27896 Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 102 / Friday, May 26, 1995 / Rules and Regulations

(2) Determination—EPA has

determined that, as of July 10, 1995, the

Reading ozone nonattainment area has

attained the ozone standard and that the

reasonable further progress and

attainment demonstration requirements

of section 182(b)(1) and related

requirements of section 172(c)(9) of the

Clean Air Act do not apply to this area

for so long as the area does not monitor

any violations of the ozone standard. If

a violation of the ozone NAAQS is

monitored in the Reading ozone

nonattainment area, these

determinations shall no longer apply.

[FR Doc. 95–13004 Filed 5–25–95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P

40 CFR Part 300

[FRL–5211–3]

National Priorities List for Uncontrolled

Hazardous Waste Sites

AGENCY: Environmental Protection

Agency.

ACTION: Final rule.

SUMMARY: The Comprehensive

Environmental Response,

Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980

(‘‘CERCLA’’ or ‘‘the Act’’), as amended,

requires that the National Oil and

Hazardous Substances Pollution

Contingency Plan (‘‘NCP’’) include a list

of national priorities among the known

releases or threatened releases of

hazardous substances, pollutants, or

contaminants throughout the United

States. The National Priorities List

(‘‘NPL’’) constitutes this list.

This rule adds 1 new site to the NPL.

The NPL is intended primarily to guide

the Environmental Protection Agency

(‘‘EPA’’ or ‘‘the Agency’’) in determining

which sites warrant further

investigation to assess the nature and

extent of public health and

environmental risks associated with the

site and to determine what CERCLAfinanced remedial action(s), if any, may

be appropriate.

EFFECTIVE DATE: June 26, 1995.

ADDRESSES: For addresses for the

Headquarters and Regional dockets, as

well as further details on what these

dockets contain, see ‘‘Information

Available to the Public’’ in Section I of

the ‘‘Supplementary Information’’

portion of this preamble.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Terry Keidan, Hazardous Site

Evaluation Division, Office of

Emergency and Remedial Response

(mail code 5204G), U.S. Environmental

Protection Agency, 401 M Street, SW,

Washington, DC, 20460, or the

Superfund Hotline, phone (800) 424–

9346 or (703) 412–9810 in the

Washington, DC, metropolitan area.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Introduction.

II. Contents of This Final Rule.

III. Executive Order 12866.

IV. Unfunded Mandates.

I. Introduction

Background

In 1980, Congress enacted the

Comprehensive Environmental

Response, Compensation, and Liability

Act, 42 U.S.C. 9601–9675 (‘‘CERCLA’’ or

‘‘the Act’’), in response to the dangers of

uncontrolled hazardous waste sites.

CERCLA was amended on October 17,

1986, by the Superfund Amendments

and Reauthorization Act (‘‘SARA’’),

Public Law No. 99–499, stat. 1613 et

seq. To implement CERCLA, EPA

promulgated the revised National Oil

and Hazardous Substances Pollution

Contingency Plan (‘‘NCP’’), 40 CFR Part

300, on July 16, 1982 (47 FR 31180),

pursuant to CERCLA section 105 and

Executive Order 12316 (46 FR 42237,

August 20, 1981). The NCP sets forth the

guidelines and procedures needed to

respond under CERCLA to releases and

threatened releases of hazardous

substances, pollutants, or contaminants.

EPA has revised the NCP on several

occasions. The most recent

comprehensive revision was on March

8, 1990 (55 FR 8666).

Section 105(a)(8)(A) of CERCLA

requires that the NCP include ‘‘criteria

for determining priorities among

releases or threatened releases

throughout the United States for the

purpose of taking remedial action* * *

and, to the extent practicable taking into

account the potential urgency of such

action, for the purpose of taking removal

action.’’ ‘‘Removal’’ actions are defined

broadly and include a wide range of

actions taken to study, clean up, prevent

or otherwise address releases and

threatened releases. 42 USC 9601(23).

‘‘Remedial’’ actions’’ are those

‘‘consistent with permanent remedy,

taken instead of or in addition to

removal actions. * * *’’ 42 USC

9601(24).

Pursuant to section 105(a)(8)(B) of

CERCLA, as amended by SARA, EPA

has promulgated a list of national

priorities among the known or

threatened releases of hazardous

substances, pollutants, or contaminants

throughout the United States. That list,

which is Appendix B of 40 CFR Part

300, is the National Priorities List

(‘‘NPL’’).

CERCLA section 105(a)(8)(B) defines

the NPL as a list of ‘‘releases’’ and as a

list of the highest priority ‘‘facilities.’’

The discussion below may refer to the

‘‘releases or threatened releases’’ that

are included on the NPL

interchangeably as ‘‘releases,’’

‘‘facilities,’’ or ‘‘sites.’’

CERCLA section 105(a)(8)(B) also

requires that the NPL be revised at least

annually. A site may undergo remedial

action financed by the Trust Fund

established under CERCLA (commonly

referred to as the ‘‘Superfund’’) only

after it is placed on the NPL, as

provided in the NCP at 40 CFR

300.425(b)(1). However, under 40 CFR

300.425(b)(2) placing a site on the NPL

‘‘does not imply that monies will be

expended.’’ EPA may pursue other

appropriate authorities to remedy the

releases, including enforcement action

under CERCLA and other laws.

The purpose of the NPL is merely to

identify releases that are priorities for

further evaluation. Although a CERCLA

‘‘facility’’ is broadly defined to include

any area where a hazardous substance

release has ‘‘come to be located’’

(CERCLA section 101(9)), the listing

process itself is not intended to define

or reflect the boundaries of such

facilities or releases.

It is the Agency’s policy that, in the

exercise of its enforcement discretion,

EPA will not take enforcement actions

against an owner of residential property

to require such owner to undertake

response actions or pay response costs,

unless the residential homeowner’s

activities lead to a release or threat of

release of hazardous substances,

resulting in the taking of a response

action at the site (OSWER Directive

#9834.6, July 3, 1991). This policy

includes residential property owners

whose property is located above a

ground water plume that is proposed to

or on the NPL, where the residential

property owner did not contribute to the

contamination of the site. EPA may,

however, require access to that property

during the course of implementing a

clean up.

Three mechanisms for placing sites on

the NPL for possible remedial action are

included in the NCP at 40 CFR

300.425(c) (55 FR 8845, March 8, 1990).

Under 40 CFR 300.425(c)(1), a site may

be included on the NPL if it scores

sufficiently high on the Hazard Ranking

System (‘‘HRS’’), which EPA

promulgated as Appendix A of 40 CFR

Part 300. On December 14, 1990 (55 FR

51532), EPA promulgated revisions to

the HRS partly in response to CERCLA

section 105(c), added by SARA. The

revised HRS evaluates four pathways:

ground water, surface water, soil

exposure, and air. The HRS serves as a

screening device to evaluate the relative
Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 102 / Friday, May 26, 1995 / Rules and Regulations 27897

potential of uncontrolled hazardous

substances to pose a threat to human

health or the environment. As a matter

of Agency policy, those sites that score

28.50 or greater on the HRS are eligible

for the NPL.

Under a second mechanism for

adding sites to the NPL, each State may

designate a single site as its top priority,

regardless of the HRS score. This

mechanism, provided by the NCP at 40

CFR 300.425(c)(2), requires that, to the

extent practicable, the NPL include

within the 100 highest priorities, one

facility designated by each State

representing the greatest danger to

public health, welfare, or the

environment among known facilities in

the State.

The third mechanism for listing,

included in the NCP at 40 CFR

300.425(c)(3), allows certain sites to be

listed regardless of their HRS score, if

all of the following conditions are met:

• The Agency for Toxic Substances

and Disease Registry (ATSDR) of the

U.S. Public Health Service has issued a

health advisory that recommends

dissociation of individuals from the

release.

• EPA determines that the release

poses a significant threat to public

health.

• EPA anticipates that it will be more

cost-effective to use its remedial

authority (available only at NPL sites)

than to use its removal authority to

respond to the release.

EPA promulgated an original NPL of

406 sites on September 8, 1983 (48 FR

40658). The NPL has been expanded

since then, most recently on April 25,

1995 (60 FR 20335).

The NPL includes two sections, one of

sites that are evaluated and cleaned up

by EPA (the ‘‘General Superfund

Section’’), and one of sites being

addressed by other Federal agencies (the

‘‘Federal Facilities Section’’). Under

Executive Order 12580 (52 FR 2923,

January 29, 1987) and CERCLA section

120, each Federal agency is responsible

for carrying out most response actions at

facilities under its own jurisdiction,

custody, or control, although EPA is

responsible for preparing an HRS score

and determining whether the facility is

placed on the NPL. EPA is not the lead

agency at these sites, and its role at such

sites is accordingly less extensive than

at other sites. The Federal Facilities

Section includes those facilities at

which EPA is not the lead agency.

Deletions/Cleanups

EPA may delete sites from the NPL

where no further response is

appropriate under Superfund, as

explained in the NCP at 40 CFR

300.425(e) (55 FR 8845, March 8, 1990).

To date, the Agency has deleted 77 sites

from the General Superfund Section of

the NPL. EPA also has developed an

NPL construction completion list

(‘‘CCL’’) to simplify its system of

categorizing sites and to better

communicate the successful completion

of cleanup activities (58 FR 12142,

March 2, 1993). Sites qualify for the CCL

when:

(1) any necessary physical

construction is complete, whether or not

final cleanup levels or other

requirements have been achieved;

(2) EPA has determined that the

response action should be limited to

measures that do not involve

construction (e.g., institutional

controls); or

(3) the site qualifies for deletion from

the NPL.

Inclusion of a site on the CCL has no

legal significance.

In addition to the 76 sites that have

been deleted from the NPL because they

have been cleaned up (the Waste

Research and Reclamation site was

deleted based on deferral to another

program and is not considered cleaned

up), an additional 216 sites are also in

the NPL CCL, all but four from the

General Superfund Section. Thus, as of

May 1995, the CCL consists of 292 sites.

Cleanups at sites on the NPL do not

reflect the total picture of Superfund

accomplishments. As of March 31, 1995,

EPA had conducted 661 removal actions

at NPL sites, and 2,413 removal actions

at non-NPL sites. Information on

removals is available from the

Superfund hotline.

Action In This Notice

This final rule adds 1 site, Southern

Shipbuilding in Slidell, Louisiana, to

the General Superfund Section of the

NPL. This site is added to the NPL

based on an HRS score of 28.5 or

greater. This actions result in an NPL of

1,237 sites, 1,082 of them in the General

Superfund Section and 155 of them in

the Federal Facilities Section. On April

25, 1995 (59 FR 65206) EPA published

the most recent complete list of NPL

sites to which the Southern

Shipbuilding site is being added. An

additional 49 sites remain proposed, 42

in the General Superfund Section and 7

in the Federal Facilities Section, and are

awaiting final Agency action. Final and

proposed sites now total 1,286.

Clarification

The full name of the Fremont

National Forest/White King and Lucky

Lass Uranium Mines (USDA) site, which

was added to the NPL on April 25, 1995

(60 FR 20330), was inadvertantly

shortened in EPA’s Federal Register

notice. For the record, the full name of

this site is Fremont National Forest/

White King and Lucky Lass Uranium

Mines (USDA). However, this name will

continue to appear in its shortened

version in Appendix B to part 300—The

National Priorities List and other

automated public information lists due

to space limitations within the NPL

database.

Information Available to the Public

The Headquarters and Regional public

dockets for the NPL contain documents

relating to the evaluation and scoring of

the site in this final rule. The dockets

are available for viewing, by

appointment only, after the appearance

of this action. The hours of operation for

the Headquarters docket are from 9:00

a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Monday through

Friday, excluding Federal holidays.

Please contact the Regional Docket for

hours.

Addresses and phone numbers for the

Headquarters and Regional dockets

follow:

Docket Coordinator, Headquarters, U.S.

EPA CERCLA Docket Office, Crystal

Gateway #1, 12th Floor, 1235 Jefferson

Davis Highway, Arlington, VA 703/

603–8917

(Please note this is viewing address

only. Do not mail documents to this

address.)

Bart Canellas, Region 6, U.S. EPA, 1445

Ross Avenue, Mail Code 6H–MA,

Dallas, TX 75202–2733, 2l4/655–6740

The Headquarters docket for this rule

contains HRS score sheets for the final

site; the Documentation Record for the

site describing the information used to

compute the score; pertinent

information regarding statutory

requirements or EPA listing policies that

affect the site; and a list of documents

referenced in the Documentation

Record. The Headquarters docket also

contains comments received; and the

Agency’s responses to those comments.

The Agency’s responses are contained

in the ‘‘Support Document for the

Revised National Priorities List Final

Rule—May 1995.’’

A general discussion of the statutory

requirements affecting NPL listing, the

purpose and implementation of the

NPL, the economic impacts of NPL

listing, and the analysis required under

the Regulatory Flexibility Act is

included as part of the Headquarters

rulemaking docket in the ‘‘Additional

Information’’ document.

The Regional docket contains all the

information in the Headquarters docket,

plus the actual reference documents

containing the data principally relied
27898 Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 102 / Friday, May 26, 1995 / Rules and Regulations

upon by EPA in calculating or

evaluating the HRS score for the site.

These reference documents are available

only in the Regional docket.

Interested parties may view

documents, by appointment only, in the

Headquarters or Regional Dockets, or

copies may be requested from the

Headquarters or Regional Dockets. An

informal written request, rather than a

formal request under the Freedom of

Information Act, should be the ordinary

procedure for obtaining copies of any of

these documents. If you wish to obtain

documents by mail from EPA

Headquarters Docket, the mailing

address is as follows: Docket

Coordinator, Headquarters, U.S. EPA

CERCLA Docket Office (Mail Code

5201G), 1401 M Street, SW.,

Washington, DC 20460, 703/603–8917.

(Please note this is the mailing address

only. If you wish to visit the HQ Docket

to view documents, see viewing address

above.)

II. Contents of This Action

This action promulgates a final rule to

add 1 site to the General Superfund

Section of the NPL. This site is Southern

Shipbuilding in Slidell, Louisiana

which was proposed on February 13,

1995 in NPL Proposal #18 (60 FR 8212)

based on an HRS score of 28.5 or

greater. The group number identified for

this site is 5/6. Group numbers are

determined by arranging the NPL by

rank and dividing it into groups of 50

sites. For example, a site in Group 4 has

a score that falls within the range of

scores covered by the fourth group of 50

sites on the NPL.

Public Comments

EPA reviewed all comments received

on the site included in this notice. The

formal comment period ended on April

14, 1995.

EPA’s response to site-specific public

comments and explanations of any score

changes made as a result of such

comments are addressed in the

‘‘Support Document for the Revised

National Priorities List Final Rule—May

1995.’’

III. Executive Order 12866

The Office of Management and Budget

(OMB) has exempted this regulatory

action from Executive Order 12866

review.

IV. Unfunded Mandates

Under Section 202 of the Unfunded

Mandates Reform Act of 1995

(‘‘Unfunded Mandates Act’’), signed

into law on March 22, 1995, EPA must

prepare a written statement to

accompany any rules that have ‘‘Federal

mandates’’ that may result in the

expenditure by the private sector of

$100 million or more in any one year.

Under Section 205, EPA must select the

most cost-effective and least

burdensome alternative that achieves

the objective of such a rule and that is

consistent with statutory requirements.

Section 203 requires EPA to establish a

plan for informing and advising any

small governments that may be

significantly and uniquely affected by

the rule.

The Unfunded Mandates Act defines

a ‘‘Federal private sector mandate’’ for

regulatory purposes as one that, among

other things, ‘‘would impose an

enforceable duty upon the private

sector.’’ EPA finds that today’s listing

decision does not impose any

enforceable duties upon the private

sector since inclusion of a site on the

NPL does not itself impose any costs. It

does not establish that EPA necessarily

will undertake remedial action, nor does

it require any action by a private party

or determine its liability for site

response costs. Costs that arise out of

site responses result from site-by-site

decisions about what actions to take, not

directly from the act of listing itself.

Therefore, today’s rulemaking is not a

‘‘Federal private sector mandate’’ and is

not subject to the requirements of

sections 202 or 205 of the Unfunded

Mandates Act. As to Section 203 of this

Act, EPA finds that small governments

will not be significantly and uniquely

affected by this rulemaking.

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 300

Environmental protection, Air

pollution control, Chemicals, Hazardous

materials, Intergovernmental relations,

Natural resources, Oil pollution,

Reporting and recordkeeping

requirements, Superfund, Waste

treatment and disposal, Water pollution

control, Water supply.

Dated: May 22, 1995.

Elliott P. Laws,

Assistant Administrator, Office of Solid Waste

and Emergency Response.

40 CFR part 300 is amended as

follows:

PART 300—[AMENDED]

1. The authority citation for Part 300

continues to read as follows:

Authority: 33 U.S.C. 1321(c)(2); 42 U.S.C.

9601–9657; E.O. 12777, 56 FR 54757, 3 CFR,

1991 Comp., p. 351; E.O. 12580, 52 FR 2923,

3 CFR, 1987 Comp., p. 193.

2. Appendix B to Part 300 is amended

by adding the Southern Shipbuilding

site in Slidell, Louisiana, to Table 1,

General Superfund Section, in

alphabetical order.

[FR Doc. 95–12995 Filed 5–25–95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND

HUMAN SERVICES

Public Health Service

45 CFR Part 60

RIN 0905–AE53

National Practitioner Data Bank for

Adverse Information on Physicians

and Other Health Care Practitioners;

Payment of Fees

AGENCY: Health Resources and Services

Administration, PHS, HHS.

ACTION: Final rule.

SUMMARY: This final rule amends the

existing regulations governing the

National Practitioner Data Bank for

Adverse Information on Physicians and

Other Health Care Practitioners (the

Data Bank) authorizing the reporting

and release of information concerning:

Payments made for the benefit of

physicians, dentists, and other health

care practitioners as a result of medical

malpractice actions or claims; and

certain adverse actions taken regarding

the licenses and clinical privileges of

physicians and dentists. This final rule

removes restrictions on allowed

methods of payment for Data Bank fees.

EFFECTIVE DATE: This regulation is

effective May 26, 1995.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Thomas C. Croft, Director, Division of

Quality Assurance, Bureau of Health

Professions, Health Resources and

Services Administration, Room 8A–55,

5600 Fishers Lane, Rockville, Maryland

20857; telephone number (301) 443–

2300.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This final

rule amends the existing regulations for

the National Practitioner Data Bank for

Adverse Information on Physicians and

Other Health Care Practitioners under

45 CFR part 60. Section 60.12(c)(1) and

(2) currently state that requests to the

Data Bank constitute an agreement to

pay the established user fee and that the

billing of such use will be made during

established intervals. Section 60.12(c)(3)

currently states that Data Bank fees must

be paid by check or money order made

payable to the U.S. Department of

Health and Human Services. The

Department has removed these

regulatory restrictions on allowable

methods of payment to permit the

Secretary to announce alternate