[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 94 (Monday, May 16, 2022)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 29673-29675]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-10019]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 170

[EPA-HQ-OPP-2017-0543; FRL-9803-01-OCSPP]


Pesticides; Agricultural Worker Protection Standard; Revision of 
the Application Exclusion Zone Requirements; Court Order; Stay of 
Effectiveness

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Final rule; court-ordered stay of effectiveness.

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SUMMARY: On December 28, 2020, the United States District Court for the 
Southern District of New York issued an order in the case of State of 
New York et al. v. United States Environmental Protection Agency, which 
resulted in a stay of the effectiveness for an October 30, 2020 final 
rule (2020 AEZ Rule) amending certain provisions of EPA's Agricultural 
Worker Protection Standard (WPS) regulations under the Federal 
Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) related to the 
application exclusion zone (AEZ). Subsequent orders have extended this 
stay of the effectiveness. Although the text of the Code of Federal 
Regulations reflects the amendments to the AEZ provisions under the 
2020 AEZ Rule, the district court's stay orders have prevented those 
amendments from going into effect. Accordingly, the regulatory text 
prior to the amendments provides the operative regulatory language 
during the current stay and any future extensions of the stay.

DATES: As of February 15, 2022, the effectiveness of the final rule 
published

[[Page 29674]]

at 85 FR 68760 (October 30, 2020) is stayed by court order until August 
22, 2022. EPA intends to publish another document in the Federal 
Register to address the status of the 2020 final rule if the stay of 
effectiveness expires or is lifted, but the Agency does not intend to 
publish additional Federal Register documents to announce any 
additional court orders entered to further stay the effectiveness of 
the 2020 final rule.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Carolyn Schroeder, Pesticide Re-
Evaluation Division (7508M), Office of Pesticide Programs, 
Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, 
DC 20460; telephone number: (202) 566-2376; email address: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. General Information

A. Does this announcement affect me?

    You may be interested in this announcement if you work in or employ 
persons working in crop production agriculture where pesticides are 
applied. The following list of North American Industrial Classification 
System (NAICS) codes is not intended to be exhaustive, but rather 
provides a guide to help readers determine whether this document 
applies to them. Potentially affected entities may include:
     Agricultural Establishments (NAICS code 111000).
     Nursery and Tree Production (NAICS code 111421).
     Timber Tract Operations (NAICS code 113110).
     Forest Nurseries and Gathering of Forest Products (NAICS 
code 113210).
     Farm Workers (NAICS codes 11511, 115112, and 115114).
     Pesticide Handling on Farms (NAICS code 115112).
     Farm Labor Contractors and Crew Leaders (NAICS code 
115115).
     Pesticide Handling in Forestry (NAICS code 115310).
     Pesticide Manufacturers (NAICS code 325320).
     Farm Worker Support Organizations (NAICS codes 813311, 
813312, and 813319).
     Farm Worker Labor Organizations (NAICS code 813930).
     Crop Advisors (NAICS codes 115112, 541690, 541712).
    If you have any questions regarding the applicability of this 
action to a particular entity, consult the person listed under FOR 
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.

B. How can I get copies of this document and other related information?

    The docket for this announcement, identified by docket 
identification (ID) number EPA-HQ-OPP-2017-0543, is available at 
https://www.regulations.gov or at the Office of Pesticide Programs 
Regulatory Public Docket (OPP Docket) in the Environmental Protection 
Agency Docket Center (EPA/DC), West William Jefferson Clinton Bldg., 
Rm. 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20460-0001. The 
Public Reading Room is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through 
Friday, excluding legal holidays. The telephone number for the Public 
Reading Room and the OPP Docket is (202) 566-1744. Please review the 
visitor instructions and additional information about the docket 
available at https://www.epa.gov/dockets.

II. Announcement of Court Order

    On December 28, 2020, the United States Southern District of New 
York issued an order granting plaintiffs' request for a temporary 
restraining order (TRO) and injunctive relief in the case of State of 
New York et al. v. United States Environmental Protection Agency, Case 
No. 1:20-cv-10642 (Ref. 1). The Court's order stayed the December 29, 
2020 effective date of the 2020 AEZ Rule (Ref. 2) and enjoined all EPA 
authorities who would otherwise take action to make the 2020 AEZ Rule 
effective from doing so (Ref. 1). Following the December 2020 Order, 
the Court has issued several additional stipulated orders further 
extending the preliminary injunction staying the effectiveness of the 
2020 AEZ Rule (Refs. 3-10). The most recent stipulated order, issued on 
February 15, 2022, continues the stay of the effectiveness of the 2020 
AEZ Rule through August 22, 2022. Additional stay orders may be entered 
in the future.

III. Current Status of the WPS in Light of Court Orders

    In November 2015, the Agency finalized amendments to the WPS that 
included the establishment of the AEZ and related provisions (2015 WPS) 
(Ref. 11). The text of the 2015 WPS and the AEZ provisions within the 
rule is available at 80 FR 67496 (November 2, 2015) (FRL-9931-81). As 
described above, court orders have stayed the effectiveness of the 2020 
AEZ Rule, which would have modified the AEZ provisions in the 2015 WPS, 
until August 22, 2022. Additional court orders may extend this stay.
    Because the 2020 AEZ Rule has not taken effect, the AEZ provisions 
from the 2015 WPS remain in effect and will continue to remain in 
effect in the event of future stays of the effectiveness. Accordingly, 
any enforcement activity by EPA officials and other authorities tasked 
with enforcing the WPS should be conducted based on the AEZ 
requirements in the 2015 WPS, until such time as a subsequent rule goes 
into effect.

IV. Status of Rulemaking

    EPA has commenced a new rulemaking effort to address the AEZ and 
anticipates issuing a proposal in 2022, which is identified in the 
Semi-Annual Unified Regulatory Agenda under RIN 2070-AK92. As part of 
the future proposed rulemaking, EPA intends to thoroughly review the 
2020 AEZ Rule to determine the extent to which it is consistent with 
the policies established in Executive Order 13990, entitled 
``Protecting Public Health and the Environment and Restoring Science to 
Tackle the Climate Crisis'' (86 FR 7037, January 25, 2021). Any final 
rule resulted from this rulemaking process may modify content of the 
2015 WPS, the 2020 AEZ Rule, or both.

V. References

    The following is a listing of the documents that are specifically 
referenced in this document. The docket includes these documents and 
other information considered by EPA, including documents that are 
referenced within the documents that are included in the docket, even 
if the referenced document is not physically located in the docket. For 
assistance in locating these other documents, please consult the person 
listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.

1. State of New York et al. v. United States Environmental 
Protection Agency, Case No. 1:20-cv-10642; (United States Southern 
District of New York, December 28, 2020). Amended Order Re: 
Complaint for Declaratory and Injunctive Relief.
2. EPA. Pesticides; Agricultural Worker Protection Standard 
Revisions; Revision of the Application Exclusion Zone Requirements; 
Final Rule. Federal Register. 85 FR 68760, October 30, 2020 (FRL-
10016-03).
3. State of New York et al. v. United States Environmental 
Protection Agency, Case No. 1:20-cv-10642; (United States Southern 
District of New York, January 19, 2021). Stipulation and Consent 
Order Extending Stay and Entering Injunction.
4. State of New York et al. v. United States Environmental 
Protection Agency, Case No. 1:20-cv-10642; (United States Southern 
District of New York, February 10, 2021). Stipulation and Consent 
Order Further Extending Stay and Extending Injunction.

[[Page 29675]]

5. State of New York et al. v. United States Environmental 
Protection Agency, Case No. 1:20-cv-10642; (United States Southern 
District of New York, April 12, 2021). Second Stipulation and 
Consent Order Further Extending Stay and Extending Injunction.
6. State of New York et al. v. United States Environmental 
Protection Agency, Case No. 1:20-cv-10642; (United States Southern 
District of New York, June 14, 2021). Third Stipulation and Consent 
Order Further Extending Stay and Extending Injunction.
7. State of New York et al. v. United States Environmental 
Protection Agency, Case No. 1:20-cv-10642; (United States Southern 
District of New York, August 12, 2021). Fourth Stipulation and 
Consent Order Further Extending Stay and Extending Injunction.
8. State of New York et al. v. United States Environmental 
Protection Agency, Case No. 1:20-cv-10642; (United States Southern 
District of New York, October 12, 2021). Fifth Stipulation and 
Consent Order Further Extending Stay and Extending Injunction.
9. State of New York et al. v. United States Environmental 
Protection Agency, Case No. 1:20-cv-10642; (United States Southern 
District of New York, December 14, 2021). Sixth Stipulation and 
Consent Order Further Extending Stay and Extending Injunction.
10. State of New York et al. v. United States Environmental 
Protection Agency, Case No. 1:20-cv-10642; (United States Southern 
District of New York, February 15, 2022). Seventh Stipulation and 
Consent Order Further Extending Stay and Extending Injunction.
11. EPA. Pesticides; Agricultural Worker Protection Standard 
Revisions; Final Rule. Federal Register. 80 FR 67496, November 2, 
2015 (FRL-9931-81).

    Authority:  7 U.S.C. 136-136y.

    Dated: May 5, 2022.
Michal Freedhoff,
Assistant Administrator, Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution 
Prevention.
[FR Doc. 2022-10019 Filed 5-13-22; 8:45 am]
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