[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 239 (Friday, December 12, 2014)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 73842-73844]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-29146]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R06-OAR-2005-TX-0002; FRL-9920-34-Region 6]


Approval and Promulgation of Air Quality Implementation Plans; 
Texas; Repeal of Lead Emission Rules for Stationary Sources in El Paso 
and Dallas County

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Direct final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking direct 
final action to approve a revision to the State Implementation Plan 
(SIP) for Texas which repeals lead emission rules which cover 
stationary sources in El Paso and Dallas county that are no longer in 
existence. This action is being taken under section 110(k) and part D 
of the Clean Air Act (CAA).

DATES: This rule is effective on February 10, 2015 without further 
notice, unless EPA receives relevant adverse comment by January 12, 
2015. If EPA receives such comment, EPA will publish a

[[Page 73843]]

timely withdrawal in the Federal Register informing the public that 
this rule will not take effect.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No EPA-R06-
OAR-2005-TX-0002, by one of the following methods:
     www.regulations.gov. Follow the on-line instructions.
     Email: Mr. Kenneth W. Boyce at [email protected].
     Mail or Delivery: Mr. Guy Donaldson, Chief, Air Planning 
Section (6PD-L), Environmental Protection Agency, 1445 Ross Avenue, 
Suite 1200, Dallas, Texas 75202-2733.
    Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. EPA-R06-OAR-
2005-TX-0002. EPA's policy is that all comments received will be 
included in the public docket without change and may be made available 
online at 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 through 
www.regulations.gov or email, information that you consider to be CBI 
or otherwise protected. The 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 email comment directly to EPA without 
going through www.regulations.gov, your email 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 www.epa.gov/epahome/dockets.htm.
    Docket: All documents in the docket are listed in the 
www.regulations.gov index and in hard copy at EPA Region 6, 1445 Ross 
Avenue, Suite 700, Dallas, Texas. While all documents in the docket are 
listed in the index, some information may be publicly available only at 
the hard copy location (e.g., copyrighted material), and some may not 
be publicly available at either location (e.g., CBI). To inspect the 
hard copy materials, please schedule an appointment with the person 
listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT paragraph below or Mr. 
Bill Deese at 214-665-7253.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Kenneth W. Boyce (6PD-L), Air 
Planning Section, telephone (214) 665-7259, fax (214) 665-6762, email: 
[email protected].

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

Table of Contents

I. Background
II. EPA Review
III. Final Action
IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

I. Background

    The lead rules contained at 30 Texas Administrative Code Chapter 
113 were adopted in 1984 as a result of emissions from a primary lead 
smelter (ASARCO) located in El Paso County, and two secondary lead 
smelters (battery recycling facilities) located in Dallas County (RSR 
and Dixie Metals). Subsequently, the lead processes in all three 
facilities were shut down and the equipment dismantled. Under its 
Regulation Reform initiative, the Texas Natural Resource Conservation 
Commission repealed these lead rules which were adopted to control site 
specific sources of lead in Dallas and El Paso Counties which are no 
longer in existence.

II. EPA review

    Texas' SIP revision to eliminate the lead rules was deemed complete 
by operation of law on August 5, 1999. These lead rules were adopted to 
control emissions from specific sources that are no longer in 
existence. A review of the emissions inventory for lead sources in 
Dallas and El Paso Counties confirms that there are no other 
operational primary or secondary lead smelters located within El Paso 
or Dallas counties. Therefore, it is no longer necessary for these 
rules to be included in the Texas SIP. Any new sources of lead in the 
future will have to demonstrate their operation will not cause 
violations of the more recent 2008 National Ambient Air Quality 
standard for lead before receiving a permit to construct. This Standard 
is much more stringent than the Standard that was in place in 1999. 
Therefore, as required by section 110(l) of the CAA, these revisions 
will not interfere with attainment or contribute to nonattainment of 
any national ambient air quality standard and do not interfere with any 
other requirement of the CAA. Therefore, EPA is approving these 
revisions to the Texas SIP.

III. Final Action

    In accordance with Section 110(a) and (l) and 40 CFR part 51, EPA 
is taking direct final action to approve the State of Texas' January 
13, 1999 SIP revision submittal which repealed its lead emission rules 
which applied to operating stationary sources in both El Paso County 
and Dallas County that are no longer in existence.
    EPA is publishing this rule without prior proposal because we view 
this as a non-controversial amendment and anticipate no adverse 
comments. However, in the proposed rules section of this Federal 
Register publication, we are publishing a separate document that will 
serve as the proposal to approve the SIP revision if relevant adverse 
comments are received. This rule will be effective on February 10, 2015 
without further notice unless we receive relevant adverse comment by 
January 12, 2015. If we receive relevant adverse comments, we will 
publish a timely withdrawal in the Federal Register informing the 
public that the rule will not take effect. We will address all public 
comments in a subsequent final rule based on the proposed rule. We will 
not institute a second comment period on this action. Any parties 
interested in commenting must do so now. Please note that if we receive 
relevant adverse comment on an amendment, paragraph, or section of this 
rule and if that provision may be severed from the remainder of the 
rule, we may adopt as final those provisions of the rule that are not 
the subject of an adverse comment.

IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

    Under the Clean Air Act, the Administrator is required to approve a 
SIP submission that complies with the provisions of the Act 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);

[[Page 73844]]

     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).

The SIP is not approved to apply on any Indian reservation land or in 
any other area where EPA or an Indian tribe has demonstrated that a 
tribe has jurisdiction. In those areas of Indian country, the rule does 
not have tribal implications as specified by Executive Order 13175 (65 
FR 67249, November 9, 2000), nor will it 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 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 CAA, petitions for judicial review 
of this action must be filed in the United States Court of Appeals for 
the appropriate circuit by February 10, 2015. 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, Lead.

    Dated: November 19, 2014.
Ron Curry,
Regional Administrator, Region 6.

    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.

Subpart SS--Texas


Sec.  52.2270  [Amended]

0
2. In Sec.  52.2270(c), the table titled ``EPA Approved Regulations in 
the Texas SIP'' is amended by removing the centered headings and 
entries for ``Chapter 113 (Reg 3)--Control of Air Pollution From Toxic 
Materials''.
[FR Doc. 2014-29146 Filed 12-11-14; 8:45 am]
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