I
104TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 3519
To amend the Clean Air Act.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
MAY 23, 1996
Mr. BARTON of Texas introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Commerce
A BILL
To amend the Clean Air Act.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE, REFERENCES, AND TABLE OF
CONTENTS.
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the
‘‘Clean Air Act Amendments of 1996’’.
(b) REFERENCES.—Whenever in this Act an amend-
ment or repeal is expressed in terms of an amendment
to, or repeal of, a section or other provision, the reference
shall be considered to be made to a section or other provi-
sion of the Clean Air Act.
(c) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents is
as follows:
Sec. 1. Short title, references, and table of contents.
Sec. 2. Operating permits.
Sec. 3. Enhanced monitoring.
Sec. 4. Recognition of effective controls.
Sec. 5. Sanctions.
Sec. 6. Hazardous air pollutants.
Sec. 7. Voluntary controls adopted prior to nonattainment.
Sec. 8. Attainment date determinations.
Sec. 9. Attainment redesignations.
Sec. 10. Credit for episodic controls.
Sec. 11. Opt-in reformulated gas areas.
Sec. 12. NOx reductions for reformulated gas.
Sec. 13. Establishing national primary ambient air quality standards.
Sec. 14. Transportation conformity.
Sec. 15. Overwhelming transport.
Sec. 16. Automobile inspection and maintenance.
Sec. 17. Emissions trading.
SEC. 2. OPERATING PERMITS.
(a) DEFINITION OF APPLICABLE REQUIREMENT.—
Section 501 (42 U.S.C. 7661) is amended by adding the
following new paragraph after paragraph (4):
‘‘(5) APPLICABLE
REQUIREMENT.—The term
‘applicable requirement’ means any requirement pro-
mulgated by the Administrator pursuant to section
111 (42 U.S.C. 7411), section 112 (42 U.S.C. 7412)
with the exception of section 112(r), section 129 (42
U.S.C. 7429), Section 165 (42 U.S.C. 7475), sub-
sections (e) and (f) of section 183 (42 U.S.C.
7511b), section 328 (42 U.S.C. 7627), title IV or
title VI (unless the permitting authority determines
that a requirement imposed pursuant to title VI
need not be contained in a permit issued under this
title) and any limitation on emissions or operations
contained in a construction permit issued pursuant
to Parts C or D of title I. The term ‘applicable re-
quirement’ also includes any other requirement pro-
vided for in an applicable state implementation plan,
except that a requirement imposed pursuant to a
State minor new source review program under sec-
tion 110(a)(2) (42 U.S.C. 7410(a)(2)) shall not be
considered an applicable requirement for purposes of
this title. Notwithstanding this paragraph, any per-
mitting authority may provide for the terms of per-
mits issued under its minor new source review to be
appended to or incorporated in an operating permit
issued under this subchapter. Nothing in this para-
graph shall affect the authority of any person to en-
force any requirement imposed under any rule, per-
mit, or implementation plan under this Act.’’.
(b) ASSURANCE OF OPERATING FLEXIBILITY.—(1)
Section 502 (b)(10) (42 U.S.C. 766la(b)(10)), is amended
to read as follows:
‘‘(10) The permitting authority may not require
any source to obtain or modify a permit issued
under this title for any physical or operational
change at the source or for taking any other action
prior to the date 7 days after the physical or oper-
ational change or other action is initiated. Nothing
in this title shall be construed to alter the require-
ments of any other title of this Act that a permit
be obtained before construction or modification of a
source. Nothing in this paragraph shall preclude any
State from continuing to impose any requirement or
employ any procedure separate and apart from the
program required under this title, provided that such
requirements and procedures shall not be applicable
requirements under this title.’’.
(2) Section 502(b) (42 U.S.C. 766la(b)) is
amended by adding the following paragraph after
paragraph (10):
‘‘(11) A provision giving major stationary
sources the option of obtaining permits that would
allow emissions increases and decreases at various
units within the major stationary source without
permit revisions if overall emissions limits for the
major stationary source are not exceeded and
preconstruction review is not required under title I.
Nothing in this paragraph shall preclude any State
from continuing to impose any requirement or em-
ploy any procedure separate and apart from the pro-
gram required under this title, provided that such
requirements and procedures shall not be applicable
requirements under this title.’’.
(c) SANCTIONS AND FEDERAL IMPLEMENTATION.—
Section 502(d) (42 U.S.C. 7661a(d)) is amended by in-
serting before the period at the end of subparagraphs (A)
and (B) of paragraph (2) and before the period at the
end of (3) the following: ‘‘in any case in which the Admin-
istrator determines that such failure will cause the State
to fail to attain a national primary ambient air quality
standard by the applicable attainment date’’.
(d) PERMIT TERM.—Section 502(b)(5)(B) is amend-
ed by striking out ‘‘5 years’’ and inserting ‘‘10 years’’.
SEC. 3. ENHANCED MONITORING.
Section 114(a) (42 U.S.C. 7414(a)(3)) is amended
by striking paragraph (3) and inserting the following:
‘‘(3) The Administrator shall in the case of any
person which is the owner or operator of a major
source, and may, in the case of any other person, re-
quire submission of compliance certifications. Com-
pliance certifications shall include (A) identification
of the applicable requirement that is the basis of the
certification, (B) the method used for determining
the compliance status of the source, and (C) its com-
pliance status. Compliance certifications and mon-
itoring data shall be subject to subsection (c) of this
section. Submission of a compliance certification
shall in no way limit the Administrator’s authorities
to investigate or otherwise implement this Act.
‘‘(4) Nothing in this section or in title V shall
authorize the Administrator to revise significantly,
or to require significant revision of, an existing com-
pliance method without employing procedures, such
as a rulemaking, to allow meaningful comment on
that revision and to assess the effect of the revision
on the stringency of the underlying emission stand-
ard or limitation. Nothing in this section or section
113 (42 U.S.C. 7413) shall authorize the use of evi-
dence other than the applicable compliance method
or test method to establish a violation of the numeri-
cal component of an emission limitation or standard.
For purposes of this paragraph, compliance method
as test method shall meet the requirements con-
tained in a regulation or permit for monitoring or
testing to determine compliance with the applicable
emission standard or limitation. Nothing in this sub-
paragraph shall limit the authority of the Adminis-
trator to increase the stringency of controls or to im-
pose new controls, as required under any other sec-
tion of this Act.
SEC. 4. RECOGNITION OF EFFECTIVE CONTROLS.
Section 302 (42 U.S.C. 7602) is amended by adding
the following at the end thereof:
‘‘(aa) POTENTIAL TO EMIT.—The term ‘potential to
emit’ means the maximum capacity of a stationary source
to emit any regulated air pollutant under its physical and
operational design. Any physical or operational limit on
the capacity of a source to emit any regulated air pollut-
ant, including any limit enforceable under Federal, State,
or local law and including any pollution control equipment
and restrictions on hours of operation or on the type or
amount of material used, produced, stored, combusted or
processed at such source shall be treated as part of its
design if the limitation is effective.’’.
SEC. 5. SANCTIONS.
The first sentence of section 179(a) (42 U.S.C.
7509(a)) is amended by striking ‘‘one of the sanctions re-
ferred to in subsection (b) shall apply, as selected by the
Administrator’’ and all that follows down through the pe-
riod at the end thereof and inserting ‘‘the Administrator
may apply one of the sanction referred to in subsection
(b) if the Administrator finds that such deficiency is likely
to result in a failure by the State to attain a national pri-
mary ambient air quality standard by the applicable at-
tainment date.’’.
SEC. 6. HAZARDOUS AIR POLLUTANTS.
Section 112(j)(6) is amended in the second sentence
by striking all after ‘‘the Administrator shall revise such
permit’’ and inserting ‘‘to comply with such standard and
such revision shall take effect on the date 10 years after
the date such standard is promulgated.’’.
SEC. 7. VOLUNTARY CONTROLS ADOPTED PRIOR TO NON-
ATTAINMENT.
Section 182(b)(1)(C) is amended by adding the fol-
lowing at the end thereof: ‘‘Any measures that were not
expressly required by this Act, but that were voluntarily
implemented, prior to the designation of the area as a non-
attainment area shall be credited as additional reductions
for purposes of any revised plan adopted for the area pur-
suant to this part following designation of the area as an
ozone nonattainment area.’’.
SEC. 8. ATTAINMENT DATE DETERMINATIONS.
(a) 
PARAGRAPH
(5) 
EXTENSIONS.—Section
181(a)(5)(B) is amended to read as follows:
‘‘(B)(i) no more than one exceedance of the na-
tional ambient air quality standard for ozone has oc-
curred in the area in the year preceding the Exten-
sion Year,
‘‘(ii) the design value of the area (based on data
from the year preceding the extension year) does not
exceed the design value for the current classification
of the area as specified in table 1 of paragraph (1),
or
‘‘(iii) the Administrator determines that infre-
quent episodic variations in air pollution levels
caused by weather impact an area’s ability to dem-
onstrate attainment.’’.
(b) 
ADDITIONAL
EXTENSION
FOR
CERTAIN
AREAS.—Section 181(a) is amended by adding the follow-
ing at the end thereof:
‘‘(6) ATTAINMENT FOLLOWED BY VIOLATION.—
Upon application by any State, the Administrator
may extend, for up to an additional 3 years, the date
specified in Table I of paragraph (1) of this sub-
section and the dates specified in section 182(b) re-
garding reasonable further progress, if—
‘‘(A) the area has in a 3-year period prior
to the attainment date, qualified for redesigna-
tion as attainment for ozone, but
‘‘(B) subsequent to such 3-year period, the
area has violated the ozone standard.
No more than one extension may be issued under
this paragraph for a single nonattainment area.’’.
SEC. 9. ATTAINMENT REDESIGNATIONS.
Section 107(d)(3) is amended as follows:
(1) By amending the second sentence of sub-
paragraph (D) to read as follows: ‘‘The Adminis-
trator shall publish notice in the Federal Register of
the Administrator’s receipt of a request for redesig-
nation. The Administrator shall also publish notice
in the Federal Register of the Administrator’s pro-
posed approval or denial within 90 days after receipt
of a complete State redesignation submittal and ap-
prove or deny such redesignation within 90 days
thereafter.’’.
(2) By adding the following at the end of sub-
paragraph (E):
‘‘If a State requests the Administrator to redesignate an
area as attainment and submits information to the Admin-
istrator regarding such area adequate to demonstrate
compliance with clauses (ii) through (v) and compliance
(for a period of 3 years prior to the submission) with
clause (i) and if the Administrator fails to publish notice
in the Federal Register of the Administrator’s proposed
approval or denial of such request within 90 days after
receipt of a complete State redesignation request or fails
to approve or deny such request within 90 days thereafter,
the area shall be deemed to be redesignated as an attain-
ment area by operation of law on the date 180 days after
the Administrator’s receipt of a complete State redesigna-
tion request.’’.
SEC. 10. CREDIT FOR EPISODIC CONTROLS.
Section 110(a) is amended by inserting the following
new subparagraph immediately after paragraph (3):
‘‘(4) In determining whether the provisions of any
plan or plan revision submitted under this Act are ade-
quate to attain and maintain any national primary or sec-
ondary ambient air quality standard, the Administrator
shall provide appropriate credits for plan provisions which
are designed to control air pollution only during certain
periods when levels of one or more air pollutants are, or
are likely to be, at higher levels than at other periods.’’.
SEC. 11. OPT-IN REFORMULATED GAS AREAS.
Section 211(k)(6)(A) of the Clean Air Act is amended
as follows:
(1) By inserting the following after the second
sentence: ‘‘No area included in the coverage of the
prohibition set forth in paragraph (5) pursuant to
an application under this paragraph may continue to
be included in such prohibition after December 31,
1999, unless the Governor of the State in which
such area is located has notified the Administrator
of such continued inclusion prior to December 31,
1997, and the Administrator has published such no-
tice in the Federal Register.’’.
(2) By adding the following at the end thereof:
‘‘An area that has been included in the coverage of
the prohibition set forth in paragraph (5) pursuant
to an application under this paragraph may subse-
quently be excluded from such coverage pursuant to
an application by the Governor to the Administrator,
but such exclusion shall not take effect for a period
of 1-year after the application is approved (in the
case of Phase I Reformulated Gas Regulations) or 8-
years after the date on which the area was first in-
cluded in the coverage of such prohibition (in the
case of Phase II Reformulated Gas Regulations).
After an area is excluded from coverage pursuant to
the preceding sentence, any subsequent inclusion (or
subsequent exclusion) of the area from such cov-
erage shall not take effect for a period of 1-year
after the Governor’s application is approved. A Gov-
ernor’s application shall be treated as approved
under this subparagraph on the date on which the
Administrator publishes notice of such approval in
the Federal Register.’’.
SEC. 12. NOΧ REDUCTIONS FOR REFORMULATED GAS.
Section 211(k)(2)(A) of the Clean Air Act is amended
by adding the following at the end thereof: ‘‘The Adminis-
trator may not require that emissions of oxides of nitrogen
(NOΧ) from baseline vehicles when using the reformulated
gasoline be less than emissions from such vehicles when
using baseline gasoline.’’.
SEC. 13. ESTABLISHING NATIONAL PRIMARY AMBIENT AIR
QUALITY STANDARDS.
Section 109 of the Clean Air Act is amended as fol-
lows:
(1) At the end of subsection (a) add the follow-
ing:
‘‘(3) Within two years after the enactment of this
paragraph the Administrator shall promulgate national
primary ambient air quality goals and revised national pri-
mary ambient air quality standards.’’.
(2) In subsection (b)(1), strike ‘‘prescribed,
under subsection (a)’’ and insert ‘‘prescribed under
subsection (a)(1)’’.
(3) Strike the last sentence of subsection (a)(1)
and insert ‘‘The national primary ambient air qual-
ity goals promulgated under subsection (a)(3) shall
set forth a level of ambient air quality, based on
such criteria and allowing an adequate margin of
safety, that is requisite to protect the public health.
In establishing such level the Administrator shall not
take into account infrequent episodic variations in
air pollution levels that are caused by weather. The
revised national primary ambient air quality stand-
ards promulgated under subsection (a)(3) shall be as
close to such national primary ambient air quality
goals as feasible such that the incremental costs of
attaining such standard do not exceed the incremen-
tal benefits of attaining the standard.’’.
SEC. 14. TRANSPORTATION CONFORMITY.
Section 176 is amended to read as follows:
‘‘SEC. 176. TRANSPORTATION CONFORMITY.
‘‘Beginning on November 15, 1996, and at 4-year in-
tervals thereafter, each State shall submit a revised inven-
tory and performance plan for review by the Adminis-
trator. Such plan shall include a certification by the State
that the plan has been developed so as to meet air quality
goals. The applicability of a State approved implementa-
tion plan shall become effective for the purposes of this
section upon signature of the Governor and shall continue
unless disapproved by the Administrator within 30 days.
The form and content of the inventory and performance
plan shall solely be within the purview of each State and
the Administrator shall not disapprove such plan unless
the Administrator determines that a State has developed
an inventory and plan without adhering to such State’s
own processes and procedures. If not disapproved within
30 days, such inventories and plans shall be considered
approved. Nothing in this section shall require the submis-
sion of an inventory or plan more than once every 4
years.’’.
SEC. 15. OVERWHELMING TRANSPORT.
Section 181 is amended by adding the following at
the end thereof:
‘‘(d) OVERWHELMING TRANSPORT.—If, based on
photochemical grid modeling demonstrations or any other
analytical method determined by the Administrator to be
as effective, the Administrator determines that the area
is a downwind nonattainment area receiving ozone or
ozone precursor transport from outside the area and con-
trol of ozone concentrations is beyond the ability of the
area to control because volatile organic compounds and ox-
ides of nitrogen from sources within such area do not
make a significant contribution to ozone concentrations in
such area (or in any other ozone nonattainment area), the
Administrator may redesignate the area as attainment or
as having a lower classification.’’.
SEC. 16. AUTOMOBILE INSPECTION AND MAINTENANCE.
Section 182(c)(3)(C)(iv) is amended by inserting
‘‘safety inspection approval or’’ after ‘‘denial of’’.
SEC. 17. EMISSIONS TRADING.
Section 110 is amended by inserting the following
new subsection immediately before subsection (f):
‘‘(e) EMISSIONS TRADING PROGRAMS.—The Admin-
istrator shall approve any emissions trading program sub-
mitted under this section as part of an applicable imple-
mentation plan or implementation plan revision for any
area unless the Administrator determines that such pro-
gram would result in the failure of a nonattainment area
to attain the national primary or secondary ambient air
quality standards by the applicable attainment date or in
the failure of an area that has been designated as attain-
ment to maintain such standards. The Administrator shall
not be required to approve any plan which will result in
increased emissions (beyond the maintenance plan level)
of the criteria pollutant for which the area is classified
as nonattainment.’’.
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