[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 62 (Friday, March 31, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 19301-19302]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-06732]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OAR-2023-0138; FRL-10865-01-OAR]


Proposed Information Collection Request; Comment Request; 
Regional Haze Regulations (Renewal)

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency is planning to submit an 
information collection request (ICR), ``Renewal of the ICR for the 
Regional Haze Regulations'' (EPA ICR No. 2540.04 OMB Control No. 2060-
0704) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and 
approval in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA). Before 
doing so, the EPA is soliciting public comments on specific aspects of 
the proposed information collection as described below. This is a 
proposed extension of the ICR, which is currently approved through 
September 30, 2023. An Agency may not conduct, or sponsor and a person 
is not required to respond to a collection of information unless it 
displays a currently valid OMB control number.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before May 30, 2023.

ADDRESSES: Comments. Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. 
EPA-HQ-OAR-2023-0138, at http://www.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 (e.g., on the Web, Cloud, or other 
file sharing system). For additional submission methods, 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. Certain other material, 
such as copyrighted material, will not be placed on the internet but 
may be viewed, with prior arrangement, at the EPA Docket Center. 
Publicly available docket materials are available either electronically 
in http://www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at the Air and Radiation 
Docket and Information Center, EPA/DC, EPA William Jefferson Clinton 
West Building, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC. 
The Public Reading Room is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday 
through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The telephone number for the 
Public Reading Room is (202) 566-1744 and the telephone number for the 
Air and Radiation Docket and Information Center is (202) 566-1742. For 
additional information about the EPA's public docket, visit the EPA 
Docket Center homepage at: https://www.epa.gov/dockets.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Macie Moore, Air Quality Policy 
Division, Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards, mail code C539-
04, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Research Triangle Park, NC 
27709; email address: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Supporting documents which explain in detail 
the information that the EPA will be collecting are available in the 
public docket for this ICR. The docket can be viewed online at 
www.regulations.gov or in person at the EPA Docket Center, WJC West, 
Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave. NW, Washington, DC. The telephone 
number for the Docket Center is (202) 566-1744. For additional 
information about EPA's public docket, visit http://www.epa.gov/dockets.
    Pursuant to section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA, the EPA is soliciting 
comments and information to enable it to: (i) evaluate whether the 
proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper 
performance of the functions of the Agency, including whether the 
information will have practical utility; (ii) evaluate the accuracy of 
the Agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of 
information, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions 
used; (iii) enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected; and (iv) minimize the burden of the 
collection of information on those who are to respond, including 
through the use of appropriate automated electronic, mechanical, or 
other technological collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology, e.g., permitting electronic submission of responses. The 
EPA will consider the comments received and amend the ICR

[[Page 19302]]

as appropriate. The final ICR package will then be submitted to OMB for 
review and approval. At that time, the EPA will issue another Federal 
Register notice to announce the submission of the ICR to OMB and the 
opportunity to submit additional comments to OMB.
    Abstract: This ICR is for activities related to the implementation 
of the EPA's Regional Haze Rule (2017 rule revision),\1\ for the period 
between September 30, 2023, and September 30, 2026, and renews the 
previous ICR. The Regional Haze Rule codified at 40 CFR parts 308 and 
309, as authorized by sections 169A and 169B of the Clean Air Act, 
requires states to develop implementation plans to protect visibility 
in 156 federally protected Class I areas. Tribes may choose to develop 
implementation plans. For this period, all 50 states, the District of 
Columbia, and the U.S. Virgin Islands will be developing and submitting 
2nd planning period progress reports pursuant to 40 CFR 51.308(g) and 
40 CFR 51.309(d)(10). In accordance with the 2017 rule revision, the 
progress reports associated with the 2nd planning period are not 
required to be submitted as SIP revisions. Further, 13 states and the 
U.S. Virgin Islands will be developing and submitting periodic 
comprehensive implementation plan revisions for the 2nd planning period 
to comply with the regulations.
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    \1\ Final Rule: Protection of Visibility: Amendments to 
Requirements for State Plans, 82 FR 3078, January 10, 2017.
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    Form Numbers: None.
    Respondents/affected entities: Entities potentially affected by 
this action are state, local and tribal air quality agencies, regional 
planning organizations and facilities potentially regulated under the 
Regional Haze Rule.
    Respondent's obligation to respond: Mandatory [see 40 CFR 
51.308(b), (f) and (g)].
    Estimated number of respondents: 52 (total); 52 state agencies.
    Frequency of response: Approximately every 5 years.
    Total estimated burden: 14,459 hours (per year). Burden is defined 
at 5 CFR 1320.03(b).
    Total estimated cost: $850,478.38 (per year). There are no 
annualized capital or operation & maintenance costs.
    Changes in Estimates: There is decrease of 23,796 hours in the 
total estimated respondent burden compared with the ICR currently 
approved by OMB. This decrease in burden reflects changes in labor 
rates and changes in the activities conducted due to the normal 
progression of the program. In the currently approved ICR, the 
estimated respondent burden assumed 50 states, the District of 
Columbia, and the U.S. Virgin Islands would be developing and 
submitting comprehensive State Implementation Plans (SIPs), which were 
due by July 31, 2021. In practice, 37 states and the District of 
Columbia submitted SIPs during the currently approved ICR period. 
Within the proposed ICR, the estimated respondent burden assumes that 
all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. Virgin Islands 
will be developing and submitting progress reports by January 31, 2025, 
while 13 states and the U.S. Virgin Islands will be submitting 
outstanding periodic comprehensive SIP revisions.

Scott Mathias,
Director, Air Quality Policy Division.
[FR Doc. 2023-06732 Filed 3-30-23; 8:45 am]
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