[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 61 (Thursday, March 30, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 19135-19137]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-06571]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OPP-2022-0509; FRL-7661-02-OCSPP]


Notice of Approval Status; Certifying Authorities' Amended Plans 
for Certification of Commercial and Private Applicators of Restricted 
Use Pesticides; Batch Two

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is announcing its 
approval of twelve amended certification plans for certifying 
applicators of Restricted Use Pesticides (RUPs) from the following 
certifying authorities: Arizona Department of Agriculture (AZDA), 
Connecticut Department of Energy & Environmental Protection (CTDEEP), 
Delaware Department of Agriculture (DDA), District of Columbia 
Department of Energy and Environment (DOEE), Hawaii Department of 
Agriculture (HDOA), Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce 
(MDAC), New Hampshire Department of Agriculture, Markets and Food 
(NHDAFM), New Jersey Department of Agriculture (NJDEP), Nevada 
Department of Agriculture (NDA), Office of the Indiana State Chemist 
(OISC), South Dakota Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources 
(SDDANR), and Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA). The 
amended plans are consistent with the existing regulatory requirements, 
including revisions made in 2017 to enhance and improve the competency 
of certified applicators of RUPs and persons working under their direct 
supervision. The 2017 regulatory revisions are intended to further 
reduce potential exposure of RUPs to certified applicators and those 
working under their direct supervision, other workers, the public, and 
the environment. Federal, state, territory, and tribal certifying 
authorities with existing certification plans were required to revise 
their existing plans to conform with the updated federal standards for 
RUP applicator certification and receive EPA approval by the 
established regulatory deadline.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 
    For technical information contact: The designated EPA point of 
contact for the Certification Plan of interest as listed in Table 1 of 
Unit I.B.
    For general information contact: Carolyn Schroeder, Pesticide Re-
Evaluation Division (7508M), Office of

[[Page 19136]]

Pesticide Programs, Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania 
Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20460-0001; telephone number: (202) 566-2376; 
email address: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. General Information

A. Does this action apply to me?

    You may be potentially affected by this action if you are a 
federal, state, territory, or tribal agency who administers a 
certification program for pesticides applicators. You many also be 
potentially affected by this action if you are: A registrant of RUP 
products; a person who applies RUPs, including those under the direct 
supervision of a certified applicator; a person who relies upon the 
availability of RUPs; someone who hires a certified applicator to apply 
an RUP; a pesticide safety educator; or other person who provides 
pesticide safety training for pesticide applicator certification or 
recertification. The following list of North American Industrial 
Classification System (NAICS) codes is not intended to be exhaustive, 
but rather provides a guide to help readers determine whether this 
document applies to them. Potentially affected entities may include:
     Agricultural Establishments (Crop Production) (NAICS code 
111).
     Nursery and Tree Production (NAICS code 111421).
     Agricultural Pest Control and Pesticide Handling on Farms 
(NAICS code 115112).
     Crop Advisors (NAICS codes 115112, 541690, 541712).
     Agricultural (Animal) Pest Control (Livestock Spraying) 
(NAICS code 115210).
     Forestry Pest Control (NAICS code 115310).
     Wood Preservation Pest Control (NAICS code 321114).
     Pesticide Registrants (NAICS code 325320).
     Pesticide Dealers (NAICS codes 424690, 424910, 444220).
     Industrial, Institutional, Structural & Health Related 
Pest Control (NAICS code 561710).
     Ornamental & Turf, Rights-of-Way Pest Control (NAICS code 
561730).
     Environmental Protection Program Administrators (NAICS 
code 924110).
     Governmental Pest Control Programs (NAICS code 926140).
    If you have any questions regarding the applicability of this 
action to a particular entity, consult the person listed under FOR 
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.

B. How can I get copies of these documents and other related 
information?

    For assistance in locating documents related to the approved plans 
identified in this notice, please consult the designated EPA point of 
contact for the Certification Plan of interest as listed in Table 1 of 
this unit, or the general contact person listed under FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT.

                      Table 1--Designated EPA Point of Contacts for the Certification Plans
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                                                              EPA point of
          EPA region                Certification plan          contact           POC phone           Email
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Region 1......................  CTDEEP                     Robert Koethe....    (617) 918-1535  koethe.robert@ep
                                NHDAFM                                                           a.gov.
Region 2......................  NJDEP                      Tara Glynn.......    (732) 906-6183  [email protected].
Region 3......................  DDA                        Courtenay            (215) 814-2216  hoernemann.court
                                DOEE                        Hoernemann.                          [email protected].
Region 4......................  MDAC                       Richard Corbett..    (404) 562-9008  [email protected].
Region 5......................  OISC                       Donald               (312) 886-7835  baumgartner.dona
                                                            Baumgartner.                         [email protected].
Region 8......................  SDDANR                     Blake Huff.......    (303) 312-6718  [email protected].
Region 9......................  AZDA                       Katy Wilcoxen....    (415) 947-4205  wilcoxen.katy@ep
                                HDOA                                                             a.gov.
                                NDA
Region 10.....................  WSDA                       Bethany Plewe....    (208) 378-5753  [email protected].
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II. What is the Agency's authority for taking this action?

    Section 11 of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, Rodenticide Act 
(FIFRA), 7. U.S.C. 136 et seq., requires certifying authorities to have 
an EPA-approved certification plan to certify applicators of RUPs. The 
Certification of Pesticide Applicators (CPA) regulation at 40 CFR part 
171 was amended in 2017 (Ref. 1). As a result, federal, state, 
territory, and tribal certifying authorities with existing 
certification plans were required to revise their existing 
certification plans to conform with the updated federal standards for 
the certification of applicators of RUPs and submit their revisions to 
EPA by March 2020 for EPA review and approval. The CPA regulation 
specifies that the existing certification plans remain in place until 
the revised plans are approved by EPA on or before the regulatory 
deadline established in 40 CFR 171.5. The Agency has since issued a 
final rule extending the original deadline for certification plans to 
comply with the updated federal standards under the 2017 CPA rule to 
November 4, 2023 (Ref. 2).

III. What action is the Agency taking?

    This action gives notice that the following twelve certifying 
authorities' certification plans submitted to the Agency meet or exceed 
the standards of 40 CFR part 171: AZDA, CTDEEP, DDA, DOEE, HDOA, MDAC, 
NDA, NHDAFM, NJDEP, OISC, SDDANR, and WSDA. EPA hereby gives notice 
that the twelve amended certification plans for certifying applicators 
of RUPs listed in this document are now approved plans; the certifying 
authorities may certify pesticide applicators and continue with 
implementation of the certification plans as outlined in the approved 
plans.
    These twelve plans represent the second in a series of batched 
notifications announcing the approval of the federal, state, territory, 
and tribal certification plans moving through the approval process. 
These batched notifications will continue to occur on a regular basis 
as plans are approved. EPA also provides frequent status updates 
regarding the reviews and approvals of state and territory 
certification plans on its website at https://www.epa.gov/pesticide-worker-safety/certification-standards-pesticide-applicators.

IV. References

    The following is a list of documents that are related to the 
issuance of this Notice. For assistance in locating these other 
documents, please consult the person listed under FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT.

1. EPA. Pesticides; Certification of Pesticide

[[Page 19137]]

Applicators; Final Rule. Federal Register. 82 FR 952, January 4, 
2017 (FRL-9956-70).
2. EPA. Pesticides; Certification of Pesticide Applicators; Further 
Extension to Expiration Date of Certification Plans; Final Rule. 
Federal Register. 87 FR 50953, August 19, 2022 (FRL-9134.1-04-
OCSPP).

    Authority: 7 U.S.C. 136-136y.

    Dated: March 24, 2023.
Mary Elissa Reaves,
Director, Pesticide Re-Evaluation Division, Office of Pesticide 
Programs.
[FR Doc. 2023-06571 Filed 3-29-23; 8:45 am]
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