Adequacy Status of Submitted State Implementation Plans for Transportation Conformity Purposes: Houston 9% Rate-of-Progress for Ozone and El Paso Section 179B International Border for Carbon Monoxide

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-6458-7]

Adequacy Status of Submitted State Implementation Plans for

Transportation Conformity Purposes: Houston 9% Rate-of-Progress for

Ozone and El Paso Section 179B International Border for Carbon Monoxide

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of adequacy status.

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SUMMARY: In this notice, EPA is announcing that the motor vehicle

emissions budgets contained in the submitted Houston 9% Rate-of-

Progress (ROP) for ozone and the El Paso Section 179B International

Border carbon monoxide State Implementation Plans (SIP) are adequate

for transportation conformity purposes. As a result of our

determination, the budgets from the submitted Houston 9% ROP and the El

Paso Section 179B International Border SIPs may be used for future

conformity determinations in the Houston and El Paso areas,

respectively. No comments were received during the public comment

period.

DATES: These budgets are effective November 1, 1999.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. J. Behnam, P.E., The U.S.

Environmental Protection Agency, 1445 Ross Avenue, Dallas, Texas 75202;

telephone (214) 665-7247.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Transportation conformity is required by

section 176(c) of the Clean Air Act. The EPA's conformity rule, 40 CFR

part 93, requires that transportation plans, programs, and projects

conform to SIPs and establishes the criteria and procedures for

determining whether or not they do. Conformity to a SIP means that

transportation activities will not produce new air quality violations,

worsen existing violations, or delay timely attainment of the national

ambient air quality standards. The criteria by which EPA determines

whether a SIP's motor vehicle emission budgets are adequate for

conformity purposes are outlined in 40 CFR 93.118(e)(4). An adequacy

review is separate from EPA's completeness review, and it should not be

used to prejudge EPA's ultimate approval of the SIP. Even if we find a

budget adequate, the SIP could later be disapproved.

On March 2, 1999, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that

budgets contained in submitted SIPs cannot be used for conformity

determinations unless EPA has affirmatively found the conformity budget

adequate. We have described our process for determining the adequacy of

submitted SIP budgets in the policy guidance dated May 14, 1999, and

titled Conformity Guidance on Implementation of March 2, 1999

Conformity Court Decision. You may obtain a copy of this guidance from

EPA's conformity web site: http://www.epa.gov/oms/traq (once there,

click on ``conformity'' and then scroll down) or by contacting us at

the address above.

By this notice, we are simply announcing the adequacy

determinations that we have already made. On May 19, 1998, we received

the Houston 9% ROP SIP which contained a volatile organic compounds

budget of 132.68 tons/day and a nitrogen oxides budget of 283.01 tons/

day. On September 27, 1995, we received the El Paso 179B International

Border carbon monoxide SIP which contained a carbon monoxide budget of

96.9 tons/day. Notices that we had received these SIPs were posted on

the EPA's website for a 30 day public comment period. The public

comment period closed on July 7, 1999. We did not receive any comments.

After the public comment process, we sent letters to the Texas Natural

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Resource Conservation Commission stating that these budgets are

adequate and can be used for conformity determinations.

Therefore, the budgets contained in the submitted SIPs as

referenced above may be used for transportation conformity by the

respective Metropolitan Planning Organizations in Houston and El Paso.

Dated: October 4, 1999.

Jerry Clifford,

Acting Regional Administrator, Region 6.

[FR Doc. 99-26969 Filed 10-14-99; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6560-50-U