Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 166 / Tuesday, August 29, 2017 / Rules and Regulations 40953 

EPA-APPROVED LOUISIANA REGULATIONS IN THE LOUISIANA SIP—Continued 

State citation Title/subject 

State 

approval 

date 

EPA approval date Comments 

Section 2202 ...... Contingency Plan ..................... 1/20/2010 .................... 11/30/11, 76 FR 74000 ............ Section 2202 approved in the 

Louisiana Register January 

20, 2010 (LR 36:63). 

* * * * * * * 

Chapter 25—Miscellaneous Incinerator Rules 

Section 2511 ...... Standards of Performance for 

Biomedical Waste Incinerators.

1/20/2008 .................... 8/29/2017, [Insert Federal 

Register citation].

Section 2521 ...... Refuse Incinerators .................. 1/20/2008 .................... 8/29/2017, [Insert Federal 

Register citation].

Section 2531 ...... Standards of Performance for 

Crematories.

1/20/2008 .................... 8/29/2017, [Insert Federal 

Register citation].

* * * * * * * 

* * * * * 

[FR Doc. 2017–17844 Filed 8–28–17; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

40 CFR Parts 52 and 81 

[EPA–R04–OAR–2017–0085; FRL–9966–92– 

Region 4] 

Air Plan Approval and Air Quality 

Designation; TN; Redesignation of the 

Knoxville 1997 Annual PM2.5

Nonattainment Area to Attainment 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: On December 20, 2016, 

Tennessee, through the Tennessee 

Department of Environment and 

Conservation (TDEC), submitted a 

request for the Environmental 

Protection Agency (EPA) to redesignate 

the Knoxville, Tennessee fine 

particulate matter (PM2.5) nonattainment 

area (hereinafter referred to as the 

‘‘Knoxville Area’’ or ‘‘Area’’) to 

attainment for the 1997 Annual PM2.5

national ambient air quality standards 

(NAAQS) and to approve a state 

implementation plan (SIP) revision 

containing a maintenance plan, a 

reasonably available control measures 

(RACM) determination, and sourcespecific requirements for the Area. EPA 

is approving Tennessee’s RACM 

determination for the Knoxville Area 

and incorporating it into the SIP; 

incorporating source-specific 

requirements for two sources in the 

Area into the SIP; determining that the 

Knoxville Area is attaining the 1997 

Annual PM2.5 NAAQS based on 2013– 

2015 data; approving Tennessee’s plan 

for maintaining the 1997 Annual PM2.5

NAAQS for the Knoxville Area 

(maintenance plan), including the 

associated motor vehicle emission 

budgets (MVEBs) for nitrogen oxides 

(NOX) and direct PM2.5 for the years 

2014 and 2028, and incorporating it into 

the SIP; and redesignating the Knoxville 

Area to attainment for the 1997 Annual 

PM2.5 NAAQS. 

DATES: This rule will be effective August 

29, 2017. 

ADDRESSES: EPA has established a 

docket for this action under Docket 

Identification No. EPA–R04–OAR– 

2017–0085. All documents in the docket 

are listed on the www.regulations.gov 

Web site. Although listed in the index, 

some information may not be publicly 

available, i.e., Confidential Business 

Information or other information whose 

disclosure is restricted by statute. 

Certain other material, such as 

copyrighted material, is not placed on 

the Internet and will be publicly 

available only in hard copy form. 

Publicly available docket materials are 

available either electronically through 

www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at 

the Air Regulatory Management Section, 

Air Planning and Implementation 

Branch, Air, Pesticides and Toxics 

Management Division, U.S. 

Environmental Protection Agency, 

Region 4, 61 Forsyth Street SW., 

Atlanta, Georgia 30303–8960. EPA 

requests that if at all possible, you 

contact the person listed in the FOR

FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section to 

schedule your inspection. The Regional 

Office’s official hours of business are 

Monday through Friday 8:30 a.m. to 

4:30 p.m., excluding federal holidays. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Sean Lakeman of the Air Regulatory 

Management Section, in the Air 

Planning and Implementation Branch, 

Air, Pesticides and Toxics Management 

Division, U.S. Environmental Protection 

Agency, Region 4, 61 Forsyth Street 

SW., Atlanta, Georgia 30303–8960. Sean 

Lakeman may be reached by phone at 

(404) 562–9043, or via electronic mail at 

lakeman.sean@epa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background 

On July 18, 1997, EPA promulgated 

the first air quality standards for PM2.5. 

EPA promulgated an annual standard at 

a level of 15.0 micrograms per cubic 

meter (mg/m3), based on a 3-year average 

of annual mean PM2.5 concentrations. In 

the same rulemaking, EPA promulgated 

a 24-hour standard of 65 mg/m3, based 

on a 3-year average of the 98th 

percentile of 24-hour concentrations. On 

October 17, 2006 (71 FR 61144), EPA 

retained the annual average NAAQS at 

15.0 mg/m3 but revised the 24-hour 

NAAQS to 35 mg/m3, based again on the 

3-year average of the 98th percentile of 

24-hour concentrations. 

On January 5, 2005, at 70 FR 944, and 

supplemented on April 14, 2005, at 70 

FR 19844, EPA designated the Knoxville 

Area as nonattainment for the 1997 

Annual PM2.5 NAAQS. All 1997 PM2.5

NAAQS areas were designated under 

title I, part D, subpart 1 (hereinafter 

‘‘Subpart 1’’). Subpart 1 contains the 

general requirements for nonattainment 

areas for any pollutant governed by a 

NAAQS and is less prescriptive than the 

other subparts of title I, part D. On April 

25, 2007 (72 FR 20586), EPA 

promulgated its Clean Air Fine Particle 

Implementation Rule, codified at 40 


jstallworth on DSKBBY8HB2PROD with RULES
40954 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 166 / Tuesday, August 29, 2017 / Rules and Regulations 

1 In a notice published in the Federal Register on 

March 10, 2017, EPA announced that it had found 

the MVEBs for the Knoxville Area for the 1997 

Annual PM2.5 NAAQS adequate for transportation 

conformity purposes. See 82 FR 13337. 

2CAA section 175A(a) establishes the 

maintenance plan requirements that must be 

fulfilled by nonattainment areas in order to be 

redesignated to attainment. That section only 

requires that nonattainment areas for the primary 

standard submit a plan addressing maintenance of 

the primary NAAQS in order to be redesignated to 

attainment; it does not require nonattainment areas 

for secondary NAAQS to submit maintenance plans 

in order to be redesignated to attainment. See 42 

U.S.C. 7505a(a). 

CFR part 51, subpart Z, in which the 

Agency provided guidance for state and 

tribal plans to implement the 1997 PM2.5

NAAQS. The United States Court of 

Appeals for the District of Columbia 

Circuit (D.C. Circuit) remanded the 

Clean Air Fine Particle Implementation 

Rule and the final rule entitled 

‘‘Implementation of the New Source 

Review (NSR) Program for Particulate 

Matter Less than 2.5 Micrometers 

(PM2.5)’’ (73 FR 28321, May 16, 2008) 

(collectively, ‘‘1997 PM2.5

Implementation Rules’’) to EPA on 

January 4, 2013, in Natural Resources 

Defense Council v. EPA, 706 F.3d 428 

(D.C. Cir. 2013). The Court found that 

EPA erred in implementing the 1997 

PM2.5 NAAQS pursuant to the general 

implementation provisions of Subpart 1, 

rather than the particulate matterspecific provisions of title I, part D, 

subpart 4 (hereinafter ‘‘Subpart 4’’). 

On June 2, 2014, EPA published a rule 

entitled ‘‘Identification of 

Nonattainment Classification and 

Deadlines for Submission of State 

Implementation Plan (SIP) Provisions 

for the 1997 Fine Particle (PM2.5) 

National Ambient Air Quality Standard 

(NAAQS) and 2006 PM2.5 NAAQS’’. See 

79 FR 31566. In that rule, the Agency 

responded to the D.C. Circuit’s January 

2013 decision by identifying all PM2.5

nonattainment areas for the 1997 and 

2006 PM2.5 NAAQS as ‘‘moderate’’ 

nonattainment areas under Subpart 4, 

and by establishing a new SIP 

submission date of December 31, 2014, 

for moderate area attainment plans and 

for any additional attainment-related or 

nonattainment new source review plans 

necessary for areas to comply with the 

requirements applicable under Subpart 

4. Id. at 31567–70. 

Based on its moderate nonattainment 

area classification, Tennessee was 

required to submit a SIP revision 

addressing RACM pursuant to CAA 

section 172(c)(1) and section 

189(a)(1)(C) for the Area. Although EPA 

does not believe that section 172(c)(1) 

and section 189(a)(1)(C) RACM must be 

approved into a SIP prior to 

redesignation of an area to attainment 

once that area is attaining the NAAQS, 

EPA is approving Tennessee’s RACM 

determination and incorporating it into 

its SIP pursuant to a recent decision by 

the United States Court of Appeals for 

the Sixth Circuit in Sierra Club v. EPA, 

793 F.3d 656 (6th Cir. 2015). 

In a notice of proposed rulemaking 

(NPRM) published on May 30, 2017 (82 

FR 24636), EPA proposed to: (1) 

Approve Tennessee’s RACM 

determination for the Knoxville Area 

pursuant to CAA sections 172(c)(1) and 

189(a)(1)(C) and incorporate it into the 

SIP; (2) determine that the Knoxville 

Area is attaining the 1997 Annual PM2.5

NAAQS based on 2013–2015 air quality 

data; (3) approve Tennessee’s 

maintenance plan for the Knoxville 

Area, including the 2014 and 2028 

MVEBs for PM2.5 and NOX, and 

incorporate it into the SIP; (4) 

incorporate source-specific 

requirements for two sources located in 

the Area—the Tennessee Valley 

Authority (TVA) Bull Run Fossil Plant 

and TVA Kingston Fossil Plant—into 

the SIP; and (5) redesignate the 

Knoxville Area to attainment for the 

1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS.1 The 

details of Tennessee’s submittal and the 

rationale for EPA’s actions are further 

explained in the NPRM. EPA did not 

receive any adverse comments on the 

proposed action. 

II. What are the effects of these actions? 

EPA’s approval changes the legal 

designation of Anderson, Blount, Knox, 

and Loudon Counties and a portion of 

Roane County for the 1997 Annual 

PM2.5 NAAQS, found at 40 CFR part 81, 

from nonattainment to attainment. 

Approval of Tennessee’s associated SIP 

revision also incorporates a plan for 

maintaining the 1997 Annual PM2.5

NAAQS in the Area through 2028, 

Tennessee’s RACM determination, and 

source-specific requirements for two 

sources in the Area into the Tennessee 

SIP. The maintenance plan includes 

contingency measures to remedy any 

future violations of the 1997 Annual 

PM2.5 NAAQS and procedures for 

evaluation of potential violations. The 

maintenance plan also includes NOX

and PM2.5 MVEBs for 2014 and 2028 for 

the Knoxville Area. The 2014 and 2028 

PM2.5 MVEBs are 444.78 tons per year 

(tpy) and 245.00 tpy, respectively. The 

2014 and 2028 NOX MVEBs are 

15,597.73 tpy and 7,171.14 tpy, 

respectively. 

In the Fine Particulate Matter 

National Ambient Air Quality 

Standards: State Implementation Plan 

Requirements final rule (PM2.5 SIP 

Requirements Rule), EPA revoked the 

1997 primary Annual PM2.5 NAAQS in 

areas that had always been attainment 

for that NAAQS, and in areas that had 

been designated as nonattainment but 

that were redesignated to attainment 

before October 24, 2016, the rule’s 

effective date. See 81 FR 58010 (August 

24, 2016). EPA also finalized a provision 

that revokes the 1997 primary Annual 

PM2.5 NAAQS in areas that are 

redesignated to attainment for that 

NAAQS after October 24, 2016, effective 

on the effective date of the redesignation 

of the area to attainment for that 

NAAQS. See 40 CFR 50.13(d). 

EPA is finalizing the redesignation of 

the Knoxville Area to attainment for the 

1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS and 

finalizing the approval of the CAA 

section 175A maintenance plan for the 

1997 primary Annual PM2.5 NAAQS.2

Therefore, the 1997 primary Annual 

PM2.5 NAAQS will be revoked in the 

Knoxville Area on the effective date of 

this redesignation, August 29, 2017. 

Beginning on that date, the Area will no 

longer be subject to transportation or 

general conformity requirements for the 

1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS due to the 

revocation of the primary NAAQS. See 

81 FR 58125 (August 24, 2016). The 

Area is required to implement the CAA 

section 175A maintenance plan for the 

1997 primary Annual PM2.5 NAAQS 

that is being approved in this action and 

the prevention of significant 

deterioration program for the 1997 

Annual PM2.5 NAAQS. The approved 

maintenance plan can only be revised if 

the revision meets the requirements of 

CAA section 110(l) and, if applicable, 

CAA section 193. The Area is not 

required to submit a second 10-year 

maintenance plan for the 1997 primary 

Annual PM2.5 NAAQS. See 81 FR 58144 

(August 24, 2016). 

III. Incorporation by Reference 

In this rule, EPA is finalizing 

regulatory text that includes 

incorporation by reference. In 

accordance with requirements of 1 CFR 

51.5, EPA is finalizing the incorporation 

by reference of the following Title V 

permit limits and conditions in 

Appendix L of Tennessee’s December 

20, 2016 SIP revision, state effective on 

December 20, 2016: Permit conditions 

E3–4(a), (d), and (e), E3–15, and E3–16 

for the TVA Kingston Fossil Plant, and 

permit conditions E3–4(a), (d), and (e), 

E3–15, and E3–16 for the TVA Bull Run 

Fossil Plant. Therefore, these materials 

have been approved by EPA for 

inclusion in the State implementation 

plan, have been incorporated by 

reference by EPA into that plan, are 

fully federally enforceable under 

sections 110 and 113 of the CAA as of 


jstallworth on DSKBBY8HB2PROD with RULES
Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 166 / Tuesday, August 29, 2017 / Rules and Regulations 40955 

3 62 FR 27968 (May 22, 1997). 

the effective date of the final rulemaking 

of EPA’s approval, and will be 

incorporated by reference by the 

Director of the Federal Register in the 

next update to the SIP compilation.3

EPA has made, and will continue to 

make, these materials generally 

available through www.regulations.gov 

and/or at the EPA Region 4 Office 

(please contact the person identified in 

the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT

SECTION of this preamble for more 

information). 

IV. Final Actions 

EPA is taking the following final 

actions: (1) Approving Tennessee’s 

RACM determination for the Knoxville 

Area pursuant to CAA sections 172(c)(1) 

and 189(a)(1)(C) and incorporating it 

into the SIP; (2) determining that the 

Area is attaining the 1997 Annual PM2.5

NAAQS based on 2013–2015 data; (3) 

approving Tennessee’s plan for 

maintaining the 1997 Annual PM2.5

NAAQS (maintenance plan), including 

the associated 2014 and 2028 MVEBs for 

the Knoxville Area, and incorporating it 

into the Tennessee SIP; (4) 

incorporating source-specific 

requirements for two sources in the 

Area into the SIP; and (5) redesignating 

the Knoxville Area to attainment for the 

1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS. 

Approval of the redesignation request 

changes the official designation of 

Anderson, Blount, Knox, and Loudon 

Counties and a portion of Roane County 

for the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS, 

found at 40 CFR part 81 from 

nonattainment to attainment. 

As mentioned above, the PM2.5 SIP 

Requirements Rule provides that the 

1997 PM2.5 NAAQS will be revoked for 

any area that is redesignated for the 

NAAQS upon the effective date of the 

redesignation. Therefore, the 1997 

primary Annual PM2.5 NAAQS is 

revoked for the Knoxville Area on the 

effective date of this redesignation. 

EPA has determined that these actions 

are effective immediately upon 

publication under the authority of 5 

U.S.C. 553(d). The purpose of the 30- 

day waiting period prescribed in section 

553(d) is to give affected parties a 

reasonable time to adjust their behavior 

and prepare before the final rule takes 

effect. Section 553(d)(3) allows an 

effective date less than 30 days after 

publication ‘‘as otherwise provided by 

the agency for good cause found and 

published with the rule.’’ EPA finds 

good cause to make these actions 

effective immediately pursuant to 

section 553(d)(3) because they do not 

create any new regulatory requirements 

such that affected parties would need 

time to prepare before the actions take 

effect. The RACM determination does 

not create any new regulatory 

requirements because it concludes that 

no additional measures are necessary to 

meet the State’s obligations to have fully 

adopted RACM; incorporating the 

aforementioned Title V permit terms 

and conditions for the TVA Bull Run 

Fossil Plant and the TVA Kingston 

Fossil Plant into the SIP does not create 

any new regulatory requirements 

because these sources were subject, and 

remain subject, to these terms and 

conditions through their Title V 

permits; and redesignating the Area to 

attainment, including the associated 

determination of attainment and 

maintenance plan approval, relieves the 

Area from certain CAA requirements 

that would otherwise apply to it. 

Because the redesignation relieves the 

Area from requirements, its immediate 

effective date is also authorized under 

section 553(d)(1) which allows an 

effective date less than 30 days after 

publication if a substantive rule 

‘‘relieves a restriction.’’ 

V. Statutory and Executive Order 

Reviews 

Under the CAA, redesignation of an 

area to attainment and the 

accompanying approval of a 

maintenance plan under section 

107(d)(3)(E) are actions that affect the 

status of a geographical area and do not 

impose any additional regulatory 

requirements on sources beyond those 

imposed by state law. A redesignation to 

attainment does not in and of itself 

create any new requirements, but rather 

results in the applicability of 

requirements contained in the CAA for 

areas that have been redesignated to 

attainment. Moreover, the Administrator 

is required to approve a SIP submission 

that complies with the provisions of the 

Act and applicable Federal regulations. 

See 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 CAA. Accordingly, these actions 

merely approve state law as meeting 

federal requirements and do not impose 

additional requirements beyond those 

imposed by state law. For that reason, 

these actions: 

• Are not significant regulatory 

actions subject to review by the Office 

of Management and Budget under 

Executive Order 12866 (58 FR 51735, 

October 4, 1993) and 13563 (76 FR 3821, 

January, 21, 2011); 

• Do not impose an information 

collection burden under the provisions 

of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 

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

• Are 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.); 

• Do 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); 

• Do not have Federalism 

implications as specified in Executive 

Order 13132 (64 FR 43255, August 10, 

1999); 

• Are not economically significant 

regulatory actions based on health or 

safety risks subject to Executive Order 

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

• Are not significant regulatory 

actions subject to Executive Order 

13211 (66 FR 28355, May 22, 2001); 

• Are 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 

• Will not have disproportionate 

human health or environmental effects 

under Executive Order 12898 (59 FR 

7629, February 16, 1994). 

In addition, the SIP is not approved 

to apply on any Indian reservation land 

or in any other area where EPA or an 

Indian tribe has demonstrated that a 

tribe has jurisdiction. In those areas of 

Indian country, the rule does not have 

tribal implications as specified by 

Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, 

November 9, 2000), nor will it impose 

substantial direct costs of tribal 

governments or preempt tribal law. 

The Congressional Review Act, 5 

U.S.C. 801 et seq., as added by the Small 

Business Regulatory Enforcement 

Fairness Act of 1996, generally provides 

that before a rule may take effect, the 

agency promulgating the rule must 

submit a rule report, which includes a 

copy of the rule, to each House of the 

Congress and to the Comptroller General 

of the United States. EPA will submit a 

report containing this action and other 

required information to the U.S. Senate, 

the U.S. House of Representatives, and 

the Comptroller General of the United 

States prior to publication of the rule in 

the Federal Register. A major rule 

cannot take effect until 60 days after it 

is published in the Federal Register. 

This action is not a ‘‘major rule’’ as 

defined by 5 U.S.C. 804(2). 

Under section 307(b)(1) of the CAA, 

petitions for judicial review of this 

action must be filed in the United States 

Court of Appeals for the appropriate 

circuit by October 30, 2017. Filing a 


jstallworth on DSKBBY8HB2PROD with RULES
40956 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 166 / Tuesday, August 29, 2017 / Rules and Regulations 

petition for reconsideration by the 

Administrator of this final rule does not 

affect the finality of this action for the 

purposes of judicial review nor does it 

extend the time within which a petition 

for judicial review may be filed, and 

shall not postpone the effectiveness of 

such rule or action. This action may not 

be challenged later in proceedings to 

enforce its requirements. See section 

307(b)(2). 

List of Subjects 

40 CFR Part 52 

Environmental protection, Air 

pollution control, Incorporation by 

reference, Intergovernmental relations, 

Nitrogen oxides, Particulate matter, 

Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements, Sulfur oxides, Volatile 

organic compounds. 

40 CFR Part 81 

Environmental protection, Air 

pollution control. 

Dated: August 16, 2017. 

V. Anne Heard, 

Acting Regional Administrator, Region 4. 

40 CFR parts 52 and 81 are amended 

as follows: 

PART 52—APPROVAL AND 

PROMULGATION OF 

IMPLEMENTATION PLANS 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 52 

continues to read as follows: 

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

Subpart RR—Tennessee 

■ 2. In § 52.2220: 

■ a. The table in paragraph (d) is 

amended by adding the entries ‘‘TVA 

Bull Run Fossil Plant’’ and ‘‘TVA 

Kingston Fossil Plant’’ at the end of the 

table. 

■ b. The table in paragraph (e) is 

amended by adding the entries ‘‘1997 

Annual PM2.5 Maintenance Plan for the 

Knoxville Area’’ and ‘‘RACM 

determination for the Knoxville Area for 

the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS’’ at the 

end of the table. 

The additions read as follows: 

§ 52.2220 Identification of plan. 

* * * * * 

(d) * * * 

EPA-APPROVED TENNESSEE SOURCE-SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS

Name of source Permit No. 

State 

effective 

date 

EPA approval date Explanation 

* * * * * * * 

TVA Bull Run Fossil Plant ...... n/a .......................................... 12/20/2016 8/29/2017, [insert Federal 

Register citation].

Title V permit limits and conditions E3–4(a), (d), and 

(e), E3–15, and E3–16 in 

Appendix L of Tennessee’s 

December 20, 2016 SIP revision. 

TVA Kingston Fossil Plant ...... n/a .......................................... 12/20/2016 8/29/2017, [insert Federal 

Register citation].

Title V permit limits and conditions E3–4(a), (d), and 

(e), E3–15, and E3–16 in 

Appendix L of Tennessee’s 

December 20, 2016 SIP revision. 

(e) * * * 

EPA-APPROVED TENNESSEE NON-REGULATORY PROVISIONS

Name of non-regulatory SIP 

provision 

Applicable geographic 

or nonattainment area 

State 

effective 

date 

EPA approval date Explanation 

* * * * * * * 

1997 Annual PM2.5 Maintenance Plan for the Knoxville 

Area.

Anderson, Blount, Knox, and 

Loudon Counties and a 

portion of Roane County 

(the area described by U.S. 

Census 2000 block group 

identifier 47–145–0307–2.).

12/20/2016 8/29/2017, [insert Federal 

Register citation].

RACM determination for the 

Knoxville Area for the 1997 

Annual PM2.5 NAAQS.

Anderson, Blount, Knox, and 

Loudon Counties and a 

portion of Roane County 

(the area described by U.S. 

Census 2000 block group 

identifier 47–145–0307–2.).

12/20/2016 8/29/2017, [insert Federal 

Register citation].


jstallworth on DSKBBY8HB2PROD with RULES
Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 166 / Tuesday, August 29, 2017 / Rules and Regulations 40957 

PART 81—DESIGNATION OF AREAS 

FOR AIR QUALITY PLANNING 

PURPOSES 

■ 3. The authority citation for part 81 

continues to read as follows: 

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

■ 4. In § 81.343, the table entitled 

‘‘Tennessee—1997 Annual PM2.5

NAAQS [Primary and secondary]’’ is 

amended by revising the entry 

‘‘Knoxville, TN:’’ to read as follows: 

§ 81.343 Tennessee. 

* * * * * 

TENNESSEE—1997 ANNUAL PM2.5 NAAQS 

[Primary and secondary] 

Designated area 

Designation a Classification 

Date 1 Type Date 2 Type 

* * * * * * * 

Knoxville, TN .................................................................................................... 8/29/2017 Attainment.

Anderson County ...................................................................................... ........................ Attainment.

Blount County ........................................................................................... ........................ Attainment.

Knox County ............................................................................................. ........................ Attainment.

Loudon County .......................................................................................... ........................ Attainment.

Roane County (part) ................................................................................. ........................ Attainment.

The area described by U.S. Census 2000 block group identifier 47–145– 

0307–2. 

* * * * * * * 

a Includes Indian Country located in each county or area, except as otherwise specified. 

1This date is 90 days after January 5, 2005, unless otherwise noted. 

2This date is July 2, 2014, unless otherwise noted. 

* * * * * 

[FR Doc. 2017–18213 Filed 8–28–17; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

GENERAL SERVICES 

ADMINISTRATION 

41 CFR Part 105–70 

[FPMR Case 2016–101–1; Docket No. 2016– 

0009; Sequence No. 1] 

RIN 3090–AJ70 

Program Fraud Civil Remedies Act of 

1986, Civil Monetary Penalties Inflation 

Adjustment 

AGENCY: Office of General Counsel, 

General Services Administration. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: In accordance with the 

Federal Civil Penalties Inflation 

Adjustment Act of 1990, as amended by 

the Debt Collection Improvement Act of 

1996 and further amended by the 

Federal Civil Penalties Inflation 

Adjustment Act Improvement Act of 

2015, this final rule incorporates the 

penalty inflation adjustments for the 

civil monetary penalties set forth in the 

United States Code, as codified in our 

regulations. 

DATES: Effective: September 28, 2017. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. 

Aaron Pound, Assistant General 

Counsel, General Law Division (LG), 

General Services Administration, 1800 F 

Street NW., Washington, DC 20405. 

Telephone Number 202–501–1460. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. The Debt Collection Improvement Act 

of 1996 

To maintain the remedial impact of 

civil monetary penalties (CMPs) and to 

promote compliance with the law, the 

Federal Civil Penalties Inflation 

Adjustment Act of 1990 (Pub. L. 101– 

410) was amended by the Debt 

Collection Improvement Act of 1996 

(Pub. L. 104–134) to require Federal 

agencies to regularly adjust certain 

CMPs for inflation and further amended 

by the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation 

Adjustment Act Improvement Act of 

2015 (Sec. 701 of Pub. L. 114–74). As 

amended, the law requires each agency 

to make an initial inflationary 

adjustment for all applicable CMPs, and 

to make further adjustments at least 

once every year thereafter for these 

penalty amounts. The Debt Collection 

Improvement Act of 1996 further 

stipulates that any resulting increases in 

a CMP due to the calculated inflation 

adjustments shall apply only to 

violations which occur after the date the 

increase takes effect, i.e., thirty (30) days 

after date of publication in the Federal 

Register. Pursuant to the 2015 Act, 

agencies are required to adjust the level 

of the CMP with an initial ‘‘catch up’’, 

and make subsequent annual 

adjustments for inflation. Catch up 

adjustments are based on the percent 

change between the Consumer Price 

Index for Urban Consumers (CPI–U) for 

the month of October for the year of the 

previous adjustment, and the October 

2015 CPI–U. Annual inflation 

adjustments will be based on the 

percent change between the October 

CPI–U preceding the date of adjustment 

and the prior year’s October CPI–U. 

II. The Program Fraud Civil Remedies 

Act of 1986 

In 1986, sections 6103 and 6104 of the 

Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 

1986 (Pub. L. 99–501) set forth the 

Program Fraud Civil Remedies Act of 

1986 (PFCRA). Specifically, this statute 

imposes a CMP and an assessment 

against any person who, with 

knowledge or reason to know, makes, 

submits, or presents a false, fictitious, or 

fraudulent claim or statement to the 

Government. The General Services 

Administration’s regulations, published 

in the Federal Register (61 FR 246, 

December 20, 1996) and codified at 41 

CFR part 105–70, set forth a CMP of up 

to $5,500 for each false claim or 

statement made to the agency. Based on 

the penalty amount inflation factor 

calculation, derived from dividing the 

June 2015 CPI by the June 1996 CPI, 

after rounding we are adjusting the 

maximum penalty amount for this CMP 

to $10,781 per violation. 

III. Waiver of Proposed Rulemaking 

In developing this final rule, we are 

waiving the usual notice of proposed 

rulemaking and public comment 

procedures set forth in the 


jstallworth on DSKBBY8HB2PROD with RULES