[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 46 (Friday, March 10, 2017)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 13280-13282]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-04689]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R09-OAR-2016-0415; FRL-9959-44-Region 9]


Approval of California Air Plan Revisions, Antelope Valley Air 
Quality Management District

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Proposed rule.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to 
approve a revision to the Antelope Valley Air Quality Management 
District (AVAQMD) portion of the California State Implementation Plan 
(SIP). This revision concerns emissions of volatile organic compounds 
(VOCs) and oxides of nitrogen (NOX) from passenger vehicles. 
We are proposing to approve a local rule to regulate these emission 
sources under the Clean Air Act (CAA or the Act). We are taking 
comments on this proposal and plan to follow with a final action.

DATES: Any comments must arrive by April 10, 2017.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R09-
OAR-2016-0415 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.

[[Page 13281]]


FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jeffrey Buss, EPA Region IX, (415) 
947-4152, [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 rule did the State submit?
    B. Are there other versions of this rule?
    C. What is the purpose of the submitted rule?
II. The EPA's Evaluation and Action
    A. How is the EPA evaluating the rule?
    B. Does the rule meet the evaluation criteria?
    C. Public Comment and Proposed Action
III. Incorporation by Reference
IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

I. The State's Submittal

A. What rule did the State submit?

    Table 1 lists the rule addressed by this proposal with the date 
that it was adopted by the local air agency and submitted by the 
California Air Resources Board.

                                             Table 1--Submitted Rule
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
            Local agency                Rule No.              Rule title              Adopted        Submitted
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
AVAQMD.............................            2200  Transportation Outreach            07/20/99        10/29/99
                                                      Program.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    On April 29, 2000, the submittal for AVAQMD Rule 2200 was deemed by 
operation of law to meet the completeness criteria in 40 CFR part 51, 
appendix V, which must be met before formal EPA review.

B. Are there other versions of this rule?

    There are no previous versions of Rule 2200 in the SIP, however, 
when the District succeeded the South Coast Air Quality Management 
District (SCAQMD) on July 1, 1997 as the air agency in the Antelope 
Valley, the SCAQMD rules in effect within the Antelope Valley on that 
date became AVAPCD Rules, including Rule 2202: ``On Road Motor Vehicle 
Mitigation Options.'' On January 20, 1998 the District rescinded Rule 
2202 and subsequently replaced it with Rule 2200. While we can act on 
only the most recently submitted version, we have reviewed materials 
provided with previous submittals.

C. What is the purpose of the submitted rule?

    Rule 2200 provides a mechanism for obtaining documentation of 
emission reductions resulting from trip reduction programs. According 
to the District, the rule is expected to help reduce volatile organic 
compound (VOC) and oxides of nitrogen (NOX) emissions by 
encouraging individuals to select rideshare alternatives to driving 
alone and by educating employees and the public others about the health 
impacts of motor vehicle pollution. VOCs and NOX help 
produce ground-level ozone, and PM, which harm human health and the 
environment. Section 110(a) of the CAA requires States to submit 
regulations that control VOC and NOX emissions. The EPA's 
technical support document (TSD) has more information about this rule.

II. The EPA's Evaluation and Action

A. How is the EPA evaluating the rule?

    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). Further, CAA section 182(d)(1)(B) 
permits states with severe or extreme nonattainment areas to ``submit a 
revision at any time requiring employers in such area[s] to implement 
programs to reduce work-related vehicle trips and miles travelled by 
employees. Such revision shall be developed in accordance with guidance 
issued by the Administrator pursuant to [the CAA] and may require that 
employers in such area[s] increase average passenger occupancy per 
vehicle in commuting trips between home and the workplace during peak 
travel periods.'' 42 U.S.C. 7511a.
    Guidance and policy documents that we use to evaluate 
enforceability, revision/relaxation and rule stringency requirements 
for the applicable criteria pollutants include the following:
    ``Guidance on Incorporating Voluntary Mobile Source Emission 
Reduction Programs in State Implementation Plans (SIPs),'' Memorandum 
from Richard D. Wilson, October 24, 1997.

B. Does the rule meet the evaluation criteria?

    We believe this rule is consistent with CAA requirements and 
relevant guidance regarding enforceability, and SIP revisions. The 
rule, however, establishes a framework for documenting emissions 
reductions from trip reduction programs without requiring any specific 
trip reduction programs. In addition, the submittal does not contain a 
good faith estimate of emission reductions. For these two reasons, it 
is not appropriate to credit this rule with emission reductions in a 
SIP at this time. The TSD has more information on our evaluation.

C. Public Comment and Proposed Action

    As authorized in section 110(k)(3) of the Act, the EPA proposes to 
fully approve the submitted rule because we believe it fulfills all 
relevant requirements. We will accept comments from the public on this 
proposal until April 10, 2017. Unless we receive convincing new 
information during the comment period, we intend to publish a final 
approval action that will incorporate this rule into the federally 
enforceable SIP.

III. Incorporation by Reference

    In this rule, the EPA is proposing to include in a final EPA rule 
regulatory text that includes incorporation by reference. In accordance 
with requirements of 1 CFR 51.5, the EPA is proposing to incorporate by 
reference the AVAQMD the rule described in Table 1 of this notice. The 
EPA has made, and will continue to make, these documents available 
electronically through www.regulations.gov and in hard copy at U.S. 
Environmental Protection Agency Region IX (Air-4), 75 Hawthorne Street, 
San Francisco, CA, 94105-3901.

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 Clean Air Act. 
Accordingly, this proposed action merely proposes to approve State law 
as

[[Page 13282]]

meeting federal requirements and does not impose additional 
requirements beyond those imposed by State law. For that reason, this 
proposed 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 Clean Air Act; and
     Does not provide EPA with the discretionary authority to 
address disproportionate human health or environmental effects with 
practical, appropriate, and legally permissible 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).

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

    Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Incorporation by 
reference, Intergovernmental relations, Nitrogen dioxide, Ozone, 
Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Volatile organic compounds.

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

    Dated: August 24, 2016.
Alexis Strauss,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region IX.
[FR Doc. 2017-04689 Filed 3-9-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6560-50-P