26682 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 111 / Friday, June 8, 2018 / Notices 

62See, e.g., Texas v. EPA, 2011 U.S. App. LEXIS 

5654 (5th Cir. 2011) (finding SIP call to 13 states 

to be nationally applicable and thus transferring the 

case to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. 

Circuit in accordance with CAA section 307(b)(1)). 

Delaware’s petitions). Second, the EPA 

proposes to determine, based on its own 

analysis, that all of the petitions fail at 

one or more steps of the four-step 

framework. For Delaware under step 

one, the EPA has determined there are 

no air quality problems in Delaware in 

the relevant years for both the 2008 and 

2015 ozone NAAQS. The EPA has 

further evaluated the named sources 

under step three, finding: (1) That the 

EPA has already implemented the 

control strategy identified in the 

petitions as cost-effective for three 

facilities (Conemaugh, Harrison, and 

Homer City) in the CSAPR Update, and 

(2) that Brunner Island is already 

operating and is expected to continue 

operating with natural gas such that the 

facility has no additional cost-effective 

and feasible controls available. The EPA 

is also proposing to deny the Maryland 

petition because: (1) For those facilities 

with SCR, the EPA has already 

implemented the control strategy 

identified in the petitions as costeffective, and (2) for the facilities with 

SNCR, the EPA has already determined 

that operation of SNCR is not costeffective with respect to addressing 

transport obligations for the 2008 ozone 

NAAQS and therefore is not required by 

the good neighbor provision with 

respect to this NAAQS. The EPA 

requests comment on its proposed 

denial of Maryland’s and Delaware’s 

CAA section 126(b) petitions, including 

the bases for the decision described 

herein. 

VI. Determinations Under Section 

307(b)(1) 

Section 307(b)(1) of the CAA indicates 

which Federal Courts of Appeal have 

venue for petitions of review of final 

actions by EPA. This section provides, 

in part, that petitions for review must be 

filed in the Court of Appeals for the 

District of Columbia Circuit if (i) the 

agency action consists of ‘‘nationally 

applicable regulations promulgated, or 

final action taken, by the 

Administrator,’’ or (ii) such action is 

locally or regionally applicable, if ‘‘such 

action is based on a determination of 

nationwide scope or effect and if in 

taking such action the Administrator 

finds and publishes that such action is 

based on such a determination.’’ 

The EPA proposes to find that any 

final action regarding these pending 

section 126(b) petitions is ‘‘nationally 

applicable’’ or, in the alternative, is 

based on a determination of 

‘‘nationwide scope and effect’’ within 

the meaning of section 307(b)(1). 

Through this rulemaking action, the 

EPA interprets sections 110 and 126 of 

the CAA, statutory provisions which 

apply to all states and territories in the 

United States. In addition, the proposed 

action addresses emissions impacts and 

sources located in seven States, which 

are located in multiple EPA Regions and 

federal circuits. The proposed action is 

also based on a common core of factual 

findings and analyses concerning the 

transport of pollutants between the 

different states. Furthermore, the EPA 

intends this interpretation and approach 

to be consistently implemented 

nationwide with respect to section 

126(b) petitions for the 2008 and 2015 

ozone NAAQS. Courts have found 

similar actions to be nationally 

applicable.62 Additionally, in the report 

on the 1977 Amendments that revised 

section 307(b)(1) of the CAA, Congress 

noted that the Administrator’s 

determination that an action is of 

‘‘nationwide scope or effect’’ would be 

appropriate for any action that has a 

scope or effect beyond a single judicial 

circuit. H.R. Rep. No. 95–294 at 323, 

324, reprinted in 1977 U.S.C.C.A.N. 

1402–03. For these reasons, the 

Administrator proposes to determine 

that any final action related to this 

proposal is nationally applicable or, in 

the alternative, is based on a 

determination of nationwide scope and 

effect for purposes of section 307(b)(1). 

Thus, the EPA proposes that pursuant 

to section 307(b)(1) any petitions for 

review of any final actions regarding the 

rulemaking would be filed in the Court 

of Appeals for the District of Columbia 

Circuit within 60 days from the date any 

final action is published in the Federal 

Register. 

VII. Statutory Authority 

42 U.S.C. 7410, 7426, 7601. 

Dated: May 31, 2018. 

E. Scott Pruitt, 

Administrator. 

[FR Doc. 2018–12374 Filed 6–7–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

[EPA–HQ–OAR–2018–0295; FRL–9979–19– 

OAR] 

RIN 2060–AT40, 2060–AT39, 2060–AT38, 

2060–AT37, 2060–AT36 

Response to Clean Air Act Section 

126(b) Petitions From Delaware and 

Maryland 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Notice of public hearing. 

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA) is announcing that a 

public hearing will be held on the EPA’s 

proposed response to petitions from 

Delaware and Maryland pursuant to 

section 126 of the Clean Air Act (CAA 

or Act). The EPA is proposing to deny 

four CAA section 126(b) petitions 

submitted by the state of Delaware and 

one CAA section 126(b) petition 

submitted by the state of Maryland 

between July and November 2016. The 

hearing will be held on June 22, 2018, 

in Washington, DC. 

DATES: The public hearing will be held 

on June 22, 2018, in Washington, DC. 

Please refer to SUPPLEMENTARY

INFORMATION for additional information 

on the public hearing. 

ADDRESSES: 

Public Hearing. The June 22, 2018, 

public hearing will be held at the EPA, 

William Jefferson Clinton East Building, 

Room 1153, 1201 Constitution Avenue 

NW, Washington, DC 20004. 

Identification is required. If your 

driver’s license is issued by America 

Samoa, you must present an additional 

form of identification to enter (see 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION for 

additional information on this location). 

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., Confidential 

Business Information or other 

information whose disclosure is 

restricted by statute. Certain other 

material, such as copyrighted material, 

will be publicly available only in hard 

copy. Publicly available docket 

materials are available either 

electronically in http://

www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at 

EPA Docket Center Reading Room, 

William Jefferson Clinton West 

Building, 1301 Constitution Avenue 

NW, Washington, DC 20004. The Public 

Reading Room is open from 8:30 a.m. to 

4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, 

excluding legal holidays. The phone 


amozie on DSK3GDR082PROD with NOTICES1
Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 111 / Friday, June 8, 2018 / Notices 26683 

number for the Public Reading Room is 

(202) 566–1744. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If 

you would like to speak at the public 

hearing, please contact Ms. Pamela 

Long, U.S. Environmental Protection 

Agency, Office of Air Quality Planning 

and Standards (OAQPS), Air Quality 

Planning Division (C504–01), Research 

Triangle Park, NC 27711, telephone 

(919) 541–0641, fax number (919) 541– 

5509, email address long.pam@epa.gov, 

no later than June 20, 2018. If you have 

any questions relating to the public 

hearing, please contact Ms. Long. 

If you have questions concerning the 

petitions from Maryland and Delaware, 

please contact Mr. Lev Gabrilovich, U.S. 

Environmental Protection Agency, 

Office of Air Quality Planning and 

Standards (OAQPS), Air Quality 

Planning Division, (C539–01), Research 

Triangle Park, NC 27711, telephone 

(919) 541–1496, email address 

gabrilovich.lev@epa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

public hearing will provide interested 

parties the opportunity to present data, 

views, or arguments concerning the 

EPA’s proposed response to the 

petitions from Maryland and Delaware. 

The EPA may ask clarifying questions 

during the oral presentations, but will 

not respond to the presentations at that 

time. Written statements and supporting 

information that are submitted during 

the comment period will be considered 

with the same weight as any oral 

comments and supporting information 

presented at the public hearing. Written 

comments must be postmarked by the 

last day of the comment period. 

The public hearing will convene at 

9:00 a.m. and end at 6:00 p.m. Eastern 

Time (ET) or at least two hours after the 

last registered speaker has spoken. The 

EPA will make every effort to 

accommodate all individuals interested 

in providing oral testimony. A lunch 

break is scheduled from 12:00 p.m. until 

1:00 p.m. Please note that this hearing 

will be held at a U.S. government 

facility. Individuals planning to attend 

the hearing should be prepared to show 

valid picture identification to the 

security staff in order to gain access to 

the meeting room. The REAL ID Act, 

passed by Congress in 2005, established 

new requirements for entering federal 

facilities. These requirements took effect 

on July 21, 2014. If your driver’s license 

is issued by American Samoa, you must 

present an additional form of 

identification to enter the federal 

building where the public hearing will 

be held. Acceptable alternative forms of 

identification include: Federal 

employee badges, passports, enhanced 

driver’s licenses and military 

identification cards. For additional 

information for the status of your state 

regarding REAL ID, go to http://

www.dhs.gov/real-id-enforcement-brief. 

If you would like to present oral 

testimony at the hearing, please notify 

Ms. Pamela Long, U.S. Environmental 

Protection Agency, Office of Air Quality 

Planning and Standards (OAQPS), Air 

Quality Planning Division (C504–01), 

Research Triangle Park, NC 27711, 

telephone (919) 541–0641, fax number 

(919) 541–5509, email address 

long.pam@epa.gov, no later than 4:00 

p.m. ET on June 20, 2018. Ms. Long will 

arrange a general time slot for you to 

speak. The EPA will make every effort 

to follow the schedule as closely as 

possible on the day of the hearing. 

Oral testimony will be limited to 5 

minutes for each commenter. The EPA 

encourages commenters to provide the 

EPA with a copy of their oral testimony 

electronically (via email) or in hard 

copy form. Commenters should notify 

Ms. Long if they need specific 

translation services for non-English 

speaking commenters. 

The hearing schedule, including the 

list of speakers, will be posted on the 

EPA’s website at https://www.epa.gov/ 

ozone-pollution/ozone-nationalambient-air-quality-standards-naaqssection-126-petitions prior to the 

hearing. Verbatim transcripts of the 

hearing and written statements will be 

included in the docket for the action. 

How can I get copies of this document 

and other related information? 

The EPA has established a docket for 

this action under Docket ID No. EPA– 

HQ–OAR–2018–0295 (available at 

http://www.regulations.gov). The EPA 

has made available information related 

to the proposed action on the following 

website: https://www.epa.gov/ozonepollution/ozone-national-ambient-airquality-standards-naaqs-section-126- 

petitions. 

Dated: June 5, 2018. 

Panagiotis Tsirigotis, 

Director, Office of Air Quality Planning and 

Standards. 

[FR Doc. 2018–12453 Filed 6–7–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

[9978–67–OEI] 

Cross-Media Electronic Reporting: 

Authorized Program Revision 

Approval, State of Rhode Island 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: This notice announces EPA’s 

approval of the State of Rhode Island’s 

request to revise/modify certain of its 

EPA-authorized programs to allow 

electronic reporting. 

DATES: EPA approves the authorized 

program revisions/modifications as of 

June 8, 2018. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Devon Martin, U.S. Environmental 

Protection Agency, Office of 

Environmental Information, Mail Stop 

2823T, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, 

Washington, DC 20460, (202) 566–2603, 

martin.devon@epa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On 

October 13, 2005, the final Cross-Media 

Electronic Reporting Rule (CROMERR) 

was published in the Federal Register 

(70 FR 59848) and codified as part 3 of 

title 40 of the CFR. CROMERR 

establishes electronic reporting as an 

acceptable regulatory alternative to 

paper reporting and establishes 

requirements to assure that electronic 

documents are as legally dependable as 

their paper counterparts. Subpart D of 

CROMERR requires that state, tribal or 

local government agencies that receive, 

or wish to begin receiving, electronic 

reports under their EPA-authorized 

programs must apply to EPA for a 

revision or modification of those 

programs and obtain EPA approval. 

Subpart D provides standards for such 

approvals based on consideration of the 

electronic document receiving systems 

that the state, tribe, or local government 

will use to implement the electronic 

reporting. Additionally, § 3.1000(b) 

through (e) of 40 CFR part 3, subpart D 

provides special procedures for program 

revisions and modifications to allow 

electronic reporting, to be used at the 

option of the state, tribe or local 

government in place of procedures 

available under existing programspecific authorization regulations. An 

application submitted under the subpart 

D procedures must show that the state, 

tribe or local government has sufficient 

legal authority to implement the 

electronic reporting components of the 

programs covered by the application 

and will use electronic document 

receiving systems that meet the 

applicable subpart D requirements. 

On May 2, 2018, the Rhode Island 

Department of Environmental 

Management (RI DEM) submitted an 

application titled ‘‘NPDES e-Reporting 

Tool’’ for revisions/modifications to its 

EPA-approved programs under title 40 

CFR to allow new electronic reporting. 

EPA reviewed RI DEM’s request to 

revise/modify its EPA-authorized 


amozie on DSK3GDR082PROD with NOTICES1