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[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 65 (Tuesday, April 5, 2016)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 19495-19498]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-07811]

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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R04-OAR-2015-0696; FRL-9944-55-Region 4]

Air Plan Approval; South Carolina; Transportation Conformity 
Update

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Direct final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking direct 
final action to approve a revision to the South Carolina State 
Implementation Plan (SIP) submitted on October 13, 2015, through the 
South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (SC 
DHEC). This revision consists of transportation conformity criteria and 
procedures related to interagency consultation and enforceability of 
certain transportation-related control measures and mitigation 
measures. The intended effect of this approval is to update the 
transportation conformity criteria and procedures in the South Carolina 
SIP to reorganize previous exhibits into a single Memorandum of 
Agreement (MOA) document as well as updating signatories to add the 
newly established Lowcountry Area Transportation Study (LATS) to the 
list of Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs), created to 
represent a new urbanized area designated as a result of the 2010 
Census. EPA has determined that this revision is consistent with the 
Clean Air Act (CAA or Act).

DATES: This direct final rule is effective June 6, 2016 without further 
notice, unless EPA receives adverse comment by May 5, 2016. If EPA 
receives such comments, it will publish a timely withdrawal of the 
direct final rule in the Federal Register and inform the public that 
the rule will not take effect.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R04-
OAR-2015-0696 at http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online 
instructions for submitting comments. Once submitted, comments cannot 
be edited or removed from Regulations.gov. EPA may publish any comment 
received to its public docket. Do not submit electronically any 
information you consider to be Confidential Business Information (CBI) 
or other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. 
Multimedia submissions (audio, video, etc.) must be accompanied by a 
written comment. The written comment is considered the official comment 
and should include discussion of all points you wish to make. EPA will 
generally

[[Page 19496]]

not consider comments or comment contents located outside of the 
primary submission (i.e. on the web, cloud, or other file sharing 
system). For additional submission methods, the full EPA public comment 
policy, information about CBI or multimedia submissions, and general 
guidance on making effective comments, please visit http://www2.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kelly Sheckler, Air Regulatory 
Management Section, Air Planning and Implementation Branch, Air, 
Pesticides and Toxics Management Division, U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 Forsyth Street SW., Atlanta, Georgia 
30303-8960. Ms. Sheckler's telephone number is 404-562-9992. She can 
also be reached via electronic mail at Sheckler.Kelly@epa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Transportation Conformity

    Transportation conformity (hereafter referred to as ``conformity'') 
is required under section 176(c) of the CAA to ensure that federally 
supported highway and transit activities are consistent with (``conform 
to'') the purpose of the SIP. Conformity currently applies to areas 
that are designated nonattainment, and to areas that have been 
redesignated to attainment after 1990 (i.e., maintenance areas) with 
plans developed under section 175A of the Act, for the following 
transportation related criteria pollutants: Ozone, particulate matter 
(e.g., PM2.5 and PM10), carbon monoxide, and 
nitrogen dioxide.
    Conformity to the purpose of the SIP means that transportation 
activities will not cause or contribute to new air quality violations, 
worsen existing violations, or delay timely attainment of the national 
ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) for the relevant criteria 
pollutants. The conformity regulation is found in 40 CFR part 93 and 
provisions related to conformity SIPs are found in 40 CFR 51.390.

II. Background for This Action

A. Federal Requirements

    EPA promulgated the Federal transportation conformity criteria and 
procedures (``Conformity Rule'') on November 24, 1993. 58 FR 62188. 
Among other things, the rule required states to address all provisions 
of the conformity rule in their SIPs, frequently referred to as 
``conformity SIPs.'' Under 40 CFR 51.390, most sections of the 
Conformity Rule were required to be copied verbatim into the SIP. 
States were also required to tailor all or portions of the following 
three sections of the Conformity Rule to the state's individual 
circumstances: 40 CFR 93.105, which addresses consultation procedures; 
40 CFR 93.122(a)(4)(ii), which addresses written commitments to control 
measures that are not included in a MPO's transportation plan and 
transportation improvement program that must be obtained prior to a 
conformity determination, and the requirement that such commitments 
must be fulfilled; and 40 CFR 93.125(c), which addresses written 
commitments to mitigation measures that must be obtained prior to a 
project-level conformity determination, and the requirement that 
project sponsors must comply with such commitments.
    On August 10, 2005, the ``Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient 
Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users'' (SAFETEA-LU) was signed 
into law. SAFETEA-LU revised section 176(c) of the CAA transportation 
conformity provisions. One of the changes streamlined the requirements 
for conformity SIPs. Under SAFETEA-LU, states are required to address 
and tailor only three sections of the rule in their conformity SIPs: 40 
CFR 93.105, 40 CFR 93.122(a)(4)(ii), and, 40 CFR 93.125(c), described 
above. In general, states are no longer required to submit conformity 
SIP revisions that address the other sections of the Conformity Rule. 
These changes took effect on August 10, 2005, when SAFETEA-LU was 
signed into law.

B. South Carolina Transportation Conformity SIP

    The Conformity Rule requires the states to develop their own 
processes and procedures for interagency consultation among the 
Federal, state, and local agencies and resolution of conflicts meeting 
the criteria in 40 CFR 93.105. The conformity SIP revision must include 
processes and procedures to be followed by the MPO, state DOT, and US 
DOT in consulting with the state and local air quality agencies and EPA 
before making conformity determinations. The SIP revision must also 
include processes and procedures for the state and local air quality 
agencies and EPA to coordinate the development of applicable SIPs with 
MPOs, state DOTs, and the US DOT.
    In 2004, EPA approved the State of South Carolina's initial 
conformity SIP revision which incorporated by reference 40 CFR part 93, 
subpart A (67 FR 50808), and customized 40 CFR 93.105, 
93.122(a)(4)(ii), and 93.125(c) for all of the MPOs in the entire state 
and for the South Carolina Department of Transportation (SC DOT). 69 FR 
4245. Specifically, the State of South Carolina established a MOA for 
implementing the conformity criteria and consultation procedures for 
all transportation-related pollutants. On July 28, 2009, EPA approved a 
revision to the SC MOA to address the relevant NAAQS and SAFTEA-LU 
amendments. 74 FR 37168.

III. State Submittal and EPA Evaluation

    On October 13, 2015, the State of South Carolina, through SC DHEC, 
submitted the Statewide conformity and interagency consultation SIP, 
based on a new MOA signed by all of the MPOs in the State \1\ and SC 
DOT, to EPA as a revision to the SIP. The SIP revision establishes 
procedures for interagency consultation and, upon EPA approval, 
supersedes the SIP revision that EPA approved on July 28, 2009. See 74 
FR 37168.
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    \1\ Although South Carolina currently has only one nonattainment 
area (i.e., a portion of York County) for the 2008 8-hour ozone 
NAAQS, its MOA covers all of the MPOs in the State should any new 
areas become subject to conformity requirements for a 
transportation-related pollutant in the future.
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    Specifically, the SC DEHC is now proposing certain updates, 
including a reorganization that incorporates Exhibits 1 and 2 to the 
previous MOA into the new MOA itself, as well as the addition of the 
Lowcountry Area Transportation Study (LATS) to the list of MPOs which 
are signatories to the MOA. LATS is a newly established MPO that 
represents a new urbanized area designated as a result of the 2010 
Census. LATS covers the Town of Hilton Head Island, the Town of 
Bluffton, and parts of unincorporated Beaufort County. The State also 
seeks approval of the following additional changes from the old MOA: 
Clarification of the responsibilities of the MPOs, grammar and 
punctuation changes, recodification of sections C, D and E for ease of 
reading, the addition of language to specifically address the 
requirements of 40 CFR 93.122(a)(4)(ii) and 93.125(c), and the addition 
of a new ``General Provisions'' section (section F).
    As noted in EPA's 2009 approval, 74 FR 37168, the State of South 
Carolina developed its consultation SIP based on the elements contained 
in 40 CFR 93.105, 93.122(a)(4)(ii), and 93.125(c) and included it in 
the SIP. As a first step, the State worked with the existing 
transportation planning organization's interagency committee that 
included representatives from the SC DHEC; SC DOT; all of the MPOs in 
the State; Federal Highway Administration--South Carolina Division; 
Federal Transit Administration; and the Region 4 office of EPA. The 
interagency committee met

[[Page 19497]]

regularly and drafted the consultation procedures, considering elements 
in 40 CFR 93.105, 93.122(a)(4)(ii), and 93.125(c), and integrated the 
local procedures and processes into the MOA. The resulting consultation 
process developed is unique to the State of South Carolina. SC DHEC 
offered the opportunity for a public hearing regarding the new MOA on 
January 6, 2015, but no hearing was requested and thus none was held. 
No comments, written or oral, were received from the public. The final 
MOA was issued by South Carolina on October 13, 2015, and subsequently 
submitted to EPA as a SIP revision.
    EPA has evaluated this SIP revision and has determined that the 
State has met the requirements of federal transportation conformity 
rules as described in 40 CFR part 51, subpart T and 40 CFR part 93, 
subpart A. SC DHEC has satisfied the public participation and 
comprehensive interagency consultation requirement during development 
and adoption of the MOA at the local level. Therefore, EPA is approving 
the updated MOA as a revision to the South Carolina SIP.
    EPA has reviewed the submittal to assure consistency with the CAA 
as amended by SAFETEA-LU and EPA regulations (40 CFR part 93 and 40 CFR 
51.390) governing state procedures for transportation conformity and 
interagency consultation and has concluded that the submittal is 
approvable.

IV. Final Action

    EPA is taking direct final action under sections 110 and 176 of the 
Act to approve the rule implementing the conformity criteria and 
consultation procedures revision to the South Carolina SIP pursuant to 
the CAA, as a revision to the South Carolina SIP. This action also 
establishes consultation procedures for all counties in South Carolina. 
As a result of this action, South Carolina's previously SIP-approved 
conformity procedures at 74 FR 37168 will be replaced by the procedures 
submitted to EPA on October 13, 2015, for approval and adopted by State 
of South Carolina on October 23, 2015.
    EPA is publishing this rule without prior proposal because the 
Agency views this as a noncontroversial submittal and anticipates no 
adverse comments. However, in the proposed rules section of this 
Federal Register publication, EPA is publishing a separate document 
that will serve as the proposal to approve the SIP revision should 
adverse comments be filed. This rule will be effective June 6, 2016 
without further notice unless the Agency receives adverse comments by 
May 5, 2016.
    If EPA receives such comments, then EPA will publish a document 
withdrawing the final rule and informing the public that the rule will 
not take effect. All public comments received will then be addressed in 
a subsequent final rule based on the proposed rule. EPA will not 
institute a second comment period. Parties interested in commenting 
should do so at this time. If no such comments are received, the public 
is advised that this rule will be effective on June 6, 2016 and no 
further action will be taken on the proposed rule.

V. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

    Under the CAA, the Administrator is required to approve a SIP 
submission that complies with the provisions of the Act and applicable 
Federal regulations. See 42 U.S.C. 7410(k); 40 CFR 52.02(a). Thus, in 
reviewing SIP submissions, EPA's role is to approve state choices, 
provided that they meet the criteria of the CAA. 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 CAA; and
     does not provide 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).
    The SIP is not approved to apply on any Indian reservation land or 
in any other area where 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 as specified by Executive Order 13175 (65 
FR 67249, November 9, 2000), nor will it impose substantial direct 
costs on tribal governments or preempt tribal law.
    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 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 CAA, petitions for judicial review 
of this action must be filed in the United States Court of Appeals for 
the appropriate circuit by June 6, 2016. 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. Parties with objections to this direct final rule are 
encouraged to file a comment in response to the parallel notice of 
proposed rulemaking for this action published in the proposed rules 
section of this issue of the Federal Register; rather than file an 
immediate petition for judicial review of this direct final rule, so 
that EPA can withdraw this direct final rule and address the comment in 
the proposed rulemaking. This action may not be challenged later in 
proceedings to enforce its requirements. See section 307(b)(2).

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List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

    Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Carbon monoxide, 
Intergovernmental relations, Incorporation by reference, 
Intergovernmental relations, Incorporation by reference Nitrogen 
dioxide, Ozone, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Volatile 
organic compounds.

    Dated: March 25, 2016.
Heather McTeer Toney,
Regional Administrator, Region 4.

    40 CFR part 52 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 (PP)--South Carolina

0
2. Section 52.2120(e) is amended by adding an entry at the end of the 
table for ``South Carolina Transportation Conformity Air Quality 
Implementation Plan'' to read as follows:

Sec.  52.2120(e)  Identification of plan.

* * * * *
    (e) * * *

                              EPA Approved South Carolina Non-Regulatory Provisions
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                                               State
                Provision                 effective date       EPA approval date              Explanation
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                                                  * * * * * * *
South Carolina Transportation Conformity      10/23/2015  4/5/2016, [Insert citation
 Air Quality Implementation Plan.                          of publication]
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[FR Doc. 2016-07811 Filed 4-4-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
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