[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 116 (Thursday, June 16, 2016)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 39211-39213]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-14098]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R09-OAR-2016-0124; FRL-9946-38-Region 9]


Approval of California Air Plan Revisions, Eastern Kern Air 
Pollution Control District and Yolo-Solano Air Quality Management 
District

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 revisions to the Yolo-Solano Air Quality 
Management District (YSAQMD) and Eastern Kern Air Pollution Control 
District (EKAPCD) portions of the California State Implementation Plan 
(SIP). These revisions concern, respectively, the definition of 
volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and emissions of VOCs from the 
surface coating operations of wood products. We are approving local 
rules that regulate these emission sources under the Clean Air Act (CAA 
or the Act).

DATES: This rule is effective on August 15, 2016 without further 
notice, unless the EPA receives adverse comments by July 18, 2016. If 
we receive such comments, we will publish a timely withdrawal in the 
Federal Register to notify the public that this direct final rule will 
not take effect.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R09-
OAR-2016-0124 at http://www.regulations.gov, or via email to 
[email protected]. For comments submitted at Regulations.gov, 
follow the online instructions for submitting comments. Once submitted, 
comments cannot be edited or removed from Regulations.gov. For either 
manner of submission, the EPA may publish any comment received to its 
public docket. Do not submit electronically any information you 
consider to be Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other 
information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Multimedia 
submissions (audio, video, etc.) must be accompanied by a written 
comment. The written comment is considered the official comment and 
should include discussion of all points you wish to make. The EPA will 
generally not consider comments or comment contents located outside of 
the primary submission (i.e. on the web, cloud, or other file sharing 
system). For additional submission methods, please contact the person 
identified in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section. For the full 
EPA public comment policy, information about CBI or multimedia 
submissions, and general guidance on making effective comments, please 
visit http://www2.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Arnold Lazarus, EPA Region IX, (415) 
972-3024, [email protected].

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

Table of Contents

I. The State's Submittal
    A. What rules did the State submit?
    B. Are there other versions of these rules?
    C. What is the purpose of the submitted rule and rule revision?
II. The EPA's Evaluation and Action
    A. How is the EPA evaluating the rules?
    B. Do the rules meet the evaluation criteria?
    C. EPA Recommendations To Further Improve the Rules
    D. Public Comment and Final Action
III. Incorporation by Reference
IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

I. The State's Submittal

A. What rules did the State submit?

    Table 1 lists the rules addressed by this action with the dates 
that they were adopted by the local air agencies and submitted by the 
California Air Resources Board (CARB).

                                            Table 1--Submitted Rules
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                     Adopted/
         Local agency              Rule No.                Rule title                amended/        Submitted
                                                                                      revised
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
EKAPCD........................           410.9  Wood Products Surface Coating          3/13/2014       7/25/2014
                                                 Operations.
YSAQMD........................             1.1  General Provisions and                 7/08/2015      11/13/2015
                                                 Definitions.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    On September 11, 2014, and January 19, 2016, the EPA determined 
that the submittals for EKAPCD Rule 410.9 and YSAQMD Rule 1.1 
respectively met the completeness criteria in 40 CFR part 51 Appendix 
V, which must be met before formal EPA review.

B. Are there other versions of these rules?

    There are no previous versions of Rule 410.9 in the SIP. We 
approved an earlier version of Rule 1.1 into the SIP on April 28, 2015 
(80 FR 23449).

C. What is the purpose of the submitted rule and rule revision?

    VOCs help produce ground-level ozone, smog and PM, which harm human 
health and the environment. Section 110(a) of the CAA requires States 
to submit regulations that control

[[Page 39212]]

VOC emissions. Rule 410.9 limits and controls VOC emission from surface 
coating operations of wood products. The revisions to Rule 1.1 do not 
have a direct effect on air pollution emissions; they amend the 
definition of VOC that is used in other YSAQMD rules to exempt certain 
substances that have been determined to have negligible photochemical 
reactivity and which are excluded from the definition applied by the 
EPA. The EPA's technical support documents (TSDs) have more information 
about these rules.

II. The EPA's Evaluation and Action

A. How is the EPA evaluating the rules?

    SIP rules must be enforceable (see CAA section 110(a)(2)), must not 
interfere with applicable requirements concerning attainment and 
reasonable further progress or other CAA requirements (see CAA section 
110(l)), and must not modify certain SIP control requirements in 
nonattainment areas without ensuring equivalent or greater emissions 
reductions (see CAA section 193).
    Generally, SIP rules must require Reasonably Available Control 
Technology (RACT) for each category of sources covered by a Control 
Techniques Guidelines (CTG) document as well as each major source of 
VOCs in ozone nonattainment areas classified as moderate or above (see 
CAA sections 182(b)(2)). The EKAPCD and the YSAQMD regulate ozone areas 
classified as Marginal Nonattainment and Severe Nonattainment 
respectively for the federal 8-hour 2008 Ozone Standard. 40 CFR 81.305. 
The TSDs have more information about these requirements as they relate 
to the submitted rules.
    Guidance and policy documents that we used to evaluate 
enforceability, revision/relaxation and rule stringency requirements 
for the applicable criteria pollutants include the following:
    1. ``State Implementation Plans; General Preamble for the 
Implementation of Title I of the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990,'' 
(57 FR 13498, April 16, 1992 and 57 FR 18070, April 28, 1992).
    2. ``Issues Relating to VOC Regulation Cutpoints, Deficiencies, and 
Deviations'' (``the Bluebook,'' U.S. EPA, May 25, 1988; revised January 
11, 1990).
    3. ``Guidance Document for Correcting Common VOC & Other Rule 
Deficiencies'' (``the Little Bluebook'', EPA Region 9, August 21, 
2001).
    4. Control Techniques Guidelines, ``Control of Volatile Organic 
Compound Emissions from Wood Furniture Manufacturing Operations'' (EPA-
453/R-96-007, April 1996).
    5. Control Techniques Guidelines, ``Control Techniques Guidelines 
for Flat Wood Paneling Coatings'' (EPA-453/R-06-004, September 2006).
    6. Code of Federal Regulations, Title 40, Chapter C, Part 51, 
Subpart F, Section 51.100, ``Definitions'' (40 CFR 51.100).

B. Do the rules meet the evaluation criteria?

    We believe these rules are consistent with the relevant policy and 
guidance regarding enforceability, stringency and SIP relaxations. The 
TSDs have more information on our evaluation.

C. EPA Recommendations To Further Improve the Rules

    The TSDs describe additional rule revisions that we recommend for 
the next time the local agency modifies the rules but which are not 
currently the basis for rule disapproval.

D. Public Comment and Final Action

    As authorized in section 110(k)(3) of the Act, the EPA is fully 
approving the submitted rules because we believe they fulfill all 
relevant requirements. We do not think anyone will object to this 
approval, so we are finalizing it without proposing it in advance. 
However, in the Proposed Rules section of this issue of the Federal 
Register, we are simultaneously proposing approval of the same 
submitted rules. If we receive adverse comments by July 18, 2016, we 
will publish a timely withdrawal in the Federal Register to notify the 
public that the direct final approval will not take effect and we will 
address the comments in a subsequent final action based on the 
proposal. If we do not receive timely adverse comments, the direct 
final approval will be effective without further notice on August 15, 
2016. This will incorporate these rules into the federally enforceable 
SIP.
    Please note that if the EPA receives adverse comment on an 
amendment, paragraph, or section of this rule and if that provision may 
be severed from the remainder of the rule, the EPA may adopt as final 
those provisions of the rule that are not the subject of an adverse 
comment.

III. Incorporation by Reference

    In this rule, the EPA is finalizing regulatory text that includes 
incorporation by reference. In accordance with requirements of 1 CFR 
51.5, the EPA is finalizing the incorporation by reference of the 
EKAPCD and YSAQMD rules described in the amendments to 40 CFR part 52 
set forth below. The EPA has made, and will continue to make, these 
documents available electronically through www.regulations.gov and in 
hard copy at the appropriate EPA office (see the ADDRESSES section of 
this preamble for more information).

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, the EPA's role is to approve state 
choices, provided that they meet the criteria of the Clean Air Act. 
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 Orders 12866 (58 
FR 51735, October 4, 1993) and 13563 (76 FR 3821, January 21, 2011);
     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 Clean Air Act; and
     does not provide the EPA with the discretionary authority 
to address, as appropriate, disproportionate human health or 
environmental effects, using practicable and legally permissible

[[Page 39213]]

methods, under Executive Order 12898 (59 FR 7629, February 16, 1994).
    In addition, the SIP is not approved to apply on any Indian 
reservation land or in any other area where the 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 and will not 
impose substantial direct costs on tribal governments or preempt tribal 
law as specified by Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9, 
2000).
    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. The 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 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 August 15, 2016. 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. Parties with objections to this direct final 
rule are encouraged to file a comment in response to the parallel 
notice of proposed rulemaking for this action published in the Proposed 
Rules section of today's Federal Register, rather than file an 
immediate petition for judicial review of this direct final rule, so 
that the EPA can withdraw this direct final rule and address the 
comment in the proposed rulemaking. 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, Ozone, Particulate matter, 
Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Volatile organic compounds.

    Dated: May 3, 2016.
Jared Blumenfeld,
Regional Administrator, Region IX.

    Part 52, chapter I, title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations 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 F--California

0
2. Section 52.220 is amended by adding paragraphs (c)(442)(i)(F)(3), 
(c)(447)(i)(D)(4), and (c)(472) to read as follows:


Sec.  52.220  Identification of plan.

* * * * *
    (c) * * *
    (442) * * *
    (i) * * *
    (F) * * *
    (3) Previously approved on April 28, 2015 in paragraph 
(442)(i)(F)(1) of this section and now deleted with replacement in 
(472)(i)(A)(1), Rule 1.1, ``General Provisions and Definitions,'' 
revised on May 8, 2013.
* * * * *
    (447) * * *
    (i) * * *
    (D) * * *
    (4) Rule 410.9, ``Wood Products Surface Coating Operations,'' 
adopted on March 13, 2014.
* * * * *
    (472) New and amended regulations were submitted on November 13, 
2015, by the Governor's designee.
    (i) Incorporation by reference.
    (A) Yolo-Solano Air Quality Management District.
    (1) Rule 1.1, General Provisions and Definitions, revised July 8, 
2015.

[FR Doc. 2016-14098 Filed 6-15-16; 8:45 am]
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