21462 Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 92 / Friday, May 10, 1996 / Notices

previously applicable instructions and

requirements; train personnel to be able

to respond to a collection of

information; search data sources;

complete and review the collection of

information; and transmit or otherwise

disclose the information.

Send comments regarding these

matters, or any other aspects of the

information collection, including

suggestions for reducing the burden, to

the address listed above under ADDRESS

near the top of this Notice.

Dated: April 30, 1996.

Paul M. Stolpman,

Director, Office of Atmospheric Programs.

[FR Doc. 96–11755 Filed 5–9–96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P

[FRL–5502–8]

Air Pollution Control; Proposed

Actions on Clean Air Act Grants to the

South Coast Air Quality Management

District; California

AGENCY: Environmental Protection

Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Proposed determinations with

request for comments and notice of

opportunity for public hearing.

SUMMARY: The U.S. EPA has made two

proposed determinations that

reductions in expenditures of nonFederal funds for the South Coast Air

Quality Management District

(SCAQMD) in Diamond Bar, California

are a result of non-selective reductions

in expenditures. These determinations,

when final, will permit the SCAQMD to

keep the financial assistance awarded to

it by EPA for FY–95, and to be awarded

financial assistance for FY–96 by EPA,

under section 105(c) of the Clean Air

Act (CAA).

DATES: Comments and/or requests for a

public hearing must be received by EPA

at the address stated below by June 10,

1996.

ADDRESSES: All comments and/or

requests for a public hearing should be

mailed to: Douglas K. McDaniel, Air

Grants Section (A–2–3), Air and Toxics

Division, U.S. EPA Region IX, 75

Hawthorne Street, San Francisco,

California 94105–3901; FAX (415) 744–

1076.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Douglas K. McDaniel, Air Grants

Section (A–2–3), Air and Toxics

Division, U.S. EPA Region IX, 75

Hawthorne Street, San Francisco,

California 94105–3901 at (415) 744–

1246.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the

authority of Section 105 of the CAA,

EPA provides financial assistance

(grants) to the SCAQMD, whose

jurisdiction includes Los Angeles and

Orange Counties in southern California,

to aid in the operation of its air

pollution control programs. In FY–95,

EPA awarded the SCAQMD $7,454,238,

which represented approximately 7.8%

of the SCAQMD’s budget.

Section 105(c)(1) of the CAA, 42

U.S.C. 7405(c)(1), provides that ‘‘[n]o

agency shall receive any grant under

this section during any fiscal year when

its expenditures of non-Federal funds

for recurrent expenditures for air

pollution control programs will be less

than its expenditures were for such

programs during the preceding fiscal

year. In order for [EPA] to award grants

under this section in a timely manner

each fiscal year, [EPA] shall compare an

agency’s prospective expenditure level

to that of its second preceding year.’’

EPA may still award financial assistance

to an agency not meeting this

requirement, however, if EPA, ‘‘after

notice and opportunity for public

hearing, determines that a reduction in

expenditures is attributable to a nonselective reduction in the expenditures

in the programs of all Executive branch

agencies of the applicable unit of

Government.’’ CAA § 105(c)(2). These

statutory requirements are repeated in

EPA’s implementing regulations at 40

CFR 35.210(a).

In its FY–95 § 105 application, which

EPA reviewed in early 1995, the

SCAQMD projected expenditures of

non-Federal funds for recurrent

expenditures (or its maintenance of

effort (MOE)) of $82,811,585. This MOE

would have been sufficient to meet the

MOE requirements of the CAA, i.e. it

would have been equal to or greater

than the MOE for the previous year (FY–

94). In January of 1996, however, the

SCAQMD submitted to EPA final

documentation which shows that its

actual FY–95 MOE was $78,479,091.

This amount represents a shortfall of

$2,026,404 from the MOE of

$80,505,495 for the preceding fiscal year

(FY–94). In order for the SCAQMD to be

eligible to keep its FY–95 grant, EPA

must make a determination under

§ 105(c)(2).

Furthermore, in its FY–96 § 105 grant

application the SCAQMD projected

MOE of $78,452,571. This amount

represents a shortfall of $26,520 from

the actual FY–95 MOE of $78,479,091.

In order for the SCAQMD to be eligible

to be awarded its FY–96 grant, EPA

must make a determination under

§ 105(c)(2).

The SCAQMD is a single-purpose

agency whose primary source of funding

is emission fee revenue. It is the ‘‘unit

of Government’’ for § 105(c)(2)

purposes. The SCAQMD submitted

documentation to EPA which shows

that over the last three years emission

reductions brought on by a combination

of economic recession and more

restrictive emission rules have reduced

fee revenues from stationary sources

from a high of $74,433,331 in 1990–

1991 to $52,282,026 in 1994–1995. The

SCAQMD projects this revenue loss to

continue through FY–96. As a result, the

SCAQMD has instituted hiring/salary

freezes, furloughs, and layoffs, has

reduced its equipment purchases and

contract expenditures, and has

instituted new programs to reduce costs

such as permit streamlining, computerassisted permit processing, and

privatization efforts.

Therefore, the SCAQMD’s MOE

reductions resulted from a loss of fee

revenues due to circumstances beyond

its control. EPA proposes to determine

that the SCAQMD’s lower FY–95 and

FY–96 MOE levels meet the § 105(c)(2)

criteria as resulting from a non-selective

reduction of expenditures. Pursuant to

40 CFR 35.210, these determinations

will allow the SCAQMD to keep the

funds received from EPA for FY–95 and

be awarded financial assistance for FY–

96.

This notice constitutes a request for

public comment and an opportunity for

public hearing as required by the Clean

Air Act. All written comments received

by June 10, 1996 on this proposal will

be considered. EPA will conduct a

public hearing on this proposal only if

a written request for such is received by

EPA at the address above by June 10,

1996.

If no written request for a hearing is

received, EPA will proceed to both final

determinations. While notice of the final

determinations will not be published in

the Federal Register, copies of the

determinations can be obtained by

sending a written request to Douglas

McDaniel at the above address.

Dated: May 2, 1996.

David P. Howekamp,

Director, Air and Toxics Division, U.S. EPA,

Region 9.

[FR Doc. 96–11753 Filed 5–9–96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P

[FRL–5503–5]

Acid Rain Provisions

AGENCY: Environmental Protection

Agency.

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: EPA today announces the

allocation of allowances to small diesel
Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 92 / Friday, May 10, 1996 / Notices 21463

refineries for desulfurization of fuel

during 1995. The eligibility for and

calculation of allowances to small diesel

refineries is in accordance with section

410(h) of the Clean Air Act,

implemented at 40 CFR 73 subpart G.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Kenon Smith, EPA Acid Rain Division

(6204J), 401 M St., SW, Washington DC;

telephone (202) 233–9164.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: EPA’s

Acid Rain Program was established by

Title IV of the Clean Air Act

Amendments of 1990 (CAAA) to reduce

acid rain in the continental United

States. The Acid Rain Program will

achieve a 50 percent reduction in sulfur

dioxide (SO2) emissions from utility

units. The SO2 reduction program is a

flexible market-based approach to

environmental management. As part of

this approach, EPA allocates

‘‘allowances’’ to affected utility units.

Each allowance is a limited

authorization to emit up to one ton of

SO2. At the end of each calendar year,

each unit must hold allowances in an

amount equal to or greater than its SO2

emissions for the year. Allowances may

be bought, sold, or transferred between

utilities and other interested parties.

Those utility units whose annual

emissions are likely to exceed their

allocations may install control

technologies or switch to cleaner fuels

to reduce SO2 emissions or buy

additional allowances.

Section 410(h) of the Clean Air Act

provides allowances for small diesel

refineries that desulfurize diesel fuel

from October 1, 1993 through December

31, 1999. Small refineries are not

otherwise affected by the Acid Rain

Program and do not need the allowances

to comply with any provision of the

Clean Air Act. Thus, the allowances

serve as a financial benefit to small

diesel refineries desulfurizing diesel

fuel.

The following table lists the

allowances allocated to eligible small

diesel refineries for desulfurization in

1995. A total of 29,411 allowances are

allocated to 19 refiners. These

allowances have a compliance year of

1996.

Refiner Refinery name or location

Allocation

Big West

Oil.

Flying J, Utah ............. 1,277

Cenex ....... Laurel, Montana ......... 1,500

Crysen ...... Woods Cross, Utah .... 806

Frontier ..... Cheyenne, Wyoming 1,500

Gary Williams.Bloomfield* ................. 867

Giant ......... Bloomfield* ................. 271

Ciniza, New Mexico ... 1,500

Holly ......... Lea, New Mexico ....... 1,500

Refiner Refinery name or location

Allocation

Navajo, New Mexico 1,500

Montana ..................... 358

Hunt .......... Tuscaloosa, Alabama 1,500

Kern .......... Bakersfield, California 1,500

La Gloria Tyler, Texas ............... 1,500

Lion .......... El Dorado, Arkansas 1,500

Paramount Paramount,California 1,500

Pennzoil ... Atlas ........................... 1,500

Products ..................... 512

Powerine Santa Fe Springs ....... 1,479

Pride ......... Abilene, Texas ........... 1,316

Sinclair ..... Little America, Wyoming.1,439

Sinclair, Wyoming ...... 1,500

Tulsa, Oklahoma ........ 1,500

U.S. Oil &

Refining.

Tacoma, Washington 932

Witco ........ Golden Bear, California.101

Wyoming

Refining.

New Castle, Wyoming 553

* Gary Williams sold the Bloomfield refinery

to Giant on October 4, 1995. Gary Williams is

allocated allowances for production through

October 3 and Giant is credited with production from October 4 through December 31.

Requests for allowances for

desulfurization during 1996 are due no

later than April 1, 1997. Allowances

allocated in 1997 will have a

compliance year of 1997.

Dated: May 3, 1996.

Brian J. McLean,

Director, Acid Rain Division.

[FR Doc. 96–11752 Filed 5–9–96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P

[FRL–5503–1]

Establishment of Federal Advisory

Committee

AGENCY: Environmental Protection

Agency (EPA).

SUMMARY: Pursuant to the Federal

Advisory Committee Act, 5 U.S.C., App.

2, the Office of Research and

Development (ORD) at the U.S.

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

is establishing a Federal Advisory

Committee (Board of Scientific

Counselors) to provide expert scientific

and engineering advice on the operation

of its research program.

The primary functions of the Board of

Scientific Counselors (BOSC) are to:

Evaluate science and engineering

research programs, laboratories, and

research-management practices of ORD

and recommend actions to improve

their quality and/or strengthen their

relevance to the mission of the EPA, and

evaluate and provide advice concerning

the utilization of peer review within

ORD to sustain and enhance the quality

of science in EPA.

Members of the BOSC will be

appointed by the EPA’s Deputy

Administrator from a list of nominations

supplied by the Assistant Administrator

for Research and Development. ORD

received nominations from its National

Centers and Laboratories of highly

qualified experts in the science and

engineering community. The selected

individuals recommended by the AA/

ORD represent a cross-section of

distinquished individuals with

expertise in environmental science and

technology. The Committee is necessary

and in the public interest.

The first meeting of the BOSC will be

in mid-June 1996.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Shirley R. Hamilton, Designated Federal

Official, U.S. Environmental Protection

Agency, Office of Research and

Development, NCERQA (MC 8701), 401

M Street, SW, Washington, DC 20460,

202–260–0468.

Dated: April 30, 1996.

Robert J. Huggett,

Assistant Administrator for Research and

Development.

[FR Doc. 96–11754 Filed 5– 9–96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P

[OPPTS–00183; FRL–5362–5]

Grants to Develop and Carry Out

Authorized State Accreditation and

Certification Programs for Lead-Based

Paint Professionals

AGENCY: Environmental Protection

Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of funds availability;

solicitation of applications for financial

assistance.

SUMMARY: This notice announces EPA’s

intent to enter into cooperative

agreements with states and territories

and federally recognized Indian

governing bodies which provide

financial assistance for purposes of

developing and carrying out authorized

accreditation and certification programs

for professionals engaged in lead-based

paint activities pursuant to the Toxic

Substances Control Act (TSCA), as

amended by section 404(g) of the

Residential Lead-Based Paint Hazard

Reduction Act of 1992. The notice

describes eligible activities, application

procedures and requirements, and

funding criteria. EPA anticipates that up

to $12,500,000 will be available during

federal fiscal year 1996 (FY96) for

awards to eligible recipients. There are

no matching share requirements for this

assistance. This is the third year that

funding is being made available for

these grants. Subject to future budget