October 2014 Action Initiation List (as of 12/11/2014)

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

The following actions were initiated by EPA this month. Explanations of which EPA actions are included on this list and of each 

element of the table can be found at the end of this document. 

The two most recent Action Initiation Lists (AILs) can always be found at: http://www.epa.gov/lawsregs/search/ail.html. But, they 

will not provide updates on the actions listed herein. Updates on priority rulemakings are available from EPA's Regulatory 

Development and Retrospective Review Tracker (RegDaRRT) on www.epa.gov/rulemaking/. 

For all rules – those that are in RegDaRRT and those that are not – you may obtain updates twice a year in EPA’s Semiannual 

Regulatory Agenda, which is accessible from these Web sites:

• EPA’s Laws, Regulations, Guidance and Dockets (http://www.epa.gov/lawsregs/search/regagenda.html)

• RegInfo.gov (http://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/eAgendaMain)

• Regulations.gov 

(http://www.regulations.gov/fdmspublic/component/main?main=UnifiedAgenda&agency=EPA&pubperiod=200710) 

Action Initiation List – October 2014 Page 1 of 6
Action Title Stage Contact Abstract

Projected

Publication 

Date

Final 2014 Effluent 

Guidelines Program Plan 

(304m Plan)

Final William Swietlik

202-566-1129

Swietlik.William@epa.gov

The Clean Water Act (CWA) requires EPA to establish national 

technology-based regulations known as “effluent limitations guidelines 

and standards” to reduce pollutant discharges from categories of industrial 

facilities. EPA similarly establishes technology-based regulations, termed 

“pretreatment standards,” to reduce indirect pollutant discharges—those 

that are discharged to publicly-owned treatment works. The CWA also 

specifies effluent guideline planning and review requirements. There are 

different requirements for direct and indirect dischargers, but both specify 

annual review of promulgated effluent guidelines and pretreatment 

standards. One requirement is publication of an Effluent Guidelines 

Program Plan every two years. CWA section 304(m) specifies that the 

Plan must: (1) establish a schedule for the annual review and revision of 

promulgated effluent guidelines, (2) identify categories of sources 

discharging toxic or non-conventional pollutants for which guidelines have 

not previously been published (“new categories”); and 3) establish a 

schedule for the promulgation of effluent guidelines identified under (2). 

The CWA requires that the Plan undergo public review and comment 

before being finalized. To meet this requirement, EPA typically prepares a 

Preliminary Plan one year, takes public comment and then finalizes the 

Plan the following year. This Plan is the Final 2014 Plan. The Final 2014 

Plan will announce EPA’s final decisions, actions and findings relative to 

those proposed in the Preliminary 2014 Plan, published for comment on 

September 17, 2014. The Final 2014 Plan will also announce EPA’s 

proposed actions and findings based on the results of the 2014 annual 

reviews upon which the public will be given an opportunity to comment.

12 months 

or less

Action Initiation List – October 2014 Page 2 of 6
Action Title Stage Contact Abstract

Projected

Publication 

Date

Protection of 

Stratospheric Ozone: 

Extension of the 

Laboratory and Analytical 

Use Exemption for 

Essential Class I OzoneDepleting Substances

NPRM Jeremy Arling 

202-343-9055

Arling.Jeremy@epa.gov

The Laboratory and Analytical Use Exemption allows for the limited 

production and import of small quantities of ozone-depleting substances for 

use in laboratories. Laboratory uses include equipment calibration; use as 

extraction solvents, diluents or carriers for chemical analysis; and 

biochemical research. This exemption is permitted under the Montreal 

Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer but is currently set to 

expire on December 31, 2014. The Parties to the Montreal Protocol agreed 

to renew this exemption in November 2014. The lab use exemption in 

EPA's regulations is currently in effect only through December 31, 2014, 

consistent with the date under the Montreal Protocol. This rule would 

extend its effectiveness to match the recent Protocol decision.

12 months 

or less 

Regional Haze 

Regulations and 

Guidelines for Setting 

Reasonable Progress 

Goals 

NPRM Todd Hawes 

919-541-5591

Hawes.Todd@epa.gov

This proposal will establish guidelines for the states to follow in setting their 

reasonable progress goals and developing the long term strategies, both of 

which are required when they submit their regional haze state 

implementation plans. The current regional haze rule (promulgated in 1999) 

references four statutory factors from the Clean Air Act that states must 

consider when setting their reasonable progress goals: 1) the costs of 

compliance; 2) the time necessary for compliance; 3) the energy and nonair quality environmental impacts of compliance; and 4) the remaining 

useful life of any potentially affected sources. The proposal will outline a 

process for states to identify and address anthropogenic sources of 

emissions that contribute to regional haze that are jurisdictionally within 

their control to regulate. 

More than 

12 months 

Action Initiation List – October 2014 Page 3 of 6
Action Title Stage Contact Abstract

Projected

Publication 

Date

Revision to the Guideline 

on Air Quality Models: 

Enhancements to the 

AERMOD dispersion 

modeling system and 

incorporation of modeling 

techniques to address 

fine particulate matter 

and ozone

NPRM George Bridgers 

919-541-5563

Bridgers.George@epa.gov

This action would revise the Guideline on Air Quality Models, published as 

Appendix W to 40 CFR Part 51. The Guideline provides EPArecommended models and other techniques for use in predicting ambient 

concentrations of pollutants for controlling air pollution sources in programs 

ranging from Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) to State 

Implementation Plans (SIPs). The Guideline fulfills a Clean Air Act mandate 

for EPA to specify models and techniques for air quality management 

purposes. This revision would incorporate new modeling techniques to 

more adequately account for the formation of fine particulate matter and 

ozone associated with precursor emissions from single sources. 

Additionally, there are important enhancements to the AERMOD near-field 

dispersion modeling system that will establish AERSCREEN as the 

recommended screening level model for simple and complex terrain 

settings, significantly improve the model performance under stable/light 

wind conditions, allow for the use of meteorological input data derived from 

prognostic meteorological models, provide additional options for the 

modeling of nitrogen dioxide, incorporate the treatment of buoyant line 

sources within AERMOD, and incidental modifications to the modeling 

system that have received adequate peer and external review. Other 

general revisions will be made to the Guideline based on experiences 

gained and issues resolved since the last revision of Appendix W in 2005. 

12 months 

or less 

Completion of the 

Requirement to 

Promulgate Emission 

Standards

NPRM Nathan Topham 

919-541-0483

Topham.Nathan@epa.gov

Clean Air Act (CAA) section 112(c)(6) requires the EPA to ensure that 90 

percent of emissions of certain hazardous air pollutants from stationary 

sources are subject to standards under section 112(d)(2) or (d)(4) of the 

CAA. This proposal presents an inventory of source categories counted 

towards meeting the requirements of CAA section 112(c)(6). 

12 months 

or less 

Action Initiation List – October 2014 Page 4 of 6
Action Title Stage Contact Abstract

Projected

Publication 

Date

Stationary Compression 

Ignition Engine New 

Source Performance 

Standards Amendments

NPRM Melanie King 

919 541-2469

King.Melanie@epa.gov

New stationary and nonroad compression ignition (CI) engines are 

equipped by the engine manufacturer with emission controls to meet the 

Tier 4 final emission standards, which generally begin with either the 2014 

or 2015 model year. Many Tier 4 final engines are equipped with selective 

catalytic reduction (SCR) to reduce NOx. To ensure the engine does not 

operate if the SCR is not working, SCR-equipped engines include design 

features called “inducements” that limit the engine power and eventually 

shut down the engine if the SCR is operated without urea, or the electronic 

control module cannot confirm that the SCR system is operating properly. 

Engine operators raised concerns regarding engines shutting down during 

emergencies because the inducement is triggered, for example, if the 

owner/operator is unable to obtain urea in the immediate aftermath of a 

hurricane. To address the issue for nonroad engines, EPA recently finalized 

amendments to the standards for new nonroad CI engines that allow the 

operator to temporarily disable the inducements and thus avoid engine 

shutdown during a qualified emergency situation, which is defined as one in 

which allowing the inducement to shut down the engine “poses a significant 

direct or indirect risk to human life.” This action proposes similar 

amendments to the standards for stationary engines.

12 months 

or less

E-Discovery Privacy Act 

SORN and Privacy Act 

Exemptions

NPRM, Final Judith Kendall 

202-566-0750

Kendall.Judith@epa.gov

EPA is exempting its E-Discovery system (EPA-63) from certain 

subsections of the affirmative access and amendment provisions of the 

Privacy Act under 5 U.S.C. 552a. EPA-63 is a system of records 

maintained by the Office of Environmental Information, Office of Information 

Collection, Records and Content Management Branch on behalf of the 

Criminal Investigation Division, Office of Criminal Enforcement, Forensics, 

and Training. This EPA component performs activities pertaining to the 

enforcement of criminal laws. Because the E-Discovery system is used for 

civil and criminal cases and investigations, this rulemaking seeks to exempt 

the system from certain affirmative access and amendment provisions 

under U.S.C. 552a(k)(2) for non-law enforcement agencies who bring civil 

and criminal enforcement actions, and U.S.C. 552a (j)(2) which is primarily 

for law enforcement agencies.

12 months 

or less

Action Initiation List – October 2014 Page 5 of 6
What EPA Actions Appear on the AILs? 

Generally, AILs include those actions that 1) will appear in upcoming Semiannual Regulatory Agenda and 2) have been approved for 

commencement by EPA’s Regulatory Policy Officer. In rare instances, an action will not appear on an AIL before it appears in the Agenda. 

Also, keep in mind that AILs will not post immediately. You can access a given month's list roughly 20 days after the close of the month (e.g., 

the April 2014 AIL will post sometime around May 20th).

What Does Each Column in the AIL Mean?

Title: Self-explanatory.

Stage: The stage of an action describes where we are in the rule writing process, from the very beginning when a rule (or other action) is 

just an idea to the end when it is published as a final rule (or other action) in the Federal Register. For example, the Notice of Proposed 

Rulemaking (NPRM) stage announces a proposed rule or proposed modification to an existing rule. In the AILs, the following acronyms are 

used:

• ANPRM - Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking

• NPRM - Notice of Proposed Rulemaking

• Supplemental - Supplemental NPRM 

• Direct Final - Direct Final Action

• Interim Final - Interim Final Action

• Final - Final Action

• Section 610 Review - Agency Review under Section 610 of the Regulatory Flexibility Act

Contact: Provides the name, phone, and email address for the EPA staff person assigned to this rule. Additionally, if a rule is in EPA's 

RegDaRRT (www.epa.gov/rulemaking/), then a link to the rule's profile will be provided in this column.

Abstract: A brief summary of the action and its purpose. 

Projected Publication Date: Since many variables affect how long it takes to write a rule or other action, it is difficult to predict a firm 

publication date when we have just started working on an action. Therefore, we insert one of two options in the "Projected Publication Date" 

column: 1) "12 months or less" and 2) "more than 12 months." These options give you some idea of how quickly we expect to complete an 

action. 

Action Initiation List – October 2014 Page 6 of 6