Comment on FR Doc # 2011-26905

The proposed rule to amend Virginia’s State Implementation Plan (SIP) should, as the EPA has decided pending the reception of adverse comments, be approved. Virginia’s new rule will add numerous practical benefits to its SIP. The rule will incentivize businesses and other regulated entities to comply with environmental laws because it offers them an opportunity to avoid painful and costly penalties. Secondly, business owners and other entities will see this as an economic opportunity to save money, because they now have a means to self-assess their compliance with existing environmental laws before being penalized for violating them. Additionally, this will allow businesses and other entities to operate without frequent on-site visitations from federal inspectors. Instead, they can self-regulate using their own employees, who may have more knowledge and experience with the entity’s inner-workings and may be in a better position to determine if the entity is in compliance with environmental laws. In summation, this rule provides an incentive to follow environmental laws, to save money, and also to self-regulate. These benefits are especially palatable in today’s economic and political climate and should be given significant consideration. The proposed rule is also legally valid. It does not violate any federal rules since the privilege to voluntarily assess and report environmental violations does not apply to federal law. By the same token, this privilege does not violate any federalist principles, since the state of Virginia can comply with both federal and state law under this new rule. The EPA is right to approve Virginia’s revision to its SIP.