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TAC Chapter 117. These nonsubstantive revisions do not affect the 

emission use calculations established 

for the ERC Program. 

IV. Final Action 

EPA is proposing to approve severable 

revisions to the Texas SIP submitted on 

October 24, 2006, and August 16, 2007. 

Specifically from the October 24, 2006 

submittal, EPA is approving the 

amendments to section 101.302(a) and 

(f) that move the international emission 

reduction requirements to a new 

section, the amendments to section 

101.302(d)(1)(C)(vi) that clarify EPA’s 

role in approving emission 

quantification protocols, and the 

amendment to section 101.306(a)(5) that 

updates the approved uses for ERCs to 

include the HECT. EPA is also 

proposing to approve provisions for 

international emission reductions at 

new section 101.305 submitted on 

October 24, 2006. Additionally, we are 

proposing to approve the following 

nonsubstantive revisions to the Texas 

SIP submitted on August 16, 2007: 

revisions to sections 101.302(d)(1)(A) 

and 101.306(b)(3) to update the crossreferences to recently recodified 

provisions in 30 TAC Chapter 117. 

In a separate rulemaking, EPA is 

proposing action on the severable DERC 

Program revisions at 30 TAC sections 

101.372, 101.373, 101.375, 101.376, and 

101.378 submitted on October 24, 2006, 

and 30 TAC sections 101.372 and 

101.376 submitted on August 16, 2007 

(see EPA–R06–OAR–2010–0418). 

At this time, EPA is not taking action 

on the revisions to the Emissions 

Banking and Trading of Allowances 

Program at 30 TAC sections 101.338 and 

101.339 submitted on October 24, 2006. 

EPA is also not taking action at this time 

on the revisions to the general air 

quality definitions at 30 TAC Section 

101.1 or the revisions to the System Cap 

Trading Program at 30 TAC sections 

101.383, and 101.385 submitted on 

August 16, 2007. These severable 

revisions remain under review by EPA 

and will be addressed in separate 

actions. 

V. Statutory and Executive Order 

Reviews 

Under the Clean Air Act, the 

Administrator is required to approve a 

SIP submission that complies with the 

provisions of the Act and applicable 

Federal regulations. 42 U.S.C. 7410(k); 

40 CFR 52.02(a). Thus, in reviewing SIP 

submissions, EPA’s role is to approve 

State choices, provided that they meet 

the criteria of the Clean Air Act. 

Accordingly, this action merely 

approves State law as meeting Federal 

requirements and does not impose 

additional requirements beyond those 

imposed by State law. For that reason, 

this action: 

• Is not a ‘‘significant regulatory 

action’’ subject to review by the Office 

of Management and Budget under 

Executive Order 12866 (58 FR 51735, 

October 4, 1993); 

• Does not impose an information 

collection burden under the provisions 

of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 

U.S.C. 3501 et seq.); 

• Is certified as not having a 

significant economic impact on a 

substantial number of small entities 

under the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 

U.S.C. 601 et seq.); 

• Does not contain any unfunded 

mandate or significantly or uniquely 

affect small governments, as described 

in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act 

of 1995 (Pub. L. 104–4); 

• Does not have Federalism 

implications as specified in Executive 

Order 13132 (64 FR 43255, August 10, 

1999); 

• Is not an economically significant 

regulatory action based on health or 

safety risks subject to Executive Order 

13045 (62 FR 19885, April 23, 1997); 

• Is not a significant regulatory action 

subject to Executive Order 13211 (66 FR 

28355, May 22, 2001); 

• Is not subject to requirements of 

Section 12(d) of the National 

Technology Transfer and Advancement 

Act of 1995 (15 U.S.C. 272 note) because 

application of those requirements would 

be inconsistent with the Clean Air Act; 

and 

• Does not provide EPA with the 

discretionary authority to address, as 

appropriate, disproportionate human 

health or environmental effects, using 

practicable and legally permissible 

methods, under Executive Order 12898 

(59 FR 7629, February 16, 1994). 

In addition, this rule does not have 

Tribal implications as specified by 

Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, 

November 9, 2000), because the SIP is 

not approved to apply in Indian country 

located in the State, and EPA notes that 

it will not impose substantial direct 

costs on Tribal governments or preempt 

Tribal law. 

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52 

Environmental protection, Air 

pollution control, Intergovernmental 

relations, Nitrogen oxides, Ozone, 

Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements, Volatile organic 

compounds. 

Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq. 

Dated: March 18, 2010. 

Lawrence E. Starfied, 

Acting Regional Administrator, Region 6. 

[FR Doc. 2010–6800 Filed 3–29–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

40 CFR Part 52 

[EPA–R06–OAR–2010–0148; FRL–9130–5] 

Approval and Promulgation of Air 

Quality Implementation Plans; Texas; 

Revisions to the Discrete Emission 

Credit Banking and Trading Program 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Proposed rule. 

SUMMARY: EPA is proposing to approve 

severable portions of two revisions to 

the Texas State Implementation Plan 

(SIP) submitted by the State of Texas on 

October 24, 2006, and August 16, 2007. 

These revisions amend existing sections 

and create a new section in Title 30 of 

the Texas Administrative Code (TAC), 

Chapter 101—General Air Quality 

Rules, Subchapter H—Emissions 

Banking and Trading, Division 4— 

Discrete Emission Credit Banking and 

Trading, referred to elsewhere in this 

notice as the Discrete Emission 

Reduction Credit (DERC) Program. The 

October 24, 2006, submittal creates a 

new section for international emission 

reduction provisions and amends 

existing sections to prohibit the 

generation and use of DERCs from 

shutdown activities and further clarify 

procedures for using emission protocols. 

The August 16, 2007, submittal amends 

two sections of the DERC program to 

update cross-references to recently 

recodified 30 TAC Chapter 117 

provisions. Additionally, EPA is 

proposing to find that the Texas 

Commission on Environmental Quality 

(TCEQ) has satisfied all elements of our 

September 6, 2006, final conditional 

approval of the DERC program with the 

submittal of the October 24, 2006, SIP 

submittal; and as such, the DERC 

program conditional approval is 

proposed for full approval. EPA has 

determined that these SIP revisions 

comply with the Clean Air Act and EPA 

regulations, are consistent with EPA 

policies, and will improve air quality. 

This action is being taken under section 

110 and parts C and D of the Federal 

Clean Air Act (the Act or CAA). 

DATES: Comments must be received on 

or before April 29, 2010. 

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, 

identified by Docket ID No. EPA–R06– 

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1 In this action, when we refer to the program as 

the ‘‘DERC Rule’’ or the ‘‘DERC Program’’ we are 

speaking of the entire Discrete Emission Credit 

Banking and Trading Program, which encompasses 

both DERCs and MDERCs. 

2Today’s action proposes to find that the TCEQ 

has satisfied all conditions of the September 6, 2006 

final DERC conditional approval. See 71 FR 52703. 

This action is separate from, and unrelated to, the 

Dallas/Fort Worth 1997 8-hour Ozone Attainment 

Demonstration conditional approval finalized by 

EPA on January 14, 2009, at 74 FR 1903. 

OAR–2010–0148, by one of the 

following methods: 

(1) http://www.regulations.gov: 

Follow the on-line instructions for 

submitting comments. 

(2) E-mail: Mr. Jeff Robinson at 

robinson.jeffrey@epa.gov. Please also cc 

the person listed in the FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT paragraph below. 

(3) U.S. EPA Region 6 ‘‘Contact Us’’ 

Web site: http://epa.gov/region6/ 

r6coment.htm. Please click on ‘‘6PD’’ 

(Multimedia) and select ‘‘Air’’ before 

submitting comments. 

(4) Fax: Mr. Jeff Robinson, Chief, Air 

Permits Section (6PD–R), at fax number 

214–665–6762. 

(5) Mail: Mr. Jeff Robinson, Chief, Air 

Permits Section (6PD–R), Environmental 

Protection Agency, 1445 Ross Avenue, 

Suite 1200, Dallas, Texas 75202–2733. 

(6) Hand or Courier Delivery: Mr. Jeff 

Robinson, Chief, Air Permits Section 

(6PD–R), Environmental Protection 

Agency, 1445 Ross Avenue, Suite 1200, 

Dallas, Texas 75202–2733. Such 

deliveries are accepted only between the 

hours of 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. 

weekdays except for legal holidays. 

Special arrangements should be made 

for deliveries of boxed information. 

Instructions: Direct your comments to 

Docket ID No. EPA–R06–OAR–2010– 

0148. 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 

the disclosure of which is restricted by 

statute. Do not submit information 

through http://www.regulations.gov or 

e-mail, if you believe that it is CBI or 

otherwise protected from disclosure. 

The http://www.regulations.gov Web 

site is an ‘‘anonymous access’’ system, 

which means that EPA will not know 

your identity or contact information 

unless you provide it in the body of 

your comment. If you send an e-mail 

comment directly to EPA without going 

through http://www.regulations.gov, 

your e-mail 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 along with any disk or CD– 

ROM submitted. 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 and any form of encryption 

and should be free of any defects or 

viruses. For additional information 

about EPA’s public docket, visit the EPA 

Docket Center homepage at http:// 

www.epa.gov/epahome/dockets.htm. 

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 the disclosure of which 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 

the Air Permits Section (6PD–R), 

Environmental Protection Agency, 1445 

Ross Avenue, Suite 700, Dallas, Texas 

75202–2733. The file will be made 

available by appointment for public 

inspection in the Region 6 FOIA Review 

Room between the hours of 8:30 a.m. 

and 4:30 p.m. weekdays except for legal 

holidays. Contact the person listed in 

the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT

paragraph below to make an 

appointment. If possible, please make 

the appointment at least two working 

days in advance of your visit. A 15 cent 

per page fee will be charged for making 

photocopies of documents. On the day 

of the visit, please check in at the EPA 

Region 6 reception area on the seventh 

floor at 1445 Ross Avenue, Suite 700, 

Dallas, Texas. 

The State submittal related to this SIP 

revision, and which is part of the EPA 

docket, is also available for public 

inspection at the State Air Agency listed 

below during official business hours by 

appointment: 

Texas Commission on Environmental 

Quality, Office of Air Quality, 12124 

Park 35 Circle, Austin, Texas 78753. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If 

you have questions concerning today’s 

proposed rule, please contact Ms. Adina 

Wiley (6PD–R), Air Permits Section, 

Environmental Protection Agency, 

Region 6, 1445 Ross Avenue (6PD–R), 

Suite 1200, Dallas, TX 75202–2733. The 

telephone number is (214) 665–2115. 

Ms. Wiley can also be reached via 

electronic mail at wiley.adina@epa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Throughout this document wherever, 

any reference to ‘‘we,’’ ‘‘us,’’ or ‘‘our’’ is 

used, we mean EPA. 

Table of Contents 

I. What Action Is EPA Taking? 

II. What Did Texas Submit? 

III. What Is EPA’s Evaluation of These SIP 

Revisions? 

IV. What Is EPA’s Evaluation of the TCEQ’s 

Response to the DERC Conditional 

Approval? 

V. Final Action 

VI. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews 

I. What Action Is EPA Taking? 

We are proposing to approve 

severable portions of two revisions to 

the Texas SIP submitted by the TCEQ on 

October 24, 2006 and August 16, 2007, 

specific to the DERC Program. The 

DERC Program, conditionally approved 

by EPA on September 6, 2006, 

establishes an open market trading 

program to provide flexibility for 

sources in complying with certain State 

and Federal requirements. In an open 

market trading program, a source 

generates emission credits by reducing 

its emissions during a discrete period of 

time. These credits, called discrete 

emission credits, or DECs, in the Texas 

program, are quantified in units of mass. 

Discrete emission credit (DEC) is a 

generic term that encompasses 

reductions from stationary sources 

(discrete emission reduction credits, or 

DERCs) and reductions from mobile 

sources (mobile discrete emission 

reduction credits, or MDERCs).1 The 

revisions we are proposing to approve 

amend existing sections and create a 

new section in the DERC Program at 

Title 30 of the Texas Administrative 

Code (TAC), Chapter 101—General Air 

Quality Rules, Subchapter H— 

Emissions Banking and Trading, 

Division 4—Discrete Emission Credit 

Banking and Trading. The October 24, 

2006 submittal creates a new section for 

international emission reduction 

provisions and amends existing sections 

to prohibit the generation and use of 

DERCs from shutdown activities and 

further clarifies procedures for using 

emission protocols. Additionally, EPA 

is proposing to find that the TCEQ has 

satisfied all elements of our September 

6, 2006 final conditional approval of the 

DERC program with the submittal of the 

October 24, 2006 SIP submittal; and as 

such, the DERC program conditional 

approval is proposed for full approval.2

The severable portions of the August 16, 

2007 submittal that we are proposing to 

approve non-substantively revise the 

DERC Program to correctly update the 

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cross-references to the stationary source 

nitrogen oxide (NOX) rules found in the 

Texas SIP at 30 TAC Chapter 117 as a 

result of the non-substantive 

recodification of Chapter 117 approved 

by EPA as part of the Texas SIP on 

December 3, 2008 (see 73 FR 73562). 

Additionally, in both the October 24, 

2006 and August 16, 2007 SIP 

submittals TCEQ has made several nonsubstantive revisions to update grammar 

and document style. Consequently, we 

are proposing to approve the revisions 

to the Texas SIP at 30 TAC sections 

101.372(a), 101.372(d), 101.372(f), 

101.372(j), 101.373(a), 101.376(c)(4), 

and 101.378(b) and the creation of new 

section 101.375 submitted on October 

24, 2006. Additionally, we are 

proposing to approve revisions to the 

Texas SIP at 30 TAC sections 101.372(d) 

and 101.376(d) submitted on August 16, 

2007 by the TCEQ. 

II. What Did Texas Submit? 

We are proposing to approve 

severable portions of two revisions to 

the Texas SIP specific to the DERC 

Program. The first revision we are 

proposing action on was adopted by the 

TCEQ on October 4, 2006, and 

submitted to EPA on October 24, 2006. 

At the same time that TCEQ adopted 

and submitted revisions to the DERC 

Program, revisions were also adopted 

and submitted for the Emission Credit 

Banking and Trading Program (referred 

to elsewhere in this notice as the 

Emission Reduction Credit (ERC) 

Program) and the Emissions Banking 

and Trading of Allowances (EBTA) 

Program. The revisions to the ERC and 

EBTA Programs are specific to separate, 

distinct trading programs and, as such, 

are severable from the DERC Program 

revisions. We are not proposing to act 

upon the severable revisions to the ERC 

Program at 30 TAC Chapter 101, 

Subchapter H, Division 1, sections 

101.302, 101.305, and 101.306. EPA is 

processing a separate rulemaking to 

address the 2006 and 2007 ERC Program 

revisions (see EPA–R06–OAR–2010– 

0417). EPA has not yet taken action on 

the EBTA Program at 30 TAC Chapter 

101, Subchapter H, Division 2 and 

therefore is not proposing action today 

on the repeal and replacement of section 

101.338 and the revisions to section 

101.339. The second revision upon 

which we are proposing action was 

adopted by the TCEQ on July 25, 2007, 

and submitted to EPA on August 16, 

2007. Also at this time TCEQ adopted 

and submitted revisions to the general 

air quality definitions, the ERC Program, 

and the System Cap Trading (SCT) 

Program. We are not acting today upon 

revisions to the general air quality 

definitions at 30 TAC Chapter 101, 

Subchapter A, section 101.1 because the 

DERC Program does not rely upon them 

(therefore the revisions are severable 

from the DERC Program) and previous 

revisions to section 101.1 are still 

pending for review by EPA. We are also 

not acting today upon the revisions to 

the ERC Program at 30 TAC Chapter 

101, Subchapter H, Division 1, sections 

101.302 and 101.306 because these 

revisions are severable from the DERC 

program and the October 24, 2006 SIP 

revision is still under EPA review. EPA 

intends to take a separate rulemaking 

action to address the 2006 and 2007 

ERC Program revisions (see EPA–R06– 

OAR–2010–0417). EPA has not yet 

taken action on the System Cap Trading 

Program at 30 TAC Chapter 101, 

Subchapter H, Division 5 and therefore 

is not acting today upon the severable 

revisions to sections 101.383 and 

101.385. 

A copy of the October 24, 2006 and 

August 16, 2007 SIP submittals as well 

as our Technical Support Document 

(TSD) can be obtained from the Docket, 

as discussed in the ‘‘Docket’’ section 

above. A discussion of the specific 

Texas rule changes that we are 

approving is included in the TSD and 

summarized below. 

A. October 24, 2006 SIP Submittal 

1. 30 TAC Chapter 101, Subchapter H, 

Division 4, Section 101.372—General 

Provisions 

The existing SIP-approved version of 

section 101.372 was adopted by the 

TCEQ on December 13, 2002, and 

conditionally approved by EPA on 

September 6, 2006 (see 71 FR 52703). 

The revisions to section 101.372(a) and 

(f) adopted by the TCEQ on October 4, 

2006, delete the information pertaining 

to international emission reductions and 

move these provisions to new section 

101.375. Additionally, section 

101.372(d)(1)(C)(vi) is revised to clarify 

EPA’s approval process of the 

quantification protocols for the DERC 

Program. Several non-substantive 

revisions for grammar and style were 

also made by the TCEQ in this 

submittal. 

2. 30 TAC Chapter 101, Subchapter H, 

Division 4, Section 101.373—Discrete 

Emission Reduction Credit Generation 

and Certification 

The existing SIP-approved version of 

section 101.373 was adopted by the 

TCEQ on November 10, 2004, and 

conditionally approved by EPA on 

September 6, 2006 (see 71 FR 52703). 

The revisions to section 101.373(a) 

prohibit the generation of DERCs from 

shutdown activities; specifically, 

section 101.373(a)(1) is amended to 

delete permanent shutdowns as a 

method of generating DERCs and section 

101.373(a)(2) is amended to update the 

prohibited generation strategy list to 

include permanent shutdowns. 

3. 30 TAC Chapter 101, Subchapter H, 

Division 4, Section 101.375—Emission 

Reductions Achieved Outside the 

United States 

On October 4, 2006, TCEQ adopted 

new section 101.375. This new section 

contains the previously SIP-approved 

international emission reduction 

provisions from sections 101.372(a) and 

(f) and updates the international 

provisions consistent with the 

requirements of Texas Senate Bill 784. 

4. 30 TAC Chapter 101, Subchapter H, 

Division 4, Section 101.376—Discrete 

Emission Credit Use 

The existing SIP-approved version of 

section 101.376 was adopted by the 

TCEQ on November 10, 2004, and 

conditionally approved by EPA on 

September 6, 2006 (see 71 FR 52703). 

The proposed SIP revision adopted by 

the TCEQ on October 4, 2006, amends 

section 101.376(c)(4) to update crossreferences to 30 TAC Chapter 106 in the 

list of prohibited DEC use strategies. 

5. 30 TAC Chapter 101, Subchapter H, 

Division 4, Section 101.378—Discrete 

Emission Credit Banking and Trading 

The existing SIP-approved version of 

section 101.378 was adopted by the 

TCEQ on December 13, 2002, and 

conditionally approved by EPA on 

September 6, 2006 (see 71 FR 52703). 

The revisions to section 101.378(b) 

revise the lifetime of a discrete emission 

credit to prohibit the use of discrete 

emission credits generated from 

shutdowns; specifically, section 

101.378(b)(1) states that discrete 

emission credits generated from 

shutdowns prior to September 30, 2002, 

will be available for use until September 

8, 2010, and section 101.378(b)(2) 

prohibits the use of shutdown discrete 

emission credits generated after 

September 30, 2002. 

B. August 16, 2007 SIP Submittal 

1. 30 TAC Chapter 101, Subchapter H, 

Division 4, Section 101.372—General 

Provisions 

The revisions to section 101.372 

adopted by the TCEQ on July 25, 2007, 

further revise the revisions adopted by 

the TCEQ on October 4, 2002. The 2007 

revisions non-substantively amend 

section 101.372(d)(1)(A) to correctly 

cross-reference the recodified stationary 

source nitrogen oxide (NOX) rules to the 

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Texas SIP at 30 TAC Chapter 117. 

Additionally, section 101.372(d)(1)(B) 

was non-substantively amended to 

include the correct title for the 

stationary source volatile organic 

compound rules to the Texas SIP at 30 

TAC Chapter 115. 

2. 30 TAC Chapter 101, Subchapter H, 

Division 4, Section 101.376—Discrete 

Emission Credit Use 

The revisions to section 101.376 

adopted by the TCEQ on July 25, 2007, 

further revise the revisions adopted by 

the TCEQ on October 4, 2002. The 2007 

revisions non-substantively amend 

section 101.376(d)(2)(A) to correctly 

cross-reference the recodified stationary 

source NOX rules to the Texas SIP at 30 

TAC Chapter 117. 

III. What Is EPA’s Evaluation of These 

SIP Revisions? 

A. October 24, 2006 SIP Submittal 

1. 30 TAC Chapter 101, Subchapter H, 

Division 1, Section 101.302—General 

Provisions 

The October 4, 2006, revisions to 

sections 101.372(a), 101.372(d), 

101.372(f) and 101.372(j) are 

approvable. Sections 101.372(a) and 

101.372(f) were revised to delete the 

information pertaining to international 

emission reductions and relocate these 

provisions to new section 101.375. This 

consolidation of the international 

emission reduction provisions improves 

the clarity of the DERC Program by 

creating a new section specific to 

international emission reductions. 

Section 101.372(d)(1)(C)(vi) was revised 

to clarify EPA’s role in the approval of 

emission quantification protocols. 

While the previous SIP-approved 

provisions were accurate and consistent 

with EPA’s Economic Incentive Program 

(EIP) Guidance (‘‘Improving Air Quality 

with Economic Incentive Programs’’ 

(EPA–452/R–01–001, January 2001)), 

the revised language has been 

restructured to more closely follow the 

provisions for approving emission 

quantification protocols at section 5.2(c) 

of the EIP Guidance. The nonsubstantive revisions to sections 

101.372(d)(1)(C)(iv) and 101.372(j) 

update the formatting and grammar of 

the DERC General Provisions. 

The revisions to section 101.372 

described above were made pursuant to 

TCEQ’s September 8, 2005, commitment 

letter for the DERC Program conditional 

approval (included in the docket for this 

action). In this commitment letter, 

TCEQ committed to revising, among 

others things, section 101.372 to more 

clearly require EPA approval for 

international emission reduction 

transactions and to clarify the EPA’s 

role in approving emission 

quantification protocols. Please see 

section IV. of this notice for a discussion 

of how the TCEQ has addressed the 

elements of DERC conditional approval 

and the September 8, 2005, commitment 

letter. 

2. 30 TAC Chapter 101, Subchapter H, 

Division 4, Section 101.373—Discrete 

Emission Reduction Credit Generation 

and Certification 

The October 4, 2006, revisions to 

sections 101.373(a)(1) and 101.373(a)(2) 

are approvable. The revisions to section 

101.373(a)(1) and (a)(2) amend the 

allowable and prohibited generation 

strategy lists to reflect that permanent 

shutdowns are a prohibited DERC 

generation strategy. These amendments 

are consistent with the Open-Market 

Trading provisions at section 7.5(b) of 

the EIP Guidance. 

The revisions to section 101.373 

described above were made pursuant to 

TCEQ’s September 8, 2005, commitment 

letter for the DERC Program conditional 

approval (included in the docket for this 

action). In this commitment letter, 

TCEQ committed to revising the DERC 

program to prohibit the future 

generation of DERCs from shutdowns. 

Please see section IV. of this notice for 

a discussion of how the TCEQ has 

addressed the elements of DERC 

conditional approval and the September 

8, 2005, commitment letter. 

3. 30 TAC Chapter 101, Subchapter H, 

Division 4, Section 101.375—Emission 

Reductions Achieved Outside the 

United States 

New section 101.375 adopted on 

October 4, 2006, is approvable. EPA 

finds that in addition to relocating the 

SIP-approved international emission 

reduction language from section 

101.372, new section 101.375 has 

expanded the scope of our original 

DERC program approval to allow the use 

of international reductions in lieu of 

DERCs to occur in attainment areas 

within 100-km of the Texas-Mexico 

border, consistent with the requirements 

of Texas Senate Bill 784. However, the 

continued requirement at section 

101.375 for EPA approval before any 

such use is consistent with the intent of 

our DERC program conditional approval 

on September 6, 2006. EPA approval 

continues to be through a case-specific 

SIP revision that must clearly 

demonstrate through a detailed CAA 

section 110(l) analysis that the use of 

such international reductions will not 

jeopardize attainment or maintenance of 

the National Ambient Air Quality 

Standards or any other applicable 

standards. As noted in our September 6, 

2006, final conditional approval of the 

DERC Program ‘‘* * * international 

trades present an especially difficult 

case. For instance, currently there is no 

mechanism for demonstrating that 

reductions made in another country are 

surplus or enforceable. Nonetheless, 

emission reductions in other countries 

could offer substantial air quality 

benefits in the United States.’’ See 71 FR 

52703, 52705. In approving this revision 

to the DERC program, ‘‘EPA is 

recognizing the concept of international 

trading and describing a framework (i.e., 

the submission of a SIP revision 

demonstrating among other things the 

validity and enforceability of foreign 

reductions) for such trading, in the 

event that a suitable and approvable 

mechanism is ever developed for 

resolving concerns including 

enforceability and surplus. Until such a 

mechanism is developed and approved 

by EPA, however, EPA will not approve 

international trades under the DERC 

rule.’’ See 71 FR 52703, 52705. Further, 

it is important to note, that even though 

we are approving the use of 

international reductions in lieu of 

DERCs along the Texas-Mexico border, 

the use of these reductions must still 

meet the requirements of the CAA. 

Therefore, the international reductions 

are not available for use as Federal NSR 

offsets since section 173(c)(1) of the 

CAA requires that offset reductions 

come from the same nonattainment area 

as the proposed source or modification 

or another nonattainment area with an 

equal or higher nonattainment 

classification. 

4. 30 TAC Chapter 101, Subchapter H, 

Division 4, Section 101.376—Discrete 

Emission Credit Use 

The October 4, 2006, revisions to 

section 101.376(c)(4) are approvable. 

TCEQ correctly updated the crossreferences to Chapter 106 in response to 

our final conditional approval notice. In 

our final notice we stated that ‘‘We are 

not approving section 101.376(c)(4) into 

the Texas SIP because the crossreferences to 30 TAC Chapter 106 

Permit by Rule, sections 106.261(3) or 

(4) or section 106.262(3) are incorrect 

and do not exist in State law, the Texas 

SIP, or the Texas Federal Operating 

Permits program. Consequently, unless 

and until the State adopts and submits 

a revision to EPA for approval as a SIP 

revision and EPA approves it, the use of 

discrete emission credits to exceed the 

provisions in certain types of preconstruction permits termed Permits by 

Rule is not available under the Texas 

SIP.’’ 

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While EPA has not approved sections 

106.261 and 106.262 into the Texas SIP, 

we are able to approve the revisions to 

section 101.376(c)(4). By approving the 

revisions to section 101.376(c)(4) we are 

not approving a use of DERCs that 

conflicts with the Texas SIP, rather we 

are approving a listed prohibition of 

DERC usage that would further support 

the Texas SIP. Additionally, if an owner 

or operator of a facility wished to use 

DERCs in a manner that exceeded 

limitations from sections 106.261 or 

106.262, the use would have to be 

approved by TCEQ and EPA; EPA 

anticipates our approval would only 

occur through a case-specific SIP 

revision following a demonstration from 

the owner/operator that useage of 

DERCs in this manner would not 

undermine the attainment strategy of 

the area or constitute a violation of CAA 

section 110(l). 

5. 30 TAC Chapter 101, Subchapter H, 

Division 4, Section 101.378—Discrete 

Emission Credit Banking and Trading 

The October 4, 2006, revisions to 

section 101.378 are approvable. The 

revisions to section 101.378(b)(1) and 

(b)(2) limit the lifetime of certain 

discrete emission credits generated from 

shutdowns. Discrete emission credits 

generated from shutdowns prior to 

September 30, 2002, remain available 

for use until September 8, 2010. Any 

discrete emission credits certified from 

shutdowns after September 30, 2002, 

may not be used. These amendments are 

consistent with the Open-Market 

Trading provisions at section 7.5(b) of 

the EIP Guidance. 

The revisions to section 101.378 

described above were made pursuant to 

TCEQ’s September 8, 2005 commitment 

letter for the DERC Program conditional 

approval (included in the docket for this 

action). In this commitment letter, 

TCEQ committed to revising the DERC 

program to restrict the lifetime of 

previously generated shutdown DERCs. 

Please see section IV. of this notice for 

a discussion of how the TCEQ has 

addressed the elements of DERC 

conditional approval and the September 

8, 2005 commitment letter. 

B. August 16, 2007 SIP Submittal 

1. 30 TAC Chapter 101, Subchapter H, 

Division 4, Section 101.372—General 

Provisions 

The July 25, 2007 revisions to section 

101.372(d)(1)(A) and (B) are approvable. 

As demonstrated further in our TSD, the 

non-substantive revisions to section 

101.372(d)(1)(A) correctly crossreference the recodified stationary 

source NOX rules in the Texas SIP at 30 

TAC Chapter 117. The non-substantive 

revisions to section 101.372(d)(1)(B) 

correctly update the titles of the 

stationary source VOC rules in the 

Texas SIP at 30 TAC Chapter 115. These 

non-substantive revisions do not affect 

the approved emission quantification 

protocols established for the DERC 

Program. 

2. 30 TAC Chapter 101, Subchapter H, 

Division 1, Section 101.376—Discrete 

Emission Credit Use 

The July 25, 2007 revisions to section 

101.376(d)(2)(A) are approvable. As 

demonstrated further in our TSD, these 

non-substantive revisions correctly 

cross-reference the recodified stationary 

source NOX rules in the Texas SIP at 30 

TAC Chapter 117. These nonsubstantive revisions do not affect the 

emission use calculations established 

for the DERC Program. 

IV. What Is EPA’s Evaluation of the 

TCEQ’s Response to the DERC 

Conditional Approval? 

A. What is a conditional approval? 

Under section 110(k)(4) of the Clean 

Air Act, EPA may conditionally approve 

a plan based on a commitment from the 

State to adopt specific enforceable 

measures within one year from the date 

of approval. The conditional approval 

remains in effect until EPA takes its 

final action—either a final approval or 

disapproval. 

If EPA determines that the revised 

rule is approvable, EPA will propose 

approval of the rule through a notice 

and comment rulemaking. After 

responding to comments received, EPA 

will publish a final approval of the rule 

and the conditional approval is no 

longer in effect. However, if the State 

fails to meet its commitment within the 

one year period, then EPA must proceed 

with a disapproval action. EPA will 

propose disapproval of the rule through 

notice and comment rulemaking, and 

will finalize the disapproval after 

responding to all comments received. 

Note that EPA will conditionally 

approve a certain rule only once. 

Subsequent submittals of the same rule 

that attempt to correct the same 

specifically identified problems will not 

be eligible for conditional approval. 

B. What are the terms of the DERC 

program conditional approval? 

EPA conditionally approved the 

DERC program on September 6, 2006. 

Our conditional approval was based on 

a commitment letter submitted by the 

TCEQ on September 8, 2005. The 

September 8, 2005 commitment letter 

included the following provisions that 

the TCEQ agreed to address by 

December 1, 2006. Additionally, TCEQ 

agreed to comply with these 

commitments during the conditional 

approval period. Specifically, TCEQ 

agreed to not approve any trades 

involving the types of reductions 

described in item (3) below, not approve 

any use of discrete shutdown credits 

that were generated after September 30, 

2002, and to require the waiver 

described in item (4) below for 

generators and users of discrete 

emission credits. 

1. Revise 30 TAC § 101.373 to prohibit 

the future generation of DERCs from 

permanent shutdowns and to allow 

DERCs generated and banked from 

permanent shutdowns prior to 

September 30, 2002 to remain available 

for use for no more than five years from 

the date of this letter. 

2. The TCEQ will perform a credit 

audit to remove from the emissions 

bank all DERCs generated from 

permanent shutdowns after September 

30, 2002. Even if the shutdown itself 

occurred before September 30, 2002, no 

DERCs can be generated from that event 

after September 30, 2002. 

3. Revise 30 TAC §§ 101.302(f), 

101.372(f)(7) and 101.372(f)(8) to clarify 

that EPA approval is required for 

individual transactions involving 

emission reductions generated in 

another state or nation, as well as those 

transactions from one nonattainment 

area to another, or from attainment 

counties into nonattainment areas. The 

TCEQ further understands that the EPA 

would require a state implementation 

plan revision prior to approving a 

transaction between another state or 

nation, as well as, those transactions 

between counties not located within the 

same nonattainment area. 

4. The TCEQ will revise Form DEC– 

1, Notice of Generation and Generator 

Certification of Discrete Emission 

Credits; Form MDEC–1, Notice of 

Generation and Generator Certification 

of Mobile Discrete Emission Credits; 

and Form DEC–2, Notice of Intent to 

Use Discrete Emission Credits, to 

include a waiver to the Federal statute 

of limitations defense for generators, 

and users of DERCs and mobile discrete 

emission reduction credits (MDERCs). 

Please be reminded that there is 

currently no applicable state statute of 

limitations in the State of Texas. In 

addition, the TCEQ will maintain its 

current policy of preserving all records 

relating to DERC and MDERC generation 

and use for a minimum of five years 

after the use strategy has ended. 

5. Revise 30 TAC §§ 101.302 and 

101.372 to clarify that a proposed 

quantification protocol may not be used 

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if the TCEQ Executive Director receives 

a letter from the EPA objecting to the 

use of the protocol during the 45-day 

adequacy review period or if the EPA 

proposes disapproval of the protocol in 

the Federal Register. 

6. Revise 30 TAC § 101.306 to specify 

that Emission Reduction Credits may be 

used within the highly reactive volatile 

organic compounds Emissions Cap and 

Trade program as an annual allocation 

of allowances as provided under 30 

TAC § 101.399. 

C. Were the terms of the DERC 

conditional approval met? 

Following is an analysis of each DERC 

program element of the September 8, 

2005, commitment letter and TCEQ’s 

response. EPA is not including the ERC 

program elements (see commitments 3, 

5, and 6 above) in our analysis of the 

DERC conditional approval. The ERC 

and DERC programs operate 

independently of each other and have 

been approved as separate, stand alone 

programs by EPA. The submission of 

these ERC provisions will not impact 

the functionality of the DERC program 

nor were these revisions to the ERC 

program necessary for the DERC 

program to be considered consistent 

with EPA regulations, policy and 

guidance. EPA has evaluated the 

October 24, 2006, ERC program 

revisions in a separate rulemaking (see 

EPA–R06–OAR–2010–0147). 

1. Revise 30 TAC § 101.373 to prohibit 

the future generation of DERCs from 

permanent shutdowns and to allow 

DERCs generated and banked from 

permanent shutdowns prior to 

September 30, 2002, to remain available 

for use for no more than five years from 

the date of this letter. 

TCEQ met this commitment of the 

conditional approval. TCEQ adopted the 

appropriate provisions and submitted 

the revised rules as a SIP revision 

within the time frame. TCEQ adopted 

revisions to section 101.373 that 

removed shutdowns as a method of 

generation and added the following 

language under the list of prohibited 

generation activities at section 

101.373(a)(2): ‘‘permanent or temporary 

shutdowns or permanent curtailment of 

an activity at a facility’’. TCEQ adopted 

revisions to section 101.378(b)(1) that 

revise the lifetime of a DEC. Section 

101.378(b)(1) states that ‘‘Discrete 

emission credits generated from 

shutdown strategies prior to September 

30, 2002, will be available for use until 

September 8, 2010.’’ 

Note that the DERC calculation 

procedures at sections 101.373(c)(1), (3), 

and (4) discuss how DERCs are 

calculated from shutdowns. 

Additionally, section 101.373(d)(3)(c) 

discusses how to certify the generation 

of DERCs from shutdown activities. EPA 

believes that the inclusion of this 

language was an oversight on TCEQ’s 

part when responding to our conditional 

approval commitments. The DERC 

program at section 101.373(a)(2)(A) 

clearly prohibits the generation of 

DERCs from shutdowns. Therefore, EPA 

feels that TCEQ should remove this 

language at their earliest convenience, 

but that the prohibition on generation of 

shutdown DERCs is not impacted by 

this erroneous calculation. 

2. The TCEQ will perform a credit 

audit to remove from the emissions 

bank all DERCs generated from 

permanent shutdowns after September 

30, 2002. Even if the shutdown itself 

occurred before September 30, 2002, no 

DERCs can be generated from that event 

after September 30, 2002. 

TCEQ met this commitment of the 

conditional approval. TCEQ adopted the 

appropriate provisions and submitted 

the revised rules as a SIP revision 

within the time frame. TCEQ confirmed 

in a letter dated February 5, 2010, that 

the credit audit was performed in 

January 2006 (this letter is available in 

the docket for this rulemaking). 

Additionally, TCEQ adopted two 

revisions to the SIP that will ensure that 

shutdowns after September 30, 2002, do 

not generate DERCs. First, the revision 

to section 101.373(a)(2) prohibits the 

future generation of DERCs from 

shutdowns (as discussed in item 1 

above). Second, the TCEQ revised 

section 101.378(b)(2) so that ‘‘Discrete 

emission credits certified from facility 

shutdowns after September 30, 2002, 

may not be used.’’ 

3. Revise 30 TAC §§ 101.372(f)(7) and 

101.372(f)(8) to clarify that EPA 

approval is required for individual 

transactions involving emission 

reductions generated in another state or 

nation, as well as those transactions 

from one nonattainment area to another, 

or from attainment counties into 

nonattainment areas. The TCEQ further 

understands that the EPA would require 

a state implementation plan revision 

prior to approving a transaction between 

another state or nation, as well as, those 

transactions between counties not 

located within the same nonattainment 

area. 

TCEQ met the DERC-specific portion 

of this commitment. Section 101.372(f) 

outlines the geographic scope of the 

DERC rule and generally provides that, 

with the exception of international 

reductions pursuant to section 101.375, 

only reductions generated in the State of 

Texas can be certified as DERCs. Section 

101.372(f)(7) was unchanged by TCEQ 

and continues to provide that 

reductions from other counties, states, 

or nations can be used in any attainment 

or nonattainment county provided a 

demonstration showing improvement in 

air quality has been approved by the 

TCEQ ED and EPA. The use of 

international reductions under section 

101.372(f)(7) is further modified by the 

restrictions at section 101.375. 

Section 101.372(f)(8) was moved to 

new section 101.375. Section 101.375 

establishes two ways that a facility 

could use an international reduction. 

First, a facility could use reductions of 

a criteria pollutant or precursor of 

criteria pollutant to meet requirements 

of the same criteria pollutant. This 

option would be used if a facility had 

a NOX requirement in Texas and could 

find NOX reductions in Mexico or an 

ozone requirement in Texas and could 

find VOC reductions in Mexico. 

Alternately, a facility could use 

reductions of a criteria pollutant or its 

precursors to substitute for reductions 

in other criteria pollutants. For example, 

this situation would be one in which a 

source could be subject to a PM2.5 

requirement and wants to use CO 

reductions to satisfy the requirement. 

Generally, both of these uses (the same 

criteria pollutant or the substitution) 

requires approval by EPA and the TCEQ 

ED; the source must demonstrate that 

the reduction is real, permanent, 

enforceable, quantifiable, and surplus to 

any applicable Mexican, Federal, State, 

or local law; demonstrate that the use of 

the reduction does not cause localized 

health impacts; submit all supporting 

information for calculations and 

modeling; and be located within 100km 

of the Texas-Mexico border. 

There are additional requirements for 

the case where a facility wants to 

substitute the international reduction of 

a criteria pollutant or its precursor for 

the obligations of a different criteria 

pollutant (the example above in which 

the facility used CO reductions for a 

PM2.5 requirement). The facility must 

either show that the reduction is 

substituted for the reduction 

requirement of another criteria pollutant 

and the substitution results in a greater 

health benefit and is of equal or greater 

benefit to the overall air quality of the 

area; or, the source must show that the 

reduction of a criteria pollutant (or 

precursor) for which the area is 

nonattainment is substituted for another 

criteria pollutant (or precursor) 

requirement for which an area is 

nonattainment. 

Even though section 101.372(f)(7) was 

not revised, EPA approval is clearly 

required for uses of reductions from 

other counties, states, or other nations. 

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Uses of international reductions under 

section 101.372(f)(7) are further 

modified by the restrictions at section 

101.375, which also clearly require EPA 

approval. 

4. The TCEQ will revise Form DEC– 

1, Notice of Generation and Generator 

Certification of Discrete Emission 

Credits; Form MDEC–1, Notice of 

Generation and Generator Certification 

of Mobile Discrete Emission Credits; 

and Form DEC–2, Notice of Intent to 

Use Discrete Emission Credits, to 

include a waiver to the Federal statute 

of limitations defense for generators, 

and users of DERCs and mobile discrete 

emission reduction credits (MDERCs). 

Please be reminded that there is 

currently no applicable state statute of 

limitations in the State of Texas. In 

addition, the TCEQ will maintain its 

current policy of preserving all records 

relating to DERC and MDERC generation 

and use for a minimum of five years 

after the use strategy has ended. 

TCEQ met this commitment of the 

conditional approval. In a letter dated 

February 5, 2010, the TCEQ stated that 

even though the commitment included 

modifying Form MDEC–1, such form 

has never been created. However, Form 

MDEC–1 will include a waiver of the 

Federal statute of limitations defense if 

at any time in the future the TCEQ 

creates said form. Also in the February 

5, 2010, letter, the TCEQ stated that the 

Forms DEC–1 and DEC–2 were modified 

in or before February 2007, but that the 

exact modification date could not be 

determined since the TCEQ does not 

keep copies of old versions of the form. 

Additionally, the TCEQ modified Form 

DEC–3, Notice of Use of Discrete 

Emission Credits, to include the same 

waiver of the Federal statute of 

limitations defense even though 

modification of Form DEC–3 was not 

part of the commitment. Copies of the 

modified DEC–1, DEC–2, and DEC–3 

forms were included with the letter. 

Note that the February 5, 2010, letter 

and attachments is available in the 

FDMS docket for this action. 

The TCEQ confirmed that during the 

time period between September 2006 

and February 2007, there were no DERC 

generations submitted. So, even though 

Form DEC–1 was not revised until 

February 2007, there was not an 

instance where DERC generation did not 

have the appropriate waiver. However, 

between September 2006 and February 

2007, there were 18 DEC–2 forms 

submitted to the TCEQ without the 

waiver of Federal statute of limitations 

defense language. But, under the DERC 

program, any notification of intent to 

use DERCs submitted on a DEC–2 form, 

must be followed by a notification of 

use through the submission of a DEC– 

3 form. All 18 DEC–2 forms were 

followed by submissions of the DEC–3 

forms with the appropriate waiver 

language. 

Even though the DEC–1 and DEC–2 

forms were not modified by the 

December 2006 deadline specified in 

the commitment letter, EPA finds that 

the intent of this commitment has been 

satisfied. The intent of this commitment 

was to ensure that all DERC generation 

and use activities were covered by a 

waiver of the Federal statute of 

limitations defense. Since no DERCs 

were generated during this time, there 

was no need for a DEC–1 form. The 18 

DEC–2 forms provide notification that a 

source intends to use DERCs, the 

verification that the use occurred is 

through the submission of a DEC–3 

form. TCEQ verified that all 18 DEC–2 

forms were followed by the submission 

of a modified DEC–3 form—thereby 

covering all DERC usage activities with 

the waiver of the Federal statute of 

limitations defense. 

5. Revise 30 TAC § 101.372 to clarify 

that a proposed quantification protocol 

may not be used if the TCEQ Executive 

Director receives a letter from the EPA 

objecting to the use of the protocol 

during the 45-day adequacy review 

period or if the EPA proposes 

disapproval of the protocol in the 

Federal Register. 

TCEQ met this commitment of the 

conditional approval. TCEQ adopted the 

appropriate provisions and submitted 

the revised rule as a SIP revision within 

the time frame. TCEQ revised section 

101.372(d)(vi) to state that 

‘‘quantification protocols shall not be 

accepted for use with this division if the 

executive director receives a letter 

objecting to the use of the protocol from 

the EPA during the 45-day adequacy 

review or the EPA proposes disapproval 

of the protocol in the Federal Register.’’ 

V. Final Action 

EPA is proposing to approve severable 

revisions to the Texas SIP submitted on 

October 24, 2006, and August 16, 2007. 

Specifically from the October 24, 2006 

submittal, EPA is approving the 

amendments to section 101.372(a) and 

(f) that move the international emission 

reduction requirements to a new 

section, the amendments to section 

101.372(d)(1)(C)(vi) that clarify EPA’s 

role in approving emission 

quantification protocols, the 

amendments to section 101.373 to 

prohibit the generation of DERCs from 

shutdowns, the amendment to section 

101.376(c)(4) that updates the crossreferences to Chapter 106 provisions, 

the amendments to section 101.378(b) to 

limit the lifetime of previously 

generated shutdown DERCs, and nonsubstantive revisions to sections 

101.372(d) and 101.372(j). EPA is also 

proposing to approve provisions for 

international emission reductions at 

new section 101.375 submitted on 

October 24, 2006. The October 24, 2006, 

DERC Program revisions satisfy the 

elements of the September 8, 2005, 

commitment letter; as such, EPA is 

proposing the DERC program for full 

approval. Additionally, we are 

proposing to approve the following 

nonsubstantive revisions to the Texas 

SIP submitted on August 16, 2007: 

revisions to sections 101.372(d)(1)(A) 

and 101.376(d)(2)(A) to update the 

cross-references to recently recodified 

provisions in 30 TAC Chapter 117 and 

revisions to section 101.372(d)(1)(B) to 

update the cross-referenced title to 

provisions in Chapter 115. 

In a separate rulemaking, EPA is 

proposing action on the severable ERC 

Program revisions at 30 TAC sections 

101.302, 101.305, and 101.306 

submitted on October 24, 2006, and 30 

TAC sections 101.302 and 101.306 

submitted on August 16, 2007 (see EPA– 

R06–OAR–2010–0417). 

At this time, EPA is not taking action 

on the revisions to the Emissions 

Banking and Trading of Allowances 

Program at 30 TAC sections 101.338 and 

101.339 submitted on October 24, 2006. 

EPA is also not taking action at this time 

on the revisions to the general air 

quality definitions at 30 TAC Section 

101.1 or the revisions to the System Cap 

Trading Program at 30 TAC sections 

101.383, and 101.385 submitted on 

August 16, 2007. These severable 

revisions remain under review by EPA 

and will be addressed in separate 

actions. 

VI. Statutory and Executive Order 

Reviews 

Under the Clean Air Act, the 

Administrator is required to approve a 

SIP submission that complies with the 

provisions of the Act and applicable 

Federal regulations. 42 U.S.C. 7410(k); 

40 CFR 52.02(a). Thus, in reviewing SIP 

submissions, EPA’s role is to approve 

state choices, provided that they meet 

the criteria of the Clean Air Act. 

Accordingly, this action merely 

approves state law as meeting Federal 

requirements and does not impose 

additional requirements beyond those 

imposed by state law. For that reason, 

this action: 

• Is not a ‘‘significant regulatory 

action’’ subject to review by the Office 

of Management and Budget under 

Executive Order 12866 (58 FR 51735, 

October 4, 1993); 

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Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 60 / Tuesday, March 30, 2010 / Proposed Rules 15655 

• Does not impose an information 

collection burden under the provisions 

of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 

U.S.C. 3501 et seq.); 

• Is certified as not having a 

significant economic impact on a 

substantial number of small entities 

under the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 

U.S.C. 601 et seq.); 

• Does not contain any unfunded 

mandate or significantly or uniquely 

affect small governments, as described 

in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act 

of 1995 (Pub. L. 104–4); 

• Does not have Federalism 

implications as specified in Executive 

Order 13132 (64 FR 43255, August 10, 

1999); 

• Is not an economically significant 

regulatory action based on health or 

safety risks subject to Executive Order 

13045 (62 FR 19885, April 23, 1997); 

• Is not a significant regulatory action 

subject to Executive Order 13211 (66 FR 

28355, May 22, 2001); 

• Is not subject to requirements of 

Section 12(d) of the National 

Technology Transfer and Advancement 

Act of 1995 (15 U.S.C. 272 note) because 

application of those requirements would 

be inconsistent with the Clean Air Act; 

and 

• Does not provide EPA with the 

discretionary authority to address, as 

appropriate, disproportionate human 

health or environmental effects, using 

practicable and legally permissible 

methods, under Executive Order 12898 

(59 FR 7629, February 16, 1994). 

In addition, this rule does not have 

tribal implications as specified by 

Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, 

November 9, 2000), because the SIP is 

not approved to apply in Indian country 

located in the state, and EPA notes that 

it will not impose substantial direct 

costs on tribal governments or preempt 

tribal law. 

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52 

Environmental protection, Air 

pollution control, Intergovernmental 

relations, Nitrogen oxides, Ozone, 

Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements, Volatile organic 

compounds. 

Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq. 

Dated: March 18, 2010. 

Lawrence E. Starfield, 

Acting Regional Administrator, Region 6. 

[FR Doc. 2010–6801 Filed 3–29–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

40 CFR Part 63 

[EPA–HQ–OAR–2009–0746; FRL–9131–8] 

RIN 2060–AP91 

Requirements for Control Technology 

Determinations for Major Sources in 

Accordance With Clean Air Act 

Sections, Sections 112(g) and 112(j) 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Proposed rule. 

SUMMARY: We are proposing to amend 

the rule governing case-by-case 

emission limits for major sources of 

hazardous air pollutants under section 

112(j) of the Clean Air Act. Specifically, 

we are proposing revisions to the 

section 112(j) rule to clarify and 

streamline the process for establishing 

case-by-case emission limits in the case 

of the complete vacatur of a section 

112(d) rule applicable to a major source 

category initially listed pursuant to 

section 112(c)(1). In addition, we are 

also proposing revisions that would 

eliminate provisions of the section 

112(j) rule that have become obsolete or 

are redundant. 

DATES: Comments must be received on 

or before April 29, 2010, unless a public 

hearing is requested by April 14, 2010. 

If a hearing is requested on the proposed 

amendments, written comments must be 

received by May 14, 2010. Under the 

Paperwork Reduction Act, comments on 

the information collection provisions 

are best assured of having full effect if 

the Office of Management and Budget 

(OMB) receives a copy of your 

comments on or before April 29, 2010. 

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, 

identified by Docket ID No. EPA–HQ– 

OAR–2009–0746, by one of the 

following methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: http:// 

www.regulations.gov: Follow the on-line 

instructions for submitting comments. 

• Agency Web Site: http:// 

www.epa.gov/oar/docket.html. Follow 

the instructions for submitting 

comments on the EPA Air and Radiation 

Docket Web Site. 

• E-mail: a-and-r-docket@epa.gov. 

Include Docket ID No. EPA–HQ–OAR– 

2009–0746 in the subject line of the 

message. 

• Fax: Fax your comments to: (202) 

566–9744, Docket ID No. EPA–HQ– 

OAR–2009–0746. 

• Mail: Air and Radiation Docket and 

Information Center, Environmental 

Protection Agency, Mailcode: 2822T, 

1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., 

Washington, DC 20460, Docket ID No. 

EPA–HQ–OAR–2009–0746. Please 

include a total of two copies. In 

addition, please mail a copy of your 

comments on the information collection 

provisions to the Office of Information 

and Regulatory Affairs, OMB, Attn: Desk 

Officer for EPA, 725 17th St., NW., 

Washington, DC 20503. 

• Hand Delivery: EPA Docket Center, 

Public Reading Room, EPA West, Room 

3334, 1301 Constitution Ave., NW, 

Washington, DC 20460. 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–2009– 

0746. 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 e-mail. 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 e-mail comment directly 

to EPA without going through http:// 

www.regulations.gov, your e-mail 

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. For additional information 

about EPA’s public docket, visit the EPA 

Docket Center homepage at http:// 

www.epa.gov/epahome/dockets.htm. 

For additional instructions on 

submitting comments, see the ‘‘Public 

Participation’’ heading of the 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of 

this document. 

Docket: All documents in the docket 

are listed in the http:// 

www.regulations.gov index. Although 

WReier-Aviles on DSKGBLS3C1PROD with PROPOSALS