Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 237 / Tuesday, December 10, 2024 / Proposed Rules 99177 

1Findings of Failure To Submit State 

Implementation Plan Revisions in Response to the 

2015 Findings of Substantial Inadequacy and SIP 

Calls To Amend Provisions Applying To Excess 

Emissions During Periods of Startup, Shutdown, 

and Malfunction, 87 FR 1680 (January 12, 2022), 

available at www.regulations.gov, Docket ID No. 

EPA–HQ–OAR–2021–0863. 

2See Environ. Comm. Fl. Elec. Power v. EPA, 94 

F.4th 77, 115 (D.C. Cir. 2024). 

3 Id. at 114–15. 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

40 CFR Part 52 

[EPA–R10–OAR–2024–0373; FRL–12413– 

01–R10] 

Air Plan Approval; WA; Southwest 

Clean Air Agency; Revisions to Excess 

Emissions, Startup, Shutdown, and 

General Requirements 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Proposed rule. 

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA) is proposing to approve 

Washington State Implementation Plan 

(SIP) revisions to the Southwest Clean 

Air Agency (SWCAA) air quality 

regulations submitted by the State of 

Washington, through the Department of 

Ecology (Ecology) on June 22, 2023. The 

revisions were submitted in part to 

respond to the EPA’s June 12, 2015 ‘‘SIP 

call’’ in which the EPA found a 

provision in the Washington SIP 

applicable in the area regulated by 

SWCAA to be substantially inadequate, 

providing affirmative defenses that 

operate to limit the jurisdiction of the 

Federal court in an enforcement action 

related to excess emissions during 

startup, shutdown, and malfunction 

(SSM) events. The EPA is proposing 

approval of the SIP revisions and 

proposing to determine that the 

submitted revisions to the substantially 

inadequate provision corrects the 

deficiency identified in the 2015 SSM 

SIP call and the EPA’s January 2022 

finding of failure to submit. Washington 

withdrew some portions of the revisions 

submitted that were not identified in the 

2015 SSM SIP call and therefore the 

EPA is not proposing action on those 

withdrawn portions. 

DATES: Comments must be received on 

or before January 9, 2025. 

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, 

identified by Docket ID No. EPA–R10– 

OAR–2024–0373, at https://

www.regulations.gov. Follow the online 

instructions for submitting comments. 

Once submitted, comments cannot be 

edited or removed from Regulations.gov. 

EPA may publish any comment received 

to its public docket. Do not 

electronically submit any information 

you consider to be Confidential 

Business Information (CBI) or other 

information the disclosure of which 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. 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, the full EPA public comment 

policy, information about CBI or 

multimedia submissions, and general 

guidance on making effective 

comments, please visit https://

www.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epadockets. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Randall Ruddick, EPA Region 10, 1200 

Sixth Avenue (Suite 155), Seattle, WA 

98101, (206) 553–1999; or email 

ruddick.randall@epa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Throughout this document whenever 

‘‘we,’’ or ‘‘our,’’ is used, it refers to EPA. 

Table of Contents 

I. Background 

II. Analysis of SIP Submission 

A. The Provision Subject to the 2015 SSM 

SIP Call 

B. Additional SIP Revisions Submitted But 

Not Specified in the 2015 SSM SIP Call 

III. Proposed Action 

IV. Incorporation by Reference 

V. Statutory and Executive Orders Review 

I. Background 

On June 12, 2015, pursuant to Clean 

Air Act (CAA) section 110(k)(5), the 

EPA finalized ‘‘State Implementation 

Plans: Response to Petition for 

Rulemaking; Restatement and Update of 

EPA’s SSM Policy Applicable to SIPs; 

Findings of Substantial Inadequacy; and 

SIP Calls to Amend Provisions Applying 

to Excess Emissions During Periods of 

Startup, Shutdown and Malfunction,’’ 

(80 FR 33840, June 12, 2015), 

hereinafter referred to as the ‘‘2015 SSM 

SIP Action.’’ The 2015 SSM SIP Action 

clarified, restated, and updated EPA’s 

interpretation that SSM exemption and 

affirmative defense SIP provisions are 

inconsistent with CAA requirements. 

The 2015 SSM SIP Action found that 

certain SIP provisions in 36 States 

(including Washington State) were 

substantially inadequate to meet CAA 

requirements and issued a SIP call to 

those States to submit SIP revisions to 

address the inadequacies. EPA 

established an 18-month deadline by 

which the affected States had to submit 

such SIP revisions. States were required 

to submit corrective revisions to their 

SIPs in response to the SIP calls by 

November 22, 2016. 

With regard to the Washington SIP, 

EPA determined that, to the extent that 

Washington Administrative Code 

(WAC) 173–400–107 was intended to be 

an affirmative defense, it was not 

consistent with the requirements of the 

CAA. Therefore, the EPA issued a SIP 

call to Washington Department of 

Ecology with respect to this provision in 

their jurisdiction. In response to the 

EPA’s 2015 SSM SIP call, Ecology 

removed WAC 173–400–107 from the 

SIP. The EPA approved this SIP 

revision, along with others, on 

December 28, 2023 (88 FR 89582). 

On January 12, 2022, the EPA issued 

Findings of Failure to Submit (FFS) to 

12 air agencies, including SWCAA, that 

had not submitted SIPs responding to 

the 2015 SSM SIP call by the November 

22, 2016, deadline per the requirements 

of section 110(k)(5) of the Act.1 In 

response, on June 22, 2023, Washington 

submitted revisions to SWAPCA Rule 

400–107 to comport with EPA’s SSM 

Policy Applicable to SIPs along with 

other SIP revisions not identified in the 

2015 SSM SIP call. 

On March 1, 2024, the United States 

Court of Appeals for the District of 

Columbia Circuit (D.C. Circuit) issued a 

decision in Environ. Comm. Fl. Elec. 

Power v. EPA, No. 15–1239 (‘‘D.C. 

Circuit decision’’).2 The case was a 

consolidated set of petitions for review 

of the 2015 SSM SIP Action. The Court 

granted the petitions in part, vacating 

the SIP call with respect to SIP 

provisions that the EPA identified as 

automatic exemptions, director’s 

discretion provisions, and affirmative 

defenses that are functionally 

exemptions; and denied the petitions as 

to other provisions that the EPA 

identified as overbroad enforcement 

discretion provisions, or affirmative 

defense provisions that would preclude 

or limit a court from imposing relief in 

the case of violations, which the Court 

also refers to as ‘‘specific relief.’’ 

With respect to affirmative defense 

provisions against specific relief, the 

Court reaffirmed that States cannot limit 

courts’ discretion to determine and 

apply appropriate civil penalties for 

violations of SIPs and denied the 

petitions for review as to affirmative 

defenses against monetary damages.3

This is in keeping with the EPA’s 

interpretation of the CAA in our 2015 

SSM SIP call that States do not have 

authority to create, and thus the EPA 

does not have authority to approve, SIP 

provisions that include an affirmative 

defense that would operate to alter the 


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4As stated in our supplemental notice of 

proposed rulemaking 79 FR 55920 at 55929. See 

also 80 FR 33840 at 33853, 33870. 

5See 79 FR 55920 at 55952. See also 80 FR 33974. 

6SWCAA has jurisdiction over most air pollution 

sources in Clark, Cowlitz, Lewis, Skamania, and 

Wahkiakum Counties, except for sources located on 

Tribal lands and sources subject to Federal or State 

jurisdiction. 

7SWCAA was formerly known as Southwest Air 

Pollution Control Authority (SWAPCA). 

8See State Implementation Plans: Response to 

Petition for Rulemaking; Findings of Substantial 

Inadequacy; and SIP Calls To Amend Provisions 

Applying to Excess Emissions During Periods of 

Startup, Shutdown, and Malfunction, 78 FR 12460 

(February 22, 2013). 

9See SNPR (‘‘State Implementation Plans: 

Response to Petition for Rulemaking; Findings of 

Substantial Inadequacy; and SIP Calls To Amend 

Provisions Applying to Excess Emissions During 

Periods of Startup, Shutdown and Malfunction; 

Supplemental Proposal To Address Affirmative 

Defense Provisions in States Included in the 

Petition for Rulemaking and in Additional States; 

Supplemental notice of proposed rulemaking,’’ 79 

FR 55919, September 17, 2014). 

10See 301_SWCAA SSM SIP Call FFS 

Completeness Letter.pdf, included in the docket for 

this action. 

11See 94 F.4th at 114–15. 

12See 201_state submittal supplement_SWCAA 

Partial Withdrawal Request Letter—Ecology.pdf and 

202_state submittal supplement_SWCAA Partial 

Withdrawal Request Letter—SWCAA.pdf included 

in the docket for this action. 

13The Revised Code of Washington (RCW), 

previously RCW 70.94 was recodified as RCW 

70A.15. 

jurisdiction of Federal courts to assess 

penalties or other forms of relief 

authorized in sections 113 and 304.4 As 

explained in the 2015 SSM SIP call, 

SWAPCA Rule 400–107 provides 

affirmative defenses that operate to limit 

the jurisdiction of the Federal court in 

an enforcement action to assess 

monetary penalties or impose injunctive 

relief under certain circumstances as 

contemplated in CAA sections 113 and 

304.5

Southwest Clean Air Agency 

(SWCAA), a local air agency within the 

State of Washington primarily adopts, 

implements, and enforces State rules 

within its jurisdiction.6 In some 

instances, however, SWCAA 7 adopts its 

own rules and standards in lieu of 

statewide provisions. As also stated in 

our 2015 SSM SIP call, ‘‘SWAPCA 400– 

107 Excess Emissions’’ is nearly 

identical to WAC 173–400–107. 

Therefore, the EPA issued a SIP call 

with respect to ‘‘SWAPCA 400–107 

Excess Emissions’’ as well. The detailed 

rationale for issuing the SIP call to 

Washington can be found in the 2015 

SSM SIP Action and preceding 

proposed actions.8 9

We are proposing to approve 

SWCAA’s revisions to SWAPCA Rule 

400–107 submitted on June 22, 2023, 

along with additional SIP revisions 

discussed below. The SIP revisions 

subject to this action are only applicable 

within SWCAA’s jurisdiction, do not 

change State or other local air agency 

regulations, nor do they relax existing 

Federal protections under the CAA. 

II. Analysis of SIP Submission 

A. The Provision Subject to the 2015 

SSM SIP Call 

In the 2015 SSM SIP Action, the EPA 

identified SWAPCA Rule 400–107 as 

inconsistent with CAA requirements 

because it provides affirmative defenses 

that operate to limit the jurisdiction of 

the Federal court in an enforcement 

action to assess monetary penalties or 

impose injunctive relief under certain 

circumstances as contemplated in CAA 

sections 113 and 304. Subsequent to the 

EPA’s January 2022 FFS, Washington, 

on behalf of SWCAA, submitted a SIP 

revision on June 22, 2023, that revises 

the version of SWAPCA Rule 400–107 

in the SIP to be consistent with the 2015 

SSM policy articulated in the 2015 SSM 

SIP Action. 

The EPA last approved SWAPCA Rule 

400–107 on February 26, 1997 (60 FR 

8264). On September 1, 2016, SWCAA 

recodified ‘‘SWAPCA’’ Rule 400–107 to 

‘‘SWCAA’’ Rule 400–107 reflecting the 

agency name change from ‘‘Southwest 

Air Pollution Control Authority’’ 

(SWAPCA) to ‘‘Southwest Clean Air 

Agency’’ (SWCAA). Accordingly, the 

June 22, 2023 SIP submittal references 

‘‘SWCAA’’ Rule 400–107 rather than the 

‘‘SWAPCA’’ Rule 400–107 we 

referenced in our 2015 SSM SIP call. 

We reviewed Washington’s June 22, 

2023, SIP submittal regarding revisions 

to SWCAA Rule 400–107 and found the 

submission technically and 

administratively complete. We 

subsequently issued a completeness 

determination letter to Washington on 

August 8, 2023.10 This completeness 

determination stopped the 18-month 

sanctions clock for SWCAA’s 

jurisdiction that was started by the 

January 2022 FFS. This completeness 

determination did not address the other 

SIP revisions included in the June 22, 

2023 SIP submittal. 

The EPA has assessed the impact of 

the D.C. Circuit decision with respect to 

the specific affirmative defense 

provision at issue in SWAPCA Rule 

400–107. We have concluded that the 

previously stated basis for including 

SWAPCA Rule 400–107 in the 2015 

SSM SIP call is consistent with the 

recent D.C. Circuit decision. The Court 

upheld the EPA’s 2015 SSM SIP Action 

with regard to affirmative defenses 

against specific relief, finding that 

because CAA 304(a) and 113(b) 

authorize citizens and the EPA to seek 

injunctive relief and monetary penalties 

against sources that violate a SIP’s 

emission rules, such an affirmative 

defense would ‘‘block that aspect of the 

Act’s enforcement regime.’’ 11

We are proposing to determine that 

the revised SWCAA Rule 400–107 is 

consistent with EPA’s 2015 SSM policy 

articulated in the 2015 SSM SIP Action. 

Specifically, SWCAA’s revisions clarify 

that all excess emissions are violations 

of the applicable statute, rule, permit or 

regulatory order. SWCAA also removed 

the language in Rule 400–107 stating 

that excess emissions determined to be 

unavoidable are not subject to penalty 

and added language making it clear that 

unavoidable excess emissions are 

subject to SWCAA’s order authorities in 

SWCAA Rule 400–230(3), (4), and (6), 

but not subject to SWCAA’s civil 

penalty authority. Finally, SWCAA Rule 

400–107 now states that in any Federal 

enforcement action under 42 U.S.C. 

7413 (Federal enforcement) or 7604 

(Citizen suits) the court may determine 

what weight, if any, to assign the 

permitting authority’s determination 

that an excess emissions event does or 

does not qualify as unavoidable under 

the criteria in SWCAA Rule 400–107. 

We are also proposing to find that the 

revisions to SWCAA Rule 400–107 

satisfy the 2015 SSM SIP call as it will 

no longer provide an affirmative defense 

that may operate to limit the jurisdiction 

of the Federal court in an enforcement 

action. 

B. Additional SIP Revisions Submitted 

But Not Specified in the 2015 SSM SIP 

Call 

Washington also included SIP 

revisions for SWCAA in the June 22, 

2023 SIP submittal that are not subject 

to the 2015 SSM SIP call. On July 26, 

2024, Washington submitted a letter 

dated July 24, 2024, to the EPA 

withdrawing SWCAA Rule 400– 

040(1).12 Therefore, the EPA is not 

proposing action on the withdrawn 

provision and will not cover it here. The 

remaining SIP revisions not subject to 

the 2015 SSM SIP call in SWCAA Rules 

400–040, 400–070, and 400–081 clarify 

applicability, remove redundant 

language, revise cross-references as 

necessary to align with the 

recodification of RCW,13 and remove 

excess emission provisions not 


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14See Appendix B of 102_state submittal_

SWCAA 400 (SSM)—SIP Revision.pdf. 

15See 40 CFR 52.2470(c), Table 8. 

16EPA approved the 1995 version of SWCAA 

Rule 400–070(2)(a) on September 21, 1997 (62 FR 

8264). 

17See 40 CFR 52.2470(c), Table 8. 

18See 201_state submittal supplement_SWCAA 

Partial Withdrawal Request Letter—Ecology.pdf and 

202_state submittal supplement_SWCAA Partial 

Withdrawal Request Letter—SWCAA.pdf included 

in the docket for this action. 

consistent with EPA’s 2015 SSM 

policy.14

In its June 22, 2023 SIP submittal, 

Washington requests approval of 

revisions to SWCAA Rule 400–040, 

General Standards for Maximum 

Emissions; SWCAA Rule 400–070, 

General Requirements for Certain 

Source Categories; and SWCAA Rule 

400–081, Startup and Shutdown. Many 

of the revisions submitted are nonsubstantive changes such as adding 

quotation marks for clarity and updating 

the State effective date to September 10, 

2021. 

SWCAA Rule 400–040, General 

Standards for Maximum Emissions 

The EPA last approved portions of 

SWCAA Rule 400–040 on April 10, 

2017 (82 FR 17139). Our 2017 approval 

did not revise our February 26, 1997, 

approval (62 FR 8624) of SWCAA Rule 

400–040(1)(a), State effective September 

21, 1995. Similarly, the revisions we are 

proposing to approve in this action do 

not revise SWCAA Rule 400–040(1) as 

approved in 1997 and 2017 because 

Washington withdrew the revisions to 

SWCAA Rule 400–040(1) from their 

submission in a letter dated July 24, 

2024. The remaining submitted 

revisions to SWCAA Rule 400–040 SIP 

provisions make grammatical changes to 

improve clarity, broaden the scope of 

the requirement to take reasonable 

precautions to prevent fugitive dust 

from becoming airborne to any ‘‘activity 

that generates’’ fugitive dust rather than 

just any ‘‘source,’’ and update the State 

effective date of all provisions to 

September 9, 2021. Consistent with past 

practice, SWCAA Rules 400–040(2) and 

(4) were not submitted for approval, and 

therefore outside the scope of this 

action.15 The EPA is proposing to 

approve the remaining submitted SIP 

revisions to SWCAA Rule 400–040 that 

were not withdrawn with a State 

effective date of September 10, 2021. 

SWCAA Rule 400–070, General 

Requirements for Certain Source 

Categories 

The EPA last approved portions of 

SWCAA Rule 400–070 on April 10, 

2017 (82 FR 17139). Our 2017 approval 

did not revise our February 26, 1997, 

approval (62 FR 8624) of SWCAA Rule 

400–070(2)(a), State effective September 

21, 1995. Washington has since revised 

SWCAA Rule 400–070(2)(a) removing a 

limited exception (15 minute per eight 

consecutive hours) for hog fuel boilers 

in subparagraph (2)(a) from otherwise 

applicable opacity standards in SWCAA 

Rule 400–040 and SWCAA Rule 400– 

050(1) to be consistent with the 2015 

SSM policy articulated in the EPA’s 

2015 SSM SIP action. Washington 

requests the 1995 version of SWCAA 

Rule 400–070(2)(a) be removed from the 

SIP and replaced with this revised 

version.16 Washington also updated the 

State effective date for all of SWCAA 

Rule 400–070 to September 10, 2021. 

Consistent with past practice, 

Washington did not submit the 

following SWCAA Rules subsections for 

approval into the SIP: 400–070(3)(b); 

400–070(5); 400–070(6); 400–070(7); 

400–070(8)(c); 400–070(9); 400–070(10); 

400–070(11); 400–070(12); 400–070(14); 

400–070(15)(c); and 400–070(16).17

Those previously excluded provisions, 

along with the newly added 400– 

070(16), were not submitted for 

approval, and therefore outside the 

scope of this action. The EPA is 

proposing to approve the remaining 

submitted SIP revisions to SWCAA Rule 

400–070 with a State effective date of 

September 10, 2021. 

SWCAA Rule 400–081, Startup and 

Shutdown 

The EPA last approved portions of 

SWCAA Rule 400–081 on April 10, 

2017 (82 FR 17139). Non-substantive 

changes were made removing redundant 

language and to clarify terms used. No 

substantive changes were made to 

SWCAA Rule 400–081 since our 2017 

approval. The EPA is proposing to 

approve the revisions to SWCAA Rule 

400–081 (State effective September 10, 

2021) with no exceptions. 

III. Proposed Action 

The EPA is proposing to approve and 

incorporate by reference into the 

Washington SIP the revisions submitted 

on June 22, 2023, except for those 

withdrawn by Washington in a letter 

dated July 24, 2024.18 We are also 

proposing to remove the 1995 version of 

SWCAA Rule 400–070(2)(a) as 

described in section II of this preamble. 

Specifically, we are proposing to 

approve and incorporate by reference in 

40 CFR 52.2470(c)—Table 8— 

Additional Regulations Approved for 

the Southwest Clean Air Agency 

(SWCAA) Jurisdiction, the following 

revised regulations with the exception 

of those subsections either withdrawn 

or not submitted: 

• SWCAA Rule 400–040, General 

Standards for Maximum Emissions 

(State effective September 10, 2021); 

• SWCAA Rule 400–070, General 

Requirements for Certain Source 

Categories (State effective September 10, 

2021); 

• SWCAA Rule 400–081, Startup and 

Shutdown (State effective September 10, 

2021); 

• SWCAA Rule 400–107, Excess 

Emissions (State effective September 10, 

2021). 

The proposed revisions, upon 

finalization, will apply specifically to 

the jurisdictions of the Southwest Clean 

Air Agency in Washington State. 

IV. Incorporation by Reference 

In this document, the EPA proposes to 

include in a final rule, regulatory text 

that includes incorporation by 

reference. In accordance with the 

requirements of 1 CFR 51.5, the EPA 

proposes to incorporate by reference the 

provisions described in sections II and 

III of this document. The EPA is also 

proposing to remove regulatory text as 

described in sections II and III of this 

document that includes incorporation 

by reference. In accordance with 

requirements of 1 CFR 51.5, EPA 

proposes to remove a 1995 version of 

SWCAA Rule 400–070(2)(a) from the 

incorporation by reference at 40 CFR 

52.2470. The EPA has made, and will 

continue to make, these documents 

generally available through https://

www.regulations.gov and at the EPA 

Region 10 Office (please contact the 

person identified in the FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT section of this 

preamble for more information). 

V. Statutory and Executive Orders 

Review 

Under the CAA, the Administrator is 

required to approve a SIP submission 

that complies with the provisions of the 

CAA and applicable Federal regulations. 

42 U.S.C. 7410(k); 40 CFR 52.02(a). 

Thus, in reviewing SIP submissions, the 

EPA’s role is to approve State choices, 

provided that they meet the criteria of 

the CAA. 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 proposed action: 

• Is not a ‘‘significant regulatory 

action’’ subject to review by the Office 

of Management and Budget under 

Executive Orders 12866 (58 FR 51735, 

October 4, 1993) and 14094 (88 FR 

21879, April 11, 2023); 


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1On July 1, 2024, SC DHEC was restructured into 

a health agency, the Department of Public Health, 

and an environmental agency, the Department of 

Environmental Services (DES). In a letter dated June 

20, 2024, South Carolina represented to EPA that 

all the functions, powers, and duties of the 

environmental divisions, offices, and programs of 

DHEC, including the authority to administer and 

• 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 subject to Executive Order 

13045 (62 FR 19885, April 23, 1997) 

because it approves a State program; 

• 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 CAA; and 

Executive Order 12898 (Federal 

Actions to Address Environmental 

Justice in Minority Populations and 

Low-Income Populations, 59 FR 7629, 

February 16, 1994) directs Federal 

agencies to identify and address 

‘‘disproportionately high and adverse 

human health or environmental effects’’ 

of their actions on communities with 

environmental justice (EJ) concerns to 

the greatest extent practicable and 

permitted by law. The EPA defines EJ as 

‘‘the fair treatment and meaningful 

involvement of all people regardless of 

race, color, national origin, or income 

with respect to the development, 

implementation, and enforcement of 

environmental laws, regulations, and 

policies.’’ The EPA further defines the 

term fair treatment to mean that ‘‘no 

group of people should bear a 

disproportionate burden of 

environmental harms and risks, 

including those resulting from the 

negative environmental consequences of 

industrial, governmental, and 

commercial operations or programs and 

policies.’’ The air agency did not 

evaluate environmental justice 

considerations as part of its SIP 

submittal; the CAA and applicable 

implementing regulations neither 

prohibit nor require such an evaluation. 

The EPA did not perform an EJ analysis 

and did not consider EJ in this action. 

Due to the nature of the action being 

taken here, this action is expected to 

have a neutral to positive impact on the 

air quality of the affected area. 

Consideration of EJ is not required as 

part of this action, and there is no 

information in the record inconsistent 

with the stated goal of E.O. 12898 of 

achieving environmental justice for 

communities with EJ concerns. 

The SIP is not approved to apply on 

any Indian reservation land in 

Washington except as specifically noted 

below and is also not approved to apply 

in any other area where the EPA or an 

Indian tribe has demonstrated that a 

tribe has jurisdiction. In those areas of 

Indian country, the rulemaking does not 

have Tribal implications as specified by 

Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, 

November 9, 2000), nor will it impose 

substantial direct costs on Tribal 

governments or preempt Tribal law. 

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52 

Environmental protection, Air 

pollution control, Carbon monoxide, 

Incorporation by reference, 

Intergovernmental relations, Lead, 

Nitrogen dioxide, Ozone, Particulate 

matter, Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements, Sulfur oxides, Volatile 

organic compounds. 

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

Dated: December 3, 2024. 

Casey Sixkiller, 

Regional Administrator, Region 10. 

[FR Doc. 2024–28804 Filed 12–9–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

40 CFR Part 52 

[EPA–R04–OAR–2024–0006; FRL–12050– 

01–R4] 

Air Plan Approval; SC; Updates to the 

Cross-State Air Pollution Rule 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Proposed rule. 

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA) is proposing to approve a 

State Implementation Plan (SIP) 

revision submitted through the South 

Carolina Department of Health and 

Environmental Control (SC DHEC) on 

September 26, 2023, regarding updates 

to the State’s Cross-State Air Pollution 

Rule (CSAPR) emissions trading 

programs. The SIP revision incorporates 

by reference (IBRs) certain amendments 

EPA has made to the regulations for the 

Federal CSAPR trading programs for 

annual emissions of nitrogen oxides 

(NOX) and sulfur dioxide (SO2) for large 

electric generating units (EGUs). EPA 

created these Federal trading programs 

in 2011 as market-based mechanisms for 

South Carolina and certain other States 

to address their obligations to 

downwind States under the Clean Air 

Act (CAA or Act)’s good neighbor 

provision with respect to the national 

ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) 

for fine particulate matter (PM2.5). EPA 

is proposing to approve South 

Carolina’s September 26, 2023, SIP 

revision because it is consistent with 

EPA’s good neighbor CSAPR trading 

programs and the CAA. 

DATES: Comments must be received on 

or before January 9, 2025. 

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, 

identified by Docket ID No. EPA–R04– 

OAR–2024–0006 at 

www.regulations.gov. Follow the online 

instructions for submitting comments. 

Once submitted, comments cannot be 

edited or removed from Regulations.gov. 

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. 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, the full 

EPA public comment policy, 

information about CBI or multimedia 

submissions, and general guidance on 

making effective comments, please visit 

https://www.epa.gov/dockets/ 

commenting-epa-dockets. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Josue Ortiz Borrero, Air Regulatory 

Management Section, Air Planning and 

Implementation Branch, Air and 

Radiation Division, U.S. Environmental 

Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 Forsyth 

Street SW, Atlanta, Georgia 30303–8960. 

Mr. Ortiz can be reached via phone 

number (404) 562–8085 or via electronic 

mail at ortizborrero.josue@epa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Overview 

EPA is proposing to approve the 

portions of SC DHEC’s 1 September 26, 


khammond on DSK9W7S144PROD with PROPOSALS