Agency Information Collection Activities: Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request; Regulation of Fuels and Fuel Additives, Fuel Quality Regulations for Highway Diesel Fuel Sold in 1993 and Later Calendar Years

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-5980-3]

Agency Information Collection Activities: Submission for OMB

Review; Comment Request; Regulation of Fuels and Fuel Additives, Fuel

Quality Regulations for Highway Diesel Fuel Sold in 1993 and Later

Calendar Years

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501

et seq.), this notice announces that the following Information

Collection Request (ICR) has been forwarded to the Office of Management

and Budget (OMB) for review and approval: Regulation of Fuels and Fuel

Additives, Fuel Quality Regulations for Highway Diesel Fuel Sold in

1993 and Later Calendar Years; OMB No. 2060-0308; expires 03/31/98. The

ICR describes the nature of the information collection and its expected

burden and cost; and where appropriate, it includes the actual data

collection instrument.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before April 17, 1998.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For a copy of the ICR, call Sandy

Farmer at EPA, by phone at (202) 260-2740, by E-

[[Page 13245]]

Mail at Farmer.S[email protected] or download off the Internet at

http://www.epa.gov/icr/icr.htm, and refer to EPA ICR No. 1718.02.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Title: Regulation of Fuels and Fuel Additives, Fuel Quality

Regulations for Highway Diesel Fuel Sold in 1993 and Later Calendar

Years, (OMB Control No. 2060-0308; EPA ICR No. 1718.02.) expiring 3/31/

98. This is a request for an extension (with revisions to burden

estimates) of a currently approved collection.

Abstract: Section 211(i) of the Clean Air Act, 42 U.S.C.

Sec. 7545(i), requires EPA to implement and enforce regulations

regarding the diesel fuel quality requirements of the Act. The Act

specifically provides that EPA may require that diesel fuel not

intended for use in motor vehicles contain dye to segregate it from

motor vehicle (highway) diesel fuel. EPA regulations promulgated

pursuant to the Act, at 40 CFR Sec. 80.29, require that non-road diesel

fuel contain visible evidence of red dye. The Internal Revenue Service

(IRS) also requires that non-road diesel fuel contain red dye. The IRS

further requires that low sulfur highway use diesel fuel sold to tax

exempt organizations be dyed red. This latter IRS requirement resulted

in the subject EPA recordkeeping requirement that transfers of dyed low

sulfur (highway) diesel fuel to tax exempt entities be accompanied by

customary business practice paperwork that includes a statement that

the product meets EPA standards for highway use but that it is tax

exempt fuel. The statement can be in brief code and it can be

preprinted or automatically printed. The transferors and transferees of

such fuel must keep the transfer documents for five years. There is no

reporting requirement or periodic recordkeeping requirement. All

responses are mandatory. EPA has authority to require this information

under section 211 of the Act, 42 U.S.C. Sec. 7545, section 114 of the

Act, 42 U.S.C. Sec. 7414 and section 208 of the Act, 42 U.S.C.

Sec. 7542.

Confidentiality of information obtained from parties is protected

under 40 CFR Part 2.

The dye requirement and the associated recordkeeping requirement,

which is limited to a relatively small quantity of diesel fuel, greatly

assists EPA to enforce the highway diesel fuel requirements and also

assists parties to determine if they are receiving or transferring

appropriate product.

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. The OMB control numbers for EPA's

regulations are listed in 40 CFR Part 9 and 48 CFR Chapter 15. The

Federal Register Notice required under 5 CFR 1320.8(d), soliciting

comments on this collection of information was published on 11/24/97

(62 FR 62592-62593); no comments were received and therefore the ICR

supporting statement does not summarize comments or EPA's actions taken

in response to comments. However, EPA did consult industry persons by

telephone and all parties contacted indicated the paperwork requirement

has virtually no measurable burden both because the message is

automatically printed on customary business practice documents and

because the parties contacted all kept the documents for at least 5

years by normal business practice.

Burden Statement: The annual public reporting and recordkeeping

burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 0.047

hours per year for highway diesel fuel terminals; there is no

measurable burden for other parties. Burden means the total time,

effort, or financial resources expended by persons to generate,

maintain, retain, or disclose or provide information to or for a

Federal agency. This includes the time needed to review instructions;

develop, acquire, install, and utilize technology and systems for the

purposes of collecting, validating, and verifying information,

processing and maintaining information, and disclosing and providing

information; adjust the existing ways to comply with any previously

applicable instructions and requirements; train personnel to be able to

respond to a collection of information; search data sources; complete

and review the collection of information; and transmit or otherwise

disclose the information.

Respondents/Affected Entities: Terminals, distributors, and tax-

exempt wholesale purchaser-consumers of highway diesel fuel.

Estimated Number of Respondents: 1,843 highway diesel fuel

terminals; 1,000 truck distributors of tax exempt highway diesel fuel

(with no measurable burden); and 10,000 tax exempt wholesale purchaser-

consumers (with no measurable burden).

Frequency of Response: diesel fuel terminals: 170 transactions per

year with paperwork required on the occasion of the transactions.

Estimated Total Annual Hour Burden: 87 hours.

Estimated Total Annualized Cost Burden: $0.

Send comments on the Agency's need for this information, the

accuracy of the provided burden estimates, and any suggested methods

for minimizing respondent burden, including through the use of

automated collection techniques to the following addresses. Please

refer to EPA ICR No. 1718.02. and OMB Control No. 2060-0308 in any

correspondence.

Ms. Sandy Farmer, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, OPPE Regulatory

Information Division (2137), 401 M Street, SW, Washington, DC 20460

and

Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and

Budget, Attention: Desk Officer for EPA, 725 17th Street, NW,

Washington, DC 20503

Dated: March 12, 1998.

Joseph Retzer,

Director, Regulatory Information Division.

[FR Doc. 98-7008 Filed 3-17-98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6560-50-P