- 1 - DRAFT Supporting Statement for In formation Collection Request Control of Evaporative Emissions from New and In
- Use Portable Gasoline Containers (Renewal )

EPA I CR 2213.0 4 March , 201 3

Compliance and Innovative Strategies Div ision Office of Transportation and Air Qualit y Office of Air and Radiation U.S. Environmental Protection Agency- 2 - **PART A OF THE SUPPORTING STATEMENT 1.**  **Identification of the Information Collection** (a ) Title and Number of Informa tion Collection.

" Control of Evaporative Emissions from New and In - Use Portable Gasoline Containers (Renewal ) " , I CR 2213.0 4 , OMB 2060 - 0597. (b ) Short Characterization. Under regulations promulgated on February 26, 2007 (72 FR 8428 ; 40 CFR Part 59, Subpart F ) , manufacturers of new portable gasoline containers from 0.25 to 10.0 gallons in capacity are required to obtain certificates of conformity with the Clean Air Act . The rule applies to containers manufactured on or after January 1, 2009 ( manufacture rs and importers were given until June 30, 2009 and wholesale distributors until December 31, 2009 to dispose of stocks manufactured before January 1, 2009). Certificates are valid from the effective date until the end of the production period, with a maxi mum of five years. This ICR covers the burdens associated with the applications for certification and the required annual reports of successful warrant y claims , based on experience during the first three ye ar s of the program . The applications are processed by

the Compliance Division (CD) , Office of Transportation and Air Quality , EPA. In essence, an application is in support of an emission limitation of 0.3 grams per gallon per day for the mandated five
- year useful life of the container . Applicants submit t est results conducted in accordance with the regulations, maintenance instructions and warranty information given to the purchasers, copies of the labels, and other information listed in section 4(b). Applications are submitted in no fixed format, although EPA did work with industry informally

on application questions and provided non
- confidential versions of acceptable received applications (“FOIA applications”) as examples to other potential applicants. Applications are submitted electronically

as a part of the EPA’s Verify certification information sy stem. The current authorization is based on an estimated ten respondents for 213.2 hours and $ 20 , 439 in costs, including $ 10,519 in capital and O&M costs per year , the rest labor . . The burdens in this IC R are based on experience administering the program f rom January 1, 2009 , through December , 201 2 . During that period, EPA has issued fifteen certificates to seven companies. All certificates were issued for five years. Annual warranty reports we re due July 1, 2010 . The portable fuel container companies have not experienced any emission related warranty claims, so no warrant y reports have been received to date. The main changes from the prior I CR are the following: updating the agency burden estimate, labor costs , and the number of respondents and responses, including allowance for carry
- over applications. The current request estimates eight respondents for 17 9.4 hours and $ 2 3,170 in costs, including $ 12,552 for capital and O&M costs, including the cos ts of conducting tests. **2. Need for and Use of the Collection**  (a ) Need/Authority for the Collection.- 3 -

Statutory authorit y for the portable gasoline contain er controls is found in S ections 183(e) and 111 of the Clean Air Act , 42 U.S.C. sections 75 11b(e) and 741 4. The EPA is required under Section 183(e) of the Clean Air Act (Act) to regulate Volatile Organic Compound ( VOC ) emissions from the use of consumer and commercial products. Pursuant to Section 183(e)(3), the EPA published a list of consume r and commercial products and a schedule for their regulation on March 23, 1995 (60 FR 15264). Consumer products were included in Group I of the list, and standards were promulgated on September 11, 1998. In the Administrator's judgment, VOC emissions fr om the use of consumer products contribute to ground
- level ozone formation in ozone non
- attainment areas. Portable gasoline containers are a consumer product which ha s been shown to be deficient in preventing VOCs in the form of fuel vapors from being emitted into the air. The certification program for portable fuel containers was promulgated in 2007 (72 FR 8533; February 26, 2007). The regulations appear in 40 CFR Part 59, Subpart F (40 CFR §§ 59.600 - 59.699). The information in the application is nee ded to insure that the emission standard will be met during the useful life of the container and that the certified containers comply with the labeling, warrant y , and other requirements of the regulations. The information is sufficient to allow the manufac ture to aggregate containers of like design into one emission family . This saves the manufacturer the expense of testing models of similar but not identical design. The information is also detailed enough to allow subsequent recertification when a certif icate has expired (“carry

over”). The record keeping requirements are likewise in support of a demonstration that the emissions family certified will meet the emission standard in the regulation . The records specified are to be provided to EPA upon req uest. The annual warranty

reports are needed to assure that the container s survive normal use and provide EPA important information on the success of its certification program, weaknesses there in , or examples or patterns of noncompliance . Cans showing e xcessive warrant y claims could be candidates for in
- use testing b y EPA. Although EPA does not have the authorit y to recall portable fuel containers , the warrant y information along with possible in
- use testing b y EPA cou ld be used as grounds to withhold subsequent certification or to enter into enforcement action under the Clean Air Act. (b ) Practical Utility

/Users of the Information. Agency personnel will use the information collected to :
 Determine if a manufacture’s portable gasoline containers me et the emission standard when new ;
 Allow the agency

to issue a certificate of compliance to the manufacturer so that they can market the approved container s;
 Allow the agency

to issue carry - over certificates waiving the testing process required for a new design;- 4 -

 Allow the agency

to issue certificates to the manufacture r for containers that are substantially similar to the tested prototype and waive the testing process required for a new design (“carry

across”) ;
 Provide information to the agency to indic ate that the portable gasoline containers are meeting the standard in
- use; and

 Provide information to the agency that a portable gasoline container design is not meeting the standard in
- use and provide a basis on which to reject a manufactures application for that design in subsequent model years or take other appropriate action . **3. Non**  **- duplication, Consultations, and Other Collection Criteria**  (a ) Non
- duplication. The information collected includes product and manufacturing specifications, testing doc umentation , and successful warrant y claims . Similar information is collected by the state of California and approximately 1 3 other states that have adopted the California Portable Fuel Container regulation 1 . However, the California regulation is different in several key areas that make the information unsuitable for information collection required for Federal rule. These are all due to the following differences in the standards and certification requirements in the two rules:

 The test fuel and the temp erature cycles used in the F ederal program are more in keeping with nationwide ambient temperatures and fuels , while those required in the California regulation are more suitable to California fuels and ambient conditions.

 The Federal rule requires the reporting of successful warranty claims concerning fuel containers sold as certified under the rule. While the California regulation does require that the manufacturer issue warranties, it does not require them to report on the outcomes of successful cla ims against them . These differences make the California data unsuitable for the Federal rule on fuel containers. (b ) Public Notice Required Prior to ICR Submission to OMB An announcement soliciting public comment on this I CR was published in the Federal Re gister on March

______ , 201 3 (

__ FR

____). A copy of the draft ICR was placed in the docket. No comments were received. (c) Consultations For this renewal, EPA will consult the following individual: Organization Name Phone Number

1 “Certification Procedure for Portable Fuel Containers and Spill
- Proof Spouts”, California Air Resources Board July 22, 2005- 5 -

Scepter USA . Phil Monckton 416 - 715 - 9445 For the prior ICR, we consulted the following individuals (Blitz has subseqently gone out of business). \ : Blitz USA Dan Weibel 416 - 540 - 5153 No Spill, LLC Tom Cray 913 - 888 - 9200 Testing Services Group Andy Meloney 810 - 245 - 1600 Their responses were very helpful in developing this request. On the whole they approve of the EPA program and express frustration at the areas of the California program that differ from EPA, particularl y the fuel specification s. Information from TSG on contract costs for testing and application preparation were particularl y helpful. (d ) Effects of Less Frequent Collection. Certificates of conformity are issued for the production period of the models covered in the emiss ions family , not to exceed five years. All certificates to date have been issued for five ye ars. However, when a fuel container design is a “carried over” or a new version of a container that is substantially

similar to a current container (“carry across” ) , the amount of new information required is substantially reduced. Warrant y reports are required by regulation to be submitted annually . (e) General Guidelines. This I CR adheres to the guidelines for Federal data requeste rs, as provided at 5 CFR 1320. 5 (d)(2), with the exception that the regulation requires that records con cerning the application for cert ification be maintained for 5 years (except for routine testing data for 1 year) . The five
- ye ar requirement is consistent with the maximum production period and the consequent five
- ye ar duration of certificates. The retention is necessary to allow the agency

to adequatel y monitor compliance. Information on s uccessful warrant y claims is required for the preceding model by July 1 of the following year. T here is no requirement to report unsuccessful claims against container warranties . There is no requirement by EPA for the manufactures to retain that information beyond the extent necessary to report it annually . (f ) Confidentiality. Any information su

bmitted to EPA for which a claim of confidentiality is made will be safeguarded according to EPA regulations at 40 CFR 2.201 Part 2, as stated explicitly in the regulations (40 CFR §59.695). The section sets fort how to make confidentiality claims and how documents raising confidentiality issues will be handled. (g ) Sensitive Questions . T his collection does not involve matters of a sensitive nature.- 6 -

**4. The Respondents and the Information Requested**  (a ) Respondents/SIC and NAICS Codes. Respondents t o this information collection are manufacturers of portable fuel containers. They fall within standard industrial classification (SI C) 3411 and within the North American Industrial Classificatio n Sy stem (NAI CS) code of 332431 (metal can manufacturing) or S IC 3089, NAI CS 326199 (all other plastic product manufacturing) . (b ) Information Requested. (i ) Data items. The required data items are specificall y enumerated in the regulations (40 CFR §59.623): (a) Describe the emission family's specifications and other basic parameters of the emission controls. L ist each distinguishable configuration in the emission family . In clude descriptions and part numbers for all detachable components such as spouts and caps. (b) Describe and explain the method of emissi on control. (c) Describe the products you selected for testing and the reasons for selecting them. (d) Describe the test equipment and procedures that you used, including any special or alternate test procedures you used (see §59.650). (e) List the spec ifications of the test fuel to show that it falls within the required ranges specified in §59.650. (f) Include the maintenance and use instructions and warranty information you will give to the ultimate purchaser of each new portable fuel container (see § 59.613). (g) Describe your emission control information label (see §59.615). (h) State that your product was tested as described in the application (including the test procedures, test parameters, and test fuels) to show you meet the requirements of this subpart. (i) Present emission data to show your products meet the applicable emission standards. Where applicable, §§59.626 and 59.627 may allow you to submit an application in certain cases without new emission data. (j) Report all test results, includ ing those from invalid tests or from an y other tests, whether or not they were conducted according to the test procedures of §§59.650 through 59.653. We may ask you to send other information to confirm that your tests were valid under the requirements of this subpart.- 7 - (k) Unconditionall y certify that all the products in the emission family comply with the requirements of this subpart, other referenced parts of the CFR, and the Clean Air Act. (l) Include estimates of U.S.
- directed production volumes. (m) Include the information required b y other sections of this subpart. (n) Include other relevant information, including any additional information requested b y EPA. (o) Name an agent for service located in the United States. Service on this agent constitut es service on yo u or an y of your officers or employees for an y action by EPA or otherwise b y the United States related to the requirements of this subpart. An additional reporting requirement is listed in 40 CFR §59.628(e): (e) Send us an annual warranty report summarizing successful warranty claims by emission family

under §59.612, including the reason for the claim. You must submit the report by

July 1 for the preceding calendar year. There is also a one
- to - one correspondence between the recordkeepin g requirements and the requirements listed in the regulations (40 CFR §59.628):

(a) Organize and maintain the following records: (1) A cop y of all applications and an y other information you send us. (2) An y of the information we specify in §59.623 that you were not required to include in your application. (3) A detailed history

of each emission
- data unit. For each emission
- data unit, include all of the following: (i) The emission
- data unit's construction, including its origin and buildup, steps yo u too k to ensure that it represents production containers, any components you built specially

for it, and all the components you include in your application for certification. (ii) All your emission tests, including documentation on routine and standard tests, as specified in §§59.650 through 59.653, and the date and purpose of each test. (iii) All tests to diagnose emission
- control performance, giving the date and time of each and the reasons for the test. (iv) An y other relevant events or information.- 8 - (4) Production figures for each emission family divided by

assembly plant. (5) If you identify your portable fuel containers b y lot number or other identification numbers, keep a record of these numbers for all the containers you produce under each certificat e of conformity . (b) Keep data from routine emission tests (such as test cell temperatures and relative humidity

readings) for one year after we issue the associated certificate of conformity . Keep all other information specified in paragraph (a) of this section for five ye ars after we issue your certificate. (c) Store these records in any format and on any

media, as long as you can promptly send us organized, written records in English if we ask for them. You must keep these records readily available. We may review them at any time. (d) Send us copies of an y maintenance instructions or explanations if we ask for them. By implication, the annual report of successful warrant y claims includes a requirement to keep records of such claims on a yearl y basis until July 1 of the following year . (ii) Respondent Activities . The applications are in no set format but generally follow the enumerated application requirements specified in §59.623 (see 4(b)(i) above). The respondent will have to document fuel c ontainer s pecifications in detail , such as physical size, shapes, materials, quality of component fit, and production methods , in submitting its application(s) for certification. The respondent will also perform test s and keep records on them . The respond ent must collect and keep information o n successful warrant y claims for annual reporting. The respondent must also retain records on the units produced, appl y serial numbers to individual containers, and track the serial numbers to their certificates of c onformit y . Many of these activities are performed in the production of an y modern consumer product, but clearl y some of the information is uniquely required by the fuel container regulation . **5. The Information Collected**  **-- Agency Activities, Collection**  **Methodology, and Information Management.**  (a ) Agency Activities. During the renewal period the most significant portion of EPA’s activity for the fuel container regulation will be spent reviewing new applications and renewal applications . Other activi ties include processing exceptions and answering questions concerning details of the testing and certification requirements, including researching the answers and communicating by email and telephone. R

unning change submissions must also be reviewed for po ssible impacts and manufacturers’ evaluations thereof. A part of this process involves determining if “carry over” or “carry across” of data from a previous model year or addition of a new container model to an existing emissions family is appropriate or i nstead that new testing will be required. EPA has the right to select a number of containers for testing to confirm that the cans are indeed meeting the- 9 -

emissions standards , but no confirmatory testing burden is anticipated in this estimate . EPA will also be reviewing the annual submissions of successful warranty claims and processing exemption requests. (b ) Collection Methodology and Management
. Applicants submit their applications for certification in the document module of EPA’s Verify information sy stem. All Verify users go through an initial registration process that includes submission of basic information and assignment of a manufacturer code. It is anticipated that w arrant y reports will also be submitted through the Verify document module , with no set format . (c) Small Entity Flexibility. There are several provisions for small entity flexibility

in the regulations. Hardship deadline extensions for compliance with the standard are available where , due to circumstances neither foreseeable nor p reventable , compliance would jeopardize the solvency of the company . Exemptions are for up to one year and are renewable. There are also exemptions for containers intended only

for export, used for the sole purpose of testing, or for national securit y. As with other certification programs, small as well as larger manuf acturers have recourse to carry over and carry across. They

may also request to use alternative testing methods or emissions data already collected using other procedures . The portable fuel co ntainer program currently collects no certification fees. (d ) Collection Schedule. The portable fuel container regulation applies to all fuel containers as defined in the regulations manufacture d on or after January 1, 2009. Information collections ar e on a production period basis , five years in all cases so far . Warrant y reports are on a calendar ye ar basis, with reports due July 1 for the previous calendar year. **6. Estimating the Burden and Cost of the Collection**  These estimates represent the average annual burden that will be incurred by the affected industry during the three
- ye ar period beginning o n September 30, 201 3 , with a margin for error . (a ) Estimating Respondent Burden. The previous ICR, 2213.0 3 , estimated 213.2 hours and $ 9,920 in labor hours and labor costs and $ 10,519 in startup capital and O&M costs, for a total of $ 20,439 per year for ten estimated respondents , assuming a total of two applications per year . This I CR estimates 17 9.4 labor hours from eight manufacturers. This figure primaril y reflects the following adjustments: we conservatively ask authorization to cover five applications per year, half of which are counted as carry
- over applications (a conservative figure, as the actual figure is quite likely

to be highe r), and because warranty violations have not been reported so far, the labor associated with annual warranty reports is decreased. In addition, the number of manufacturers covered is reduced to 8.- 10 -

This I CR does not include the costs of developing products that comply with the Clean Air Act, onl y the burdens of making the showing to EPA that they do. TSG, which does nearl y all of the contract work, states that it charges under $2,000 for application preparation and submission and under $5,000 for testin g work. Because the facility does a wide variet y of testing, including for these clients, it is difficult to allocate these contracted costs among labor, capital, and O&M. This I CR uses $ 7,500 per application cost for new applications, allocated approxi mately one third to labor and two thirds to the contractor’s remaining O&M costs, following the Regulatory

Impact Analysis and the prior ICR . Carry - over applicat io ns only require labor costs , with no testing (O&M) costs . . (b ) Estimating Respondent Costs. (i ) Estimating Labor Costs Rates for managers, mechanical engineer technicians , and administrative staff are from the May 20 11 National Industry
- Specific Occupational Employ ment and Wage Estimates http://www.bls.gov/oes/current/naics4_326100.htm , accesse d January 8, 2013 ). With a overhead multiplier of 1.6 , these are $ 85.44 , $ 42.37 , and $ 26.26 , respectivel y . Appl ying these figures to the application, warranty, and record keeping labor totals above, the total labor cost is $ 9,116 . (ii) Estimating Capital and Operations and Maintenance Costs Th e prior ICR included a one - time startup cost estimate of $519 per ye ar for ten new manufacturer applicants . The current ICR assumes one new manufacturer with the startup cost allocated proportionately. We assume the same $5,000 in O&M costs, for testing, for 2.5 new applications per ye ar , for a total O&M cost of $12,500 per year for the industry . (c) Estimating Agency Burden and Cost . The program is now in place and the considerable startup efforts are in the past. One hour per application by

a GS 13, Step 10 , EPA employee is estimated for review of the portable fuel container certifications . There are no secretarial or database management costs , as these too small to differentiate from the very much larger Verify

baseline as part of the motor vehicle certification I C. The EPA employee cost is $ 86.96 per certification review . The EPA labor estimate is based on Office of Personnel Management SALARY TABLE 2009 - DET (http://www.opm.gov/oca/09tables/pdf/salhr.pdf ). For five applications per year the estimated annual Agency

burden is $ 434.80 . We anticipate nominal effort in eliciting and reviewing warranty action reports, which to date have included on ly notice of no warrant y actions, estimated at an average of one hour for each of a maximum of 8 report per year for a total of $ 695.68 . The current estimate includes no new hardship and national security exemption determinations. T he agency total is ther efore ten hours and $ 1,130.48 . (d ) Estimating the Respondent Universe and Total Burden and Costs- 11 -

The following assumptions were used to estimate the respondent universe and total burden and costs for industry to compl y with the v arious requirements of the rule.

 The estimated ten manufactures of fuel containers for the domestic market from the prior ICR is reduced to eight . So far seven manufacturers have applied for certificates , one has gone out of the business, and four are currentl y active, with one new entry

expected .  . We conservativel y anticipate 25 applications in the next five years, or five applications a year.
 We conservativel y expect half the applications over the next five years to be carry - over applications requiring no testing. As many as 90 per - cent of applications could be carry
- over, which would reduce the testing O&M costs from those presented in this estimate.

 Manufactures will continue to contract for testing services and most certificate application preparation . (e) Bottom L ine Burden Hours and Cost Tables . (i ) Respondent Tally RESPONDENTS 8 BURDEN HOURS 179.4 LABOR COST $ 9, 116 OPERATI

NG COST $1 2,500 CAPI TALIZED COST $ 52 TOTAL COST $ 23,170 (ii) Agency Tally EMPL OYEES 1 STARTUP $0 LABOR HOURS 13 LABOR COST $ 1,130 (f ) Reasons for Change in Burden . The program is now mature and startup costs have largel y al ready been incurred, except for one new expected entrant. Similarly , at least half of the certification applications are expected to be carry
- ove rs. No warrant y violation report have been received, so warranty report applications are expected to be less time consuming. The number of manufacturers is reduced from ten to eight. These reductions are partiall y offset by an increase from two to five in the number of applications per year covered b y this authorization, to provide a margin of error for fluctuations in the small number of manufacturers and certifications in this industry .- 12 -

(g ) Burden Statement The annual public reporting and recordke eping burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 1 2.64 hours respondent. Burden means the total time, effort, or financial resources expended b y persons to generate, maintain, retain, or disclose or provide information to or for a F ederal agency . This includes the time needed to review instructions; develop, acquire, install, and utilize technology and s ys tems for the purposes of collecting, validating, and verifying information, processing and maintaining information, and disclosin g and providing information; adjust the existing way s to compl y with any previously

applicable instructions and requirements; train personnel to be able to respond to a collection of information; search data sources; complete and review the collection of i nformation; and transmit or otherwise disclose the information. An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currentl y valid OMB control number. The OMB control numbers for EPA's regulations are listed in 40 CFR part 9 and 48 CFR chapter 15. To comment on the Agency 's need for this information, the accuracy of the provided burden estimates, and any suggested methods for minimizing respondent burden, including the use of automated collection techniques, EPA has established a public docket for this I CR under Docket ID No. EPA - HQ - OAR - 20 1 3 - 0018 , which is available for online viewing at www.regulations.gov , or in person viewin g at the Air and Radiation Docket and Information Center Docket in the EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC), EPA West, Room 3334 , 1301 Constitution Ave nue , NW, Washington, DC. The EPA Doc ket Center Public Reading Room is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday thro ugh Friday , excluding legal holiday s. The telephone number for the Reading Room is (202) 566
- 1744, and the telephone number for the Air and Radiation Docket and Information Center is (202) 566
- 1742. An electronic version of the pu blic docket is available at www.regulations.gov . Use this site to submit or view public comments, access the index listing of the contents of the public docket, and to access those documents in the public docket that are available ele ctronically . Once in the sy stem, select “search,” then key in the docket ID number identified above. Also, you can send comments to the Office of Information and Regulatory

Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, 725 17th Street, NW, Washington, DC 205 03, Attention: Desk Office for EPA. Please include the EPA Docket ID No. EPA - HQ OAR - 20 10 - 0 328 and OMB Control Number 2060
- 0597 in an y correspondence.