[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 140 (Thursday, July 22, 1999)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 39418-39420]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-17212]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 745
[OPPTS-62130B; FRL-6053-9]
Lead; Requirements for Disclosure of Known Lead-Based Paint and/
or Lead-Based Paint hazards in Housing; Correction to Reflect OMB
Approval of the Information Collection Requirements
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Final rule; correction.
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SUMMARY: EPA is confirming that the Office of Management and Budget
approved information collection requirements contained in 40 CFR part
745, subpart F. An ``Effective Date Note,'' which indicates that the
information collection requirements contained in each section will not
become effective until approved by the Office of Management and Budget
(OMB), was automatically added by the Office of the Federal Register
(OFR). The OFR added this statement to the CFR
[[Page 39419]]
because the preamble to the final rule entitled ``Requirements for
Disclosure of Known Lead-Based Paint and/or Lead-Based Paint Hazards in
Housing'' (61 FR 9064, March 6, 1996)(FRL-5347-9), which was jointly
issued by EPA and the Department of Housing and Urban Development
(HUD), indicated that the information collection requirements contained
in the final rule had not yet been approved by OMB pursuant to the
Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA), and that the sections would not be
effective until approved by OMB. OMB approved the information
collection requirements contained in these regulations on April 22,
1996, but this statement remained in the CFR. Since OMB has approved
the information collection requirements contained in these regulations,
this statement is not appropriate and must be removed by OFR to avoid
further confusion.
DATES: 40 CFR 745.107, 745.110, 745.113, 745.115 became effective on
April 22, 1996, when OMB approved the information collection
requirements.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For general information contact:
Christine Augustyniak, Associate Director, Environmental Assistance
Division (7408), Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics,
Environmental Protection Agency, 401 M St., SW., Washington, DC 20460;
telephone numbers: (202) 554-1404 and TDD: (202) 554-0551; e-mail
address: TSCA-Hotline@epa.gov. For technical information contact:
Dayton Eckerson, National Program Chemicals Division (7404), Office of
Pollution Prevention and Toxics, Environmental Protection Agency, 401 M
St., SW., Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: (202) 260-1591; Fax
number: (202) 260-0770; e-mail address: eckerson.dayton@epa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. General Information
A. Does this Action Apply to Me?
You may be affected by this action if you are a seller, purchaser,
lessor, or lessee of a non-exempt residential dwelling built before
1978, or a real estate agent representing such parties. Potentially
affected categories and entities may include, but are not limited to:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Examples of
Categories NAICS SIC potentially
affected entities
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Real Estate Operators/Lessors... 53111 651 Lessors of
residential
buildings
Lessors of
residential
dwellings
Offices of Real Estate Agents... 53121 653 Real estate agents
Real estate
brokers
Property Managers............... 531311 Property managers
Private Parties--Sales None None Sellers and buyers
Transactions. of houses,
townhouses, and
cooperatives/
condominiums
Private Parties--Rental None None Lessors and
Transactions. lessees of
residential
dwellings
------------------------------------------------------------------------
This listing is not intended to be exhaustive, but rather provides
a guide for readers regarding entities likely to be affected by this
action. Other types of entities not listed above could also be
affected. The four-digit Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) codes
and the North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS) codes
have been provided to assist you and others in determining whether or
not this action applies to certain entities. To determine whether you
or your business is affected by this action, you should carefully
examine the applicability provisions in 40 CFR 745.100. If you have any
questions regarding the applicability of this action to a particular
entity, you may also consult the technical person listed in the ``FOR
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT'' at the beginning of this document.
B. How Can I Get Additional Information, Including Copies of this
Document and Other Related Documents?
1. Electronically. You may obtain copies of this document and
certain other available documents from the EPA Internet Home Page at
http://www.epa.gov/. On the Home Page select ``Laws and Regulations''
and then look up the entry for this document under the ``Federal
Register - Environmental Documents.'' You can also go directly to the
``Federal Register'' listings at http://www.epa.gov/fedrgstr/.
2. In person. This information will be added to the official
record that was established for the March 6, 1996 final rule,
identified by docket control number OPPTS-62130B. The official record
consists of the documents specifically referenced in this action, any
public comments received during an applicable comment period, and other
information related to this action, including any information claimed
as confidential business information (CBI). This official record
includes the documents that are physically located in the docket, as
well as the documents that are referenced in those documents. The
public version of the official record does not include any information
claimed as CBI. The public version of the official record, which
includes printed, paper versions of any electronic comments submitted
during an applicable comment period, is available for inspection in the
TSCA Nonconfidential Information Center, North East Rm. B-607,
Waterside Mall, 401 M St., SW., Washington, DC. The Center is open from
12 noon to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The
telephone number of the Center is (202) 260-7099.
II. What Does this Correction Do?
Under the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA), 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq., an
Agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to
respond to a collection of information that is subject to approval
under the PRA, 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 any related collection instrument.
As required by section 1018 of the Residential Lead-Based Paint
Hazard Reduction Act of 1992, EPA and the Department of Housing and
Urban Development (HUD) jointly issued regulations requiring the
disclosure of known lead-based paint and/or lead-based paint hazards by
persons selling or leasing housing constructed before the phaseout of
residential lead-based paint use in 1978. In the preamble to the final
rule, EPA and HUD indicated that the information collection
requirements contained in the final rule had not yet been approved by
OMB pursuant to the PRA, and that the requirements would not be
effective until approved by OMB (61 FR 9064, March 6, 1996).
On May 31, 1996, EPA issued a notice in the Federal Register (61 FR
27348) (FRL-5512-5) to announce that OMB had approved the information
collection requirements contained in these final rules on April 22,
1996, and that OMB
[[Page 39420]]
control number 2070-0151 had been assigned to these collection
activities. In the July 1, 1996 issue of the Federal Register (61 FR
33851) (FRL-5379-8), EPA amended the table in 40 CFR part 9 to add this
OMB control number to the listing of OMB control numbers for EPA's
regulations that appears in Sec. 9.1.
Since there wasn't a formal connection between these subsequent
notices and 40 CFR part 745, subpart F, [or 24 CFR part 35, subpart H],
the OFR did not make the connection to the information collection
requirements contained in these sections. As a result, OFR added the
following clause to the Effective Date Note that appears at the end of
Secs. 745.107, 745.110, 745.113, and 745.115: ``This section contains
information collection requirements and will not become effective until
approval has been given by the Office of Management and Budget.''
III. Why Is this Correction Issued as a Final Rule?
EPA is publishing this action as a final rule without prior notice
and opportunity to comment because the Agency believes that providing
notice and an opportunity to comment is unnecessary and would be
contrary to the public interest. As explained above, this action will
simply allow OFR to correct the CFR to properly reflect OMB's approval
of the information collection requirements contained in 40 CFR part
745, subpart F. EPA therefore finds that there is ``good cause'' under
section 553(b)(3)(B) of the Administrative Procedure Act (5 U.S.C.
553(b)(3)(B)) to make this amendment without prior notice and comment.
IV. Do Any of the Regulatory Assessment Requirements Apply to this
Action?
No. This final rule does not impose any new requirements. It only
implements a correction to the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR). As
such, this action does not require review by the Office of Management
and Budget (OMB) under Executive Order 12866, entitled Regulatory
Planning and Review (58 FR 51735, October 4, 1993), the Paperwork
Reduction Act (PRA), 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq., or Executive Order 13045,
entitled Protection of Children from Environmental Health Risks and
Safety Risks (62 FR 19885, April 23, 1997). This action does not impose
any enforceable duty, contain any unfunded mandate, or impose any
significant or unique impact on small governments as described in the
Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (UMRA) (Public Law 104-4). Nor
does it require prior consultation with State, local, and tribal
government officials as specified by Executive Order 12875, entitled
Enhancing the Intergovernmental Partnership (58 FR 58093, October 28,
1993) and Executive Order 13084, entitled Consultation and Coordination
with Indian Tribal Governments (63 FR 27655, May 19,1998), or special
consideration of environmental justice related issues under Executive
Order 12898, entitled Federal Actions to Address Environmental Justice
in Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations (59 FR 7629,
February 16, 1994). This action does not involve any technical
standards that would require Agency consideration of voluntary
consensus standards pursuant to section 12(d) of the National
Technology Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995 (NTTAA), Public Law
104-113, section 12(d) (15 U.S.C. 272 note). In addition, since this
action is not subject to notice-and-comment requirements under the
Administrative Procedure Act (APA) or any other statute, it is not
subject to the regulatory flexibility provisions of the Regulatory
Flexibility Act (RFA) (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.).
V. Will EPA Submit this Final Rule to Congress and the Comptroller
General?
Yes. 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. Section 808 allows the issuing agency to
make a good cause finding that notice and public procedure is
impracticable, unnecessary or contrary to the public interest. This
determination must be supported by a brief statement. 5 U.S.C. 808(2).
EPA has made such a good cause finding for this final rule, therefore,
the removal of the Effective Date Notes can be made to the CFR by OFR
after July 22, 1999. Pursuant to 5 U.S.C 808(2), this determination is
supported by the brief statement in Unit IV. of this preamble. 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. This is not a ``major rule'' as defined by 5 U.S.C.
804(2).
List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 745
Environmental protection, Hazardous substances, Lead, Lead-based
Paint, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.
Dated: June 29, 1999.
Susan H. Wayland,
Acting Assistant Administrator for Prevention, Pesticides and Toxic
Substances.
[FR Doc. 99-17212 Filed 7-21-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-F
