Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 188 / Friday, September 29, 2017 / Rules and Regulations 45475 

TABLE 1—EPA-APPROVED NORTH CAROLINA REGULATIONS

State citation Title/subject State effective 

date EPA approval date Explanation 

*******

Subchapter 2Q Air Quality Permits 

*******

Section .0800 Exclusionary Rules 

*******

Sect .0809 ......... Concrete Batch Plants .................. 4/1/2004 9/27/2017, [insert Federal Register citation].

*******

Section .0900 Permit Exemptions 

Sect .0901 ......... Purpose and Scope ...................... 1/1/2005 9/27/2017, [insert Federal Register citation].

Sect .0902 ......... Portable Crushers ......................... 1/1/2005 9/27/2017, [insert Federal Register citation].

* * * * * 

[FR Doc. 2017–20325 Filed 9–28–17; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

40 CFR Part 52 

[EPA–R03–OAR–2017–0398; FRL–9968–5– 

Region 3] 

Approval and Promulgation of Air 

Quality Implementation Plans; 

Maryland; Nonattainment New Source 

Review Requirements for the 2008 8- 

Hour Ozone Standard 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Direct final rule. 

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA) is taking direct final 

action to approve a revision to the State 

of Maryland’s state implementation plan 

(SIP). The revision is in response to 

EPA’s February 3, 2017 Findings of 

Failure to Submit for various 

requirements relating to the 2008 8-hour 

ozone national ambient air quality 

standards (NAAQS). This SIP revision is 

specific to nonattainment new source 

review (NNSR) requirements. EPA is 

approving this revision in accordance 

with the requirements of the Clean Air 

Act (CAA). 

DATES: This rule is effective on 

November 28, 2017 without further 

notice, unless EPA receives adverse 

written comment by October 30, 2017. 

If EPA receives such comments, it will 

publish a timely withdrawal of the 

direct final rule in the Federal Register 

and inform the public that the rule will 

not take effect. 

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, 

identified by Docket ID No. EPA–R03– 

OAR–2017–0398 at https://

www.regulations.gov, or via email to 

aquino.marcos@epa.gov. For comments 

submitted at Regulations.gov, follow the 

online instructions for submitting 

comments. Once submitted, comments 

cannot be edited or removed from 

Regulations.gov. For either manner of 

submission, 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, please contact the person 

identified in the FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT section. For the 

full EPA public comment policy, 

information about CBI or multimedia 

submissions, and general guidance on 

making effective comments, please visit 

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

commenting-epa-dockets. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mrs. 

Amy Johansen, (215) 814–2156, or by 

email at johansen.amy@epa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background 

On May 8, 2017, the Maryland 

Department of the Environment (MDE) 

submitted on behalf of the State of 

Maryland a formal revision, requesting 

EPA’s approval for the SIP of its NNSR 

Certification for the 2008 Ozone 

Standard (Revision 17–01). The SIP 

revision is in response to EPA’s final 

2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS Findings of 

Failure to Submit for NNSR 

requirements. See 82 FR 9158 (February 

3, 2017). Specifically, Maryland is 

certifying that its existing NNSR 

program, covering the Baltimore 

Nonattainment Area (which includes 

Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Carroll, 

Harford, and Howard Counties and the 

city of Baltimore), the PhiladelphiaWilmington-Atlantic City 

Nonattainment Area (which includes 

Cecil County in Maryland), and the 

Washington, DC Nonattainment Area 

(which includes Calvert, Charles, 

Frederick, Montgomery, and Prince 

Georges Counties in Maryland) for the 

2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS, is at least 

as stringent as the requirements at 40 

CFR 51.165, as amended by the final 

rule titled ‘‘Implementation of the 2008 

National Ambient Air Quality Standards 


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1The SIP Requirements Rule addresses a range of 

nonattainment area SIP requirements for the 2008 

8-hour ozone NAAQS, including requirements 

pertaining to attainment demonstrations, reasonable 

further progress (RFP), reasonably available control 

technology, reasonably available control measures, 

major new source review, emission inventories, and 

the timing of SIP submissions and of compliance 

with emission control measures in the SIP. The rule 

also revokes the 1997 ozone NAAQS and 

establishes anti-backsliding requirements. 

2EPA proposed approval of a Determination of 

Attainment (DOA) for the 2008 8-hour ozone 

NAAQS for the Philadelphia-Wilmington-Atlantic 

City Area and the Washington, DC Area on April 

18, 2017 and April 25, 2017, respectively. These 

proposed actions were based on complete, certified, 

and quality assured ambient air quality monitoring 

data for the 2013–2015 monitoring period. See 82 

FR 18268 (April 18, 2017) and 82 FR 19011 (April 

25, 2017). It should be noted that a DOA does not 

alleviate the need for Maryland to certify that their 

existing SIP approved NNSR program is as stringent 

as the requirements at 40 CFR 51.165, as NNSR 

applies in nonattainment areas until an area has 

been redesignated to attainment. EPA expects to 

finalize the April 18, 2017 and April 25, 2017 DOAs 

in future rulemaking actions. 

3On June 1, 2015, EPA finalized a clean data 

determination (CDD) for the Baltimore Area. This 

determination was based upon complete, qualityassured, and certified ambient air quality 

monitoring data that shows the Baltimore Area has 

monitored attainment of the 2008 8-hour ozone 

NAAQS for the 2012–2014 monitoring period. As 

a result of this determination, the requirement for 

the Baltimore Area to submit an attainment 

demonstration and associated reasonably available 

control measures (RACM), reasonable further 

progress plans (RFP), contingency measures, and 

other SIP revisions related to attainment of the 

standard are suspended for as long as the area 

continues to attain the 2008 8-hour ozone standard. 

See 80 FR 30941 (June 2, 2015). This action did not 

alleviate the need for Maryland to submit a NNSR 

Certification SIP revision, which is the subject of 

this rulemaking action. 

4Ozone nonattainment areas are classified based 

on the severity of their ozone levels (as determined 

based on the area’s ‘‘design value,’’ which 

represents air quality in the area for the most recent 

3 years). The possible classifications for ozone 

nonattainment areas are Marginal, Moderate, 

Serious, Severe, and Extreme. See CAA section 

181(a)(1). 

5CAA section 184 details specific requirements 

for a group of states (and the District of Columbia) 

that make up the OTR. States in the OTR are 

required to submit RACT SIP revisions and 

mandate a certain level of emissions control for the 

pollutants that form ozone, even if the areas in the 

state meet the ozone standards. 

for Ozone: State Implementation Plan 

Requirements’’ (SIP Requirements Rule), 

for ozone and its precursors.1 See 80 FR 

12264 (March 6, 2015). 

A. 2008 8-Hour Ozone NAAQS 

On March 12, 2008, EPA promulgated 

a revised 8-hour ozone NAAQS of 0.075 

parts per million (ppm). See 73 FR 

16436 (March 27, 2008). Under EPA’s 

regulations at 40 CFR 50.15, the 2008 8- 

hour ozone NAAQS is attained when 

the 3-year average of the annual fourthhighest daily maximum 8-hour average 

ambient air quality ozone 

concentrations is less than or equal to 

0.075 ppm. 

Upon promulgation of a new or 

revised NAAQS, the CAA requires EPA 

to designate as nonattainment any area 

that is violating the NAAQS based on 

the three most recent years of ambient 

air quality data at the conclusion of the 

designation process. The PhiladelphiaWilmington-Atlantic City Area and the 

Washington, DC Area were classified as 

marginal nonattainment areas, and the 

Baltimore Area was classified as a 

moderate nonattainment for the 2008 8- 

hour ozone NAAQS on May 21, 2012 

(effective July 20, 2012) using 2008– 

2010 ambient air quality data. See 77 FR 

30088. On March 6, 2015, EPA issued 

the final SIP Requirements Rule, which 

establishes the requirements that state, 

tribal, and local air quality management 

agencies must meet as they develop 

implementation plans for areas where 

air quality exceeds the 2008 8-hour 

ozone NAAQS. See 80 FR 12264. Areas 

that were designated as marginal ozone 

nonattainment areas were required to 

attain the 2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS no 

later than July 20, 2015, based on 2012– 

2014 monitoring data. See 40 CFR 

51.1103. The Philadelphia-WilmingtonAtlantic City Area and the Washington, 

DC Area did not attain the 2008 8-hour 

ozone NAAQS by July 20, 2015; 

however, these areas did meet the CAA 

section 181(a)(5) criteria, as interpreted 

in 40 CFR 51.1107, for a 1-year 

attainment date extension. See 81 FR 

26697 (May 4, 2016). Therefore, on 

April 11, 2016, the EPA Administrator 

signed a final rule extending the 

Philadelphia-Wilmington-Atlantic City 

Area and the Washington, DC Area 2008 

8-hour ozone NAAQS attainment date 

from July 20, 2015 to July 20, 2016.2

Moderate areas, such as the Baltimore 

Area, are required to attain the 2008 8- 

hour ozone NAAQS no later than July 

20, 2018, six years after the effective 

date of the initial nonattainment 

designations.3 See 40 CFR 51.1103. The 

statutorily required DOA, for the 

Baltimore Area, which is due prior to 

the attainment date for the Area, has not 

passed and will be addressed in a future 

rulemaking action. 

Based on initial nonattainment 

designations for the 2008 8-hour ozone 

standard, as well as the March 6, 2015 

final SIP Requirements Rule, Maryland 

was required to develop a SIP revision 

addressing certain CAA requirements 

for the Philadelphia-WilmingtonAtlantic City, Washington, DC, and 

Baltimore Areas, and submit to EPA a 

NNSR Certification SIP or SIP revision 

no later than 36 months after the 

effective date of area designations for 

the 2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS (i.e., July 

20, 2015). See 80 FR 12264 (March 6, 

2015). EPA is taking action on 

Maryland’s May 8, 2017 NNSR 

Certification SIP revision. EPA’s 

analysis of how this SIP revision 

addresses the NNSR requirements for 

the 2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS is 

provided in Section II below. 

B. 2017 Findings of Failure To Submit 

SIP for the 2008 8-Hour Ozone NAAQS 

Areas designated nonattainment for 

the ozone NAAQS are subject to the 

general nonattainment area planning 

requirements of CAA section 172 and 

also to the ozone-specific planning 

requirements of CAA section 182.4

States in the ozone transport region 

(OTR), such as Maryland, are 

additionally subject to the requirements 

outlined in CAA section 184. 

Ozone nonattainment areas in the 

lower classification levels have fewer 

and/or less stringent mandatory air 

quality planning and control 

requirements than those in higher 

classifications. For a marginal area, such 

as the Philadelphia-WilmingtonAtlantic City Area and the Washington, 

DC Area, a state is required to submit a 

baseline emissions inventory, adopt a 

SIP requiring emissions statements from 

stationary sources, and implement a 

NNSR program for the relevant ozone 

standard. See CAA section 182(a). For a 

moderate area, such as the Baltimore 

Area, a state needs to comply with the 

marginal area requirements, plus 

additional requirements, including the 

requirement to submit a demonstration 

that the area will attain in 6 years, the 

requirement to adopt and implement 

certain emissions controls, such as 

reasonably available control technology 

(RACT), and the requirement for greater 

emissions offsets for new or modified 

major stationary sources under the 

state’s NNSR program. For each higher 

ozone nonattainment classification, a 

state needs to comply with all lower 

area classification requirements, plus 

additional emissions controls and more 

expansive NNSR offset requirements. 

The CAA sets out specific 

requirements for states in the OTR.5

Upon promulgation of the 2008 8-hour 

ozone NAAQS, states in the OTR were 

required to submit a SIP revision for 

RACT. See 40 CFR 51.1116. This 

requirement is the only recurring 

obligation for an OTR state upon 

revision of a NAAQS, unless that state 

also contains some portion of a 

nonattainment area for the revised 

NAAQS. In that case, the nonattainment 

requirements described previously also 

apply to those portions of that state. 

In the March 6, 2015 SIP 

Requirements Rule, EPA detailed the 


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Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 188 / Friday, September 29, 2017 / Rules and Regulations 45477 

6The EPA found that the State of Maryland also 

failed to submit SIP revisions for inspection and 

maintenance (I/M) basic and nitrogen oxide RACT 

for major sources. These SIP requirements will be 

addressed in separate rulemaking actions and will 

not be discussed here. See 82 FR 9158 (February 3, 

2017). 

7See CAA sections 172(c)(5), 173 and 182. 

8With respect to states with nonattainment areas 

subject to a finding of failure to submit NNSR SIP 

revisions, such revisions would no longer be 

required if the area were redesignated to attainment. 

The CAA’s prevention of significant deterioration 

(PSD) program requirements apply in lieu of NNSR 

after an area is redesignated to attainment. For areas 

outside the OTR, NNSR requirements do not apply 

in areas designated as attainment. 

9On August 30, 2012, EPA published a 

rulemaking correcting minor errors in their August 

2, 2012 final rule. The correction of these errors did 

not change EPA’s final action to approve the 

Maryland regulations. See 77 FR 52605. 

10Under the 1997 8-hour ozone NAAQS, the 

Baltimore Area was classified as serious 

nonattainment and the Philadelphia-WilmingtonAtlantic City and Washington, DC Areas were 

classified as moderate nonattainment. 

requirements applicable to ozone 

nonattainment areas, as well as 

requirements that apply in the OTR, and 

provided specific deadlines for SIP 

submittals. 

On February 3, 2017, EPA found that 

15 states and the District of Columbia 

failed to submit SIP revisions in a 

timely manner to satisfy certain 

requirements for the 2008 8-hour ozone 

NAAQS that apply to nonattainment 

areas and/or states in the OTR. See 82 

FR 9158. As explained in that 

rulemaking action, consistent with the 

CAA and EPA regulations, these 

findings of failure to submit established 

certain deadlines for the imposition of 

sanctions, if a state does not submit a 

timely SIP revision addressing the 

requirements for which the finding is 

being made, and for the EPA to 

promulgate a federal implementation 

plan (FIP) to address any outstanding 

SIP requirements. 

EPA found that the State of Maryland 

failed to submit SIP revisions in a 

timely matter to satisfy NNSR 

requirements for its marginal and 

moderate nonattainment areas, 

specifically the PhiladelphiaWilmington-Atlantic City Area, the 

Washington, DC Area, and the Baltimore 

Area.6 Maryland submitted its May 8, 

2017 SIP revision to address the specific 

NNSR requirements for the 2008 8-hour 

ozone NAAQS, located in 40 CFR 

51.160–165, as well as its obligations 

under EPA’s February 3, 2017 Findings 

of Failure to Submit. EPA’s analysis of 

how this SIP revision addresses the 

NNSR requirements for the 2008 8-hour 

ozone NAAQS and the Findings of 

Failure to Submit is provided in Section 

II below. 

II. Summary of SIP Revision and EPA 

Analysis 

This rulemaking action is specific to 

Maryland’s NNSR requirements. NNSR 

is a preconstruction review permit 

program that applies to new major 

stationary sources or major 

modifications at existing sources located 

in a nonattainment area.7 The specific 

NNSR requirements for the 2008 8-hour 

ozone NAAQS are located in 40 CFR 

51.160–165. The SIP Requirements Rule 

explained that, for each nonattainment 

area, a NNSR plan or plan revision was 

due no later than 36 months after the 

effective date of area designations for 

the 2008 8-hour ozone standard (i.e., 

July 20, 2015).8

The minimum SIP requirements for 

NNSR permitting programs for the 2008 

8-hour ozone NAAQS are located in 40 

CFR 51.165. See 40 CFR 51.1114. These 

NNSR program requirements include 

those promulgated in the ‘‘Phase 2 

Rule’’ implementing the 1997 8-hour 

ozone NAAQS (75 FR 71018 (November 

29, 2005)) and the SIP Requirements 

Rule implementing the 2008 8-hour 

ozone NAAQS. Under the Phase 2 Rule, 

the SIP for each ozone nonattainment 

area must contain NNSR provisions 

that: Set major source thresholds for 

oxides of nitrogen (NOX) and volatile 

organic compounds (VOC) pursuant to 

40 CFR 51.165(a)(1)(iv)(A)(1)(i)–(iv) and 

(2); classify physical changes as a major 

source if the change would constitute a 

major source by itself pursuant to 40 

CFR 51.165(a)(1)(iv)(A)(3); consider any 

significant net emissions increase of 

NOX as a significant net emissions 

increase for ozone pursuant to 40 CFR 

51.165(a)(1)(v)(E); consider certain 

increases of VOC emissions in extreme 

ozone nonattainment areas as a 

significant net emissions increase and a 

major modification for ozone pursuant 

to 40 CFR 51.165(a)(1)(v)(F); set 

significant emissions rates for VOC and 

NOX as ozone precursors pursuant to 40 

CFR 51.165(a)(1)(x)(A)–(C) and (E); 

contain provisions for emissions 

reductions credits pursuant to 40 CFR 

51.165(a)(3)(ii)(C)(1)–(2); provide that 

the requirements applicable to VOC also 

apply to NOX pursuant to 40 CFR 

51.165(a)(8); and set offset ratios for 

VOC and NOX pursuant to 40 CFR 

51.165(a)(9)(i)–(iii) (renumbered as 

(a)(9)(ii)–(iv) under the SIP 

Requirements Rule for the 2008 8-hour 

ozone NAAQS). Under the SIP 

Requirements Rule for the 2008 8-hour 

ozone NAAQS, the SIP for each ozone 

nonattainment area designated 

nonattainment for the 2008 8-hour 

ozone NAAQS and designated 

nonattainment for the 1997 ozone 

NAAQS on April 6, 2015, must also 

contain NNSR provisions that include 

the anti-backsliding requirements at 40 

CFR 51.1105. See 40 CFR 51.165(a)(12). 

Maryland’s longstanding SIP 

approved NNSR program, established in 

Code of Maryland Regulations (COMAR) 

Air Quality Rule COMAR 26.11.17— 

Nonattainment Provisions for Major 

New Sources and Major Modifications, 

applies to the construction and 

modification of major stationary sources 

in nonattainment areas. In its May 8, 

2017 SIP revision, Maryland certifies 

that the version of the Air Quality Rule 

COMAR 26.11.17 in the SIP is at least 

as stringent as the federal NNSR 

requirements for the PhiladelphiaWilmington-Atlantic City Area, the 

Washington, DC Area, and the Baltimore 

Area. EPA last approved revisions to the 

SIP approved version of Maryland’s 

NNSR rule in 2012 addressing, among 

other things, NSR Reform and NOX as a 

precursor to ozone. See 77 FR 45949 

(August 2, 2012).9

EPA notes that neither COMAR 

26.11.17 nor Maryland’s approved SIP 

have the regulatory provision for any 

emissions change of VOC in extreme 

nonattainment areas, specified in 40 

CFR 51165(a)(1)(v)(F), because 

Maryland has never had an area 

designated extreme nonattainment for 

any of the ozone NAAQS. Thus, the 

Maryland SIP is not required to have 

this requirement for VOC in extreme 

nonattainment areas until such time as 

Maryland has an extreme ozone 

nonattainment area. Additionally, there 

are no anti-backsliding provisions found 

in 40 CFR 51.165(a)(12) in either 

COMAR 26.11.17 or the Maryland SIP 

because Maryland’s major stationary 

source thresholds were established for 

the 1997 8-hour ozone NAAQS 

nonattainment designations, which 

were and continue to be more stringent. 

Thus, antibacksliding requirements are 

not required. Maryland has not changed 

these major stationary source threshold 

provisions in COMAR 26.11.17.01(17), 

so they remain in Maryland’s federallyapproved SIP.10 All of the sources 

located in the 2008 8-hour ozone 

nonattainment areas in Maryland are 

required to meet a major stationary 

source threshold of 25 tons or more per 

year of VOC or NOX. 

The version of COMAR 26.11.17 that 

is contained in the current SIP has not 

changed since the 2012 rulemaking 

where EPA last approved Maryland’s 

NNSR provisions. This version of the 

rule covers the PhiladelphiaWilmington-Atlantic City, Washington, 

DC, and Baltimore Nonattainment Areas 


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and remains adequate to meet all 

applicable NNSR requirements for the 

2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS in 40 CFR 

51.165, the Phase 2 Rule and the SIP 

Requirements Rule. A detailed 

description of the state submittal and 

EPA’s evaluation is included in a 

technical support document (TSD) 

prepared in support of this rulemaking 

action. A copy of the TSD is available, 

upon request, from the EPA Regional 

Office listed in the ADDRESSES section of 

this document or is also available 

electronically within the Docket for this 

rulemaking action. 

III. Final Action 

EPA is approving Maryland’s May 8, 

2017 SIP revision addressing the NNSR 

requirements for the 2008 ozone 

NAAQS for the PhiladelphiaWilmington-Atlantic City, Washington, 

DC, and Baltimore Areas. EPA has 

concluded that the State’s submission 

fulfills the 40 CFR 51.1114 revision 

requirement, meets the requirements of 

CAA sections 110 and 172 and the 

minimum SIP requirements of 40 CFR 

51.165, as well as its obligations under 

EPA’s February 3, 2017 Findings of 

Failure to Submit. EPA is publishing 

this rule without prior proposal because 

EPA views this as a noncontroversial 

amendment and anticipates no adverse 

comment. However, in the ‘‘Proposed 

Rules’’ section of today’s Federal 

Register, EPA is publishing a separate 

document that will serve as the proposal 

to approve the SIP revision if adverse 

comments are filed. This rule will be 

effective on November 28, 2017 without 

further notice unless EPA receives 

adverse comment by October 30, 2017. 

If EPA receives adverse comment, EPA 

will publish a timely withdrawal in the 

Federal Register informing the public 

that the rule will not take effect. EPA 

will address all public comments in a 

subsequent final rule based on the 

proposed rule. EPA will not institute a 

second comment period on this action. 

Any parties interested in commenting 

must do so at this time. 

IV. Statutory and Executive Order 

Reviews 

A. General Requirements 

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, 

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 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 13563 (76 FR 3821, 

January 21, 2011); 

• 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 an economically significant 

regulatory action based on health or 

safety risks subject to Executive Order 

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

• 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 

• Does not provide EPA with the 

discretionary authority to address, as 

appropriate, disproportionate human 

health or environmental effects, using 

practicable and legally permissible 

methods, under Executive Order 12898 

(59 FR 7629, February 16, 1994). 

In addition, this rule does not have 

tribal implications as specified by 

Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, 

November 9, 2000), because the SIP is 

not approved to apply in Indian country 

located in the state, and EPA notes that 

it will not impose substantial direct 

costs on tribal governments or preempt 

tribal law. 

B. Submission to Congress and the 

Comptroller General 

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). 

C. Petitions for Judicial Review 

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 November 28, 2017. Filing a 

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. Parties with 

objections to this direct final rule are 

encouraged to file a comment in 

response to the parallel notice of 

proposed rulemaking for this action 

published in the proposed rules section 

of today’s Federal Register, rather than 

file an immediate petition for judicial 

review of this direct final rule, so that 

EPA can withdraw this direct final rule 

and address the comment in the 

proposed rulemaking action. This action 

approving Maryland’s 2008 8-hour 

ozone NAAQS Certification SIP revision 

for NNSR may not be challenged later in 

proceedings to enforce its requirements. 

(See section 307(b)(2)). 

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52 

Environmental protection, Air 

pollution control, Incorporation by 

reference, Intergovernmental relations, 

Nitrogen dioxide, Ozone, Reporting and 

recordkeeping requirements, Volatile 

organic compounds. 

Dated: September 14, 2017. 

Cecil Rodrigues, 

Acting Regional Administrator, Region III. 

40 CFR part 52 is 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 V—Maryland 

■ 2. In § 52.1070, the table in paragraph 

(e) is amended by adding the entry 

‘‘2008 8-Hour Ozone NAAQS 

Nonattainment New Source Review 


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Requirements’’ at the end of the table to 

read as follows: 

§ 52.1070 Identification of plan. 

* * * * * 

(e) * * * 

Name of non-regulatory SIP 

revision Applicable geographic area 

State 

submittal 

date 

EPA 

approval 

date 

Additional 

explanation 

*******

2008 8-Hour Ozone NAAQS 

Nonattainment New Source 

Review Requirements.

The Baltimore Area (includes 

Anne Arundel, Baltimore, 

Carroll, Harford, and Howard Counties and the city of 

Baltimore), the Philadelphia-Wilmington-Atlantic 

City Area (includes Cecil 

County in Maryland), and 

the Washington, DC Area 

(includes Calvert, Charles, 

Frederick, Montgomery, 

and Prince Georges Counties in Maryland).

5/8/17 9/29/17 [insert Federal Register citation].

[FR Doc. 2017–20834 Filed 9–28–17; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

40 CFR Part 52 

[EPA–R07–OAR–2017–0517; FRL–9968–66– 

Region 7] 

Approval of Iowa Air Quality 

Implementation Plans; Elements of the 

Infrastructure SIP Requirements for 

the 2012 Annual Fine Particulate Matter 

(PM2.5) National Ambient Air Quality 

Standard (NAAQS) 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Direct final rule. 

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA) is taking direct final 

action to approve elements of a State 

Implementation Plan (SIP) submission, 

for the 2012 Annual Fine Particulate 

Matter (PM2.5) National Ambient Air 

Quality Standard (NAAQS). 

Infrastructure SIPs address the 

applicable requirements of Clean Air 

Act (CAA) section 110, which requires 

that each state adopt and submit a SIP 

for the implementation, maintenance, 

and enforcement of each new or revised 

NAAQS promulgated by the EPA. These 

SIPs are commonly referred to as 

‘‘infrastructure’’ SIPs. The infrastructure 

requirements are designed to ensure that 

the structural components of each 

state’s air quality management program 

are adequate to meet the state’s 

responsibilities under the CAA. 

DATES: This direct final rule is effective 

November 28, 2017, without further 

notice, unless EPA receives adverse 

comment by October 30, 2017. If EPA 

receives adverse comment, we will 

publish a timely withdrawal of the 

direct final rule in the Federal Register 

informing the public that the rule will 

not take effect. 

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, 

identified by Docket ID No. EPA–R07– 

OAR–2017–0517, to 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 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://www2.epa.gov/dockets/ 

commenting-epa-dockets. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Heather Hamilton, Air Planning and 

Development Branch, U.S. 

Environmental Protection Agency, 

Region 7, 11201 Renner Boulevard, 

Lenexa, KS 66219 at (913) 551–7039, or 

by email at hamilton.heather@epa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Throughout this document ‘‘we,’’ ‘‘us,’’ 

and ‘‘our’’ refer to EPA. This section 

provides additional information by 

addressing the following: 

I. What is being addressed in this document? 

II. Have the requirements for approval of a 

SIP revision been met? 

III. What action is EPA taking? 

IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews 

I. What is being addressed in this 

document? 

EPA is approving elements of the 

2012 PM2.5 NAAQS infrastructure SIP 

submission from the State of Iowa, 

dated December 15, 2015, and received 

on December 22, 2015. Specifically, 

EPA is approving the following 

elements of section 110(a)(2): (A), (B), 

(C), (D)(i)(II)—prevent significant 

deterioration of air quality (prong 3), 

(D)(ii) (E) through (H), and (J) through 

(M). 

A Technical Support Document (TSD) 

is included as part of the docket to 

discuss the details of this action, 

including analysis of how the SIP meets 

the applicable 110 requirements for 

infrastructure SIPs. 

II. Have the requirements for approval 

of a SIP revision been met? 

The state submission has met the 

public notice requirements for SIP 

submissions in accordance with 40 CFR 

51.102. The state held a 30-day 

comment period, and a public hearing 

on November 16, 2015. No oral or 

written comments were received. This 

submission also satisfied the 

completeness criteria of 40 CFR part 51, 

appendix V. In addition, as explained 

above and in more detail in the 

technical support document which is 

part of this docket, the revision meets 

the substantive SIP requirements of the 

CAA, including section 110 and 

implementing regulations. 


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