[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 249 (Monday, December 30, 2019)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 71862-71866]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-27843]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R09-OAR-2019-0321; FRL-10003-74-Region 9]


Air Plan Conditional Approval and Disapproval; Arizona; Maricopa 
County; Power Plants, Fuel Burning Equipment, and Internal Combustion 
Engines

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Proposed rule.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to 
conditionally approve two revisions to the Maricopa County portion of 
the Arizona State Implementation Plan (SIP) concerning fuel-burning 
equipment and internal combustion engines. The EPA is also proposing to 
disapprove one revision to the Maricopa County portion of the Arizona 
SIP concerning power plants. We are proposing action on Maricopa County 
rules that regulate these emission sources under the Clean Air Act (CAA 
or the ``Act''). We are taking comments on these proposals and plan to 
follow with final actions.

DATES: Any comments must arrive by January 29, 2020.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R09-
OAR-2019-0321 at http://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 http://www.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kevin Gong, EPA Region IX, 75 
Hawthorne St., San Francisco, CA 94105. By phone: (415) 972-3073 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 rules did the State submit?
    B. Are there other versions of these rules?
    C. What is the purpose of the submitted rule revisions?
II. EPA's Evaluation and Action
    A. How is the EPA evaluating the rules?
    B. Do the rules meet the evaluation criteria?
    C. What are the deficiencies?
    D. EPA Recommendations To Further Improve the Rules
    E. Proposed Action and Public Comment
III. Incorporation by Reference
IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

I. The State's Submittal

A. What rules did the State submit?

    On June 22, 2017, the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality 
(ADEQ, or the ``State'') electronically submitted a SIP revision from 
the Maricopa County Air Quality Department (MCAQD, or the ``County'') 
revising several rules. Table 1 lists the rules on which the EPA is 
proposing action, with the dates they were revised by the MCAQD, the 
dates they were submitted by the ADEQ, and the type of action that the 
EPA is proposing in this notice.

                                            Table 1--Submitted Rules
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      Rule No.              Rule title              Revised               Submitted           Proposed  action
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322.................  Power Plant            November 2, 2016.....  June 22, 2017........  Disapproval.
                       Operations.
323.................  Fuel Burning           November 2, 2016.....  June 22, 2017........  Conditional
                       Equipment from                                                      Approval.
                       Industrial/
                       Commercial/
                       Institutional (ICI)
                       Sources.
324.................  Stationary             November 2, 2016.....  June 22, 2017........  Conditional
                       Reciprocating                                                       Approval.
                       Internal Combustion
                       Engines (RICE).
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[[Page 71863]]

    On December 22, 2017, the submittal containing the rules listed in 
Table 1 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 these rules?

    We approved earlier versions of the rules listed in Table 1 into 
the SIP on October 14, 2009 (74 FR 52693, 40 CFR 52.120, paragraph (c), 
Table 4--EPA-Approved Maricopa County Air Pollution Control 
Regulations). The ADEQ previously submitted these rules in a SIP 
revision on December 19, 2016, along with the County's reasonably 
available control technology (RACT) demonstration. However, this 
submittal did not include documentation that showed the entirety of the 
County's SIP revision had met the public notice requirements required 
for completeness under 40 CFR part 51 Appendix V. The County addressed 
the public notice requirement and the State resubmitted the submittal 
on June 22, 2017, and withdrew the December 19, 2016 submittal on May 
17, 2019.

C. What is the purpose of the submitted rule revisions?

    Oxides of nitrogen (NOX) helps produce ground-level 
ozone, smog and particulate matter which harm human health and the 
environment. Section 110(a) of the CAA requires states to submit 
regulations that control NOX emissions. The rules in Table 1 
were submitted to control NOX emissions from power plants, 
process heaters, boilers, stationary turbines, and internal combustion 
engines. The EPA's technical support documents (TSDs) have more 
information about these rules.

II. 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 RACT for each major source of 
NOX in ozone nonattainment areas classified as Moderate or 
above (see CAA sections 182(b)(2) and 182(f)). Maricopa County 
regulates a portion of the Phoenix-Mesa ozone nonattainment area, which 
is classified as Moderate for the 2008 8-hour ozone standard (40 CFR 
81.303). Maricopa County's ``Analysis of Reasonably Available Control 
Technology For The 2008 8-Hour Ozone National Ambient Air Quality 
Standard (NAAQS) State Implementation Plan (RACT SIP),'' adopted 
December 5, 2016, submitted June 22, 2017 (the ``2016 RACT SIP''), 
identified all of the major sources of NOX within the 
County's portion of the Phoenix-Mesa nonattainment area, and concluded 
that there were major sources within the Maricopa County portion of the 
Phoenix-Mesa nonattainment area subject to each of these rules. 
Accordingly, all three of the submitted rules must establish RACT 
levels of control for these major sources.
    Guidance and policy documents that we use to evaluate 
enforceability, revision/relaxation and rule stringency requirements 
for the applicable criteria pollutants include the following:
    1. ``Issues Relating to VOC Regulation Cutpoints, Deficiencies, and 
Deviations,'' EPA, May 25, 1988 (the Bluebook, revised January 11, 
1990).
    2. ``Guidance Document for Correcting Common VOC & Other Rule 
Deficiencies,'' EPA Region 9, August 21, 2001 (the Little Bluebook).
    3. ``Alternative Control Techniques Document--NOX 
Emissions from Stationary Gas Turbines,'' EPA 453/R-93-007, January 
1993.
    4. ``Alternative Control Techniques Document--NOX 
Emissions from Industrial, Commercial & Institutional Boilers,'' EPA 
453/R-94-022, March 1994.
    5. ``Alternative Control Techniques Document--NOX 
Emissions from Stationary Reciprocating Internal Combustion Engines,'' 
EPA 453/R-93-032, July 1993.
    6. ``De Minimis Values for NOX RACT,'' Memorandum from 
G. T. Helms, Group Leader, Ozone Policy and Strategies Group, U.S. EPA, 
January 1, 1995.
    7. ``Cost-Effective Nitrogen Oxides (NOX) Reasonably 
Available Control Technology (RACT),'' Memorandum from D. Ken Berry, 
Acting Director, Air Quality Management Division, US. EPA, March 16, 
1994.

B. Do the rules meet the evaluation criteria?

    Rules 322, 323 and 324 apply to various emission sources that are 
major sources of NOX in the Phoenix-Mesa area. We find that 
the County's submissions are largely consistent with the applicable CAA 
requirements, with the exceptions identified below. In a letter dated 
January 28, 2019 (the ``commitment letter''), the County enumerated 
certain rule deficiencies and committed to revise those provisions in 
accordance with EPA guidance, and submit the revised rules within 
eleven months of a conditional approval.\1\ On February 25, 2019, the 
ADEQ provided its own commitment to submit the County's revised rules 
to the EPA within one month after the County's action and request for 
SIP revision.\2\ On December 5, 2019, the County provided a supplement 
to the commitment letter to resolve further deficiencies in the 
submitted rules.\3\
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    \1\ Letter dated January 28, 2019, from Philip A. McNeely, 
Director, Maricopa County Air Control Quality Department, to Misael 
Cabrera, Director, Arizona Department of Environmental Quality.
    \2\ Letter dated February 25, 2019, from Timothy S. Franquist, 
Director, Air Quality Division, Arizona Department of Environmental 
Quality, to Michael Stoker, Regional Administrator, U.S. EPA, Region 
IX.
    \3\ Letter dated December 5, 2019, from Philip A. McNeely, 
Director, Maricopa County Air Control Quality Department, to Doris 
Lo, Manager, Rules Office, Air and Radiation Division, U.S. EPA 
Region IX.
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    The EPA proposes to disapprove Rule 322 because it includes 
provisions that do not meet our evaluation criteria, and the 
deficiencies in the rule as submitted may cause a weakening from the 
current SIP-approved rule. These issues are summarized below and 
discussed further in our TSD evaluating Rule 322.
    The EPA also proposes to conditionally approve Rules 323 and 324, 
because they strengthen the SIP. The County has committed to adopt 
specific enforceable measures to remedy the identified rule 
deficiencies in these rules, and the State has committed to submit 
those updated rules as SIP revisions. Our TSDs for Rules 323 and 324 
provide further details on our evaluation for these conditional 
approvals.

C. What are the deficiencies?

1. Deficiencies in Rule 322
    Rule 322's provisions do not satisfy the requirements of section 
110 and part D of title I of the Act and prevent full approval of the 
SIP revision for the following reasons.
    a. Rule 322 contains provisions that constitute unacceptable and 
unenforceable director's discretion. Specifically, the rule provides 
for the County's Air Pollution Control Officer to approve as RACT 
alternative control strategies that differ from the rule's existing 
emission limits or requirements without further approval from the EPA. 
This director's discretion conflicts with long-standing EPA policy. 
Although the County has committed to revise this provision, the EPA 
cannot conditionally

[[Page 71864]]

approve Rule 322 because these alternative control strategies may 
constitute a weakening of the SIP-approved rule.
    b. Rule 322's NOX emission limits are not demonstrated 
to meet RACT for steam generating units that are applicable to this 
rule. The County must revise the limits for these units or provide 
sufficient justification as to why these limits constitute RACT for 
these emission sources.
    c. Two provisions in Rule 322 exempt units from specific 
requirements when firing on emergency fuel. These exemptions are overly 
broad. First, unlike in other jurisdictions, the rule does not limit 
the duration in which emergency fuel can be used. Rule 322 must specify 
a maximum length of time that emergency fuel can be used per year. 
Second, the rule exempts units from all emission limits while testing 
operations for using emergency fuel. As written, the language could be 
interpreted to mean that any unit that test fires on emergency fuel 
would be exempt from all emission limits all of the time. The County 
must clarify that the exemption only applies during the testing period.
    d. The compliance schedule requirements for units that are 
currently not complying with the limits in the rule may be extended by 
the Control Officer as needed or could be extended by the County's 
inaction or delay to approve a compliance schedule. The County must 
include an enforceable deadline by which a facility must comply with 
the rule.
    e. Rule 322 currently does not include a compliance determination 
requirement, such as requiring regular stack tests or the use of 
continuous emission monitoring systems. The County must include 
enforceable compliance determination schedules to verify that 
facilities are complying with the emission limits in the rule.
    Although the District and State provided commitment letters 
addressing some of the listed deficiencies, the rule as submitted is 
not SIP-strengthening because deficiency (a) above could allow for a 
source to apply for an alternative control strategy that results in 
weakened emission limits or controls without the EPA's concurrent 
approval that this alternative is RACT. Although the existing SIP-
approved version of Rule 322 contains less stringent limits and applies 
to fewer sources than the submitted version of Rule 322, this new 
provision could allow any existing source to apply to the County for an 
alternative RACT determination that may or may not be consistent with 
the existing or new NOX limits. Therefore the submitted Rule 
322 is not appropriate for a conditional approval. Our TSD for Rule 322 
contains our discussion and analysis for all the deficiencies and the 
County's commitments.
2. Deficiencies in Rule 323 and the County's and State's Commitments
    The provisions for Rule 323 do not satisfy the requirements of 
section 110 and part D of title I of the Act and prevent full approval 
of the SIP revision. However, the submitted rule strengthens the SIP 
and the County's and State's commitment letters include specific and 
enforceable commitments to address the deficiencies, which serve as the 
basis for today's proposed conditional approval. Our conditional 
approval of the SIP revision for Rule 323 is based on the following 
deficiencies and County and State commitments:
    a. Much like deficiency (c) for Rule 322, the emergency fuel use 
exemptions in the rule are overly broad. In Rule 323, the total 
allowable length of emergency fuel burning must be limited and must 
require that the facility owner/operator notify the County when 
switching to emergency fuel. The language in the rule exempting units 
firing emergency fuel for testing purposes could be interpreted to 
allow for the exemption during any operating period so long as there 
was a testing period. The County has committed to clarify that the 
exemptions only apply during the testing period.
    b. All major sources of NOX must be subject to RACT 
limits or requirements. In Rule 323, all turbines and all boilers rated 
larger than 100 million British thermal units per hour (MMBtu/hr) must 
comply with emission limits in the rule. Boiler units rated between 10 
MMBtu/hr and 100 MMBtu/hr may opt to comply with the emission limits or 
tune the units annually. The burner maintenance requirements in the 
rule's tuning requirements are not RACT, as many other jurisdictions 
regulating units in this size category are able to achieve numeric 
limits or have more stringent tuning requirements. As the rule is 
written, major source units in the nonattainment area are only required 
to tune the engine instead of complying with a RACT NOX 
limit. The County has committed to clarify that larger units shall 
comply with Rule 323 by meeting a NOX limit.
    c. Rule 323's NOX emission limits are not demonstrated 
to meet RACT for non-turbine combustion equipment that are applicable 
to this rule. The County has committed to revise the limits for these 
units or provide sufficient justification as to why these limits 
constitute RACT for these emission sources.
    d. The rule allows operators to comply with the limits in this rule 
by installing an emission control system but does not include any 
requirement to verify the effectiveness of that system in meeting the 
emission limits. The County has committed to revise the rule to make 
clear that any unit on which an emission control system is installed 
must comply with the numeric RACT limit.
    e. The operations and maintenance plan requirements for emissions 
control systems are only approved by the Control Officer. This 
constitutes unacceptable director's discretion. The County has 
committed to codify additional requirements for acceptable operations 
and maintenance plans into the rule that would constrain the discretion 
of the director in approving or denying these plans.
    f. The Rule specifies that boilers larger than 100 MMBtu/hr must 
source test triennially but does not describe a testing frequency for 
other units. Other units must be tested at least triennially. The 
County has committed to require a minimum testing frequency for these 
units.
    g. The rule lacks a definition for ``boiler,'' and for ``continuous 
emissions monitoring system.'' The County has committed to include 
these definitions in the rule.
    Our TSD for Rule 323 contains further discussion and analysis of 
these deficiencies and the County's and State's commitments.
3. Deficiencies in Rule 324 and the County's and State's Commitments
    The provisions for Rule 324 also do not satisfy the requirements of 
section 110 and part D of title I of the Act and prevent full approval 
of the SIP revision. The County's and State's commitment letters 
included specific and enforceable commitments to address these 
deficiencies. Our proposed conditional approval of the SIP revision for 
Rule 324 is based on the following deficiencies and the County's and 
State's commitments to correct them:
    a. The current structure of rule applicability and emission limits 
does not clearly outline a RACT limit for NOX and VOC 
emissions from all applicable internal combustion (IC) engines. The 
County must include control requirements or limits for engines 
otherwise subject to federal requirements and standards in 40 CFR part 
60, subparts IIII and JJJJ. The Clean Air Act requires that RACT 
limitations be approved into the federally-

[[Page 71865]]

enforceable SIP. It is inappropriate to rely on requirements outside of 
the SIP, such as the Standards of Performance for New Stationary 
Sources found in 40 CFR part 60. The County has committed to include 
applicable numeric limits or other requirements directly in the rule 
language.
    b. The current rule only applies to engines rated greater than 250 
brake horsepower (bhp), and to engines rated greater than 50 bhp or 
greater when operating at a facility whose units sum to more than 250 
bhp. The County should lower the applicability threshold for all 
engines to 50 bhp to be in line with other jurisdictions' RACT rules. 
The current rule also does not clearly state compliance requirements 
for 50 bhp engines summed at a 250 bhp facility. The County has 
committed to lower the applicability threshold and to clarify 
requirements for those smaller engines.
    c. The current rule allows for unacceptable flexibility in the 
treatment of replacement engines and emergency engines. Emergency 
engines that serve as backup to replace non-emergency engines may do so 
until the non-emergency engine is repaired, but this time span is 
otherwise unbounded, and the emergency engines may operate above RACT 
limits. Current rule provisions also allow for engines that are deemed 
equivalent or identical to replace existing engines and then be treated 
the same as the engine being replaced; but there are no requirements 
for replacement engines to quantify emissions equivalency or 
reductions. The County has committed to limit the total amount of time 
that these types of emergency engines can operate, to modify the 
definitions of ``emergency engine'' and ``identical replacement 
engine,'' and to remove the definition for ``equivalent replacement 
engine.''
    d. The current rule does not specify a compliance determination 
interval for engines, other than at the Control Officer's discretion. 
The County has committed to require compliance determination 
performance tests every two years for non-emergency engines located at 
major sources. The County has also committed to require compliance 
determination requirements for certified non-emergency engines and for 
non-emergency engines.
    Our TSD for Rule 324 contains further discussion and analysis of 
these deficiencies and the County's and State's commitments.

D. EPA Recommendations To Further Improve the Rules

    The TSDs for Rules 322, 323, and 324 also describe additional rule 
revisions that we recommend for the next time the County modifies the 
rules that do not constitute approvability issues at this time.

E. Proposed Action and Public Comment

    As authorized in section 110(k)(3) of the Act, we are proposing 
full disapproval of the submitted MCAQD Rule 322. If the disapproval 
for Rule 322 is finalized, this action would trigger the 2-year clock 
for the federal implementation plan (FIP) requirement under CAA section 
110(c)(1). Final disapproval would also trigger sanctions under CAA 
section 179(a)(2) and 40 CFR 52.31 unless the EPA approves subsequent 
SIP revisions that correct the rule deficiencies within 18 months of 
the effective date of the final action.
    In addition, section 110(k)(4) authorizes the EPA to conditionally 
approve SIP revisions based on a commitment by the state to adopt 
specific enforceable measures by a date certain but not later than one 
year after the date of the plan's conditional approval. 42 U.S.C. 
7410(k)(4). In this instance, the enforceable measures that the State 
must submit are new or revised rules that correct the rule deficiencies 
identified above for MCAQD Rules 323 and 324. As noted above, the 
County transmitted letters on January 28, 2019, and December 5, 2019, 
committing to adopt revisions that would address the deficiencies 
identified in Rules 323 and 324. Accordingly, we are proposing to 
conditionally approve Rules 323 and 324. If these proposed conditional 
approvals are finalized as proposed, and the County or the State fails 
to comply with these commitments for either rule, the conditional 
approval for that rule would convert to a disapproval and start an 18-
month clock for sanctions under CAA section 179(a)(2) and a two year 
clock for a FIP under CAA section 110(c)(1).
    Note that the submitted rules have been adopted by the MCAQD, and 
the EPA's final conditional approvals and full disapproval would not 
prevent the County from enforcing them. The conditional approvals also 
would not prevent any portion of rules 323 and 324 from being 
incorporated by reference into the federally enforceable SIP as 
discussed in a Memorandum dated July 9, 1992, from John Calcagni, 
Director, Air Quality Management Division, U.S. EPA to EPA Regional Air 
Directors, Regions I-X, Subject: ``Processing of State Implementation 
Plan (SIP) Submittals,'' found at: https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2015-07/documents/procsip.pdf.
    We will accept comments from the public on the proposed disapproval 
and conditional approvals for the next 30 days.

III. Incorporation by Reference

    In this document, the EPA is proposing to include in a final EPA 
rule regulatory text that includes incorporation by reference. In 
accordance with the requirements of 1 CFR 51.5, the EPA is proposing to 
incorporate by reference MCAQD Rule 323, ``Fuel Burning Equipment from 
Industrial/Commercial/Institutional (ICI) Sources,'' as revised on 
November 2, 2016, and MCAQD Rule 324 ``Stationary Reciprocating 
Internal Combustion Engines (RICE),'' as revised on November 2, 2016. 
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

    Additional information about these statutes and Executive Orders 
can be found at https://www.epa.gov/laws-regulations/laws-and-executive-orders.

A. Executive Order 12866: Regulatory Planning and Review and Executive 
Order 13563: Improving Regulation and Regulatory Review

    This action is not a significant regulatory action and was 
therefore not submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) 
for review.

B. Executive Order 13771: Reducing Regulations and Controlling 
Regulatory Costs

    This action is not an Executive Order 13771 regulatory action 
because actions such as SIP approvals are exempted under Executive 
Order 12866.

C. Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA)

    This action does not impose an information collection burden under 
the PRA, because this proposed SIP disapproval and conditional 
approval, if finalized, will not in-and-of itself create any new 
information collection burdens, but will simply disapprove or 
conditionally approve certain State requirements for inclusion in the 
SIP.

D. Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA)

    I certify that this action will not have a significant economic 
impact on a substantial number of small entities under the RFA. This 
action will not impose any requirements on small

[[Page 71866]]

entities. This proposed SIP disapproval and conditional approval, if 
finalized, will not in-and-of itself create any new requirements but 
will simply disapprove or conditionally approve certain State 
requirements for inclusion in the SIP.

E. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA)

    This action does not contain any unfunded mandate as described in 
UMRA, 2 U.S.C. 1531-1538, and does not significantly or uniquely affect 
small governments. This action proposes to disapprove or conditionally 
approve pre-existing requirements under State or local law, and imposes 
no new requirements. Accordingly, no additional costs to State, local, 
or tribal governments, or to the private sector, result from this 
action.

F. Executive Order 13132: Federalism

    This action does not have federalism implications. It will not have 
substantial direct effects on the states, on the relationship between 
the national government and the states, or on the distribution of power 
and responsibilities among the various levels of government.

G. Executive Order 13175: Coordination With Indian Tribal Governments

    This action does not have tribal implications, as specified in 
Executive Order 13175, because the SIP revisions that the EPA is 
proposing to disapprove or conditionally approve would not 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, and will not 
impose substantial direct costs on tribal governments or preempt tribal 
law. Thus, Executive Order 13175 does not apply to this action.

H. Executive Order 13045: Protection of Children From Environmental 
Health Risks and Safety Risks

    The EPA interprets Executive Order 13045 as applying only to those 
regulatory actions that concern environmental health or safety risks 
that the EPA has reason to believe may disproportionately affect 
children, per the definition of ``covered regulatory action'' in 
section 2-202 of the Executive Order. This action is not subject to 
Executive Order 13045 because this proposed SIP disapproval and 
conditional approval, if finalized, will not in-and-of itself create 
any new regulations, but will simply disapprove or conditionally 
approve certain State requirements for inclusion in the SIP.

I. Executive Order 13211: Actions That Significantly Affect Energy 
Supply, Distribution, or Use

    This action is not subject to Executive Order 13211, because it is 
not a significant regulatory action under Executive Order 12866.

J. National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act (NTTAA)

    Section 12(d) of the NTTAA directs the EPA to use voluntary 
consensus standards in its regulatory activities unless to do so would 
be inconsistent with applicable law or otherwise impractical. The EPA 
believes that this action is not subject to the requirements of section 
12(d) of the NTTAA because application of those requirements would be 
inconsistent with the CAA.

K. Executive Order 12898: Federal Actions To Address Environmental 
Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income Population

    The EPA lacks the discretionary authority to address environmental 
justice in this rulemaking.

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

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

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

    Dated: December 16, 2019.
Deborah Jordan,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region IX.
[FR Doc. 2019-27843 Filed 12-27-19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P