[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 93 (Monday, May 13, 2024)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 41319-41321]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-09730]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R04-OAR-2023-0338; FRL-11798-02-R4]


Air Plan Approval; KY; Revisions to Jefferson County Definitions

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is approving changes 
to the Jefferson County portion of the Kentucky State Implementation 
Plan (SIP) submitted by the Commonwealth of Kentucky through the 
Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet (Cabinet) on May 31, 2023. The 
changes were submitted by the Cabinet on behalf of the Louisville Metro 
Air Pollution Control District (District, also referred to herein as 
Jefferson County). EPA is approving changes to the District's 
definitions rule to include a list of ``trivial activities'' in a new 
appendix; update the incorporation by reference date of the Federal air 
quality regulation that excludes certain organic compounds from the 
definition of ``volatile organic compounds (VOC);'' and make minor 
grammatical changes. This action is pursuant to the Clean Air Act (CAA 
or Act) and its implementing regulations.

DATES: This rule is effective June 12, 2024.

ADDRESSES: EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket 
Identification No. EPA-R04-OAR-2023-0338. All documents in the docket 
are listed on the regulations.gov website. Although listed in the 
index, some information may not be publicly available, i.e., 
Confidential Business Information or other information whose disclosure 
is restricted by statute. Certain other material, such as copyrighted 
material, is not placed on the internet and will be publicly available 
only in hard copy form. Publicly available docket materials are 
available either electronically through www.regulations.gov or in hard 
copy at the Air Regulatory Management Section, Air Planning and 
Implementation Branch, Air and Radiation Division, U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 Forsyth Street SW, Atlanta, Georgia 
30303-8960. EPA requests that you contact the person listed in the FOR 
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section to schedule your inspection. The 
Regional Office's official hours of business are Monday through Friday 
8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., excluding Federal holidays.

[[Page 41320]]


FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Simone Jarvis, Air Regulatory 
Management Section, Air Planning and Implementation Branch, Air and 
Radiation Division, Region 4, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 61 
Forsyth Street SW, Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8960. The telephone number is 
(404) 562-8393. Ms. Jarvis can also be reached via electronic mail at 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background

    On May 31, 2023, the Commonwealth of Kentucky submitted changes to 
the Jefferson County portion of the Kentucky SIP for EPA 
approval.1 2 In this rulemaking, EPA is approving changes to 
Regulation 1.02, Definitions.
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    \1\ The May 31, 2023, submittal also contains changes to 
Jefferson County Regulation 1.11, Control of Open Burning, in the 
Jefferson County portion of the Kentucky SIP. EPA intends to address 
these changes in a separate rulemaking.
    \2\ In 2003, the City of Louisville and Jefferson County 
governments merged, and the ``Jefferson County Air Pollution Control 
District'' was renamed the ``Louisville Metro Air Pollution Control 
District.'' However, to be consistent with the terminology used in 
the subheading in Table 2 of 40 CFR 52.920(c), throughout this 
notice we refer to the District regulations contained in the 
Jefferson County portion of the Kentucky SIP as the ``Jefferson 
County'' regulations.
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    Through a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) published on March 
7, 2024 (89 FR 16496), EPA proposed to approve changes to the 
District's Regulation 1.02, Definitions, which included a list of 
``trivial activities'' in a new appendix, updated the incorporation by 
reference date of the Federal air quality regulation that excludes 
certain organic compounds from the definition of ``volatile organic 
compounds (VOC),'' and made minor grammatical changes. In this 
rulemaking, EPA is finalizing its approval of the District's May 31, 
2023, request to incorporate Version 16 of Regulation 1.02 into the 
SIP, replacing Version 15. EPA is not approving the change to the 
definition of ``Acute noncancer effect'' because that definition is not 
approved into the SIP, and EPA is not incorporating that definition 
into the SIP from Version 16. EPA's rationale for approving the changes 
is described in the March 7, 2024, NPRM. Comments on the March 7, 2024, 
NPRM were due on or before April 8, 2024. EPA received one set of 
comments, which is discussed in the next section of this rulemaking 
notice.

II. Response To Comment

    EPA received one set of comments on the March 7, 2024, NPRM. This 
set of comments, submitted by a member of the general public, consists 
of several statements associated with website hyperlinks. It is unclear 
how these comments are relevant to the proposal, how the hyperlinked 
materials support the comments, and how, or whether, the commenter 
would like EPA to change the proposal. Furthermore, as noted in the 
March 7, 2024, NPRM, EPA generally will not consider comment contents 
located outside of the primary submission (i.e., on the web, cloud, or 
other file-sharing system) such as the hyperlinked materials. For these 
reasons, the comments require no further response, and we are 
finalizing the action as proposed.

III. Incorporation by Reference

    In this document, EPA is finalizing regulatory text that includes 
incorporation by reference. In accordance with requirements of 1 CFR 
51.5, and as discussed in Section I this preamble, EPA is finalizing 
the incorporation by reference of Jefferson County Regulation 1.02, 
Version 16, Definitions, locally effective on March 15, 2023, except 
for the definition of ``Acute noncancer effect.'' EPA has made, and 
will continue to make, these materials generally available through 
www.regulations.gov and at the EPA Region 4 Office (please contact the 
person identified in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of 
this preamble for more information). Therefore, these materials have 
been approved by EPA for inclusion in the State implementation plan, 
have been incorporated by reference by EPA into that plan, are fully 
Federally enforceable under sections 110 and 113 of the CAA as of the 
effective date of the final rulemaking of EPA's approval, and will be 
incorporated by reference in the next update to the SIP compilation.\3\
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    \3\ See 62 FR 27968 (May 22, 1997).
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IV. Final Action

    EPA is approving the aforementioned changes to Regulation 1.02, 
Definitions, submitted on May 31, 2023, except for the change to the 
definition of ``Acute noncancer effect,'' because that definition is 
not approved into the SIP. EPA has determined that the requested 
changes in Kentucky's May 31, 2023, SIP revision will not interfere 
with any applicable requirement concerning attainment, or any other 
applicable requirement of the CAA.

V. 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. See 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 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).
    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

[[Page 41321]]

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.''
    Jefferson County did not evaluate EJ 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. Due to the nature of 
the action being taken here, this action is expected to have a neutral 
to positive impact on the air quality of the affected area. 
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 EJ for people of color, low-income populations, 
and Indigenous peoples.
    This action is subject to the Congressional Review Act, and EPA 
will submit a rule report to each House of the Congress and to the 
Comptroller General of the United States. This action is not a ``major 
rule'' as defined by 5 U.S.C. 804(2).
    Under section 307(b)(1) of the CAA, petitions for judicial review 
of this action must be filed in the United States Court of Appeals for 
the appropriate circuit by July 12, 2024. Filing a petition for 
reconsideration by the Administrator of this final rule does not affect 
the finality of this action for the purposes of judicial review nor 
does it extend the time within which a petition for judicial review may 
be filed and shall not postpone the effectiveness of such rule or 
action. This action may not be challenged later in proceedings to 
enforce its requirements. See section 307(b)(2).

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

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

    Dated: April 30, 2024.
Jeaneanne Gettle,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 4.

    For the reasons stated in the preamble, EPA amends 40 CFR part 52 
as follows:

PART 52--APPROVAL AND PROMULGATION OF IMPLEMENTATION PLANS

0
1. The authority citation for part 52 continues to read as follows:

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

Subpart S--Kentucky

0
2. In Sec.  52.920(c), in Table 2 under the center heading ``Reg 1--
General Provisions'' revise the entry for 1.02 to read as follows:


Sec.  52.920  Identification of plan.

* * * * *
    (c) * * *

                Table 2 to Paragraph (c)--EPA-Approved Jefferson County Regulations for Kentucky
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                                                                                  District
        Reg             Title/subject      EPA  approval     Federal Register     effective       Explanation
                                                date              notice            date
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                                            Reg 1--General Provisions
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                                                  * * * * * * *
1.02...............  Definitions.......  May 13, 2024.....  [Insert first           3/15/2023  Except for the
                                                             page of Federal                    definition of
                                                             Register                           ``Acute
                                                             citation].                         noncancer
                                                                                                effect.''
 
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[FR Doc. 2024-09730 Filed 5-10-24; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6560-50-P