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[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 232 (Wednesday, December 3, 2014)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 71674-71676]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-28281]

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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 97

[EPA-HQ-OAR-2009-0491; FRL-9919-91-OAR]

Availability of Data on Allocations of Cross-State Air Pollution 
Rule Allowances to Existing Electricity Generating Units

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency.

ACTION: Final rule; notice of data availability (NODA).

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SUMMARY: Through this notice of data availability (NODA), the EPA is 
providing notice of allocations of emission allowances to certain units 
for compliance with the Cross-State Air Pollution Rule (CSAPR). Since 
its original promulgation, CSAPR has been amended in several subsequent 
rulemakings and its compliance deadlines have been tolled by three 
years pursuant to an order of the United States Court of Appeals for 
the District of Columbia Circuit (D.C. Circuit or Court). These 
allowance allocations, which supersede the allocations announced in a 
2011 NODA, reflect the

[[Page 71675]]

changes to CSAPR made in those subsequent rulemakings as well as ``re-
vintaging'' of previously recorded allowances so as to account for the 
impact of tolling of the rule's deadlines. The allocations apply only 
to units that commenced commercial operation before 2010 and only to 
the extent that states do not provide alternative allowance allocations 
following procedures set out in the rule. A spreadsheet containing both 
the allowance allocations and the data upon which the allocations are 
based has been posted on the EPA's Web site.

DATES: December 3, 2014.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions concerning this notice 
should be addressed to Michael Cohen, at (202) 343-9497 or 
cohen.michael@epa.gov; or Robert Miller, at (202) 343-9077 or 
miller.robertl@epa.gov. The mailing address for each of these 
individuals is U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Clean Air Markets 
Division, MC 6204M, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20460.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Data for Which Notice Is Being Provided

    Through this NODA, the EPA is providing notice of the availability 
of unit-specific default allocations of CSAPR allowances for 
electricity generating units (EGUs) that commenced commercial operation 
before 2010. The data are contained in an Excel spreadsheet titled 
``Unit Level Allocations Under the CSAPR FIPs After Tolling'' that has 
been posted on the EPA's Web site at http://www.epa.gov/crossstaterule/actions.html. The spreadsheet contains default allocations of 
allowances under each of the four CSAPR trading programs for individual 
EGUs for each compliance year from 2015 through 2020. The spreadsheet 
also contains the data used to compute the allocations and describes 
how the computations are performed. The EPA is not requesting comment 
on the allocations, underlying data, or computation methodology.
    The EPA notes that an allocation or lack of allocation of emission 
allowances to a given EGU does not constitute a determination that 
CSAPR does or does not apply to the EGU.\1\ The EPA also notes that 
allocations are subject to potential correction under the rule.\2\
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    \1\ See 40 CFR 97.411(a)(1), 97.511(a)(1), 97.611(a)(1), and 
97.711(a)(1).
    \2\ See 40 CFR 97.411(c), 97.511(c), 97.611(c), and 97.711(c).
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II. Description of the Allocations

    CSAPR includes several emissions trading programs that require 
affected EGUs to hold emission allowances sufficient to cover their 
emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOX) and/or sulfur dioxide 
(SO2) in each compliance period. For each trading program 
and compliance period, the rule establishes overall state ``budgets'' 
representing the maximum number of emission allowances that may be 
allocated to the group of affected EGUs in each covered state. 
Beginning with CSAPR's second compliance year, each covered state 
generally has the option to determine how the allowances in its state 
budget for each program should be allocated among the state's EGUs.\3\ 
However, for CSAPR's first compliance year, and by default for 
subsequent compliance years in situations where a state has not 
provided the EPA with the state's own allocations pursuant to an 
approved SIP revision, the allocations are made by the EPA.
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    \3\ See 40 CFR 52.38 and 52.39.
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    In the case of units commencing commercial operation on or after 
January 1, 2010, termed ``new'' units, the EPA's default allocations 
for each compliance year are annually determined during the compliance 
year based on current and prior year emission data, using a methodology 
set out in the regulatory text.\4\ In the case of units that commenced 
commercial operations before January 1, 2010, termed ``existing'' 
units, the EPA determined default allocations for all compliance years 
during the initial rulemaking based on 2006-2010 heat input data and 
2003-2010 emissions data, according to a methodology finalized in the 
rulemaking but not included in the regulatory text.\5\ The regulatory 
text calls for default allocations to the existing units to be provided 
in a NODA.\6\ In July 2011, the EPA issued a NODA reflecting the 
default allocations for existing units as determined in the original 
CSAPR rulemaking.\7\
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    \4\ See 40 CFR 97.412, 97.512, 97.612, and 97.712.
    \5\ See 76 FR 48208, 48288-90 (August 8, 2011).
    \6\ See 40 CFR 97.411(a)(1), 97.511(a)(1), 97.611(a)(1), and 
97.711(a)(1).
    \7\ 76 FR 42055 (July 18, 2011).
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    In three rulemakings finalized after the original CSAPR rulemaking, 
the EPA created budgets for several states added to the rule's ozone-
season NOX trading program, increased some previously 
established state budgets, and changed the shares of some state budgets 
set aside for new units.\8\ In one of those rulemakings, the EPA also 
revised unit-specific allowance allocations in some states in order to 
account for emissions tonnage limitations established under certain 
consent decrees.\9\
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    \8\ See 76 FR 48208 (August 8, 2011) (the original CSAPR final 
rule); 76 FR 80760 (December 27, 2011) (the ``Supplemental Rule''); 
77 FR 10324 (February 21, 2012) (the ``First Revisions Rule''); 77 
FR 34830 (June 12, 2012) (the ``Second Revisions Rule'').
    \9\ The consent decree tonnage limitations had already been 
considered for purposes of setting the CSAPR state budgets but had 
not previously been accounted for in setting unit-specific allowance 
allocations in states with EGUs affected by those limitations. See 
77 FR at 10329-30.
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    As originally promulgated, compliance with CSAPR's trading programs 
was scheduled to begin on January 1, 2012. However, on December 30, 
2011, the D.C. Circuit stayed the rule. On October 23, 2014, the Court 
granted the EPA's motion to lift the stay and toll the rule's 
compliance deadlines by three years, allowing the first compliance 
period to begin on January 1, 2015.\10\
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    \10\ Order, Document #1518738, EME Homer City Generation, L.P. 
v. EPA, No. 11-1302 (D.C. Cir. issued Oct. 23, 2014).
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    The allowance allocations described in this NODA reflect all the 
budget, set-aside, and unit-specific allocation changes finalized in 
the rulemakings conducted after the original CSAPR rulemaking. The 
allocations also account for the impact of the tolling of the rule's 
compliance deadlines by re-vintaging previously recorded 2012 and 2013 
allowances as 2015 and 2016 allowances, respectively.

III. Recordation of the Allocations

    CSAPR specifies deadlines for the EPA to record allowance 
allocations for each compliance year.\11\ In cases where those 
deadlines, as tolled by the Court's order, have not yet passed, and 
where states have not submitted alternative allowance allocations 
pursuant to approved SIP revisions, the EPA will record the allocations 
described in this NODA by the applicable recordation deadlines.
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    \11\ See 40 CFR 97.421, 97.521, 97.621, and 97.721. With respect 
to recordation of allowance allocations for the additional state 
budgets established in the Supplemental Rule, CSAPR as amended 
includes separate, specific recordation deadlines. See 76 FR 80760 
(December 27, 2011); 40 CFR 97.521(a) and (b). However, with respect 
to recordation of allocation changes resulting from the two 
Revisions Rules, see 77 FR 10324 (February 21, 2012); 77 FR 34830 
(June 12, 2012), or re-vintaging of previously recorded allowances 
to account for tolling of the rule's compliance deadlines, CSAPR as 
amended does not include specific recordation deadlines.
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    To meet recordation deadlines that occurred before CSAPR was 
stayed, the EPA has already recorded most allowances allocated for 
CSAPR's first compliance year (originally 2012 and now 2015), and some 
allowances allocated for CSAPR's second

[[Page 71676]]

compliance year (originally 2013 and now 2016). In these cases, the EPA 
will re-vintage the previously recorded 2012 and 2013 allowances into 
2015 and 2016 allowances, respectively, consistent with the Court's 
order tolling CSAPR's compliance deadlines. The EPA will then record 
adjustments as needed to bring the re-vintaged, previously recorded 
allocations up to the 2015 and 2016 allocations described in this NODA. 
Allowance tracking system accounts will be briefly frozen while the re-
vintaging and adjustments are carried out.

List of Subjects

40 CFR Part 97

    Environmental protection, Administrative practice and procedure, 
Air pollution control, Electric power plants, Nitrogen oxides, 
Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Sulfur dioxide.

    Dated: November 21, 2014.
Reid P. Harvey,
Director, Clean Air Markets Division.
[FR Doc. 2014-28281 Filed 12-2-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
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