[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 161 (Tuesday, August 24, 2021)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 47268-47270]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-17957]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R09-OAR-2020-0341; FRL-8747-01-R9]


Air Plan Approval; California; South Coast 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 revisions to the South Coast Air Quality Management District 
(SCAQMD) portion of the California State Implementation Plan (SIP). 
These revisions concern emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) 
from marine and pleasure craft coating operations. We are proposing to 
approve a local rule and a rule rescission 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: Comments must be received on or before September 23, 2021.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R09-
OAR-2020-0341 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. If you need assistance in a 
language other than English or if you are a person with disabilities 
who needs a reasonable accommodation at no cost to you, please contact 
the person identified in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section.

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 rules did the State submit?
    B. Are there other versions of these rules?
    C. What is the purpose of the submitted rule and rule 
rescission?
II. The EPA's Evaluation and Action
    A. How is the EPA evaluating the rule and rule rescission?
    B. Do the rule and rule rescission meet the evaluation criteria?
    C. The EPA's Recommendations To Further Improve the Rule
    D. Public Comment and Proposed Action
III. Incorporation by Reference
IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

I. The State's Submittal

A. What rules did the State submit?

    Table 1 lists the rule revisions addressed by this proposal with 
the dates that they were adopted by the local air agency and submitted 
by the California Air Resources Board (CARB).

                                                                Table 1--Submitted Rules
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                  Local agency                       Rule #                     Rule title                    Amended        Rescinded       Submitted
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SCAQMD.........................................            1106  Marine and Pleasure Craft Coatings.....        5/3/2019  ..............       2/19/2020
SCAQMD.........................................          1106.1  Pleasure Craft Coating Operations......  ..............        5/3/2019       2/19/2020
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    On August 19, 2020 the submittal for SCAQMD Rule 1106 and the 
rescission of Rule 1106.1 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 an earlier version of SCAQMD Rule 1106 into the SIP on 
July 14, 1995 \1\ and we approved SCAQMD Rule 1106.1 into the SIP on 
August 31, 1999.\2\ The SCAQMD adopted revisions to the SIP-approved 
versions of these rules on May 3, 2019 and CARB

[[Page 47269]]

submitted them to us on February 19, 2020.
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    \1\ 60 FR 36227.
    \2\ 64 FR 47392.
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C. What is the purpose of the submitted rule and rule rescission?

    Emissions of VOCs contribute to the production of 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 VOC emissions. Rule 1106 regulates VOC 
emissions from all marine and pleasure craft coating operations, 
including coatings for boats, ships and their appurtenances, buoys, and 
oil drilling rigs intended for the marine environment, and applies to 
any person who solicits the application of any Marine or Pleasure Craft 
Coating and any associated solvent used with a Marine or Pleasure Craft 
Coating within the South Coast AQMD Jurisdiction.
    The rule was amended to include pleasure craft coating operations, 
lower the VOC content limit of a number of existing coatings, and add 
five coatings to the specialty coating list. Rule 1106.1, Pleasure 
Craft Coating Operations, has been locally rescinded; however, all of 
the coatings limits in Rule 1106.1 are now covered by Rule 1106. The 
EPA's technical support document (TSD) has more information about this 
rule and rule rescission.

II. The EPA's Evaluation and Action

A. How is the EPA evaluating the rule and rule rescission?

    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 reasonably available control 
technology (RACT) for each category of sources covered by a Control 
Techniques Guidelines (CTG) document as well as each major source of 
VOC in ozone nonattainment areas classified as Moderate or above (see 
CAA section 182(b)(2)). The SCAQMD regulates an ozone nonattainment 
area classified as Extreme for the 1997, 2008, and 2015 8-Hour Ozone 
National Ambient Air Quality Standards (40 CFR 81.305). Rule 1106 is 
covered by ``Control Techniques Guidelines for Shipbuilding and Ship 
Repair Operations \3\'' and ``Control Techniques Guidelines for 
Miscellaneous Metal and Plastic Parts Coatings'' (EPA-453/R-08-003, 
September 2008). Therefore, this rule must implement RACT.
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    \3\ 61 FR 44050 (August 27, 1996).
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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 Techniques Guidelines for Shipbuilding and Ship Repair 
Operations'' (61 FR 44050), August 27, 1996.
    5. ``Alternative Control Techniques Document: Surface Coating 
Operations at Shipbuilding and Ship Repair Facilities'' (EPA 453/R-94-
032, April 1994).
    6. ``Control Techniques Guidelines for Miscellaneous Metal and 
Plastic Parts Coatings'' (EPA-453/R-08-003, September 2008).

B. Do the rule and rule rescission meet the evaluation criteria?

    This submittal of the rule and rule rescission meets CAA 
requirements and is consistent with relevant guidance regarding 
enforceability, RACT, and SIP revisions. Specifically, the rule 
requirements sufficiently ensure that affected sources and regulators 
can consistently evaluate and determine compliance with Rule 1106. 
Additionally, our analysis finds that Rule 1106 represents RACT for 
Marine or Pleasure Craft Coatings because it has VOC content limits 
consistent with limits adopted in other districts and the applicable 
CTGs. We also found that the limits in Rule 1106 and the rescinded Rule 
1106.1 are identical. Lastly, Rule 1106 will not interfere with any 
applicable requirements of the CAA. The TSD has more information on our 
evaluation.

C. The EPA's Recommendations To Further Improve the Rule

    The EPA recommends amendments for consideration by the District the 
next time Rule 1106 is revised. Specifically, our TSD recommends 
removing the category ``Metallic Heat Resistant Coating''and moving the 
category Elastomeric Adhesive to Rule 1168--Adhesive and Sealant 
Applications. Our TSD has more information regarding these 
recommendations.

D. Public Comment and Proposed Action

    As authorized in section 110(k)(3) of the Act, the EPA proposes to 
fully approve the submitted rule and rule rescission because they 
fulfill all relevant requirements. We will accept comments from the 
public on this proposal until September 23, 2021. If we take final 
action to approve the submitted rule, our final action will incorporate 
this rule and rule rescission 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 SCAQMD Rule 1106 and the rescission of SCAQMD Rule 1106.1 
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);
     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.);

[[Page 47270]]

     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 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, Ozone, Particulate matter, 
Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Volatile organic compounds.

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

    Dated: August 12, 2021.
Deborah Jordan,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region IX.
[FR Doc. 2021-17957 Filed 8-23-21; 8:45 am]
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