.
    (i) Incorporation by reference.
    (A) Illinois Administrative Code, Title 35: Environmental 
Protection, Subtitle B: Air Pollution, Chapter I: Pollution Control 
Board, Subchapter k: Emission Standards and Limitations for Mobile 
Sources, Part 240 Mobile Sources. Effective February 1, 2012.
    (B) Illinois Administrative Code, Title 35: Environmental 
Protection, Subtitle B: Air Pollution, Chapter II:

[[Page 47380]]

Environmental Protection Agency, Part 276 Procedures to be Followed in 
the Performance of Inspections of Motor Vehicle Emissions. Effective 
January 30, 2012.
    (ii) Other materials.
    (A) Transmittal letter dated November 29, 2012.
    (B) Vehicle Emissions Inspection Law of 2005, as amended, 625 ILCS 
5/13C (Public Act 94-526 enacted on August 10, 2005; Public Act 94-848 
enacted on June 9, 2006; Public Act 97-106, enacted on July 14, 2011).
    (C) Listing of Chicago and Metro-East St. Louis NAA Facility 
Closures (July 2012).

[FR Doc. 2014-17331 Filed 8-12-14; 8:45 am]
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