33166 Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 101 / Wednesday, May 25, 2016 / Proposed Rules 

will not have disproportionately high 

and adverse human health or 

environmental effects on minority or 

low-income populations because it does 

not affect the level of protection 

provided to human health or the 

environment. Additionally, the 

proposed rule is not an economically 

significant regulatory action based on 

health or safety risks subject to 

Executive Order 13045 (62 FR 19885, 

April 23, 1997). 

List of Subjects 

40 CFR Part 52 

Environmental protection, Air 

pollution control, Incorporation by 

reference, Intergovernmental relations, 

Nitrogen dioxide, Ozone, Volatile 

organic compounds. 

40 CFR Part 81 

Environmental protection, Air 

pollution control. 

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

Dated: May 13, 2016. 

Ron Curry, 

Regional Administrator, Region 6. 

[FR Doc. 2016–12229 Filed 5–24–16; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

40 CFR Parts 52 and 81 

[EPA–R06–OAR–2015–0609; FRL–9946–84– 

Region 6] 

Clean Air Act Redesignation Substitute 

for the Houston-Galveston-Brazoria 

1997 8-hour Ozone Nonattainment 

Area; Texas 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Proposed rule. 

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA) is proposing to approve a 

redesignation substitute and make a 

finding of attainment for the 1997 8- 

hour ozone National Ambient Air 

Quality Standards (NAAQS) for the 

Houston-Galveston-Brazoria ozone 

nonattainment area (HGB area). The 

redesignation substitute demonstration 

indicates that the area has attained the 

revoked 1997 8-hour ozone NAAQS due 

to permanent and enforceable emission 

reductions and that it will maintain that 

NAAQS for ten years from the date of 

the EPA’s approval of this 

demonstration. Final approval of the 

redesignation substitute will result in 

the area no longer being subject to any 

remaining applicable anti-backsliding 

requirements and the nonattainment 

new source review (NNSR) 

requirements associated with the 

revoked NAAQS. In general, final 

approval of the redesignation substitute 

would allow Texas to seek to revise the 

Texas SIP for the area to remove antibacksliding measures from the active 

portion of its SIP if it can demonstrate, 

pursuant to Clean Air Act (CAA) section 

110(1), that such revision would not 

interfere with attainment or 

maintenance of any applicable NAAQS, 

or any other requirement of the CAA. 

However, the EPA believes that in this 

instance, Texas does not need to revise 

its SIP to alter certain provisions for 

NNSR effective in the HGB area. 

DATES: Written comments must be 

received on or before June 24, 2016. 

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, 

identified by Docket No. EPA–R06– 

OAR–2015–0609, at http://

www.regulations.gov or via email to 

Donaldson.tracie@epa.gov. Follow the 

online instructions for submitting 

comments. Once submitted, comments 

cannot be edited or removed from 

Regulations.gov. The EPA may publish 

any comment received to its public 

docket. Do not submit electronically any 

information you consider to be 

Confidential Business Information (CBI) 

or other information whose disclosure is 

restricted by statute. Multimedia 

submissions (audio, video, etc.) must be 

accompanied by a written comment. 

The written comment is considered the 

official comment and should include 

discussion of all points you wish to 

make. The EPA will generally not 

consider comments or comment 

contents located outside of the primary 

submission (i.e. on the web, cloud, or 

other file sharing system). For 

additional submission methods, please 

contact Ms. Tracie Donaldson, (214) 

665–6633, Donaldson.tracie@epa.gov. 

For the full EPA public comment policy, 

information about CBI or multimedia 

submissions, and general guidance on 

making effective comments, please visit 

http://www2.epa.gov/dockets/

commenting-epa-dockets. 

Docket: The index to the docket for 

this action is available electronically at 

www.regulations.gov and in hard copy 

at EPA Region 6, 1445 Ross Avenue, 

Suite 700, Dallas, Texas. While all 

documents in the docket are listed in 

the index, some information may be 

publicly available only at the hard copy 

location (e.g., copyrighted material), and 

some may not be publicly available at 

either location (e.g., CBI). 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Tracie Donaldson, (214) 665–6633, 

Donaldson.tracie@epa.gov. To inspect 

the hard copy materials, please contact 

Tracie Donaldson. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Throughout this document wherever 

‘‘we,’’ ‘‘us,’’ or ‘‘our’’ is used, we mean 

the EPA. 

I. Background 

In 1979, under section 109 of the 

CAA, EPA established primary and 

secondary NAAQS for ozone at 0.12 

parts per million (ppm) averaged over a 

1-hour period (44 FR 8202, February 8, 

1979). Primary standards are set to 

protect human health while secondary 

standards are set to protect public 

welfare. In 1997 we revised the primary 

and secondary NAAQS for ozone to set 

the acceptable level of ozone in the 

ambient air at 0.08 ppm, averaged over 

an 8-hour period (62 FR 38856, July 18, 

1997). In 2008, we revised the primary 

and secondary ozone NAAQS to 0.075 

ppm, averaged over an 8-hour period 

(73 FR 16436, March 27, 2008). Ozone 

nonattainment areas are classified at the 

time of designation based on the area’s 

design value (77 FR 30088, 30091, May 

21, 2012 and CAA section 181(a)(1)). 

The design value is calculated from air 

quality data from the area for the 3 years 

preceding designation. The possible 

classifications are Marginal, Moderate, 

Serious, Severe, and Extreme. 

Nonattainment areas with a ‘‘lower’’ 

classification have design values that 

are closer to the NAAQS than areas with 

a ‘‘higher’’ classification. 

The EPA revoked the 1997 ozone 

NAAQS for all purposes effective April 

6, 2015 (80 FR 12264, 12296, March 6, 

2015). In that rule, the EPA established 

a regulatory list of ‘‘applicable 

requirements’’ that would apply as antibacksliding requirements for the 

transition from the 1997 ozone NAAQS 

to the 2008 ozone NAAQS. Id. at 12298– 

99. The rule provides that an area 

initially subject to the anti-backsliding 

obligations for a revoked NAAQS will 

remain so until we approve (1) a 

redesignation to attainment for the area 

for the 2008 ozone NAAQS or (2) a 

‘‘redesignation substitute’’, which serves 

as a successor to redesignation to 

attainment, for which the area would 

have been eligible were it not for 

revocation. Id. at 12304. As explained 

more fully in the preambles to the 

proposed and final rules, the 

redesignation substitute demonstration 

must show that the area (1) has attained 

the revoked NAAQS due to permanent 

and enforceable emission reductions 

and (2) will maintain that revoked 

NAAQS for 10 years from the date of 

EPA’s approval of the showing. See id. 

at 12303–306; 78 FR 34178, 34222–223. 


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1The attainment date for the HGB Severe 

nonattainment area was as expeditiously as 

practicable, but not later than June 15, 2019. 

The rule also provides that if, after 

notice and comment rulemaking, we 

approve a redesignation substitute for a 

revoked NAAQS, the state may request 

to revise its SIP to revise or remove 

provisions for NNSR for that revoked 

NAAQS and that other anti-backsliding 

obligations for that revoked NAAQS be 

shifted to contingency measures, 

provided that such action is consistent 

with CAA sections 110(l) and 193 (40 

CFR 51.1105(b)(2)). 

The HGB area consists of Brazoria, 

Chambers, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, 

Liberty, Montgomery and Waller 

counties in Texas. On April 30, 2004, 

the EPA designated and classified the 8- 

county HGB as a Moderate 

nonattainment area under the 1997 

ozone standard with an attainment date 

of no later than June 15, 2010 (see 69 FR 

23858 and 69 FR 23951). On June 15, 

2007, we received a request from the 

Governor of Texas seeking voluntary 

reclassification of the HGB area from a 

Moderate nonattainment area to a 

Severe nonattainment area under the 

1997 ozone standard, which we 

approved on October 1, 2008 (73 FR 

56983).1 Subsequently, the State 

submitted the Reasonable Further 

Progress (RFP) and Attainment 

Demonstration (AD) SIPs for the HGB 

Severe area under the 1997 ozone 

standard. These RFP and AD SIPs were 

approved on January 2, 2014 (see 79 FR 

51 and 79 FR 57, respectively). 

Texas provided the ‘‘Redesignation 

Substitute Report for the HoustonGalveston-Brazoria 1997 Eight-Hour 

Standard Nonattainment Area’’ 

(redesignation substitute report) to EPA 

on August 18, 2015. The submission 

also requested that EPA concur that the 

NNSR provisions relevant to the 

revoked 1997 ozone NAAQS would no 

longer apply. The report is available 

through www.regulations.gov (e-docket 

EPA–R06–OAR–2015–0609). 

II. EPA’s Evaluation of the Houston 

Redesignation Substitute Report 

To determine whether we should 

approve the 1997 8-hour ozone 

redesignation substitute for the HGB 

area, we evaluated the redesignation 

substitute report provided by Texas and 

the ambient ozone data for the area in 

the EPA Air Quality System (AQS) 

database. To evaluate the report we used 

the applicable portions of our 

September 4, 1992 memo, ‘‘Procedures 

for Processing Requests to Redesignate 

Areas to Attainment’’ (www.epa.gov/ttn/ 

oarpg/t5/memoranda/

redesignmem090492.pdf). A detailed 

discussion of our evaluation can be 

found in the Technical Support 

Document (TSD) for this action. The 

TSD can be accessed through 

www.regulations.gov (e-docket EPA– 

R06–OAR–2015–0609). 

A. Has the area attained the revoked 

1997 8-hour ozone NAAQS due to 

permanent and enforceable emission 

reductions? 

In a previous action we found that the 

HGB area had attained the 1997 8-hour 

ozone standard (80 FR 81466). Ambient 

air quality found in the AQS database 

shows that the HGB area attained the 

1997 8-hour ozone standard at the end 

of 2014, and preliminary data from 2015 

indicate that the area has continued to 

maintain the standard (Table 1). 

TABLE 1—8-HOUR DESIGN VALUES

FOR THE HGB AREA

Years 8-hour ozone 

design value 

2012–2014 ............................ 80 ppb. 

Preliminary 2013–2015 ......... 80 ppb. 

In 2014, all monitors in the HGB area 

reported 8-hour ozone values of 80 ppb 

or less. A more detailed table of 8-hour 

ozone values for the HGB monitors can 

be found in the TSD. 

The HGB area redesignation substitute 

report provides information on 

emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOX) and 

volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and 

regulations that reduced these 

emissions. NOX and VOCs are ozone 

precursors. Texas identified control 

measures implemented as part of its 1- 

hour ozone attainment demonstration 

SIP and its 1997 ozone attainment 

demonstration SIP that led to permanent 

and enforceable emission reductions. 

The 1-hour ozone attainment 

demonstration SIP was approved on 

September 6, 2006 (71 FR 52670). The 

1997 ozone attainment demonstration 

SIP was approved on January 2, 2014 

(79 FR 57). Additionally, we have 

approved SIPs for the HGB area that 

document continuous emissions 

reductions due to permanent and 

enforceable measures for the 1-hour and 

1997 8-hour ozone standards (70 FR 

7407, February 14, 2005; 74 FR 18298, 

April 22, 2009; 79 FR 51, January 2, 

2014). The TCEQ has implemented 

stringent and innovative regulations that 

address emissions of NOX and VOCs. 

These include, but are not limited to: 

• Highly Reactive VOC Emissions 

Cap and Trade (HECT) implemented in 

2007. This program affects cooling 

towers, process vents and flares and 

establishes an emission limit with a cap 

and trade in Harris County. The seven 

perimeter counties are subject to permit 

allowable limits and monitoring 

requirements. 

• More stringent leak detection and 

repair (LDAR) requirements 

implemented in 2004. 

• NOX Mass Emissions Cap and Trade 

(MECT) Program phased in through 

April 2007 results in an overall 80% 

reduction from existing industrial 

sources and utility power plants. 

• Vehicle Inspection and 

Maintenance implemented in Harris 

County in 2002 and then expanded to 

Brazoria, Fort Bend, Galveston and 

Montgomery Counties. 

• Federal Area and Non-road 

emissions limits are being phased in 

through 2018. 

• Federal On-road emissions limits 

are being phased in through 2025. 

Given our previous actions approving 

Texas SIPs pertaining to permanent and 

enforceable measures, we agree with 

Texas’ conclusion that the area has 

attained the 1997 8-hour ozone NAAQS 

due to permanent and enforceable 

emission reductions. Many others are 

listed and a more detailed review can be 

found in the TSD. 

B. Will the area maintain the revoked 

1997 8-hour ozone NAAQS for 10 years 

from the date of our approval? 

To demonstrate that the HGB area will 

maintain the revoked 1997 8-hour ozone 

NAAQS for 10 years from the date of 

our approval of the redesignation 

substitute, the Texas report provided 

information on projected emissions of 

ozone precursors (Tables 2 and 3). The 

emission projections show that (1) NOX

emissions will continue to decrease 

through 2028 and (2) VOC emissions 

will remain relatively steady through 

2028 with an overall increase of 8.4 tpd 

or 1.4%. We reviewed this information 

and agree with the conclusion that the 

area will maintain the revoked 1997 8- 

hour ozone NAAQS for 10 years from 

the date of our approval. Based on 

photochemical modeling analyses 

showing that the formation of ozone in 

the HGB area is more sensitive to NOX

than to VOC emissions, the small 

increase in VOC emissions during the 

10-year maintenance period is expected 

to be more than offset by the 39% 

decrease in NOX emissions during this 


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33168 Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 101 / Wednesday, May 25, 2016 / Proposed Rules 

2See Final Implementation Rule for 2008 Ozone 

Standard, 80 FR 12264, at 12299, footnote 83 and 

at 12304, footnote 91. 

same period. More detail on our review 

can be found in the TSD. 

TABLE 2—NOX EMISSION PROJECTIONS (TONS PER DAY) 

Category 2012 2014 2017 2020 2023 2026 2028 

Point Sources ............... 98.5 119.67 127.39 127.71 128.03 128.35 128.56 

Area Sources ............... 21.91 22.52 23.23 23.61 23.47 23.50 23.59 

On-Road Mobile 

Sources .................... 159.08 124.64 82.96 61.06 48.94 40.24 37.04 

Non-Road Mobile 

Sources .................... 132.24 100.90 87.32 76.34 69.91 64.78 61.62 

Total ...................... 411.73 367.73 320.90 288.72 270.35 256.87 250.81 

TABLE 3—VOC EMISSION PROJECTIONS (TONS PER DAY) 

Category 2012 2014 2017 2020 2023 2026 2028 

Point Sources ............... 84.06 110.72 115.02 115.65 116.26 116.94 117.41 

Area Sources ............... 310.07 317.75 328.20 335.07 337.81 341.16 344.75 

On-Road Mobile 

Sources .................... 74.51 61.48 47.36 40.38 36.12 31.71 28.99 

Non-Road Mobile 

Sources .................... 44.01 38.81 33.51 30.89 30.05 29.84 29.93 

Total ...................... 512.65 528.76 524.09 521.99 520.24 519.65 521.08 

III. Proposed Action 

Based on the CAA’s criteria for 

redesignation to attainment (CAA 

section 107(d)(3)(E)) and the regulation 

providing for a redesignation substitute 

(40 CFR 51.1105(b)), EPA is proposing 

to approve the redesignation substitute 

for the HGB area for the revoked 1997 

8-hour ozone NAAQS and make a 

finding of attainment based on our 

determination that the demonstration 

provided by the State of Texas shows 

that the HGB area has attained the 

revoked 1997 8-hour ozone NAAQS due 

to permanent and enforceable emission 

reductions, and that it will maintain 

that NAAQS for ten years from the date 

of the EPA’s approval of this 

demonstration. If EPA finalizes approval 

of the redesignation substitute, the HGB 

area would no longer be subject to any 

remaining applicable anti-backsliding 

requirements and the NNSR 

requirements associated with the 

revoked NAAQS. It would also allow 

the state to request a SIP revision to 

shift anti-backsliding obligations for the 

revoked ozone NAAQS to contingency 

measures provided that such action is 

consistent with CAA sections 110(1) 

and 193 (if applicable). 

Texas’s redesignation substitute 

report also requested that EPA concur 

that the NNSR provisions relevant to the 

revoked 1997 ozone NAAQS would no 

longer apply. As explained previously, 

if we approve a redesignation substitute, 

the state may request to revise its SIP to 

revise or remove provisions for NNSR 

for the revoked standard, provided that 

such action is consistent with CAA 

sections 110(l) and 193 (40 CFR 

51.1105(b)(2)). However, the EPA 

believes that in this instance, Texas 

does not need to revise its SIP to alter 

some of the provisions for NNSR 

effective in the HGB area. The EPA 

reads Texas’s NNSR SIP designations 

and classifications (and thus the related 

major source thresholds and offset 

ratios) to adjust as 40 CFR part 81 is 

updated and does not require further 

action by Texas if EPA were to finalize 

the redesignation substitute proposed 

here. This is explained in detail in 

Section D of the TSD. Because the HGB 

area is classified as Marginal 

nonattainment for the 2008 ozone 

NAAQS (as of the date of this Proposal), 

if the EPA finalizes this redesignation 

substitute, we believe that Texas’s 

NNSR program would automatically 

change to requirements applicable for 

marginal areas in accordance with the 

HGB area classification for the 2008 

ozone NAAQS for newly permitted 

sources. We note that finalization of this 

redesignation substitute does not relieve 

sources in the area of their obligations 

under previously established permit 

conditions.2

IV. Statutory and Executive Order 

Reviews 

Under Executive Orders 12866 (58 FR 

51735, October 4, 1993) and 13563 (76 

FR 3821, January 21, 2011), this action 

is not a ‘‘significant regulatory action’’ 

and therefore is not subject to review by 

the Office of Management and Budget. 

For this reason, this action is also not 

subject to Executive Order 13211, 

‘‘Actions Concerning Regulations That 

Significantly Affect Energy Supply, 

Distribution, or Use’’ (66 FR 28355, May 

22, 2001). This action merely proposes 

to approve a demonstration provided by 

the State of Texas and find that the HGB 

area is no longer subject to the antibacksliding obligations for additional 

measures for the revoked 1997 8-hour 

ozone NAAQS; and imposes no 

additional requirements. Accordingly, I 

certify that this proposed rule will not 

have a significant economic impact on 

a substantial number of small entities 

under the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 

U.S.C. 601 et seq.). Because this 

proposed rule does not impose any 

additional enforceable duties, it 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). This proposed rule also 

does not have a substantial direct effect 

on one or more Indian Tribes, on the 

relationship between the Federal 

Government and Indian Tribes, or on 

the distribution of power and 

responsibilities between the Federal 


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Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 101 / Wednesday, May 25, 2016 / Proposed Rules 33169 

Government and Indian Tribes, as 

specified by Executive Order 13175 (65 

FR 67249, November 9, 2000), nor will 

it have substantial direct effects on the 

States, on the relationship between the 

national government and the States, or 

on the distribution of power and 

responsibilities among the various 

levels of government, as specified in 

Executive Order 13132 (64 FR 43255, 

August 10, 1999), because it merely 

proposes to approve a demonstration 

provided by the State of Texas and find 

that the HGB area is no longer subject 

to the anti-backsliding obligations for 

additional measures for the revoked 

1997 8-hour ozone NAAQS; and does 

not alter the relationship or the 

distribution of power and 

responsibilities established in the CAA. 

This proposed rule also is not subject to 

Executive Order 13045 (62 FR 19885, 

April 23, 1997), because it is not 

economically significant. 

The proposed rule does not impose an 

information collection burden under the 

provisions of the Paperwork Reduction 

Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.). 

Additionally, this proposed rule does 

not involve establishment of technical 

standards, and thus, the requirements of 

section 12(d) of the National 

Technology Transfer and Advancement 

Act of 1995 (15 U.S.C. 272 note) do not 

apply. 

Executive Order 12898 (59 FR 7629, 

February 16, 1994) establishes Federal 

executive policy on environmental 

justice. Its main provision directs 

Federal agencies, to the greatest extent 

practicable and permitted by law, to 

make environmental justice part of their 

mission by identifying and addressing, 

as appropriate, disproportionately high 

and adverse human health or 

environmental effects of their programs, 

policies, and activities on minority 

populations and low-income 

populations in the United States. EPA 

has determined that this proposed rule 

will not have disproportionately high 

and adverse human health or 

environmental effects on minority or 

low-income populations because it does 

not affect the level of protection 

provided to human health or the 

environment. Additionally, the 

proposed rule is not an economically 

significant regulatory action based on 

health or safety risks subject to 

Executive Order 13045 (62 FR 19885, 

April 23, 1997). 

List of Subjects 

40 CFR Part 52 

Environmental protection, Air 

pollution control, Incorporation by 

reference, Intergovernmental relations, 

Nitrogen dioxide, Ozone, Volatile 

organic compounds. 

40 CFR Part 81 

Environmental protection, Air 

pollution control. 

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

Dated: May 13, 2016. 

Ron Curry, 

Regional Administrator, Region 6. 

[FR Doc. 2016–12230 Filed 5–24–16; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

40 CFR Part 80 

[EPA–HQ–OAR–2016–0004; FRL–9946–97– 

OAR] 

RIN 2060–AS72 

Public Hearing for Standards for 2017 

and Biomass-Based Diesel Volume for 

2018 Under the Renewable Fuel 

Standard Program 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Notice; announcement of public 

hearing. 

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA) is announcing a public 

hearing to be held in Kansas City, 

Missouri on June 9, 2016 for the 

proposed rule ‘‘Renewable Fuel 

Standard Program: Standards for 2017 

and Biomass-Based Diesel Volume for 

2018.’’ This proposed rule will be 

published separately in the Federal 

Register. The pre-publication version of 

this proposal can be found at https://

www.epa.gov/renewable-fuel-standardprogram/standards-2017-and-biomassbased-diesel-volume-2018-documents. 

In the separate notice of proposed 

rulemaking, EPA has proposed 

amendments to the renewable fuel 

standard program regulations that 

would establish annual percentage 

standards for cellulosic biofuel, 

biomass-based diesel, advanced biofuel, 

and renewable fuels that would apply to 

all gasoline and diesel produced in the 

U.S. or imported in the year 2017. In 

addition, the separate proposal includes 

a proposed biomass-based diesel 

applicable volume for 2018. 

DATES: The public hearing will be held 

on June 9, 2016 at the location noted 

below under ADDRESSES. The hearing 

will begin at 9:00 a.m. and end when all 

parties present who wish to speak have 

had an opportunity to do so. Parties 

wishing to testify at the hearing should 

notify the contact person listed under 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT by 

May 31, 2016. Additional information 

regarding the hearing appears below 

under SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION. 

ADDRESSES: The hearing will be held at 

the following location: Sheraton Kansas 

City Hotel at Crown Center, 2345 McGee 

Street, Kansas City, Missouri, 64108 

(phone number 866–841–8134). A 

complete set of documents related to the 

proposal will be available for public 

inspection through the Federal 

eRulemaking Portal: http://

www.regulations.gov, Docket ID No. 

EPA–HQ–OAR–2016–0004. Documents 

can also be viewed at the EPA Docket 

Center, located at 1301 Constitution 

Avenue NW, Room 3334, Washington, 

DC between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., 

Monday through Friday, excluding legal 

holidays. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Julia 

MacAllister, Office of Transportation 

and Air Quality, Assessment and 

Standards Division, Environmental 

Protection Agency, 2000 Traverwood 

Drive, Ann Arbor, MI 48105; telephone 

number: (734) 214–4131; Fax number: 

(734) 214–4816; Email address: RFS_

Hearing@epa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

proposal for which EPA is holding the 

public hearing will be published 

separately in the Federal Register. The 

pre-publication version can be found at 

https://www.epa.gov/renewable-fuelstandard-program/standards-2017-andbiomass-based-diesel-volume-2018- 

documents. 

Public Hearing: The public hearing 

will provide interested parties the 

opportunity to present data, views, or 

arguments concerning the proposal 

(which can be found at https://

www.epa.gov/renewable-fuel-standardprogram/regulations-and-volumestandards-under-renewable-fuelstandard). The EPA may ask clarifying 

questions during the oral presentations 

but will not respond to the 

presentations at that time. Written 

statements and supporting information 

submitted during the comment period 

will be considered with the same weight 

as any oral comments and supporting 

information presented at the public 

hearing. Written comments must be 

received by the last day of the comment 

period, as specified in the notice of 

proposed rulemaking. 

How can I get copies of this document, 

the proposed rule, and other related 

information? 

The EPA has established a docket for 

this action under Docket ID No. EPA– 

HQ–OAR–2016–0004. The EPA has also 

developed a Web site for the Renewable 

Fuel Standard (RFS) program, including 


Lhorne on DSK30JT082PROD with PROPOSALS