2010-3683. Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; Comment Request; Compliance Assurance Monitoring Program; EPA ICR No. 1663.07, OMB Control No. 2060-0376

AGENCY:

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION:

Notice.

SUMMARY:

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), this document announces that EPA is planning to submit a request to renew an existing approved Information Collection Request (ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). This ICR is scheduled to expire on July 31, 2010. Before submitting the ICR to OMB for review and approval, EPA is soliciting comments on specific aspects of the proposed information collection as described below.

DATES:

Comments must be submitted on or before April 26, 2010.

ADDRESSES:

Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2003-0152, by one of the following methods:

• www.regulations.gov: Follow the on-line instructions for submitting comments.
• E-mail: [e-mail]
• Fax: [phone]
• Mail: ICR Renewal (2010)—Compliance Assurance Monitoring Program, Environmental Protection Agency, EPA Docket Center, Air and Radiation Docket, Mailcode: 22821T, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460.
• Hand Delivery: Air and Radiation Docket and Information Center, U.S. EPA, Room 3334, EPA West Building, 1301 Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20004. Such deliveries are only accepted during the Docket's normal hours of operation, and special arrangements should be made for deliveries of boxed information.

Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2003-0152. EPA's policy is that all comments received will be included in the public docket without change and may be made available online at www.regulations.gov,, including any personal information provided, unless the comment includes information claimed to be Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Do not submit information that you consider to be CBI or otherwise protected through www.regulations.gov or e-mail. The www.regulations.gov Web site is an “anonymous access” system, which means EPA will not know your identity or contact information unless you provide it in the body of your comment. If you send an e-mail comment directly to EPA without going through www.regulations.gov your e-mail address will be automatically captured and included as part of the comment that is placed in the public docket and made available on the Internet. If you submit an electronic comment, EPA recommends that you include your name and other contact information in the body of your comment and with any disk or CD-ROM you submit. If EPA cannot read your comment due to technical difficulties and cannot contact you for clarification, EPA may not be able to consider your comment. Electronic files should avoid the use of special characters, any form of encryption, and be free of any defects or viruses. For additional information about EPA's public docket, visit the EPA Docket Center homepage at http://www.epa.gov/​epahome/​dockets.htm.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Peter Westlin, Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards, Sector Policies and Programs Division (D243-05), Environmental Protection Agency, Research Triangle Park, NC 27711; telephone number: 919-541-1058; fax number: 919-541-1039; e-mail address: [e-mail].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

How Can I Access the Docket and/or Submit Comments?

EPA has established a public docket for this ICR under Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2003-0152, which is available for online viewing at www.regulations.gov, or in person viewing at the Air and Radiation Docket in the EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC), EPA West, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, DC. The EPA/DC Public Reading Room is open from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The telephone number for the Reading Room is 202-566-1744, and the telephone number for the Air and Radiation Docket is 202-566-1742.

Use www.regulations.gov to obtain a copy of the draft collection of information, submit or view public comments, access the index listing of the contents of the docket, and to access those documents in the public docket that are available electronically. Once in the system, select “search,” then key in the docket ID number identified in this document.

What Information Is EPA Particularly Interested In?

Pursuant to PRA section 3506(c)(2)(A), EPA specifically solicits comments and information to enable it to:

(i) Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the Agency, including whether the information will have practical utility;

(ii) Evaluate the accuracy of the Agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used;

(iii) Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and

(iv) Minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms of information technology (e.g., permitting electronic submission of responses). In particular, EPA is requesting comments from very small businesses (those that employ fewer than 25) on examples of specific additional efforts that EPA could make to reduce the paperwork burden for very small businesses affected by this collection.

What Should I Consider When I Prepare My Comments for EPA?

You may find the following suggestions helpful for preparing your comments.

1. Explain your views as clearly as possible and provide specific examples.

2. Describe any assumptions that you used.

3. Provide copies of any technical information and/or data you used that support your views.

4. If you estimate potential burden or costs, explain how you arrived at the estimate that you provide.

5. Offer alternative ways to improve the collection activity.

6. Make sure to submit your comments by the deadline identified under DATES.

7. To ensure proper receipt by EPA, be sure to identify the docket ID number assigned to this action in the subject line on the first page of your response. You may also provide the name, date, and Federal Register citation.

What Information Collection Activity or ICR Does This Apply To?

Affected entities: Entities potentially affected by this action are all facilities required to have an operating permit under title V of the Clean Air Act. See section 502(a) of the Clean Air Act (the Act), which defines the sources required to obtain a title V permit. See also 40 CFR 70.2 and 71.2.

Title: Compliance Assurance Monitoring Program (40 CFR Part 64).

ICR numbers: EPA ICR No. 1663.07,

OMB Control No.: 2060-0376.

ICR status: This ICR is currently scheduled to expire on July 31, 2010. 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 in title 40 of the CFR, after appearing in the Federal Register when approved, are listed in 40 CFR part 9, are displayed either by publication in the Federal Register or by other appropriate means, such as on the related collection instrument or form, if applicable. The display of OMB control numbers in certain EPA regulations is consolidated in 40 CFR part 9.

Abstract: The Act contains several provisions directing us to require source owners to conduct monitoring to support certification as to their status of compliance with applicable requirements. These provisions are set forth in Section 504 and Section 114 of the Act. Under section 504(c), each operating permit must “set forth inspection, entry, monitoring, compliance, certification, and reporting requirements to assure compliance with the permit terms and conditions.” See also section 504(a) (each permit shall require reporting of monitoring and such other conditions as are necessary to assure compliance). Section 504(b) allows us to prescribe by rule, methods and procedures for determining compliance recognizing that continuous emissions monitoring systems need not be required if other procedures or methods provide sufficiently reliable and timely information for determining compliance. Section 114(a)(3) requires us to promulgate rules for enhanced monitoring and compliance certifications for major stationary sources, and provides authority for such rules for other sources. Section 114(a)(1) of the Act provides additional authority concerning monitoring, reporting, and record keeping requirements. This section provides the Administrator with the authority to require any owner or operator of a source to install and operate monitoring systems and to record the resulting monitoring data. We promulgated the Compliance Assurance Monitoring (CAM) rule, 40 CFR part 64, on October 22, 1997 (62 FR 54900) pursuant to these provisions.

In accordance with section 114(c) and section 503(e), the monitoring information source owners must submit must also be available to the public, except under circumstances set forth in section 114(c) of the Act. 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 in 40 CFR are listed in 40 CFR part 9.

We are soliciting comments to:

(i) evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the Agency, including whether the information will have practical utility;

(ii) evaluate the accuracy of the Agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used;

(iii) enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and

(iv) minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic submission of responses.

Burden Statement: The annual public reporting and recordkeeping burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 304 hours per response. 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 which have subsequently changed; 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.

The ICR provides a detailed explanation of the Agency's estimate, which is only briefly summarized here. Based on the Agency's knowledge of the number of title V permits issued since 1997 and the implementation of part 64 through permit renewals, the expected impact of the CAM program for the 3 years from October 1, 2010 until September 30, 2013 is about 7.4 million hours annually. The CAM rule will incur an average annual cost of about $263.8 million in 2008 dollars. There are no annualized capital and operation and maintenance (O&M) costs. EPA assumes that any such equipment needed by sources to comply with part 64 would be purchased as part of a monitoring equipment purchase. Therefore, O&M costs for operating such capital equipment is not separately estimated.

The CAM program burden for source owners or operators means the total time, effort, or financial resources expended by persons to generate, maintain, retain, or disclose or provide monitoring 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. The CAM program potentially affects about 24,000 pollutant-specific emissions units nationwide. The annual burden for source owners or operators is about 7.4 million hours for these pollutant-specific emissions units.

During the review period, permitting authorities will review CAM rule submittals from source owners or operators whose permits have already been issued and are renewing those permits as the 5-year permit terms expire. Permitting authorities will also be interacting with the source owners or operators in addressing the CAM in semi-annual monitoring reports and reporting CAM data as necessary. We estimate the annual CAM burden to permitting authorities to total about 65,000 hours and about $3.5 million. Burden means the sum of the time, effort, or financial resources expended by persons to generate, maintain, retain, or disclose or provide information to or for a Federal agency.

The ICR provides a detailed explanation of the Agency's estimate, which is only briefly summarized here:

Estimated total number of potential respondents: 24,000 pollutant specific emissions units.

Frequency of response: Semi-annual and annual reports, plus every 5 years at permit renewal.

Estimated total annual burden hours: 7.4 million hours.

Estimated average annual costs: $263.8 million. This includes annual labor costs for sources and permitting authorities and no capital or O&M costs.

Are There Changes in the Estimates From the Last Approval?

There is an increase of 4.3 million hours in the total estimated respondent annual burden compared with that identified in the ICR currently approved by OMB. This increase reflects the significant increase in number of respondents resulting from the implementation of the rule through operating permit renewals.

What Is the Next Step in the Process for This ICR?

EPA will consider the comments received and amend the ICR as appropriate. The final ICR package will then be submitted to OMB for review and approval pursuant to 5 CFR 1320.12. At that time, EPA will issue another Federal Register notice pursuant to 5 CFR 1320.5(a)(1)(iv) to announce the submission of the ICR to OMB and the opportunity to submit additional comments to OMB. If you have any questions about this ICR or the approval process, please contact the technical person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.

Dated: January 29, 2010.

Steve Fruh,

Acting Director, Sector Policies and Programs Division, Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards.