[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 233 (Wednesday, December 4, 2019)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 66345-66347]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-26155]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R09-OAR-2019-0439; FRL-10002-89-Region 9]


Air Plan Approval; California; Mojave Desert Air Quality 
Management District

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Proposed rules.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to 
approve revisions to the Mojave Desert Air Quality Management District 
(MDAQMD) portion of the California State Implementation Plan (SIP). 
These revisions concern emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOC) 
from Metal Parts and Products Coating Operations, and Polyester Resin 
Operations.
    We are proposing to approve two local rules to regulate these 
emission sources under the Clean Air Act (CAA or the Act) as well as 
proposing to approve negative declarations for three subcategories of 
control techniques guidelines (CTG) sources in the MDAQMD.
    In addition, we are proposing to convert the partial conditional 
approval of the District's reasonably available control technology 
(RACT) SIPs for the 1997 and 2008 ozone standards, as it applies to 
these two rules, to a full approval.
    We are taking comments on this proposal and plan to follow with a 
final action.

DATES: Any comments must arrive by January 3, 2020.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R09-
OAR-2019-0439 at https://www.regulations.gov. For comments submitted at 
Regulations.gov, follow the online instructions for submitting 
comments. Once submitted, comments cannot be edited or removed from 
Regulations.gov. 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 https://www.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Arnold Lazarus, EPA Region IX, 75 
Hawthorne St., San Francisco, CA 94105. By phone: (415) 972-3024 or by 
email at [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 did the State submit?
    B. Are there other versions of these rules and negative 
declarations?
    C. What is the purpose of the submitted rules?
II. The EPA's Evaluation and Action
    A. How is the EPA evaluating the submissions?
    B. Do the submissions meet the evaluation criteria?
    C. The EPA's Recommendations To Further Improve the Rules
    D. Public Comment and Proposed Action
III. Incorporation by Reference
IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

I. The State's Submittal

A. What did the State submit?

    Table 1 lists the rules and the negative declarations addressed by 
this proposal with the dates that they were amended/adopted by the 
local air agency and submitted by the California Air Resources Board.

                                Table 1--Submitted Rule and Negative Declarations
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                                                                                     Amended/
                Local agency                            Document title                adopted        Submitted
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MDAQMD.....................................  Rule 1115 Metal Parts and Products       01/22/2018      05/23/2018
                                              Coating Operations.
MDAQMD.....................................  Rule 1162 Polyester Resin                04/23/2018      07/16/2018
                                              Operations.
MDAQMD.....................................  Federal Negative Declarations for        04/23/2018      07/16/2018
                                              Two Control Techniques Guidelines
                                              Source Categories.
MDAQMD.....................................  Federal Negative Declaration for         10/22/2018      12/07/2018
                                              One Control Techniques Guidelines
                                              Source Category (Motor Vehicle
                                              Materials).
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    On November 23, 2018, the submittal for MDAQMD Rule 1115 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. On January 16, 
2019, the submittal for Rule 1162 was deemed by operation of law to 
meet the completeness criteria in 40 CFR part 51 Appendix V. On January 
16, 2019, the submittal for Federal Negative Declarations for Two 
Control Techniques Guidelines Source Categories was deemed by operation 
of law to meet the completeness criteria in 40 CFR part 51 Appendix V. 
On June 7, 2019, the submittal for Federal Negative Declaration for One 
Control Techniques Guidelines Source Category (Motor Vehicle Materials) 
was deemed by operation of law to meet the completeness criteria in 40 
CFR part 51 Appendix V.

[[Page 66346]]

B. Are there other versions of these rules and negative declarations?

    We approved an earlier version of Rule 1115 into the SIP on 
December 23, 1997 (62 FR 67002). There are no previous versions of the 
negative declarations in the MDAQMD portion of the California SIP for 
the 1997 and 2008 8-hour ozone national ambient air quality standards 
(NAAQS). We approved an earlier version of Rule 1162 into the SIP on 
November 24, 2008 (73 FR 70883). The MDAQMD adopted revisions to the 
SIP-approved version of Rule 1162 on August 28, 2017, and CARB 
submitted the revised rule to us on October 3, 2017. We have not yet 
acted on the October 3, 2017 submittal. In its July 16, 2018 submittal, 
the District states that it expects that its submittal will ``supersede 
the submission of the August 28, 2017 amendment of Rule 1162.'' We 
consider the July 16, 2018 submittal to supersede this earlier 
submittal and therefore are proposing to take action only on the July 
16, 2018 submittal.

C. What is the purpose of the submitted rules?

    Emissions of VOC contribute to ground-level ozone, smog, and 
particulate matter (PM), which harm human health and the environment. 
Section 110(a) of the CAA requires states to submit regulations that 
control emissions of VOC. Rule 1115 controls VOC emitted from coating 
operations associated with metal parts and products, and Rule 1162 
controls VOC emitted from polyester resin operations, including 
fiberglass boat manufacturing. The EPA's technical support documents 
(TSDs) have more information about these rules, negative declarations, 
and the EPA's evaluations thereof.

II. The EPA's Evaluation and Action

A. How is the EPA evaluating the submissions?

    Rules in the SIP 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 RACT for each category of sources 
covered by a CTG document as well as each major source of VOCs in ozone 
nonattainment areas classified as Moderate or above (see CAA section 
182(b)(2)). The MDAQMD regulates an ozone nonattainment area classified 
as Severe for the 1997 and 2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS (40 CFR 81.305). 
Therefore, these rules must implement RACT.
    States should also submit for SIP approval negative declarations 
for those source categories for which they have not adopted CTG-based 
regulations (because they have no sources above the CTG-recommended 
applicability threshold), regardless of whether such negative 
declarations were made for an earlier SIP.\1\ To do so, the submittal 
should provide reasonable assurance that no sources subject to the CTG 
requirements currently exist in the portion of the ozone nonattainment 
area that is regulated by the MDAQMD.
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    \1\ 57 FR 13498, 13512 (April 16, 1992).
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    Additionally, the EPA is evaluating Rule 1115 and Rule 1162 to 
determine whether the updated rules meet the District's commitment to 
cure the deficiencies identified in the February 12, 2018 partial 
conditional approval of the District's RACT SIP \2\ with respect to 
these two rules. Rules 1115 and 1162 did not meet RACT because two CTGs 
pertaining to these rules were issued in 2008 and the rules were 
written and entered into the SIP before the issuance of the 2008 CTGs. 
The rules were updated to meet the current CTG requirements and the 
MDAQMD made valid negative declarations where it was appropriate.
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    \2\ 83 FR 5921 (February 12, 2018).
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    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); 57 FR 18070 (April 28, 1992).
    2. ``Issues Relating to VOC Regulation Cutpoints, Deficiencies, 
and Deviations,'' EPA, May 25, 1988 (the Bluebook, revised January 
11, 1990).
    3. ``Guidance Document for Correcting Common VOC & Other Rule 
Deficiencies,'' EPA Region 9, August 21, 2001 (the Little Bluebook).
    4. ``Control of Volatile Organic Emissions from Existing 
Stationary Sources--Volume VI: Surface Coating of Miscellaneous 
Metal Parts and Products'' (EPA-450/2-78-15, June 1978).
    5. ``Control Techniques Guidelines for Miscellaneous Metal and 
Plastic Parts Coatings'' (EPA-453/R-08-003, September 2008).
    6. ``Control Techniques Guidelines for Fiberglass Boat 
Manufacturing Materials'' (EPA-453/R-08-004, September 2008).
    7. 40 CFR part 63 Subpart VVVV--National Emission Standards for 
Hazardous Air Pollutants for Boat Manufacturing.
    8. 40 CFR part 63 Subpart WWWW--National Emissions Standards for 
Hazardous Air Pollutants: Reinforced Plastic Composites Production.

B. Do the submissions meet the evaluation criteria?

    These rules are consistent with CAA requirements and relevant 
guidance regarding enforceability, RACT, and SIP revisions. 
Additionally, the updates to Rules 1115 and 1162 cure the deficiencies 
identified in the partial conditional approval of the District's RACT 
SIP with respect to these two rules. Moreover, the negative 
declarations satisfy the certification requirement, and the EPA's 
independent research yielded no indication of sources in the MDAQMD 
portion of the nonattainment area that would be subject to the CTG 
subcategories. As explained in more detail in our TSDs, the EPA's 
approval of these rules and negative declarations would satisfy the 
District's RACT requirements for the following three CTGs: ``Control of 
Volatile Organic Emissions from Existing Stationary Sources--Volume VI: 
Surface Coating of Miscellaneous Metal Parts and Products'' (EPA-450/2-
78-15), ``Control Techniques Guidelines for Miscellaneous Metal and 
Plastic Parts Coatings'' (EPA-453/R-08-003), and ``Control Techniques 
Guidelines for Fiberglass Boat Manufacturing Materials'' (EPA-453/R-08-
004). The TSDs have more information on our evaluations.

C. EPA Recommendations To Further Improve the Rules

    The TSDs include recommendations for the next time the local agency 
modifies the rules.

D. Public Comment and Proposed Action

    As authorized in section 110(k)(3) of the Act, the EPA proposes to 
fully approve the submitted rules and the negative declarations because 
they fulfill all relevant requirements. In addition, we propose to 
convert the partial conditional approval of the District's RACT SIP 
with respect to Rule 1115 and Rule 1162 as found in 40 CFR 
52.248(d)(1), to a full approval. We will accept comments from the 
public on this proposal until January 3, 2020. If we take final action 
to approve the submitted rules, our final action will incorporate these 
rules into the federally enforceable SIP.

III. Incorporation by Reference

    In this rule, the EPA is proposing to include in a final EPA rule 
regulatory

[[Page 66347]]

text that includes incorporation by reference. In accordance with the 
requirements of 1 CFR 51.5, the EPA is proposing to incorporate by 
reference the MDAQMD rules described in Table 1 of this preamble. The 
EPA has made, and will continue to make, these materials available 
through https://www.regulations.gov and at the EPA Region IX Office 
(please contact the person identified in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION 
CONTACT 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 proposed action merely proposes to approve state law 
as 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 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 Clean Air Act; and
     Does not provide the 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 rules do 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, Ozone, PM, Reporting and 
recordkeeping requirements, VOC.

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

    Dated: November 19, 2019.
Deborah Jordan,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region IX.
[FR Doc. 2019-26155 Filed 12-3-19; 8:45 am]
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