Ozone Transport Commission; Recommendation That EPA Adopt Low Emission Vehicle Program for the Northeast Ozone Transport Region

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-4852-6]

Ozone Transport Commission; Recommendation That EPA Adopt Low

Emission Vehicle Program for the Northeast Ozone Transport Region

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: EPA is announcing that on February 10, 1994, the Northeast

Ozone Transport Commission (OTC) submitted a recommendation to EPA for

additional control measures to be applied throughout the Northeast

Ozone Transport Region (OTR). Specifically, the OTC has recommended

that EPA require all State members of the OTC to adopt an Ozone

Transport Commission Low Emission Vehicle program for the entire OTR.

The EPA is commencing a review of the recommendation to determine

whether to approve, disapprove, or partially approve and partially

disapprove it. The Agency believes that its decision must be made in

the context of the Northeast States' overall ozone emission reduction

needs to meet the ozone standard. The Agency expects to consider the

recommended measure as part of the overall attainment goal for the

region, and anticipates gathering information regarding the recommended

measure as it relates to the overall attainment effort through

consultations and public hearings.

The Agency will hold a public hearing before May 11, 1994, and will

receive written comments until 30 days following the public hearing.

The Agency will consider all relevant data, views, and comments in

responding to the recommendation. The Agency will issue a second notice

in the Federal Register in late March or early April 1994 that will

provide specific information about the time and place of the public

hearing and more detail about the process EPA intends to follow in

reaching a decision. EPA also expects, in the forthcoming Federal

Register notice, to describe a framework for reaching a decision and to

identify and discuss significant issues.

ADDRESSES: The recommendation and supporting materials that the OTC

submitted to EPA on February 10, 1994 are contained in Air Docket No.

A-94-11 at: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 401 M Street SW.,

Washington, DC 20460. The public docket room is located in room M-1500,

Waterside Mall (Ground Floor). Materials may be inspected from 8 a.m.

until 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. EPA may charge a reasonable fee for

copying docket materials. EPA will place all information relevant to

the OTC's recommendations and to EPA's action on the recommendations in

the docket.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mike Shields, Office of Mobile

Sources, U.S. EPA, 401 M Street SW., Washington, DC, 20460, telephone:

(202) 260-3450.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Northeast Ozone Transport Region (OTR)

was established by operation of law under section 184 of the Clean Air

Act (the Act) and is comprised of the States of Connecticut, Delaware,

Maine, Massachusetts, Maryland, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York,

Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, the District of Columbia, and the

portion of Virginia that is within the Consolidated Metropolitan

Statistical Areas that includes the District of Columbia.

These States include a large number of ozone nonattainment areas,

which are classified under section 181 of the Act into 4 categories

with associated attainment dates: Marginal (1994); moderate (1996);

serious (1999); and severe (2005 or 2007). For moderate, serious, and

severe ozone nonattainment areas, under section 182 of the Act the

States are obligated to submit demonstrations by November 15, 1994 that

their State Implementation Plans (SIPs) will provide for attainment of

the ozone standard by the applicable dates. Congress established the

OTR in the 1990 Amendments to the Act based on the recognition that the

transport of ozone and ozone precursors throughout the region may

render the Northeast States' attainment strategies interdependent.

Under section 184 of the Act, the Administrator established a

Northeast Ozone Transport Commission for the OTR consisting of the

Governor of each State or their designees, the Administrator or her

designee, the Regional Administrators for the EPA regional offices

affected (or the Administrator's designees), and an air pollution

control official representing each State in the region, appointed by

the Governor.

Section 184(c) specifies a procedure for the OTC to develop

recommendations for additional control measures to be applied within

all or a part of the OTR if the OTC determines that such measures are

necessary to bring any area in the OTR into attainment for ozone by the

applicable dates in the Act. Section 184(c)(1) provides that:

Upon petition of any States within a transport region for ozone,

and based on a majority vote of the Governors on the Commission (or

their designees), the Commission may, after notice and opportunity

for public comment, develop recommendations for additional control

measures to be applied within all or a part of such transport region

if the commission determines such measures are necessary to bring

any area in such region into attainment by the dates provided by

[subpart II of part D of title I of the Clean Air Act].

Section 184(c) also lays out procedures the Administrator is to

follow in responding to recommendations from the OTC. Upon receipt of

the recommendations, the Administrator is to publish a Federal Register

notice stating that the recommendations are available and providing an

opportunity for a public hearing within 90 days. The Administrator is

also to ``commence a review of the recommendations to determine whether

the control measures in the recommendations are necessary to bring any

area in such region into attainment by the dates provided by [subpart

II] and are otherwise consistent with [the] Act.'' Finally, in

undertaking her review, the Administrator is to consult with members of

the OTC and is to take into account the data, views, and comments

received pursuant to the public hearing.

Last, sections 184(c)(4) and (5) govern EPA's response to the OTC

recommendations. The Administrator is to determine whether to approve,

disapprove, or partially approve and partially disapprove the

recommendations within nine months of receipt. For any disapproval, the

Administrator is to specify:

(i) Why any disapproved additional control measures are not

necessary to bring any area in such region into attainment by the

dates provided by [subpart II] or are otherwise not consistent with

the Act; and

(ii) Recommendations concerning equal or more effective actions

that could be taken by the commission to conform the disapproved

portion of the recommendations to the requirements of [section 184].

Section 184(c)(5) provides that, upon approval or partial approval

of any recommendations, the Administrator is to issue to each State in

the OTR to which an approved requirement applies a finding under

section 110(k)(5) that the State Implementation Plan (SIP) for that

State is inadequate to meet the requirements of section 110(a)(2)(D).

Section 110(a)(2)(D) provides, in pertinent part, that each State's SIP

shall contain adequate provisions:

(i) Prohibiting, consistent with the provisions of this title,

any source or other type of emissions activity within the State from

emitting any air pollutant in amounts which will--

(I) Contribute significantly to nonattainment in, or interfere

with maintenance by, any other State with respect to any such

national primary or secondary ambient air quality standard.

Under section 184(c)(5), the Administrator's finding of inadequacy

under section 110(a)(2)(D) is to require that each affected State

revise its SIP to include the approved additional control measures

within one year after the finding is issued.

The Administrator convened the OTC on May 7, 1991. Thereafter, the

OTC moved to work toward a regional ozone strategy with emphasis on

consensus agreements to adopt regional measures to address the ozone

problem in the Northeast. To address the contribution of motor vehicles

to the Northeast ozone problem, the OTC focused early on emissions

standards for new motor vehicles and on adoption of federal

reformulated gasoline throughout the OTR as potential additional

control measures. The Clean Air Act, however, imposes certain

limitations on the States' ability to adopt new motor vehicle emissions

standards.

Section 209 of the Act generally preempts States from establishing

new motor vehicle emissions standards, leaving such regulation to EPA

under title II of the Act. Section 209 does, however, provide an

exception for California to adopt new motor vehicle emissions standards

where the Administrator grants a preemption waiver based on a finding

that California's standards will be, ``in the aggregate, at least as

protective of public health and welfare as applicable Federal

standards.'' Further, under section 177 of the Act, any State which has

SIP provisions approved under part D of title I may adopt and enforce

new motor vehicle emission standards for any model year if:

(1) Such standards are identical to the California standards for

which a waiver has been granted for such model year, and

(2) California and such State adopt such standards at least two

years before commencement of such model year (as determined by

regulations of the Administrator).

EPA has granted a waiver for California's ``Low Emission Vehicle''

program. This program generally calls for five categories of vehicles

meeting progressively more stringent emissions standards: California

Tier I vehicles; Transitional Low Emission Vehicles (TLEV); Low

Emission Vehicles (LEV); Ultra-Low Emission Vehicles (ULEV); and Zero

Emission Vehicles (ZEV). California has also established an overall

non-methane organic gas (NMOG) standard that each manufacturer must

meet for its fleet of new vehicles in a particular model year by

selling any combination of vehicles certified by California as meeting

standards for one of the five categories. In addition, under

California's program, at least 2% of each manufacturers' new vehicle

fleet sold in California must be ZEV's by 1998, and 10% by 2003.

At its second meeting on July 16, 1991, the OTC adopted a

Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in which the State and District of

Columbia Representatives agreed that, in view of the significant

contribution of motor vehicles to the Northeast ozone problem, they all

support California's Motor Vehicle Control Program, and call on their

jurisdictions to cooperatively evaluate the feasibility, air quality

benefits, and associated costs of this Program in the OTR. At its third

meeting on October 29, 1991, the OTC States agreed to a further MOU

providing that each OTC would take steps to implement California's Low

Emission Vehicle program as soon as possible. New York and

Massachusetts are the only States that have fully adopted the

California LEV program in legislation and regulations without

contingencies, and both States are set to implement their programs. The

automobile manufacturers' have challenged the legality of both programs

and both lawsuits are ongoing. Other States have adopted or are

adopting the program contingent on regional program adoption, and the

remaining States are at various stages of the legislative or regulatory

process to adopt the program.

In August 1993, Maine, Maryland, and Massachusetts petitioned the

OTC to adopt a recommendation calling for the application of the

California LEV program throughout the OTR. During the fall of 1993, the

OTC held a number of public forums in various locations in the

Northeast, and held a public hearing in Hartford, Connecticut on

December 16-17, 1993. Finally, at its winter meeting on February 1,

1994 in Washington, DC, the OTC voted by a 9 to 4 majority to recommend

that EPA mandate the California LEV program throughout the OTR. (The

OTC refers to the program they recommend as ``OTC LEV.'') New

Hampshire, Virginia, Delaware, and New Jersey voted against the

recommendation. The OTC's recommendation contains the following

elements:

(1) The OTC LEV program would be applicable to all 1999 and

subsequent model year passenger cars and light duty trucks in the OTR;

(2) Subject to certain very limited exceptions, all vehicles sold,

imported, delivered, purchased, leased, rented, acquired, received, or

registered in the OTR that are subject to the OTC LEV program must be

certified pursuant to a California Air Resources Board (CARB) Executive

Order;

(3) The OTC LEV program would allow the sale of the five categories

of California vehicles: California Tier I, TLEV, LEV, ULEV, and ZEV;

(4) Manufacturers could choose any combination of California

certified vehicles to meet average NMOG fleet emission standards in the

OTR as follows:

1999--0.113 g/mi

2000--0.073 g/mi

2001--0.070 g/mi

2002--0.068 g/mi

2003 and later--0.062 g/mi

Regarding California's ZEV sales mandate, the OTC recommends that,

to the extent it must apply to satisfy section 177, it shall apply. But

if it is not required under section 177, the OTC recommends that the

``individual States within the OTC may at their option include such a

requirement and/or economic incentives designed to increase the sales

of ZEVs in the programs they adopt.''

(5) The effective date for the OTC LEV program would be January 1,

1996, allowing two vehicle model years prior to applicability of the

standards in 1999, but does not preclude earlier State implementation.

EPA believes that its decision whether to approve the OTC's

recommendation raises substantial and difficult questions that must be

made in the context of the Northeast States' overall emission reduction

needs to attain the ozone standard. The Agency thus believes that the

scope of its review should be broad enough to encompass the context of

the particular LEV measure that the OTC recommends. The States are

currently developing their overall strategy (including emissions

inventory work, modeling work, and analysis of the full range of

potential control measures), in preparation for the November 15, 1994

attainment demonstration deadline. The Agency believes that this

November 15 deadline is critical to the States' progress toward timely

attainment. The Agency expects to undertake thorough consultations with

the members of the commission and the affected States, and to provide

an opportunity for all interested members of the public to provide

data, views, and other information that may assist EPA in reaching a

decision. The Agency believes that, in determining whether the

recommended LEV measure is ``necessary'' under section 184, it should

consider the measure as part of the overall emission reduction needs

for the region, and anticipates gathering information regarding the

recommended measure as it relates to the overall emission reductions

needs through consultations and public hearings. The EPA urges those

who intend to prepare testimony and written comments to begin

considering this issue in the context of the total attainment

requirements for the region, and to provide comments on the overall

emission reduction needs of the region.

As noted above, the Agency will provide a further Federal Register

notice in late March or early April that will provide specific

information about the time and place of the public hearing and more

detail about the process EPA intends to follow in reaching a decision.

EPA also expects to describe a framework for reaching its decision and

to discuss significant issues for public comment in this forthcoming

notice.

Dated: March 10, 1994.

Mary D. Nichols,

Assistant Administrator for Air and Radiation.

[FR Doc. 94-6452 Filed 3-17-94; 8:45 am]

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