[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 108 (Thursday, June 4, 2020)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 34357-34359]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-10059]



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 Rules and Regulations
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 This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains regulatory documents 
 having general applicability and legal effect, most of which are keyed 
 to and codified in the Code of Federal Regulations, which is published 
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  Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 108 / Thursday, June 4, 2020 / Rules 
and Regulations  

[[Page 34357]]



ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R01-OAR-2020-0057; FRL-10009-47-Region 1]


Air Plan Approval; Vermont; Infrastructure State Implementation 
Plan Requirements for the 2015 Ozone Standard

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Final rule.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is approving a State 
Implementation Plan (SIP) revision submitted by the State of Vermont 
that addresses the infrastructure requirements of the Clean Air Act 
(CAA or Act)--including the interstate transport provisions--for the 
2015 ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). The 
infrastructure requirements are designed to ensure that the structural 
components of each state's air-quality management program, including 
provisions prohibiting emissions that will have certain adverse air-
quality effects in other states, are adequate to meet the state's 
responsibilities under the CAA. EPA is also approving the State of 
Vermont Executive Order (E.O.) 19-17, Executive Code of Ethics, which 
Vermont submitted with its infrastructure submission for the 2015 ozone 
NAAQS to be added to the SIP. Because E.O. 19-17 supersedes and 
replaces E.O. 09-11, EPA is also removing E.O. 09-11 from the Vermont 
SIP. This action is being taken in accordance with the Clean Air Act.

DATES: This rule is effective on July 6, 2020.

ADDRESSES: EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket 
Identification No. EPA-R01-OAR-2020-0057. All documents in the docket 
are listed on the https://www.regulations.gov website. Although listed 
in the index, some information is not publicly available, i.e., CBI 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 at https://www.regulations.gov or at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, EPA 
Region 1 Regional Office, Air and Radiation Division, 5 Post Office 
Square--Suite 100, Boston, MA. EPA requests that if at all possible, 
you contact the contact 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 legal holidays and facility closures due to COVID-19.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Alison C. Simcox, Air Quality Branch, 
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, EPA Region 1, 5 Post Office 
Square--Suite 100, (Mail code 05-2), Boston, MA 02109-3912, tel. (617) 
918-1684, email simcox.alison@epa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:  Throughout this document whenever ``we,'' 
``us,'' or ``our'' is used, we mean EPA.

Table of Contents

I. Background and Purpose
II. Final Action
III. Incorporation by Reference
IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

I. Background and Purpose

    On April 1, 2020 (85 FR 18160), EPA published a notice of proposed 
rulemaking (NPRM) for the State of Vermont.
    The NPRM proposed approval of a Vermont SIP revision that addresses 
the infrastructure requirements of the Clean Air Act (CAA or Act)--
including the interstate transport provisions--for the 2015 ozone 
National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). The NPRM also proposed 
approval of State of Vermont Executive Order (E.O.) 19-17, Executive 
Code of Ethics, which the State submitted with its infrastructure 
submission. The formal SIP revision was submitted by Vermont on 
November 19, 2019. The rationale for EPA's proposed action is given in 
the NPRM and will not be restated here. EPA received no public comments 
on the NPRM.

II. Final Action

    EPA is approving Vermont's November 19, 2019, infrastructure SIP 
submission for the 2015 ozone NAAQS)--including the ``Good Neighbor'' 
or ``transport'' provisions--as a revision to the Vermont SIP. In 
addition, EPA is approving, and incorporating into the Vermont SIP, the 
following executive order:
    State of Vermont Executive Order No. 19-17, Executive Code of 
Ethics, effective December 4, 2017.
    EPA is also removing State of Vermont Executive Order No. 09-11, 
Executive Code of Ethics, from the Vermont SIP because this has been 
superseded and replaced by Executive Order No. 19-17.

III. Incorporation by Reference

    In this rule, the EPA is finalizing regulatory text that includes 
incorporation by reference. In accordance with requirements of 1 CFR 
51.5, the EPA is finalizing the incorporation by reference of the 
Vermont executive order described in the amendments to 40 CFR part 52 
set forth below. The EPA has made, and will continue to make, these 
documents generally available through https://www.regulations.gov and 
at the EPA Region 1 Office (please contact the person identified in the 
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of this preamble for more 
information). 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 the effective date of the final 
rulemaking of EPA's approval, and will be incorporated by reference in 
the next update to the SIP compilation.\1\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ 62 FR 27968 (May 22, 1997).
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IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

    Under the Clean Air Act, the Administrator is required to approve a 
SIP submission that complies with the provisions of the Act 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 Clean Air Act. 
Accordingly, this action merely

[[Page 34358]]

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);
     Is not an Executive Order 13771 regulatory action because 
this action is not significant under Executive Order 12866;
     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 Clean Air Act; 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, 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 and will not impose 
substantial direct costs on tribal governments or preempt tribal law as 
specified by Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9, 2000).
    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 Clean Air Act, petitions for 
judicial review of this action must be filed in the United States Court 
of Appeals for the appropriate circuit by August 3, 2020. 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. This action 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, Carbon monoxide, 
Incorporation by reference, Intergovernmental relations, Lead, Nitrogen 
dioxide, Ozone, Particulate matter, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements, Sulfur oxides, Volatile organic compounds.

    Dated: May 6, 2020.
Dennis Deziel,
Regional Administrator, EPA Region 1.

    Part 52 of chapter I, title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations 
is amended as follows:

PART 52--APPROVAL AND PROMULGATION OF IMPLEMENTATION PLANS

0
1. The authority citation for part 52 continues to read as follows:

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

Subpart UU--Vermont

0
2. Amend Sec.  52.2370:
0
a. In the table in paragraph (c) by removing the entry ``Vermont 
Executive Order 09-11'' and adding the entry ``Vermont Executive Order 
19-17'' at the end of the Statutes and Executive Orders section of the 
table; and
0
b. In the table in paragraph (e) by adding the entry ``Submittal to 
meet Section 110(a)(2) Infrastructure Requirements for the 2015 Ozone 
NAAQS'' at the end of the table.
    The additions read as follows:


Sec.  52.2370   Identification of plan.

* * * * *
    (c) * * *

                                        EPA-Approved Vermont Regulations
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                          State
         State citation             Title/subject    effective date   EPA approval date        Explanations
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
                                                  * * * * * * *
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                          Statutes and Executive Orders
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[[Page 34359]]

 
                                                  * * * * * * *
Vermont Executive Order 19-17..  Executive Code of        12/4/2017  6/4/2020 [Insert    Prohibits all Vermont
                                  Ethics.                             Federal Register    executive branch
                                                                      citation].          appointees (including
                                                                                          the ANR Secretary)
                                                                                          from taking ``any
                                                                                          action in any matter
                                                                                          in which he or she has
                                                                                          either a Conflict of
                                                                                          Interest or the
                                                                                          appearance of a
                                                                                          Conflict of Interest,
                                                                                          until the Conflict is
                                                                                          resolved.'' Submitted
                                                                                          and approved as part
                                                                                          of 2015 Ozone
                                                                                          infrastructure SIP.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

* * * * *
    (e) * * *

                                             Vermont Non-Regulatory
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                     Applicable           State
   Name of non-regulatory SIP       geographic or    submittal date/  EPA approved date        Explanations
           provision             nonattainment area  effective date
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
                                                  * * * * * * *
Submittal to meet Section        Statewide.........      11/19/2019  6/4/2020 [Insert    This submittal is
 110(a)(2) Infrastructure                                             Federal Register    approved with respect
 Requirements for the 2015                                            citation].          to the following CAA
 Ozone NAAQS.                                                                             elements or portions
                                                                                          thereof: 110(a)(2)
                                                                                          (A), (B), (C), (D),
                                                                                          (E)(1), E(2), (F),
                                                                                          (G), (H), (J1), (J2),
                                                                                          (J3), (K), (L), and
                                                                                          (M). This approval
                                                                                          includes the Transport
                                                                                          SIP for the 2015 Ozone
                                                                                          NAAQS, which shows
                                                                                          that Vermont does not
                                                                                          significantly
                                                                                          contribute to ozone
                                                                                          nonattainment or
                                                                                          maintenance in any
                                                                                          other state.
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[FR Doc. 2020-10059 Filed 6-3-20; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6560-50-P


