Revisions to the California State Implementation Plan; South Coast Air Quality Management District; Control of Oxides of Nitrogen Emissions From Off-Road Diesel Vehicles

Alexis Strauss
Environmental Protection Agency
21 November 2016

[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 224 (Monday, November 21, 2016)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 83154-83156]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-27853]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R09-OAR-2015-0819; FRL-9954-78-Region 9]


Revisions to the California State Implementation Plan; South 
Coast Air Quality Management District; Control of Oxides of Nitrogen 
Emissions From Off-Road Diesel Vehicles

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Final rule.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking final 
action to approve South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD 
or ``the District'') Rule 2449, Control of Oxides of Nitrogen Emissions 
from Off-Road Diesel Vehicles, as a revision to the SCAQMD portion of 
the California State Implementation Plan (SIP). SCAQMD Rule 2449 adopts 
by reference title 13, chapter 9, section 2449.2 of the California Code 
of Regulations, ``Surplus Off-Road Opt-In for NOX (SOON) 
Program.'' SCAQMD Rule 2449 requires certain in-use off-road vehicle 
fleets to meet more stringent requirements in the South Coast area when 
funding is provided by the District in order to achieve additional 
reductions of oxides of nitrogen (NOX).

DATES: This rule will be effective on December 21, 2016.

ADDRESSES: The EPA has established a docket for this action under 
Docket ID No. EPA-R09-OAR-2015-0819. All documents in the docket are 
listed on the http://www.regulations.gov Web site. Although listed in 
the index, some information is not publicly available, e.g., 
Confidential Business Information or other information whose disclosure 
is restricted by statute. Certain other material, such as copyrighted 
material, is not placed on the Internet and will be publicly available 
only in hard copy form. Publicly available docket materials are 
available through http://www.regulations.gov, or please contact the 
person identified in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section for 
additional availability information.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Laura Lawrence, EPA Region IX, (415) 
947-3407, lawrence.laura@epa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document, ``we,'' ``us'' and 
``our'' refer to the EPA.

Table of Contents

I. Summary of Proposed Action
II. Public Comments and the EPA's Responses
III. Final Action
IV. Incorporation by Reference
V. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

I. Summary of Proposed Action

    On March 10, 2016 (81 FR 12637), under section 110(k) of the Clean 
Air Act (CAA or ``the Act''), the EPA proposed to approve SCAQMD Rule 
2449, ``Control of Oxides of Nitrogen Emissions from Off-Road Diesel 
Vehicles'' into the South Coast portion of the California SIP. SCAQMD 
Rule 2449 adopts by reference title 13, chapter 9, section 2449.2 of 
the California Code of Regulations, ``Surplus Off-Road Opt-In for 
NOX (SOON) Program.'' The rule requires certain in-use off-
road vehicle fleets meet more stringent requirements in the South Coast 
area when funding is provided by the District in order to achieve 
additional reductions of NOX. SCAQMD Rule 2449 was 
originally adopted by the SCAQMD on May 2, 2008, and submitted to the 
EPA by the

[[Page 83155]]

State of California on July 18, 2008. The District adopted revisions to 
the rule on July 11, 2014, and the amended rule was submitted to the 
EPA by the State on September 5, 2014. The 2014 revisions incorporated 
minor administrative updates made to the SOON program by the California 
Air Resources Board (CARB) in December 2011.
    Off-road diesel vehicles collectively represent one of the largest 
sources of NOX emissions in the South Coast Air Basin. The 
purpose of Rule 2449 is to achieve surplus NOX reductions 
from this source category beyond those required under CARB's Off-Road 
Regulation, with funding provided by the SCAQMD. The SCAQMD's 2012 Air 
Quality Management Plan relies on NOX reductions from Rule 
2449 to attain the one-hour and 1997 eight-hour ozone National Ambient 
Air Quality Standards. Rule 2449 is expected to achieve 7.5 tons per 
day (tpd) of NOX reductions in 2023. We note that the EPA is 
not approving these emission reductions in today's proposed rule; 
emission reductions or SIP credit from Rule 2449 will be addressed in 
future EPA actions on attainment plans.
    Since our action proposing approval of Rule 2449, SCAQMD has 
adopted revisions to the SOON program guidelines. The revised 
guidelines were adopted on March 4, 2016, and sent to CARB for 
evaluation on August 17, 2016. CARB approved the guidelines on October 
6, 2016.\1\ A copy of this approval letter is found in the docket for 
this rulemaking action.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ See letter dated October 6, 2016, from Jack Kitowski, Chief, 
CARB Mobile Source Control Division to Henry Hogo, Deputy Executive 
Officer, SCAQMD.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    We proposed to approve this rule because we determined that it 
complied with the relevant CAA requirements. Our proposed action 
contains more information on the rule and our evaluation.

II. Public Comments and the EPA's Responses

    The EPA's proposed action provided a 30-day public comment period. 
During this period, we received no comments.

III. Final Action

    Pursuant to section 110(k)(3) of the Act and for the reasons stated 
in our proposed rule, the EPA is approving CARB's September 5, 2014 
submittal of SCAQMD Rule 2449, ``Control of Oxides of Nitrogen 
Emissions from Off-Road Diesel Vehicles,'' as a revision to the SCAQMD 
portion of the California SIP.

IV. Incorporation by Reference

    In this rule, the EPA is finalizing regulatory text that includes 
incorporation by reference. In accordance with requirements of 1 CFR 
51.5, the EPA is finalizing the incorporation by reference of SCAQMD 
Rule 2449 in the amendments to 40 CFR part 52 set forth below. The EPA 
has made, and will continue to make, SCAQMD Rule 2449 available through 
www.regulations.gov and at the EPA Region IX Office (please contact the 
person identified in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of 
this preamble for more information).

V. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

    Under the Clean Air Act, the Administrator is required to approve a 
SIP submission that complies with the provisions of the Act and 
applicable federal regulations. 42 U.S.C. 7410(k); 40 CFR 52.02(a). 
Thus, in reviewing SIP submissions, the EPA's role is to approve state 
choices, provided that they meet the criteria of the Clean Air Act. 
Accordingly, this action merely approves state law as meeting federal 
requirements and does not impose additional requirements beyond those 
imposed by state law. For that reason, this action:
     Is not a significant regulatory action subject to review 
by the Office of Management and Budget under Executive Orders 12866 (58 
FR 51735, October 4, 1993) and 13563 (76 FR 3821, January 21, 2011);
     does not impose an information collection burden under the 
provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.);
     is certified as not having a significant economic impact 
on a substantial number of small entities under the Regulatory 
Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.);
     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);
     does not have Federalism implications as specified in 
Executive Order 13132 (64 FR 43255, August 10, 1999);
     is not an economically significant regulatory action based 
on health or safety risks subject to Executive Order 13045 (62 FR 
19885, April 23, 1997);
     is not a significant regulatory action subject to 
Executive Order 13211 (66 FR 28355, May 22, 2001);
     is not subject to requirements of Section 12(d) of the 
National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995 (15 U.S.C. 272 
note) because application of those requirements would be inconsistent 
with the Clean Air Act; and
     does not provide the EPA with the discretionary authority 
to address, as appropriate, disproportionate human health or 
environmental effects, using practicable and legally permissible 
methods, under Executive Order 12898 (59 FR 7629, February 16, 1994).
    In addition, the SIP is not approved to apply on any Indian 
reservation land or in any other area where the EPA or an Indian tribe 
has demonstrated that a tribe has jurisdiction. In those areas of 
Indian country, the rule does not have tribal implications and will not 
impose substantial direct costs on tribal governments or preempt tribal 
law as specified by Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9, 
2000).
    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. The EPA will submit a report containing this action 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 January 20, 2017. Filing a 
petition for reconsideration by the Administrator of this final rule 
does not affect the finality of this action 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, Nitrogen dioxide, Ozone, 
Particulate matter, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.


[[Page 83156]]


    Dated: October 18, 2016.
Alexis Strauss,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region IX.

    Part 52, chapter I, title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations is 
amended as follows:

PART 52--APPROVAL AND PROMULGATION OF IMPLEMENTATION PLANS

0
1. The authority citation for part 52 continues to read as follows:

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

Subpart F--California

0
2. Section 52.220 is amended by adding paragraph (c)(482) to read as 
follows:


Sec.  52.220   Identification of plan--in part.

* * * * *
    (c) * * *
    (482) New regulations for the following APCDs were submitted on 
September 5, 2014 by the Governor's designee.
    (i) Incorporation by reference.
    (A) South Coast Air Quality Management District.
    (1) Rule 2449, ``Control of Oxides of Nitrogen Emissions from Off-
Road Diesel Vehicles,'' amended on July 11, 2014.
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 2016-27853 Filed 11-18-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6560-50-P