[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 204 (Tuesday, October 24, 2017)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 49128-49132]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-22942]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R03-OAR-2017-0342; FRL-9969-83-Region 3]


Approval and Promulgation of Air Quality Implementation Plans; 
Pennsylvania; Pennsylvania's Adoption of Control Techniques Guidelines 
for Automobile and Light-Duty Truck Assembly Coatings

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 Commonwealth of 
Pennsylvania's state implementation plan (SIP). The revision includes 
the addition to the SIP of amendments to the Pennsylvania Department of 
Environmental Protection's (PADEP) regulations and addresses the 
requirement to adopt reasonably available control technology (RACT) for 
sources covered by EPA's control techniques guidelines (CTG) standards 
for automobile and light-duty assembly coatings. This action is being 
taken under the Clean Air Act (CAA).

DATES: This rule is effective on December 26, 2017 without further 
notice, unless EPA receives adverse written comment by November 24, 
2017. If EPA receives such comments, it will publish a timely 
withdrawal of the direct final rule in the Federal Register and inform 
the public that the rule will not take effect.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R03-
OAR-2017-0342 at https://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

[[Page 49129]]

Regulations.gov. For either manner of submission, 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. 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: Joseph Schulingkamp, (215) 814-2021, 
or by email at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background

    Ground level ozone is formed in the atmosphere by photochemical 
reactions between volatile organic compounds (VOCs), nitrogen oxides 
(NOX), and carbon monoxide (CO) in the presence of sunlight. 
In order to reduce ozone concentrations in the ambient air, the CAA 
requires all nonattainment areas to apply control on VOC and 
NOX emission sources to achieve emission reductions. Among 
effective control measures, RACT controls significantly reduce VOC and 
NOX emissions from major stationary sources. NOX 
and VOC are referred to as ozone precursors and are emitted by many 
types of pollution sources, including motor vehicles, power plants, 
industrial facilities, and area wide sources, such as consumer products 
and lawn and garden equipment. Scientific evidence indicates that 
adverse public health effects occur following exposure to ozone. These 
effects are more pronounced in children and adults with lung disease. 
Breathing air containing ozone can reduce lung function and inflame 
airways, which can increase respiratory symptoms and aggravate asthma 
or other lung diseases.
    RACT is defined as the lowest emission limitation that a particular 
source is capable of meeting by the application of control technology 
that is reasonably available considering technological and economic 
feasibility (44 FR 53761 at 53762, September 17, 1979). Section 182 of 
the CAA sets forth two separate RACT requirements for ozone 
nonattainment areas. The first requirement, contained in section 
182(a)(2)(A) of the CAA, and referred to as RACT fix-up, requires the 
correction of RACT rules for which EPA identified deficiencies before 
the CAA was amended in 1990. Pennsylvania previously corrected its 
deficiencies under the 1-hour ozone standard and has no further 
deficiencies to correct under this section of the CAA. The second 
requirement, set forth in section 182(b)(2) of the CAA, applies to 
moderate (or worse) ozone nonattainment area as well as to marginal and 
attainment areas in ozone transport regions (OTRs) established pursuant 
to section 184 of the CAA, and requires these areas to implement RACT 
controls on all major VOC and NOX emission sources and on 
all sources and source categories covered by a CTG issued by EPA.\1\ 
See CAA section 182(b)(2) and 184(b).
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    \1\ CTGs are documents issued by EPA intended to provide state 
and local air pollution control authorities information to assist 
them in determining RACT for VOC from various sources. The 
recommendations in the CTG are based upon available data and 
information and may not apply to a particular situation based upon 
the circumstances. States can follow the CTG and adopt state 
regulations to implement the recommendations contained therein, or 
they can adopt alternative approaches. In either case, states must 
submit their RACT rules to EPA for review and approval as part of 
the SIP process. Pursuant to section 184(b)(1)(B) of the CAA, all 
areas in the OTR must implement RACT with respect to sources of VOCs 
in the state covered by a CTG issued before or after November 15, 
1990.
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    On November 18, 2016, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental 
Protection (PADEP) submitted a formal revision to the Commonwealth of 
Pennsylvania's SIP. The SIP revision consists of the adoption of EPA's 
CTG for automobile and light duty assembly coatings. The new regulation 
reflecting this adoption can be found under 25 Pa. Code Chapter 129--
Standards for Sources. Specifically, this revision adds to the SIP 25 
Pa. Code Sec.  129.52e which adopts the RACT requirements for 
automobile and light-duty assembly coatings and covers heavier vehicle 
coating operations as well. The revision also includes changes to 25 
Pa. Code Sec.  129.51 to accommodate alternative compliance methods for 
the adopted CTG.
    Section 172(c)(1) of the CAA provides that SIPs for nonattainment 
areas must include reasonably available control measures (RACM), 
including RACT, for sources of emissions. Section 182(b)(2)(A) provides 
that for certain nonattainment areas, states must revise their SIPs to 
include RACT for sources of VOC emissions covered by a CTG issued after 
November 15, 1990 and prior to the area's date of attainment. EPA 
defines RACT as ``the lowest emission limitation that a particular 
source is capable of meeting by the application of control technology 
that is reasonably available considering technological and economic 
feasibility.'' (44 FR 53761, Sept. 17, 1979). In subsequent Federal 
Register notices, EPA has addressed how states can meet the RACT 
requirements of the CAA. In June 1977, EPA published a CTG for 
automobile and light-duty truck assembly coatings (EPA-450/2-77-008). 
This CTG discusses the nature of VOC emissions from this industry, 
available control technologies for addressing such emissions, the costs 
of available control options, and other items. EPA also published a 
national emission standard for hazardous air pollutants (NESHAP) for 
surface coating of automobiles and light-duty trucks in 2004 (40 CFR 
part 63, subpart IIII).
    In 2008, after conducting a review of currently existing state and 
local VOC emission reduction approaches for this industry, reviewing 
the 1977 CTG and the NESHAP for this industry, and considering the 
information that has become available since then, EPA developed a new 
CTG for automobile and light-duty truck assembly coatings, entitled 
Control Techniques Guidelines for Automobile and Light-Duty Truck 
Assembly Coatings (Publication No. EPA 453/R-08-006). Pennsylvania's 
SIP revision submittal addresses the adoption of EPA's 2008 CTG for 
automobile and light-duty truck assembly coatings.

II. Summary of SIP Revision and EPA Analysis

    EPA's CTG for automobiles and light-duty truck assembly coatings 
includes recommendations to reduce VOC emissions. These recommendations 
include VOC emissions limits for coating operations; work practices for 
storage and handling of coatings, thinners, and coating waste 
materials; and work practices for the handling and use of cleaning 
materials. The emission limits for coating processes covered by this 
CTG are found in Table 1 of the technical support document (TSD) which 
EPA prepared supporting this

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rulemaking.\2\ Table 1, includes emission limits expressed in kilograms 
of VOC per liter (kg VOC/liter) and pounds of VOC per gallon (lbs VOC/
gal). The emission limits for the miscellaneous materials used at 
coating facilities are found in Table 2 of the TSD. Table 2 includes 
emission limits expressed in grams of VOC per liter (g VOC/liter). 
Additional information regarding this CTG can be found in the TSD found 
in the docket for this rulemaking and available online at 
www.regulations.gov.
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    \2\ The TSD is available in the docket for this proposed 
rulemaking and available online at www.regulations.gov.
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    PADEP's submittal presented the regulatory revisions undertaken to 
adopt EPA's CTG for automobile and light-duty truck coatings. PADEP 
revised 25 Pa. Code Chapter 129--Standards for Sources to adopt the 
aforementioned CTG. The revisions include the addition of Sec.  129.52e 
which adopts the RACT requirements for automobile and light-duty truck 
assembly coatings as stated by EPA in the relevant CTG for this 
category of sources. The revision also includes updates to 25 Pa. Code 
Sec.  129.51 to accommodate alternative compliance methods for the 
adopted CTG. Additional information regarding PADEP's submittal can be 
found within the TSD and state submittal which are both located in this 
docket and available online at www.regulations.gov.
    EPA reviewed PADEP's submittal and found that the regulatory 
changes reflect EPA's CTG for automobile and light-duty trucks. The 
emission limits for the coating processes as well as the emission 
limits for the miscellaneous materials used during coating processes 
are consistent with those recommended in EPA's CTG. Additionally, the 
regulatory changes address EPA's recommended work practices.
    EPA notes that under 25 Pa. Code Sec.  129.52e(c), Existing RACT 
permit, PADEP is allowing the provisions of Sec.  129.52e to supersede 
the requirements of a RACT permit previously issued under 25 Pa. Code 
Sec. Sec.  129.91-129.95 if the permit was issued prior to January 1, 
2017 and to the extent that the RACT permit contains less stringent 
requirements than those in 25 Pa. Code Sec.  129.52e. EPA further notes 
that the RACT permits issued under Sec. Sec.  129.91-129.95 were issued 
for previous RACT determinations on a case-by-case basis; these permits 
would then have been submitted to EPA as source-specific SIP revisions 
and would likely have been approved by EPA for inclusion into the 
Pennsylvania SIP. If EPA approved those source-specific RACT 
determinations as meeting the requirements of RACT under the CAA, then 
the permits associated with those determinations were approved into the 
SIP and would have been identified at 40 CFR 52.2020(d). To the extent 
that the provisions of Sec.  129.52e are more stringent than those of a 
previous SIP-approved permit, PADEP may make a source-specific 
determination as to whether the requirements of the previous RACT 
permit apply, or those of Sec.  129.52e. If PADEP chooses to make such 
a determination to remove prior case-by-case RACT limits from the SIP, 
such revision must be submitted to EPA as a SIP revision in order to 
remove the previously approved permit from the SIP and must meet 
requirements under CAA section 110(l). Otherwise, the previously 
approved RACT limits (even if less stringent) remain applicable 
requirements for sources subject now to the more stringent CTG also. 
Until such a SIP revision is made, the requirements of 25 Pa. Code 
129.52e and the SIP-approved case by case RACT requirements both apply 
and EPA cannot remove the source-specific permits from the SIP. EPA is 
not taking any such action in this rulemaking to remove previously 
approved RACT permits and thus the requirements of a previously SIP-
approved permit still apply until such permit is removed from the SIP 
even if the new limits, reflected in this CTG that Pennsylvania has 
adopted, are more stringent.

III. Final Action

    EPA is approving the revision to Pennsylvania's SIP which adopts 
EPA's CTG for automobile and light-duty truck coatings because 
Pennsylvania's regulation incorporates the requirements of the CTG and 
thus meets requirements in CAA sections 110 and 184(b). EPA is 
publishing this rule without prior proposal because EPA views this as a 
noncontroversial amendment and anticipates no adverse comment. However, 
in the ``Proposed Rules'' section of today's Federal Register, EPA is 
publishing a separate document that will serve as the proposal to 
approve the SIP revision if adverse comments are filed. This rule will 
be effective on December 26, 2017 without further notice unless EPA 
receives adverse comment by November 24, 2017. If EPA receives adverse 
comment, EPA will publish a timely withdrawal in the Federal Register 
informing the public that the rule will not take effect. EPA will 
address all public comments in a subsequent final rule based on the 
proposed rule. EPA will not institute a second comment period on this 
action. Any parties interested in commenting must do so at this time. 
Please note that if 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, EPA may adopt as final those provisions 
of the rule that are not the subject of an adverse comment.

IV. Incorporation by Reference

    In this rule, EPA is finalizing regulatory text that includes 
incorporation by reference. In accordance with requirements of 1 CFR 
51.5, EPA is finalizing the incorporation by reference of 25 Pa. Code 
Chapter 129--Standards for Sources, Sections 129.51 and 129.52e. EPA 
has made, and will continue to make, these materials generally 
available through www.regulations.gov and/or at the EPA Region III 
Office (please contact the person identified in the For Further 
Information Contact section of this preamble for more information). 
Therefore, these materials have been approved by EPA for inclusion in 
the SIP, have been incorporated by reference by EPA into that plan, are 
fully federally enforceable under sections 110 and 113 of the CAA as of 
the effective date of the final rulemaking of EPA's approval, and will 
be incorporated by reference by the Director of the Federal Register in 
the next update of the SIP compilation.\3\
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    \3\ 62 FR 27968 (May 22, 1997).
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V. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

A. General Requirements

    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 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

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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.

B. Submission to Congress and the Comptroller General

    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).

C. Petitions for Judicial Review

    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 December 26, 2017. 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 EPA can 
withdraw this direct final rule and address the comment in the proposed 
rulemaking action. This action, in which Pennsylvania adopts EPA's CTG 
for automobile and light-duty truck assembly coatings, 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, Nitrogen oxides, Ozone, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements, Volatile organic compounds.

    Dated: September 26, 2017.
Cecil Rodrigues,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region III.

    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 NN--Pennsylvania

0
2. In Sec.  52.2020, the table in paragraph (c)(1) is amended by 
revising the entry for ``Section 129.51'' and adding an entry for 
``Section 129.52e'' after ``Section 129.52d'' to read as follows:


Sec.  52.2020  Identification of plan.

* * * * *
    (c) * * *
    (1) * * *

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                                                          State                                  Additional
        State citation              Title/subject       effective     EPA approval date      explanation/ Sec.
                                                           date                               52.2063 citation
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                          Title 25--Environmental Protection Article III--Air Resources
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                                                  * * * * * * *
Section 129.51................  General..............     10/22/16  10/24/17 [Insert       Amendments add
                                                                     Federal Register       alternative
                                                                     citation].             compliance methods
                                                                                            for the requirements
                                                                                            of Section 129.52e.
                                                                                            Previous approval
                                                                                            dated 6/25/2015.
 
                                                  * * * * * * *
Section 129.52e...............  Control of VOC            10/22/16  10/24/17 [Insert       New section is added.
                                 emissions from                      Federal Register       This section does
                                 automobile and light-               citation].             not remove or
                                 duty truck assembly                                        replace any permits
                                 coating operations                                         approved under
                                 and heavier vehicle                                        52.2020(d).
                                 coating operations.
 
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[FR Doc. 2017-22942 Filed 10-23-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6560-50-P