[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 140 (Monday, July 24, 2023)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 47413-47414]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-15290]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R05-OAR-2022-0673; FRL-10900-01-R5]


Air Plan Approval; Illinois; NAAQS Update

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Proposed rule.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to 
approve a State Implementation Plan (SIP) revision submitted by the 
Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA or Illinois). The 
revision, submitted on July 8, 2022, incorporates revisions to the 
Illinois air pollution control rules entitled ``Part 243--Ambient Air 
Quality Standards'' and also updates the ``List of Designated Reference 
and Equivalent Methods'' in response to EPA rulemakings and changes to 
the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) that EPA adopted in 
2021.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before August 23, 2023.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R05-
OAR-2022-0673 at https://www.regulations.gov, or via email to 
[email protected]. For comments submitted at Regulations.gov, 
follow the online instructions for submitting comments. Once submitted, 
comments cannot be edited or removed from Regulations.gov. For either 
manner of submission, 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. 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://www2.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Daphne Onsay, Life Scientist, Control 
Strategies Section, Air Programs Branch (AR-18J), Environmental 
Protection Agency, Region 5, 77 West Jackson Boulevard, Chicago, 
Illinois 60604, (312) 886-5945, [email protected]. The EPA Region 5 
office is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, 
excluding Federal holidays and facility closures due to COVID-19.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document whenever ``we,'' 
``us,'' or ``our'' is used, we mean EPA.

I. What are the State rule revisions?

    On July 8, 2022, IEPA submitted a request to EPA to incorporate 
revisions to the Illinois air pollution control rules in Title 35 of 
the Illinois Administrative Code, Part 243--Air Quality Standards. The 
submission updates sections 243.108 and 243.122. Part 243 includes 
Illinois' adoption of ambient air quality standards related to the 
NAAQS.

II. What is EPA's analysis of the State's submittal?

    Illinois revised Part 243 to reflect amendments to EPA's ``List of 
Designated References and Equivalent Methods'' used to determine 
compliance with the NAAQS (fine particulate matter (PM2.5) 
and coarse particulate matter (PM10), SO2, carbon 
monoxide (CO), lead (Pb), oxides of nitrogen (NOX), and 
ozone (O3)). In addition to these changes, Illinois updated 
existing rule language to address EPA's revocation of the 1971 primary, 
24-hour, and annual average NAAQS for SO2.
    Other revisions to Part 243 include a range of administrative 
changes, such as making grammatical corrections, removing the 
unnecessary version date from the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 
citations, and updating the CFR citations to the latest version 
available.
    EPA is proposing to approve the revisions to Part 243 which are 
described below:
    Section 243.108 Incorporation by Reference--incorporates by 
reference EPA's ``List of Designated Reference and Equivalent Methods'' 
for measuring ambient concentrations to demonstrate compliance with the 
NAAQS (PM2.5 and PM10, SO2, CO, Pb, 
NOX, and O3).
    EPA designated one new Federal reference monitoring method on March 
4, 2021 (86 FR 12682) for SO2 in ambient air. On December 
15, 2021, EPA updated the ``List of Designated Reference and Equivalent 
Methods'' to include the new Federal reference monitoring method for 
SO2. The proposed SIP revision would update section 243.108 
to incorporate the changes based on EPA's action dated December 15, 
2021.
    Section 243.122 Sulfur Oxides (Sulfur Dioxide)--the sulfur oxide 
(as SO2) primary and secondary standards and measurement 
methods, respectively, in subsections 243.122(a) and (b). EPA removed 
the 1971 primary, 24 hour, and annual standard on April 30, 2022. IEPA 
has removed (subsection 243.122(a) to be consistent with EPA's actions. 
IEPA has updated its SO2 standard (section 243.122) to 
reflect updates at the Federal level.

III. Section 110(l) Analysis of the State's Submittal

    EPA is proposing to approve the revisions to Part 243 discussed 
above because the revisions meet all applicable requirements under 
section 110(k)(3) the Clean Air Act (CAA). Furthermore, Illinois has 
shown that the revisions to Part 243 do not interfere with any 
applicable requirement concerning attainment and reasonable further 
progress or any other applicable CAA requirement, consistent with 
section 110(l) of the CAA.
    Under section 110(l) of the CAA, EPA shall not approve a SIP 
revision if it would interfere with any applicable requirement 
concerning attainment and reasonable further progress (as defined in 
section 171 of the CAA) or any other applicable requirement of the CAA. 
The proposed SIP revision would not interfere with any applicable CAA 
requirements based on technical analysis submitted by Illinois. Part 
243 contains the state's ambient air quality standards, which are now 
consistent with the NAAQS. The changes to the ambient air quality 
standards in Part 243 rules will have no effect on actual or allowable 
emissions as they only update references to the NAAQS in the Illinois 
SIP. Illinois has shown there is no impact of revising Part 243 that

[[Page 47414]]

would hinder Illinois' ability to maintain and meet the NAAQS for 
NO2, O3, Pb, PM2.5, PM10, 
SO2, and CO. Therefore, these revisions to sections 243.108 
and 243.122 are approvable as they update sections 243.108 and 243.122 
to be consistent with EPA's promulgated NAAQS. The revisions will not 
increase any emissions to the atmosphere because they do not impact on 
any source applicability or emissions.

IV. What action is EPA taking?

    EPA is proposing to approve a revision to the Illinois SIP. The 
submittal updates revisions to the Illinois regulations at Title 35 of 
the Illinois Administrative Code, Part 243--Air Quality Standards (Part 
243). Specifically, the updates made to the following rules in Part 
243: Sections 243.108 and 243.122 to be ``identical in substance'' to 
and consistent with updates to the list of designated Federal 
equivalent and reference methods and updates to the NAAQS adopted by 
EPA. IEPA's revisions mirror EPA's reference method for the 2010 1-hour 
SO2 standard. IEPA removed the 1971 primary, 24 hour and 
annual SO2 standard reflecting EPA's action at the Federal 
level.

V. Incorporation by Reference

    In this rule, 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, EPA is proposing to incorporate by 
reference Illinois rules 243.108 and 243.122, effective May 18, 2022, 
discussed in section II of this preamble. EPA has made, and will 
continue to make, these documents generally available through 
www.regulations.gov and at the EPA Region 5 Office (please contact the 
person identified in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of 
this preamble for more information).

VI. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

    Under the CAA, the Administrator is required to approve a SIP 
submission that complies with the provisions of the CAA and applicable 
Federal regulations. 42 U.S.C. 7410(k); 40 CFR 52.02(a). Thus, in 
reviewing SIP submissions, EPA's role is to approve state choices, 
provided that they meet the criteria of the CAA. Accordingly, this 
action merely approves state law as meeting Federal requirements and 
does not impose additional requirements beyond those imposed by state 
law. For that reason, this 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 14094 (88 FR 21879, April 11, 2023);
     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 subject to Executive Order 13045 (62 FR 19885, 
April 23, 1997) because it approves a state program;
     Is not a significant regulatory action subject to 
Executive Order 13211 (66 FR 28355, May 22, 2001); and
     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 CAA.
    In addition, the SIP is not approved to apply on any Indian 
reservation land or in any other area where EPA or an Indian tribe has 
demonstrated that a tribe has jurisdiction. In those areas of Indian 
country, the rulemaking 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).
    Executive Order 12898 (Federal Actions To Address Environmental 
Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations, 59 FR 7629, 
February 16, 1994) directs Federal agencies to identify and address 
``disproportionately high and adverse human health or environmental 
effects'' of their actions on minority populations and low-income 
populations to the greatest extent practicable and permitted by law. 
EPA defines environmental justice (EJ) as ``the fair treatment and 
meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, 
national origin, or income with respect to the development, 
implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and 
policies.'' EPA further defines the term fair treatment to mean that 
``no group of people should bear a disproportionate burden of 
environmental harms and risks, including those resulting from the 
negative environmental consequences of industrial, governmental, and 
commercial operations or programs and policies.''
    IEPA did not evaluate environmental justice considerations as part 
of its SIP submittal; the CAA and applicable implementing regulations 
neither prohibit nor require such an evaluation. EPA did not perform an 
EJ analysis and did not consider EJ in this action. Consideration of EJ 
is not required as part of this action, and there is no information in 
the record inconsistent with the stated goal of E.O. 12898 of achieving 
environmental justice for people of color, low-income populations, and 
Indigenous peoples.

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

    Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Carbon monoxide, 
Incorporation by reference, Intergovernmental relations, Ozone, 
Particulate matter, Sulfur oxides, Volatile organic compounds.

    Dated: July 13, 2023.
Debra Shore,
Regional Administrator, Region 5.
[FR Doc. 2023-15290 Filed 7-21-23; 8:45 am]
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