Approval and Promulgation of Implementation Plans; California State Implementation Plan Revision, South Coast Air Quality Management District

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[OAQPS CA38-5-6308; FRL-4890-6]

Approval and Promulgation of Implementation Plans; California

State Implementation Plan Revision, South Coast Air Quality Management

District

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking.

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SUMMARY: EPA is proposing to approve revisions to the California State

Implementation Plan (SIP) which concern the control of volatile organic

compound (VOC) emissions from pleasure craft coating operations and set

general recordkeeping requirements for VOC emissions.

The intended effect of proposing approval of these rules is to

regulate emissions of VOCs in accordance with the requirements of the

Clean Air Act, as amended in 1990 (CAA or the Act). EPA's final action

on this notice of proposed rulemaking (NPR) will incorporate these

rules into the federally approved SIP. EPA has evaluated each of these

rules and is proposing to approve them under provisions of the CAA

regarding EPA action on SIP submittals, SIPs for national primary and

secondary ambient air quality standards and plan requirements for

nonattainment areas.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before July 5, 1994.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be mailed to: Daniel A. Meer, Rulemaking

Section (A-5-3), Air and Toxics Division, U.S. Environmental Protection

Agency, Region IX, 75 Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, CA 94105.

Copies of the rule revisions and EPA's evaluation report of each

rule are available for public inspection at EPA's Region 9 office

during normal business hours. Copies of the submitted rule revisions

are also available for inspection at the following locations:

South Coast Air Quality Management District, 21865 East Copley

Drive, Diamond Bar, CA 91765-4182.

California Air Resources Board, Stationary Source Division, Rule

Evaluation Section, 2020 L Street, Sacramento, CA 95814.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Chris Stamos (A-5-3), Air and Toxics

Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region IX, 75 Hawthorne

Street, San Francisco, CA 94105 Telephone: (415) 744-1187.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The rules being proposed for approval into

the California SIP are: South Coast Air Quality Management District

(SCAQMD) Rule 1106.1, Pleasure Craft Coating Operations and Rule 109,

Recordkeeping for Volatile Organic Compound Emissions. These rules were

submitted by the California Air Resources Board (CARB) to EPA on

September 14, 1992.

Background

On March 3, 1978, EPA promulgated a list of ozone nonattainment

areas under the provisions of the Clean Air Act, as amended in 1977

(1977 CAA or pre-amended Act), that included the Los Angeles-South

Coast Air Basin. 43 FR 8964, 40 CFR 81.305. Because this area was

unable to meet the statutory attainment date of December 31, 1982,

California requested under section 172(a)(2), and EPA approved, an

extension of the attainment date to December 31, 1987. 40 CFR 52.238.

On May 26, 1988, EPA notified the Governor of California, pursuant to

section 110(a)(2)(H) of the pre-amended Act, that the SCAQMD's portion

of the California SIP was inadequate to attain and maintain the ozone

standard and requested that deficiencies in the existing SIP be

corrected (EPA's SIP-Call). On November 15, 1990, the Clean Air Act

Amendments of 1990 were enacted. Pub. L. 101-549, 104 Stat. 2399,

codified at 42 U.S.C. 7401-7671q. In amended section 182(a)(2)(A) of

the CAA, Congress statutorily adopted the requirement that

nonattainment areas fix their deficient reasonably available control

technology (RACT) rules for ozone and established a deadline of May 15,

1991 for states to submit corrections of those deficiencies.

Section 182(a)(2)(A) applies to areas designated as nonattainment

prior to enactment of the amendments and classified as marginal or

above as of the date of enactment. It requires such areas to adopt and

correct RACT rules pursuant to pre-amended section 172(b) as

interpreted in pre-amendment guidance.1 EPA's SIP-Call used that

guidance to indicate the necessary corrections for specific

nonattainment areas. The Los Angeles-South Coast Air Basin is

classified as extreme;2 therefore, this area was subject to the

RACT fix-up requirement and the May 15, 1991 deadline.

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\1\ Among other things, the pre-amendment guidance consists of

those portions of the proposed Post-1987 ozone and carbon monoxide

policy that concern RACT, 52 FR 45044 (November 24, 1987); ``Issues

Relating to VOC Regulation Cutpoints, Deficiencies, and Deviations,

Clarification to Appendix D of November 24, 1987 Federal Register

Notice'' (Blue Book) (notice of availability was published in the

Federal Register on May 25, 1988); and the existing control

technique guidelines (CTGs).

\2\ The Los Angeles South Coast Air Basin retained its

designation and was classified by operation of law pursuant to

sections 107(d) and 181(a) upon the date of enactment of the CAA.

See 56 FR 56694 (November 6, 1991).

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The State of California submitted many revised RACT rules for

incorporation into its SIP on September 14, 1992, including the rules

being acted on in this document. This document addresses EPA's proposed

action for SCAQMD Rule 1106.1, Pleasure Craft Coating Operations, and

for SCAQMD Rule 109, Recordkeeping for Volatile Organic Compound

Emissions. SCAQMD adopted Rule 1106.1 on May 1, 1992 and Rule 109 on

March 6, 1992. These submitted rules were found to be complete on

November 20, 1992 pursuant to EPA's completeness criteria that are set

forth in 40 CFR Part 51 Appendix V3 and are being proposed for

approval into the SIP.

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\3\ EPA adopted the completeness criteria on February 16, 1990

(55 FR 5830) and, pursuant to section 110(k)(1)(A) of the CAA,

revised the criteria on August 26, 1991 (56 FR 42216).

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Rule 1106.1 requires the use of low VOC coatings for marine

pleasure craft coating operations and coating application methods with

high transfer efficiencies, and Rule 109 sets out general recordkeeping

requirements for regulating volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions

for a variety of source categories. VOCs contribute to the production

of ground level ozone and smog. The rules were adopted as part of the

district's efforts to achieve the National Ambient Air Quality Standard

(NAAQS) for ozone and in response to EPA's SIP-Call and the section

182(a)(2)(A) CAA requirement. The following is EPA's evaluation and

proposed action for these rules.

EPA Evaluation and Proposed Action

In determining the approvability of a VOC rule, EPA must evaluate

the rule for consistency with the requirements of the CAA and EPA

regulations, as found in section 110 and part D of the CAA and 40 CFR

part 51 (Requirements for Preparation, Adoption, and Submittal of

Implementation Plans). The EPA interpretation of these requirements,

which forms the basis for today's action, appears in the various EPA

policy guidance documents listed in footnote 1. Among those provisions

is the requirement that a VOC rule must, at a minimum, provide for the

implementation of RACT for stationary sources of VOC emissions. This

requirement was carried forth from the pre-amended Act.

For the purpose of assisting state and local agencies in developing

RACT rules, EPA prepared a series of Control Technique Guideline (CTG)

documents. The CTGs are based on the underlying requirements of the Act

and specify the presumptive norms for what is RACT for specific source

categories. Under the CAA, Congress ratified EPA's use of these

documents, as well as other Agency policy, for requiring States to

``fix-up'' their RACT rules. See section 182(a)(2)(A). Rule 1106.1

controls emissions from a source category for which EPA has not issued

a CTG and Rule 109 is a general recordkeeping rule and therefore does

not have a corresponding CTG. Further interpretations of EPA policy are

found in the Blue Book, referred to in footnote 1. In general, these

guidance documents have been set forth to ensure that VOC rules are

fully enforceable and strengthen or maintain the SIP.

SCAQMD's submitted Rule 109, includes the following significant

changes from the current SIP:

Adds a definition for Exempt Compounds,

Removes Executive Officer Discretion from sections (c)(2)

and (c)(3) as prescribed in the Technical Support Document (TSD) (dated

January 15, 1992), and

Adds EPA-approved test methods.

SCAQMD Rule 1106.1 is a new rule which was adopted to regulate

emissions for the coating of marine pleasure craft.

EPA has evaluated the submitted rules and has determined that they

are consistent with the CAA, EPA regulations, and EPA policy.

Therefore, SCAQMD Rule 1106.1 and Rule 109 are being proposed for

approval under section 110(k)(3) of the CAA as meeting the requirements

of section 110(a) and Part D.

Nothing in this action should be construed as permitting or

allowing or establishing a precedent for any future request for

revision to any state implementation plan. Each request for revision to

the state implementation plan shall be considered separately in light

of specific technical, economic, and environmental factors and in

relation to relevant statutory and regulatory requirements.

Regulatory Process

Under the Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. Section 600 et.

seq., EPA must prepare a regulatory flexibility analysis assessing the

impact of any proposed or final rule on small entities. 5 U.S.C. 603

and 604. Alternatively, EPA may certify that the rule will not have a

significant impact on a substantial number of small entities. Small

entities include small businesses, small not-for-profit enterprises and

government entities with jurisdiction over populations of less than

50,000.

SIP approvals under sections 110 and 301 and subchapter I, part D

of the CAA do not create any new requirements, but simply approve

requirements that the State is already imposing. Therefore, because the

federal SIP-approval does not impose any new requirements, it does not

have a significant impact on any small entities affected. Moreover, due

to the nature of the federal-state relationship under the CAA,

preparation of a regulatory flexibility analysis would constitute

Federal inquiry into the economic reasonableness of state action. The

CAA forbids EPA to base its actions concerning SIPs on such grounds.

Union Electric Co. v. U.S. E.P.A., 427 U.S. 246, 256-66 (S.Ct. 1976);

42 U.S.C. 7410(a)(2).

This action has been classified as a Table 3 action by the Regional

Administrator under the procedures published in the Federal Register on

January 19, 1989 (54 FR 2214-2225), as revised by an October 4, 1993,

memorandum from Michael H. Shapiro, Acting Assistant Administrator for

Air and Radiation. A future notice will inform the general public of

these tables. On January 6, 1989, the Office of Management and Budget

(OMB) waived Table 2 and Table 3 SIP revisions (54 FR 222) from the

requirements of Section 3 of Executive Order 12291 for 2 years. The EPA

has submitted a request for a permanent waiver for Table 2 and Table 3

SIP revisions. The OMB has agreed to continue the temporary waiver

until such time as it rules on EPA's request. This request continues in

effect under Executive Order 12866 which superseded Executive Order

12291 on September 30, 1993.

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Hydrocarbons,

Intergovernmental relations, Ozone, Reporting and recordkeeping

requirements.

Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401-7671q.

Dated: May 18, 1994.

Felicia Marcus,

Regional Administrator.

[FR Doc. 94-13456 Filed 6-1-94; 8:45 am]

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