United States Environmental Protection Agency

Air Quality Permit by Rule for New or Modified True Minor Sources of 

Air Pollution in Indian Country

http://www.epa.gov/air/tribal/tribalnsr.html

Questionnaire for Notification of Coverage under the Air Quality Permit by Rule for 

New or Modified True Minor Source Auto Body Repair and Miscellaneous Surface 

Coating Operations in Indian Country

Last Modified: March 23, 2015

Version 1.0 

Does the Permit by Rule apply to my facility?

The following questionnaire is intended to help you, the facility owner or operator, determine whether or not you are 

eligible for the Air Quality Permit by Rule for New or Modified True Minor Source Auto Body Repair and Miscellaneous 

Surface Coating Operations in Indian Country. You are not required to complete this questionnaire and it is not 

necessary to seek coverage under the Air Quality Permit by Rule for New or Modified True Minor Source Auto Body 

Repair and Miscellaneous Surface Coating Operations in Indian Country. This questionnaire does not cover all of the Air 

Quality Permit by Rule requirements and does not guarantee coverage of a minor source preconstruction permit under 

this program.

Description of Auto Body Repair and Miscellaneous Surface Coating Operations

An auto body shop repairs, repaints, and/or customizes passenger cars, trucks, vans, motorcycles, and other mobile 

equipment capable of being driven or drawn on the highway. Miscellaneous surface coating operations involve the spray 

application of coating to miscellaneous parts and/or products made of metal or plastic, or both. This Auto Body Repair 

and Miscellaneous Surface Coating Operations Questionnaire is for auto body repair and miscellaneous surface coating

operations facilities that are not major sources of air pollution and that are located, or planning to locate, within Indian 

country.

 

About this Questionnaire

The questions focus on general information pertaining to your existing or future auto body repair and miscellaneous 

surface coating operation. The questionnaire is not meant to be exhaustive and only requires knowledge of basic 

facility information, including usage of volatile organic compound (VOC) containing materials. 

You should continue with this Questionnaire if you meet all of the following criteria:

 You plan to construct a new, true minor source autobody repair and miscellaneous surface coating operation 

OR you plan to modify an existing, true minor source autobody repair and miscellaneous surface coating 

operation;

 Your new or modified true minor source auto body repair and miscellaneous surface coating operation is 

located within Indian country;

 You do not know whether your facility needs a permit, or if you do not know the attainment status of your area

and you want to find out whether or not you should apply for the Permit by Rule for an auto body repair and 

miscellaneous surface coating operation; and

 You intend to satisfy the processes that the EPA has made available in the document entitled “Procedures to 

Address Threatened and Endangered Species and Historic Properties for New or Modified True Minor Sources in 

Indian Country Seeking Air Quality Permits by Rule” to address threatened and endangered species and historic 

properties.

More Information

The definition of “modification” and “Potential to Emit” (or “PTE”) can be found at 40 CFR 49.152(d) and in the 

“Instructions” document. Additional information on the applicability of the Indian Country NSR rule can be found at 40 

CFR 49.153.
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Information on the ozone attainment status of the area where your facility is located can be found at: 

http://www.epa.gov/airquality/greenbook/. You may also contact your reviewing authority for information on your 

attainment status. 

Please contact your reviewing authority if you have questions or need assistance. A list of reviewing authorities, their 

area of coverage, and contact information can be found in Attachment E to the Permit by Rule for True Minor Source 

Auto Body Repair and Miscellaneous Surface Coating Operations at 40 CFR 49.162 or visit: 

http://www.epa.gov/air/tribal/tribalnsr.html.

Sources eligible for the Permit by Rule for New or Modified True Minor Source Auto Body Repair and Miscellaneous 

Surface Coating Operations may also be subject to federal standards under 40 CFR 63 Subpart HHHHHH, National 

Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutions for Paint Stripping and Miscellaneous Surface Coating Operations at 

Area Sources. The conditions applicable to sources seeking coverage under this Permit by Rule are intended to be 

generally consistent with the requirements in 40 CFR 63, Subpart HHHHHH. However, compliance with the applicable 

requirements in 40 CFR part 63, Subpart HHHHHH is required independent of the conditions in the Permit by Rule, and 

not all requirements applicable under Subpart HHHHHH are necessarily included in the Permit by Rule. The Background 

Document for the Permit by Rule identifies the specific requirements in Subpart HHHHHH that are intended to be 

included in the Permit by Rule.

Questionnaire for Auto Body Repair and Miscellaneous Surface Coating 

Operations

Part 1: Does my Auto Body Repair and Miscellaneous Surface Coating Operation Need or Qualify 

for a True Minor Source Permit?

The following questions are meant to determine whether or not your auto body repair and miscellaneous surface 

coating operation needs or qualifies for the permit by rule.

1. Will your new source or modification of an existing source be a major source under the CAA for purposes of 

hazardous air pollutants (HAPs)? Will your new source or modification of an existing source emit or have the PTE, 

in the aggregate, 10 tons per year (tpy) or more of any HAP or 25 tpy or more of any combination of HAPs? Be 

sure to include any stationary source or group of sources (new or existing) under common control.

Yes No

If you answered ’Yes,’ your source does not qualify for this Permit by Rule and is considered a major source for 

HAP purposes. Please contact your reviewing authority to apply for a site-specific permit. If you answered ‘No,’

continue to the next question.

2. Will the PTE of your facility be less than 250 tpy for particulate matter (PM, PM10, or PM2.5), VOC, nitrogen oxides 

(NOX), carbon monoxide (CO), and sulfur dioxide (SO2), each individually? The emissions from your facility may 

be calculated using the PTE calculator provided at http://www.epa.gov/air/tribal/tribalnsr.html. Be sure to 

include all existing, new, and modified emission units at your facility.

Yes No

If you answered ‘No,’ your source does not qualify for the Permit by Rule. Please contact your reviewing 

authority to apply for a site-specific permit. If you answered ‘Yes,’ continue on to the next question.
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3. Will the PTE of your new facility or the increase in potential emissions from your modified facility be equal to or 

above the applicable minor NSR thresholds listed below for ANY pollutant? The emissions of your facility or 

modification may be calculated using the PTE calculator available online at: 

http://www.epa.gov/air/tribal/tribalnsr.html. Be sure to include all new and modified emission units at your 

facility.

Pollutant Attainment Area Nonattainment Area

CO 10 tpy 5 tpy

PM 10 tpy 5 tpy

PM10 5 tpy 1 tpy

PM2.5 3 tpy 0.6 tpy

SO2 10 tpy 5 tpy

NOX 10 tpy 5 tpy

VOC 5 tpy 2 tpy

Yes No

If you answered ‘No,’ your source is likely exempt from the minor NSR program. Please contact your 

reviewing authority to confirm that your facility will not need a permit. If you answered ‘Yes,’ continue on 

to the next question. 

4. If located in a nonattainment area for any pollutant, will the PTE of your facility for the particular 

nonattainment pollutant be less than the NSR major source thresholds specified in the table below (based 

on nonattainment classification)? Be sure to include all existing, new, and modified emission units at your 

facility.

Pollutant Nonattainment Classification NSR Major Source Threshold

Ozone Marginal 100 tpy of VOC or NOX

Moderate 100 tpy of VOC or NOX

Serious 50 tpy of VOC or NOX

Severe 25 tpy of VOC or NOX

Extreme 10 tpy of VOC or NOX

PM10 Moderate 100 tpy

Serious 70 tpy

CO Moderate 100 tpy

Serious 50 tpy

SO2, NO2, PM2.5 No nonattainment classification 100 tpy

Yes No Not Applicable
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If you answered ‘No,’ your source does not qualify for the Permit by Rule. Please contact your reviewing 

authority to apply for a site-specific permit. If you answered ‘Yes,’ continue on to Part 2 of the 

Questionnaire. 

Information on the ozone attainment status of the area where your facility is located can be found at: 

http://www.epa.gov/airquality/greenbook/.

Part 2: Does My Auto Body Repair and Miscellaneous Surface Coating Operation Qualify for 

the Permit by Rule?

The following questions are meant to determine whether or not your auto body shop would qualify for the Permit by 

Rule for True Minor Source Auto Body Repair and Miscellaneous Surface Coating Operations. 

1. If located in an ozone attainment, unclassifiable or attainment/unclassifiable area, after the proposed 

construction or modification project, will your VOC-containing material (including coatings, thinners, and cleanup solvents) usage be less than 5,000 gallons per year based on a 12-month rolling total?

Yes No Not Applicable

2. If located in an ozone nonattainment area, after the proposed construction or modification project, will your 

VOC-containing material (including coatings, thinners, and clean-up solvents) usage be less than 900 gallons per 

year based on a 12-month rolling total?

Yes No Not Applicable

3. If located in an attainment, unclassifiable or attainment/unclassifiable or nonattainment area for ozone, after 

the proposed construction or modification project, will the projected total usage of solvent for degreasing at 

your facility not exceed 500 gallons in any 12-month period?

Yes No Not Applicable

4. If there are fuel combustion units, will your facility only use natural gas, propane, or butane as fuels for these 

combustion units?

Yes No Not Applicable

5. If there are fuel combustion units, is the total heat input capacity of all the combustion units equal to or less 

than 10 MMBtu/hour?

Yes No Not Applicable

6. Is the capacity of each volatile liquid storage tank less than 19,812 gallons?

Yes No Not Applicable

7. Do you intend to satisfy the procedures for threatened or endangered species and historic properties according 

to the processes provided by the EPA for the permits by rule?

Yes No 
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Conclusion

If you answered ‘Yes’ or ‘Not Applicable’ to each question in Part 2, your facility may qualify for coverage under the 

Permit by Rule for Auto Body Repair and Miscellaneous Surface Coating Operations. If you believe, based upon your 

answers in this questionnaire, that your new or modified auto body repair and miscellaneous surface coating 

operation qualifies for the Permit by Rule for Auto Body Repair and Miscellaneous Surface Coating Operations, 

please contact your reviewing authority to obtain a notification of coverage.

If you answered ‘No’ to any of these questions, your facility may not qualify for coverage under the Permit by Rule 

for Auto Body Repair and Miscellaneous Surface Coating Operations. Please contact your reviewing authority to 

confirm that your facility will not qualify for this Permit by Rule.