02-12839. Revisions to the California State Implementation Plan, South Coast Air Quality Management District, and Ventura County Air Pollution Control District

AGENCY:

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION:

Direct final rule.

SUMMARY:

EPA is taking direct final action to approve revisions to the South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) and Ventura County Air Pollution Control District (VCAPCD) portions of the California State Implementation Plan (SIP). These revisions concern volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions from solvent usage and graphic arts operations. We are approving local rules that regulate these emission sources under the Clean Air Act as amended in 1990 (CAA or the Act).

DATES:

This rule is effective on July 22, 2002 without further notice, unless EPA receives adverse comments by June 24, 2002. If we receive adverse comments, we will publish a timely withdrawal in the Federal Register to notify the public that this rule will not take effect.

ADDRESSES:

Mail comments to Andy Steckel, Rulemaking Office Chief (AIR-4), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region IX, 75 Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, CA 94105-3901.

You can inspect copies of the submitted SIP revisions and EPA's technical support documents (TSDs) at our Region IX office during normal business hours. You may also see copies of the submitted SIP revisions at the following locations:

Environmental Protection Agency, Air Docket (6102), Ariel Rios Building, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington D.C. 20460;

California Air Resources Board, Stationary Source Division, Rule Evaluation Section, 1001 “I” Street, Sacramento, CA 95814;

South Coast Air Quality Management District, 21865 East Copley Drive, Diamond Bar, CA 91765-4182; and,

Ventura County Air Pollution Control District, 669 County Square Drive, Ventura, CA 93003.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Jerald S. Wamsley, Rulemaking Office (AIR-4), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region IX, [phone].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Throughout this document, “we,” “us” and “our” refer to EPA.

Table of Contents

I. The State's Submittal

A. What rules did the State submit?

B. Are there other versions of these rules?

C. What is the purpose of the rule revisions?

II. EPA's Evaluation and Action

A. How is EPA evaluating the rules?

B. Do the rules meet the evaluation criteria?

C. EPA recommendations to further improve the rules.

D. Public comment and final action.

III. Background Information

Why were these rules submitted?

IV. Administrative Requirements

I. The State's Submittal

A. What Rules Did the State Submit?

Table 1 lists the rules we are approving with the dates that they were adopted by the local air agencies and submitted by the California Air Resources Board (CARB).

Table 1—Submitted Rules

Local agency	Rule #	Rule title	Adopted	Submitted
SCAQMD	442	Usage of Solvents	12/15/00	05/08/01
VCAPCD	74.19	Graphic Arts	4/10/01	10/30/01

EPA found these rule submittals met the completeness criteria in 40 CFR part 51, appendix V on the following dates: on July 20, 2001 for SCAQMD Rule 442; and on January 18, 2002 for VCAPCD Rule 74.19. These completeness criteria must be met before formal EPA review may begin.

B. Are there Other Versions of These Rules?

We approved a version of SCAQMD Rule 442 into the SIP on November 16, 1983. We approved a version of VCAPCD Rule 74.19 into the SIP on April 19, 2001. Between these dates and today's action, California has not made an intervening submittal of these rules.

C. What Is the Purpose of the Rule Revisions?

SCAQMD Rule 442 specifies emission limits for organic materials used in operations not governed by SCAQMD Regulation 11 rules. These emission limits take the form of daily and monthly facility wide emission caps. A facility may meet these caps by installing emission control equipment, changing product formulation, or modifying manufacturing operations.

SCAQMD's December 15, 2000 amendments to Rule 442 revised the 1983 version within the SIP. Now, Rule 442 is formatted similar to other SCAQMD prohibitory rules. Consequently, the rule now incorporates the following sections: purpose, applicability, definitions, requirements, control equipment, test methods, recordkeeping, storage and disposal of VOC containing materials, and exemptions. Most of the 1983 rule language has been incorporated within this new format. The most significant addition to Rule 442 is the emission requirements that apply upon January 1, 2003. Here, daily VOC emission caps are replaced by a monthly emission cap of 833 pounds per facility.

VCAPCD Rule 74.19 is a rule designed to reduce volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions at industrial sites engaged in graphics arts operations such as flexographic printing, gravure printing, and lithographic printing. VOCs are emitted during the surface preparation, cleaning, printing, and drying phases of these processes.

VCAPCD's September 10, 1996 version of Rule 74.19 was amended as follows:

—The required ROC (reactive organic compound) content of adhesives used for printing operations was lowered;

—The required ROC content of flexographic inks on porous substrates was lowered;

—The required ROC content of fountain solutions used by lithographic printing operations was lowered;

—The required ROC content or vapor pressure of cleaning solvents used for printing operations was reduced; and

—The exemption limit of the rule was lowered from 175 pounds of ROC emissions per month to 200 pounds of ROC emissions per year.

Each rule's TSD has more information on these changes.

II. EPA's Evaluation and Action

A. How Is EPA Evaluating the Rules?

Generally, SIP rules must be enforceable (see section 110(a) of the Act), must require Reasonably Available Control Technology (RACT) for major sources in nonattainment areas (see section 182(a)(2)(A)), and must not relax existing requirements (see sections 110(l) and 193). Both the SCAQMD and VCAPCD regulate an ozone nonattainment area (see 40 CFR part 81), so both Rule 442 and Rule 74.19 must fulfill RACT.

Guidance and policy documents that we used to help evaluate specific enforceability and RACT requirements consistently include the following:

1. Portions of the proposed post-1987 ozone and carbon monoxide policy that concern RACT, 52 FR 45044, November 24, 1987.

2. “Issues Relating to VOC Regulation Cutpoints, Deficiencies, and Deviations; Clarification to Appendix D of November 24, 1987 Federal Register Document,” (Blue Book), notice of availability published in the May 25, 1988 Federal Register.

3. “Control of Volatile Organic Emissions from Existing Stationary Sources Volume VIII: Graphic Arts—Rotogravure and Flexography,” USEPA, December 1978, EPA-450/2-78-033.

A second draft CTG was published along with a companion Alternative Control Technique (ACT) document:

4. “Guideline Series, Control of Volatile Organic Compound Emissions from Offset Lithographic Printing,” Draft, USEPA, OAQPS, September 1993; and,

5. “Alternative Control Techniques Document: Offset Lithographic Printing,” USEPA, OAQPS, June 1994, EPA 453/R-94-054.

B. Do the Rules Meet the Evaluation Criteria?

We believe these rules are consistent with the relevant policy and guidance regarding enforceability, RACT, and SIP relaxations.

Within SCAQMD Rule 442, daily VOC emission caps are replaced by a monthly emission cap of 833 pounds per facility. This monthly emissions cap of 833 pounds per month is approximately equivalent to the daily cap for photochemically reactive solvents assuming 22 working days a month. Furthermore, the 833 pound monthly limit is more stringent than the 600 pound daily emissions cap for non-photochemically reactive organic solvents that will be removed. As a result, the submitted Rule 442 does not interfere with reasonable further progress or attainment.

VCAPCD Rule 74.19's coating limits and exemption limit have been made more stringent. VCAPCD staff estimate that the April 10, 2001 changes to Rule 74.19 will reduce ROC emissions from graphics arts operations by 20 tons per year. In sum, the SIP is not weakened by the April 2001 changes to Rule 74.19.

The TSD for each rule has more information on our evaluation.

C. EPA Recommendations To Further Improve the Rules

The TSD for VCAPCD Rule 74.19 describes additional rule revisions that do not affect EPA's current action but are recommended for the next time the local agency modifies the rule.

D. Public Comment and Final Action

As authorized in section 110(k)(3) of the Act, EPA is fully approving the submitted rules because we believe they fulfill all relevant requirements. We do not think anyone will object to this approval, so we are finalizing it without proposing it in advance. However, in the Proposed Rules section of this Federal Register, we are simultaneously proposing approval of the same submitted rules. If we receive adverse comments by June 24, 2002, we will publish a timely withdrawal in the Federal Register to notify the public that the direct final approval will not take effect and we will address the comments in a subsequent final action based on the proposal. If we do not receive timely adverse comments, the direct final approval will be effective without further notice on July 22, 2002. This will incorporate these rules into the federally enforceable SIP.

Please note that if EPA receives adverse comment on an amendment, paragraph, or section of this rule and if that provision may be severed from the remainder of the rule, EPA may adopt as final those provisions of the rule that are not the subject of an adverse comment.

III. Background Information

Why Were These Rules Submitted?

VOCs help produce ground-level ozone and smog, which harm human health and the environment. Section 110(a) of the CAA requires states to submit regulations that control VOC emissions. Table 2 lists some of the national milestones leading to the submittal of these local agency VOC rules.

Table 2.—Ozone Nonattainment Milestones

Date	Event
March 3, 1978	EPA promulgated a list of ozone nonattainment areas under the Clean Air Act as amended in 1977. 43 FR 8964; 40 CFR 81.305.
May 26, 1988	EPA notified Governors that parts of their SIPs were inadequate to attain and maintain the ozone standard and requested that they correct the deficiencies (EPA's SIP-Call). See section 110(a)(2)(H) of the pre-amended Act.
November 15, 1990	Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 were enacted. Pub. L. 101-549, 104 Stat. 2399, codified at 42 U.S.C. 7401-7671q.
May 15, 1991	Section 182(a)(2)(A) requires that ozone nonattainment areas correct deficient RACT rules by this date.

IV. Administrative Requirements

Under Executive Order 12866 (58 FR 51735, October 4, 1993), this action is not a “significant regulatory action” and therefore is not subject to review by the Office of Management and Budget. For this reason, this action is also not subject to Executive Order 32111, “Actions Concerning Regulations That Significantly Affect Energy Supply, Distribution, or Use” (66 FR 28355, May 22, 2001). This action merely approves state law as meeting federal requirements and imposes no additional requirements beyond those imposed by state law. Accordingly, the Administrator certifies that this rule will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities under the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.). Because this rule approves pre-existing requirements under state law and does not impose any additional enforceable duty beyond that required by state law, it does not contain any unfunded mandate or significantly or uniquely affect small governments, as described in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-4).

This rule also does not have tribal implications because it will not have a substantial direct effect on one or more Indian tribes, on the relationship between the Federal Government and Indian tribes, or on the distribution of power and responsibilities between the Federal Government and Indian tribes, as specified by Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9, 2000). This action also does not have Federalism implications because it does not have substantial direct effects on the States, on the relationship between the national government and the States, or on the distribution of power and responsibilities among the various levels of government, as specified in Executive Order 13132 (64 FR 43255, August 10, 1999). This action merely approves a state rule implementing a Federal standard, and does not alter the relationship or the distribution of power and responsibilities established in the Clean Air Act. This rule also is not subject to Executive Order 13045, “Protection of Children from Environmental Health Risks and Safety Risks” (62 FR 19885, April 23, 1997), because it is not economically significant.

In reviewing SIP submissions, EPA's role is to approve state choices, provided that they meet the criteria of the Clean Air Act. In this context, in the absence of a prior existing requirement for the State to use voluntary consensus standards (VCS), EPA has no authority to disapprove a SIP submission for failure to use VCS. It would thus be inconsistent with applicable law for EPA, when it reviews a SIP submission, to use VCS in place of a SIP submission that otherwise satisfies the provisions of the Clean Air Act. Thus, the requirements of section 12(d) of the National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995 (15 U.S.C. 272 note) do not apply. This rule does not impose an information collection burden under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).

The Congressional Review Act, 5 U.S.C. 801 et seq., as added by the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996, generally provides that before a rule may take effect, the agency promulgating the rule must submit a rule report, which includes a copy of the rule, to each House of the Congress and to the Comptroller General of the United States. EPA will submit a report containing this rule and other required information to the U.S. Senate, the U.S. House of Representatives, and the Comptroller General of the United States prior to publication of the rule in the Federal Register. A major rule cannot take effect until 60 days after it is published in the Federal Register. This action is not a “major rule” as defined by 5 U.S.C. 804(2).

Under section 307(b)(1) of the Clean Air Act, petitions for judicial review of this action must be filed in the United States Court of Appeals for the appropriate circuit by July 22, 2002. Filing a petition for reconsideration by the Administrator of this final rule does not affect the finality of this rule for the purposes of judicial review nor does it extend the time within which a petition for judicial review may be filed, and shall not postpone the effectiveness of such rule or action. This action may not be challenged later in proceedings to enforce its requirements. (See section 307(b)(2).)

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

• Environmental protection
• Air pollution control
• Incorporation by reference
• Intergovernmental relations
• Ozone
• Reporting and recordkeeping requirements
• Volatile organic compounds

Dated: March 29, 2002.

Laura Yoshii,

Deputy Regional Administrator, Region IX.

Part 52, Chapter I, Title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations is amended as follows:

PART 52—[AMENDED]

1. The authority citation for part 52 continues to read as follows:

Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.

Subpart F—California

2. Section 52.220 is amended by adding paragraphs (c)(284)(i)(B)( 3) and (c)(288)(i)(C) to read as follows:

§ 52.220

Identification of plan.

* * * * *

(c) * * *

(284) * * *

(i) * * *

(B) * * *

(3) Rule 442 adopted on May 7, 1976 and amended on December 15, 2000.

* * * * *

(288) * * *

(i) * * *

(C) Ventura County Air Pollution Control District.

(1) Rule 74.19 adopted on August 11, 1992 and amended on April 10, 2001.

* * * * *