Public Hearings for Greenhouse Gas Emissions Standards and Fuel Efficiency Standards for Medium- and Heavy-Duty Engines and Vehicles

Public Hearings for Greenhouse Gas Emissions Standards and Fuel Efficiency Standards for Medium- and Heavy-Duty Engines and Vehicles
Topics: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
Public Hearings for Greenhouse Gas Emissions Standards and Fuel Efficiency Standards for Medium- and Heavy-Duty Engines and Vehicles
Ronald Medford
November 1, 2010
[Federal Register: November 1, 2010 (Volume 75, Number 210)]
[Proposed Rules]               
[Page 67059-67060]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr01no10-9]                         

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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Parts 85, 86, 1036, 1037, 1065, 1066, and 1068

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

49 CFR Parts 523, 534, and 535

[EPA-HQ-OAR-2010-0162; NHTSA-2010-0079; FRL-9219-2]
RIN 2060-AP61; RIN 2127-AK74

 
Public Hearings for Greenhouse Gas Emissions Standards and Fuel 
Efficiency Standards for Medium- and Heavy-Duty Engines and Vehicles

AGENCIES: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and National Highway 
Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).

ACTION: Notice of public hearings.

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SUMMARY: EPA and NHTSA are announcing public hearings to be held for 
the joint proposed rules ``Greenhouse Gas Emissions Standards and Fuel 
Efficiency Standards for Medium- and Heavy-Duty Engines and Vehicles,'' 
which will be published in the near future in the Federal Register. The 
agencies will also accept comment on NHTSA's Draft Environmental Impact 
Statement. Two hearings will be held, on November 15 and 18, 2010.

DATES: NHTSA and EPA will jointly hold a public hearing on Monday, 
November 15, 2010, beginning at 11 a.m. local time, and a second 
hearing on Thursday, November 18, 2010, beginning at 10 a.m. local 
time. EPA and NHTSA will make every effort to accommodate all speakers 
that arrive and register. Each hearing will continue until 5 p.m. or 
until everyone has had a chance to speak. If you would like to present 
oral testimony at one of these public hearings, please contact the 
person identified under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT, at least ten 
days before the hearing.

ADDRESSES: The November 15 hearing will be held at the Millennium 
Knickerbocker Hotel Chicago, 163 East Walton Place (at N. Michigan 
Ave.), Chicago, Illinois 60611. The November 18, 2010 hearing will be 
held at the Hyatt Regency Cambridge, 575 Memorial Drive, Cambridge, 
Massachusetts 02139-4896. The hearings will be held at sites accessible 
to individuals with disabilities.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If you would like to present oral 
testimony at a public hearing, please contact Julia MacAllister at EPA 
by the date specified under DATES, at: Office of Transportation and Air 
Quality, Assessment and Standards Division (ASD), Environmental 
Protection Agency, 2000 Traverwood Drive, Ann Arbor, MI 48105; 
telephone number: (734) 214-4131; fax number: (734) 214-4050; e-mail 
address: macallister.julia@epa.gov (preferred method for registering), 
or Assessment and Standards Division Hotline; telephone number; (734) 
214-4636; e-mail: asdinfo@epa.gov. Please provide the following 
information: Time you wish to speak (morning, afternoon), name, 
affiliation, address, e-mail address, and telephone and fax numbers, 
and whether you require accommodations such as a sign language 
interpreter.
    Questions concerning the proposed rules should be addressed to 
NHTSA: Rebecca Yoon, Office of Chief Counsel, National Highway Traffic 
Safety Administration, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., Washington, DC 
20590. Telephone: (202) 366-2992. EPA: Lauren Steele, Office of 
Transportation and Air Quality, Assessment and Standards Division 
(ASD), Environmental Protection Agency, 2000 Traverwood Drive, Ann 
Arbor, MI 48105; telephone number: (734) 214-4788; fax number: (734) 
214-4816; e-mail address: steele.lauren@epa.gov, or Assessment and 
Standards Division Hotline; telephone number; (734) 214-4636; e-mail: 
asdinfo@epa.gov. You may learn more about the proposal by visiting 
NHTSA's or EPA's Web pages at http://www.nhtsa.gov/fuel-economy or 
http://www.epa.gov/otaq/climate/regulations.htm or by searching the 
rulemaking dockets (NHTSA-2010-0079; EPA-HQ-OAR-2010-0162) at http://
www.regulations.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The purpose of the public hearings is to 
provide the public an opportunity to present oral comments regarding 
NHTSA and EPA's proposal for ``Greenhouse Gas Emissions Standards and 
Fuel Efficiency Standards for Medium- and Heavy-Duty Engines and 
Vehicles.'' These hearings also offer an opportunity for the public to 
provide oral comments regarding NHTSA's draft Environmental Impact 
Statement, accompanying the proposed NHTSA fuel efficiency standards. 
The proposed rules would establish a comprehensive Heavy-Duty National 
Program that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions and increase fuel 
efficiency for on-road heavy-duty vehicles. NHTSA's proposed fuel 
consumption standards and EPA's proposed carbon dioxide 
(CO2) emissions standards would be tailored to each of three 
regulatory categories: (1) Combination Tractors; (2) Heavy-duty Pickup 
Trucks and Vans; and (3) Vocational Vehicles, as well as gasoline and 
diesel heavy-duty engines. EPA's proposed hydrofluorocarbon emissions 
standards would apply to air conditioning systems in tractors, pickup 
trucks, and vans, and EPA's proposed nitrous oxide (N2O) and 
methane (CH4) emissions standards would apply to all heavy-
duty engines, pickup trucks, and vans. The proposal also includes a 
request for comment on possible alternative CO2-equivalent 
approaches for light-duty vehicles in model years 2012-14.
    The proposal for which EPA and NHTSA are holding the public 
hearings will be published in the near future in the Federal Register 
and is available at the Web pages listed above under FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT and also in the rulemaking dockets. NHTSA's draft 
Environmental Impact Statement is available on the NHTSA Web page and 
in NHTSA's rulemaking docket, both

[[Page 67060]]

referenced above. Once NHTSA and EPA learn how many people have 
registered to speak at each public hearing, we will allocate an 
appropriate amount of time to each participant, allowing time for 
necessary breaks. In addition, we will reserve a block of time for 
anyone else in the audience who wants to give testimony. For planning 
purposes, each speaker should anticipate speaking for approximately ten 
minutes, although we may need to shorten that time if there is a large 
turnout. We request that you bring three copies of your statement or 
other material for the EPA and NHTSA panels. To accommodate as many 
speakers as possible, we prefer that speakers not use technological 
aids (e.g., audio-visuals, computer slideshows). However, if you plan 
to do so, you must notify the contact persons in the FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT section above. You also must make arrangements to 
provide your presentation or any other aids to NHTSA and EPA in advance 
of the hearing in order to facilitate set-up.
    NHTSA and EPA will conduct the hearings informally, and technical 
rules of evidence will not apply. We will arrange for a written 
transcript of each hearing and keep the official record of each hearing 
open for 30 days to allow speakers to submit supplementary information. 
Panel members may ask clarifying questions during the oral 
presentations, but will not respond to the presentations at that time. 
You may make arrangements for copies of the transcripts directly with 
the court reporter. Written statements and supporting information 
submitted during the comment period will be considered with the same 
weight as oral comments and supporting information presented at the 
public hearings. Written comments on the proposal must be postmarked by 
60 days after the date of publication of the proposal in the Federal 
Register.

    Dated: October 26, 2010.
Ronald Medford,
Deputy Administrator, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
    Dated: October 25, 2010.
Margo T. Oge,
Director, Office of Transportation and Air Quality Environmental 
Protection Agency.
[FR Doc. 2010-27510 Filed 10-29-10; 8:45 am]
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