[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 246 (Wednesday, December 26, 2018)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 66196-66197]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-27905]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R05-OAR-2018-0103; FRL-9988-24-Region 5]


Air Plan Approval; Ohio; Removal of Obsolete Gasoline Volatility 
Regulations

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Proposed rule.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to 
approve a request submitted by the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency 
(Ohio EPA) on February 5, 2018, to revise the Ohio State Implementation 
Plan (SIP) under the Clean Air Act (CAA). Ohio EPA is requesting to 
remove from the SIP the remaining provisions of the Ohio Administrative 
Code concerning the State's former 7.8 pounds per square inch (psi) 
Reid vapor pressure (RVP) fuel requirements for the Cincinnati and 
Dayton areas. In a previous action, EPA approved the removal of the 7.8 
psi RVP fuel applicability requirements in the Cincinnati and Dayton 
areas as a component of the Ohio SIP, including the approval of a 
demonstration under section 110(l) of the Clean Air Act (CAA) that 
addressed emissions impacts associated with the removal of the program.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before January 25, 2019.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R05-
OAR-2018-0103 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, 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: 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 the background for this action?
II. What is EPA proposing to approve?
III. What is EPA's analysis of the state's submittal?
IV. What action is EPA proposing to take?
V. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

I. What is the background for this action?

    On April 15, 2004, EPA designated Hamilton, Butler, Clinton, Warren 
and Clermont counties (Cincinnati area) and Clark, Greene, Miami, and 
Montgomery counties (Dayton area) as nonattainment for the 8-hour ozone 
standard. As part of Ohio's efforts to bring these areas into 
attainment of the ozone standard, the State adopted and implemented a 
broad range of ozone control measures for the areas including the 
implementation of a 7.8 psi RVP fuel program that was more stringent 
than the Federal 9.0 psi RVP requirement. The Ohio EPA originally 
submitted a SIP revision to EPA (on

[[Page 66197]]

February 14, 2006 and October 6, 2006) establishing a gasoline RVP 
limit of 7.8 psi for gasoline sold in the Cincinnati and Dayton areas. 
The revision specifically applied to the Cincinnati and Dayton areas in 
Ohio. EPA approved Ohio's 7.8 psi RVP program on May 25, 2007 (72 FR 
29269), including the program's legal authority and administrative 
requirements found in the Ohio Administrative Code (OAC) rules 3745-72-
1 to 8.
    On December 19, 2016, Ohio EPA submitted a SIP revision requesting 
that EPA approve the removal of the 7.8 psi RVP fuel applicability 
requirements from the Ohio SIP before the beginning of the 2017 ozone 
control period. The revision also included a section 110(l) 
demonstration addressing the emissions impacts associated with the 
removal of the program. On April 7, 2017 (82 FR 16932) EPA approved the 
removal of the 7.8 psi RVP fuel applicability requirements in the 
Cincinnati and Dayton areas from the Ohio SIP. In that action EPA 
determined that that removal of the 7.8 psi RVP fuel requirements would 
not interfere with attainment or maintenance of any of the National 
Ambient Air Quality Standards in the Cincinnati and Dayton areas and 
would not interfere with any other applicable requirement of the CAA, 
and thus, were approvable under CAA section 110(l).

II. What is EPA proposing to approve?

    On February 5, 2018, Ohio EPA submitted to EPA a revision to the 
Ohio SIP for approval. In this action EPA is proposing to approve the 
removal of all OAC Chapter 3745-72 provisions from the Ohio SIP, as 
requested. Ohio EPA conducted a public hearing on this matter in 
Columbus, Ohio on December 7, 2017.

III. What is EPA's analysis of the state's submittal?

    On January 20, 2018, Ohio EPA rescinded rules in OAC 3745-72 that 
formerly established low RVP fuel requirements for the Cincinnati and 
Dayton areas. These rules were rescinded by Ohio EPA as they are no 
longer necessary since on April 7, 2017 (82 FR 16932) EPA approved the 
removal of the 7.8 psi RVP fuel applicability requirements in the 
Cincinnati and Dayton areas from the Ohio ozone SIP. In that action EPA 
determined that that removal of the 7.8 psi RVP fuel requirements would 
not interfere with attainment or maintenance of any of the National 
Ambient Air Quality Standards in the Cincinnati and Dayton areas and 
would not interfere with any other applicable requirement of the CAA, 
and thus, were approvable under CAA section 110(l). The removal of the 
remaining provisions in OAC Chapter 3745-72 from the SIP is only 
administrative in nature and does not have any negative impact on air 
quality in the Cincinnati and Dayton areas. No emissions increases will 
result from the removal of the OAC Chapter 3745-72 provisions from the 
Ohio SIP.

IV. What action is EPA proposing to take?

    EPA is proposing to approve the revision to the Ohio SIP submitted 
by the Ohio EPA on February 5, 2018, because the removal of remaining 
low RVP requirements in OAC Chapter 3745-72 from the SIP meets all 
applicable requirements and it would not interfere with reasonable 
further progress or attainment of any of the national ambient air 
quality standards.

V. 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 Orders 
12866 (58 FR 51735, October 4, 1993) and 13563 (76 FR 3821, January 21, 
2011);
     Is not an Executive Order 13771 (82 FR 9339, February 2, 
2017) regulatory action because SIP approvals are exempted under 
Executive Order 12866;
     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, 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 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 oxides, Ozone, 
Volatile organic compounds.

    Dated: December 6, 2018.
Cathy Stepp,
Regional Administrator, Region 5.
[FR Doc. 2018-27905 Filed 12-21-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6560-50-P