Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 170 / Friday, August 31, 2012 / Notices 53199 

Oceanside/Camp Pendleton, New 

Information, San Diego County, CA, 

Comment Period Ends: 10/15/2012, 

Contact: Manuel E. Sanchez 619–699– 

7336. 

Amended Notices 

EIS No. 20120274, Draft EIS, USFS, AZ, 

Prescott National Forest Land and 

Resource Management Plan, Yavapai 

and Coconino Counties, AZ, 

Comment Period Ends: 11/28/2012, 

Contact: Mary C. Rasmussen 928– 

443–8265. Revision to FR Notice 

Published 08/24/2012; Change 

Comment Period Ending 10/08/2012 

to 11/28/2012. 

EIS No. 20120275, Draft EIS, USFS, MT, 

Wild Cramer Forest Health and Fuels 

Reduction Project, Swan Lake Ranger 

District, Flathead National Forest, 

Flathead County, MT, Comment 

Period Ends: 10/09/2012, Contact: 

Richard Kehr 406–837–7500. Revision 

to FR Notice Published 08/24/2012; 

Change Comment Period Ending 10/ 

08/2012 to 10/09/2012. 

Dated: August 28, 2012. 

Cliff Rader, 

Director, NEPA Compliance Division, Office 

of Federal Activities. 

[FR Doc. 2012–21568 Filed 8–30–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

[AMS–FRL–9724–4] 

California State Motor Vehicle 

Pollution Control Standards; Advanced 

Clean Car Program; Request for 

Waiver of Preemption; Opportunity for 

Public Hearing and Public Comment 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Notice of Opportunity for Public 

Hearing and Comment. 

SUMMARY: The California Air Resources 

Board (CARB) has notified EPA that it 

has developed an Advanced Clean Car 

program (ACC) which combines the 

control of smog and soot causing 

pollutants and greenhouse gas (GHG) 

emissions into a single coordinated 

package of requirements for passenger 

cars, light-duty trucks and medium-duty 

passenger vehicles (and limited 

requirements related to heavy-duty 

vehicles). The ACC program includes 

revisions to California’s Low Emission 

Vehicle (LEV) program as well as its 

Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) program. 

By letter dated June 27, 2012, CARB 

submitted a request that EPA grant a 

waiver of preemption under section 

209(b) of the Clean Air Act (CAA), 42 

U.S.C. 7543(b) for the revisions to the 

LEV program. CARB also seeks 

confirmation that the amendments to 

the ZEV program are within-the-scope 

of prior waiver decisions issued by EPA, 

or in the alternative requests a waiver 

for these revisions. This notice 

announces that EPA has scheduled a 

public hearing concerning California’s 

request and that EPA is accepting 

written comment on the request. 

DATES: EPA has scheduled a public 

hearing concerning CARB’s request on 

September 19, 2012, beginning at 9:00 

a.m. Any party planning to present oral 

testimony should notify EPA by 

September 14, 2012, expressing its 

interest. EPA will hold the public 

hearing at EPA’s offices at 1310 L Street 

NW., Washington, DC 20460. Any party 

may submit written comments by 

October 19, 2012. 

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, 

identified by Docket ID No. EPA–HQ– 

OAR–2012–0562, by one of the 

following methods: 

• http://www.regulations.gov: Follow 

the on-line instructions for submitting 

comments. 

• Email: dickinson.david@epa.gov. 

• Fax: (202) 343–2804. 

• Mail: U.S. Environmental 

Protection Agency, EPA West (Air 

Docket), 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., 

Room B108, Mail Code 6102T, 

Washington, DC 20460, Attention 

Docket ID No. EPA–HQ–OAR–2012– 

0562. Please include a total of two 

copies. 

• Hand Delivery: EPA Docket Center, 

EPA/DC, EPA West, Room B102, 1301 

Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, 

DC Such deliveries are only accepted 

during the Docket’s normal hours of 

operation, and special arrangements 

should be made for deliveries of boxed 

information. Instructions: Direct your 

comments to Docket ID No EPA–HQ– 

OAR–2012–0562. 

EPA’s policy is that all comments 

received will be included in the public 

docket without change and may be 

made available online at http:// 

www.regulations.gov, including any 

personal information provided, unless 

the comment includes information 

claimed to be Confidential Business 

Information (CBI) or other information 

whose disclosure is restricted by statute. 

Do not submit information that you 

consider to be CBI or otherwise 

protected through http:// 

www.regulations.gov or email. 

The http://www.regulations.gov Web 

site is an ‘‘anonymous access’’ system, 

which means EPA will not know your 

identity or contact information unless 

you provide it in the body of your 

comment. If you send an email 

comment directly to EPA without going 

through http://www.regulations.gov 

your email address will be 

automatically captured and included as 

part of the comment that is placed in the 

public docket and made available on the 

Internet. If you submit an electronic 

comment, EPA recommends that you 

include your name and other contact 

information in the body of your 

comment and with any disk or CD–ROM 

you submit. If EPA cannot read your 

comment due to technical difficulties 

and cannot contact you for clarification, 

EPA may not be able to consider your 

comment. Electronic files should avoid 

the use of special characters, any form 

of encryption, and be free of any defects 

or viruses. Docket: All documents in the 

docket are listed in the http:// 

www.regulations.gov index. Although 

listed in the index, some information is 

not publicly available, e.g., CBI or other 

information whose disclosure is 

restricted by statute. Certain other 

material, such as copyrighted material, 

will be publicly available only in hard 

copy. 

EPA will make available for in person 

inspection, at the Air and Radiation 

Docket and Information Center, written 

comments received from interested 

parties, in addition to any testimony 

given at the public hearing. The official 

public docket is the collection of 

materials that is available for public 

viewing at the Air and Radiation Docket 

in the EPA Docket Center, (EPA/DC) 

EPA West, Room B102, 1301 

Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, 

DC. The EPA Docket Center Public 

Reading Room is open from 8:30 to 4:30 

p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding 

legal holidays. The telephone number 

for the Public Reading Room is (202) 

566–1744, and the telephone number for 

the Air and Radiation Docket is (202) 

566–1743. The reference number for this 

docket is EPA–HQ–OAR–2012–0562. 

EPA will make available an electronic 

copy of this Notice on the Office of 

Transportation and Air Quality’s 

(OTAQ’s) homepage (http://www.epa.

gov/otaq/). Users can find this 

document by accessing the OTAQ 

homepage and looking at the path 

entitled ‘‘Regulations.’’ This service is 

free of charge, except any cost you 

already incur for Internet connectivity. 

Users can also get the official Federal 

Register version of the Notice on the 

day of publication on the primary Web 

site: (http://www.epa.gov/docs/fedrgstr/

EPA-AIR/). 

Please note that due to differences 

between the software used to develop 

the documents and the software into 


EMCDONALD on DSK67QTVN1PROD with NOTICES
53200 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 170 / Friday, August 31, 2012 / Notices 

1The amendments and adoption of regulations 

can be found at title 13, California Code of 

Regulations, sections 1961.2 and 1961.3 (adoption) 

and sections 1900, 1956.8, 1960.1, 1961, 1961.1, 

1965, 1968.2, 1968.5, 1976, 1978, 2037, 2038, 2062, 

2112, 2139, 2140, 2145, 2147, 2235, 2317, and 

Documents incorporated by reference 

(amendments). 

2Letter from Mary D. Nichols, CARB, dated June 

27, 2012 at p. 2. 

3 ‘‘CLEAN AIR ACT § 209(b) WAIVER SUPPORT 

DOCUMENT SUBMITTED BY THE CALIFORNIA 

AIR RESOURCES BOARD, May 2012,’’ at p. 9 

(accompanying June 27, 2012 letter). 

4To be consistent, the California certification 

procedures need not be identical to the Federal 

certification procedures. California procedures 

would be inconsistent, however, if manufacturers 

would be unable to meet the state and the Federal 

requirements with the same test vehicle in the 

course of the same test. See, e.g., 43 FR 32182 (July 

25, 1978). 

which the documents may be 

downloaded, changes in format, page 

length, etc., may occur. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

David Dickinson, Compliance Division 

(6405J), U.S. Environmental Protection 

Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW., 

Washington, DC 20460. Telephone: 

(202) 343–9256, Fax: (202) 343–2804, 

email address: Dickinson.David@EPA.

GOV. 

mailto:Dickinson.David@EPA.GOV. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. CARB’s New Waiver Request and 

Prior Greenhouse Gas Emission 

Waivers 

CARB’s June 27, 2012, letter to the 

Administrator notified EPA that CARB 

had adopted its ACC regulatory package 

in January 2012 and that the package 

contains amendments to its low 

emission vehicle (LEV) program to 

address both smog forming pollutants 

and greenhouse gases, and amendments 

to its zero emission vehicle program 

(ZEV).1 The amendments to the LEV 

program are referred to as LEV III. CARB 

requests that EPA grant a new waiver for 

its LEV III program. CARB also seeks 

confirmation that amendments to its 

ZEV program are within-the-scope of 

previous waivers issued by EPA. In the 

alternative, CARB requests that EPA 

grant a new waiver for its ZEV program. 

CARB’s waiver request discusses in 

detail both its ZEV program 

amendments and its LEV III 

amendments. CARB’s waiver request 

includes an ‘‘analysis setting forth 

California’s basis for the waiver 

requests. The analysis sets forth a 

summary of the regulatory actions, a 

review of the criteria governing EPA’s 

evaluation of a California waiver 

request, and the legal arguments that 

support and compel EPA to grant 

California’s request.’’ 2 With respect to 

the LEV III greenhouse gas standards, 

CARB notes that it plans to adopt a rule 

which would allow manufacturers to 

demonstrate compliance with 

California’s greenhouse gas regulations 

for the 2017 through 2025 model years 

by demonstrating compliance with 

EPA’s greenhouse gas requirements for 

the 2017 through 2025 model years 

(commonly referred to as the ‘deemed to 

comply’ provision), subject to review of 

the contents of EPA’s final rule for these 

model years.3

CARB plans to commence its 

‘‘deemed to comply’’ rulemaking shortly 

after EPA finalizes the light-duty vehicle 

greenhouse gas emission standards for 

model years 2017–2025, conditioned on 

its review of EPA’s final GHG rule. As 

discussed below, EPA invites comment 

on all aspects of CARB’s waiver request, 

and specifically invites comment on 

CARB’s waiver request in light of 

CARB’s plans concerning adoption of a 

deemed to comply provision into its 

LEV III GHG standards. This will allow 

EPA to consider any deemed to comply 

provision and comments on it when 

taking action on CARB’s request for a 

waiver. 

EPA previously granted CARB a 

waiver of preemption for its 2009 and 

subsequent model year new motor 

vehicle greenhouse gas emission 

standards on July 8, 2009 (74 FR 32744). 

Subsequently, CARB adopted a series of 

amendments to those regulations, 

including a deemed to comply rule 

whereby compliance with EPA’s GHG 

standards for model years 2012 through 

2016 would serve as compliance with 

California’s GHG standards for those 

model years. On June 14, 2011 (76 FR 

34693), EPA confirmed that these series 

of amendments were within-the-scope 

of the waiver granted on July 8, 2009. 

EPA has most recently issued waivers 

and within-the-scope decisions for 

CARB’s ZEV program in 2006 (71 FR 

78190, December 28, 2006) and 2011 (76 

FR 61095, October 3, 2011). EPA’s most 

recent waivers and within-the-scope 

decisions for CARB’s LEV II program 

were issued in 2003 (68 FR 19811, April 

22, 2003), 2005 (70 FR 22034, April 28, 

2005), and 2010 (75 FR 44948, July 30, 

2010). 

II. Scope of Preemption and Criteria for 

a Waiver Under the Clean Air Act 

Section 209(a) of the Clean Air Act, as 

amended (‘‘Act’’), 42 U.S.C. 7543(a), 

provides: 

No State or any political subdivision 

thereof shall adopt or attempt to enforce any 

standard relating to the control of emissions 

from new motor vehicles or new motor 

vehicle engines subject to this part. No state 

shall require certification, inspection or any 

other approval relating to the control of 

emissions from any new motor vehicle or 

new motor vehicle engine as condition 

precedent to the initial retail sale, titling (if 

any), or registration of such motor vehicle, 

motor vehicle engine, or equipment. 

Section 209(b) of the Act requires the 

Administrator, after notice and 

opportunity for public hearing, to waive 

application of the prohibitions of 

section 209(a) for any state that has 

adopted standards (other than crankcase 

emission standards) for the control of 

emissions from new motor vehicles or 

new motor vehicle engines prior to 

March 30, 1966, if the state determines 

that the state standards will be, in the 

aggregate, at least as protective of public 

health and welfare as applicable Federal 

standards. California is the only state 

that is qualified to seek and receive a 

waiver under section 209(b). The 

Administrator must grant a waiver 

unless she finds that (A) the 

determination of the state is arbitrary 

and capricious, (B) the state does not 

need the state standards to meet 

compelling and extraordinary 

conditions, or (C) the state standards 

and accompanying enforcement 

procedures are not consistent with 

section 202(a) of the Act. Previous 

decisions granting waivers of Federal 

preemption for motor vehicles have 

stated that State standards are 

inconsistent with section 202(a) if there 

is inadequate lead time to permit the 

development of the necessary 

technology giving appropriate 

consideration to the cost of compliance 

within that time period or if the Federal 

and State test procedures impose 

inconsistent certification procedures.4

III. Request for Comment 

When EPA receives new waiver 

requests from CARB, EPA traditionally 

publishes a notice of opportunity for 

public hearing and comment and then, 

after the comment period has closed, 

publishes a notice of its decision in the 

Federal Register. In contrast, when EPA 

receives within-the-scope waiver 

requests from CARB, EPA usually 

publishes a notice of its decision in the 

Federal Register and concurrently 

invites public comment if an interested 

party is opposed to EPA’s decision. In 

this case, for the ZEV amendments 

CARB requests a within-the-scope 

determination, or in the alternative a 

waiver. 

Since CARB has submitted a withinthe-scope request for its ZEV 

amendments as they affect both the 

2012–2017 model years (MYs) and 2018 

and subsequent MYs, EPA invites 


EMCDONALD on DSK67QTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 170 / Friday, August 31, 2012 / Notices 53201 

1Copies of the Minutes of the Federal Open 

Market Committee at its meeting held on July 31– 

August 1, 2012, which includes the domestic policy 

directive issued at the meeting, are available on the 

Board’s Web site, www.federalreserve.gov. The 

minutes are also published in the Federal Reserve 

Bulletin and in the Board’s Annual Report. 

comment on the following issues. First, 

should California’s ZEV amendments, as 

they affect the 2012–2017 MYs and/or 

the 2018 and later MYs, be considered 

under the within-the-scope criteria or 

should they be considered under the 

full waiver criteria? Second, to the 

extent part or all of those ZEV 

amendments should be considered as a 

within-the-scope request, do such 

amendments meet the criteria for EPA to 

confirm that they are within-the-scope 

of prior waivers? Please also provide 

comments to address the full waiver 

analysis (noted below for the remainder 

of the ACC program), in the event that 

EPA cannot confirm that some or all of 

CARB’s ZEV amendments are withinthe-scope of previous waivers. 

We are requesting comment on all 

aspects of the full waiver analysis with 

regard to the ACC program (the LEV III 

criteria pollutant and GHG regulations, 

and the ZEV amendments to the extent 

EPA does not consider them under the 

within-the-scope analysis noted above). 

This includes consideration of the 

following three criteria: whether (a) 

California’s determination that its motor 

vehicle emission standards are, in the 

aggregate, at least as protective of public 

health and welfare as applicable Federal 

standards is arbitrary and capricious, (b) 

California needs such standards to meet 

compelling and extraordinary 

conditions, and (c) California’s 

standards and accompanying 

enforcement procedures are consistent 

with section 202(a) of the Clean Air Act. 

As noted above, CARB plans to propose 

a deemed to comply rule for its GHG 

standards shortly after EPA finalizes its 

light-duty vehicle greenhouse gas 

emission standards, conditioned on its 

review of EPA’s final GHG rule. As 

such, EPA specifically invites comment 

on CARB’s waiver request in light of 

CARB’s plans concerning adoption of a 

deemed to comply provision into its 

LEV III GHG standards. This will allow 

EPA to consider any deemed to comply 

provision and comments on it when 

taking action on CARB’s request for a 

waiver. 

IV. Procedures for Public Participation 

The Agency will make a verbatim 

record of the proceedings at the hearing. 

Interested parties may arrange with the 

reporter at the hearing to obtain a copy 

of the transcript at their own expense. 

EPA will keep the record open until 

October 19, 2012. Upon expiration of 

the comment period, the Administrator 

will render a decision on CARB’s 

request based on the record of the 

public hearing, relevant written 

submissions, and other information that 

she deems pertinent. 

Persons with comments containing 

proprietary information must 

distinguish such information from other 

comments to the greatest possible extent 

and label it as ‘‘Confidential Business 

Information’’ (CBI). If a person making 

comments wants EPA to base its 

decision in part on a submission labeled 

CBI, then a non-confidential version of 

the document that summarizes the key 

data or information should be submitted 

for the public docket. To ensure that 

proprietary information is not 

inadvertently placed in the docket, 

submissions containing such 

information should be sent directly to 

the contact person listed above and not 

to the public docket. Information 

covered by a claim of confidentiality 

will be disclosed by EPA only to the 

extent allowed and by the procedures 

set forth in 40 CFR part 2. If no claim 

of confidentiality accompanies the 

submission when EPA receives it, EPA 

will make it available to the public 

without further notice to the person 

making comments. 

Dated: August 28, 2012. 

Gina McCarthy, 

Assistant Administrator, Office of Air and 

Radiation. 

[FR Doc. 2012–21566 Filed 8–30–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

EXPORT-IMPORT BANK 

Economic Impact Policy 

This notice is to inform the public 

that the Export-Import Bank of the 

United States has received an 

application for a $21 million guarantee 

to support the $19 million export of a 

wire rod mill to the Czech Republic. 

The U.S. export will replace an existing 

facility and enable the Czech company 

to expand its production of wire rod by 

approximately 50,000 metric tons 

annually during the 8.5-year repayment 

term of the obligation. Available 

information indicates that the additional 

wire rod production will be sold 

domestically in the Czech Republic and 

Slovakia, Germany, and Italy. 

Interested parties may submit 

comments on this transaction by email 

to economic.impact@exim.gov or by 

mail to 811 Vermont Avenue NW., 

Room 947, Washington, DC 20571, 

within 14 days of the date this notice 

appears in the Federal Register. 

Kathryn Hoff-Patrinos, 

Deputy General Counsel. 

[FR Doc. 2012–21548 Filed 8–30–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6690–01–P 

FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM 

Federal Open Market Committee; 

Domestic Policy Directive of July 31– 

August 1, 2012 

In accordance with Section 271.7(d) 

of its rules regarding availability of 

information (12 CFR part 271), there is 

set forth below the domestic policy 

directive issued by the Federal Open 

Market Committee at its meeting held 

on July 31–August 1, 2012.1

The Federal Open Market Committee 

seeks monetary and financial conditions 

that will foster price stability and 

promote sustainable growth in output. 

To further its long-run objectives, the 

Committee seeks conditions in reserve 

markets consistent with federal funds 

trading in a range from 0 to 1⁄4 percent. 

The Committee directs the Desk to 

continue the maturity extension 

program it announced in June to 

purchase Treasury securities with 

remaining maturities of 6 years to 30 

years with a total face value of about 

$267 billion by the end of December 

2012, and to sell or redeem Treasury 

securities with remaining maturities of 

approximately 3 years or less with a 

total face value of about $267 billion. 

For the duration of this program, the 

Committee directs the Desk to suspend 

its current policy of rolling over 

maturing Treasury securities into new 

issues. The Committee directs the Desk 

to maintain its existing policy of 

reinvesting principal payments on all 

agency debt and agency mortgagebacked securities in the System Open 

Market Account in agency mortgagebacked securities. These actions should 

maintain the total face value of domestic 

securities at approximately $2.6 trillion. 

The Committee directs the Desk to 

engage in dollar roll transactions as 

necessary to facilitate settlement of the 

Federal Reserve’s agency MBS 

transactions. The System Open Market 

Account Manager and the Secretary will 

keep the Committee informed of 

ongoing developments regarding the 

System’s balance sheet that could affect 

the attainment over time of the 

Committee’s objectives of maximum 

employment and price stability. 


EMCDONALD on DSK67QTVN1PROD with NOTICES