[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 134 (Monday, July 13, 2020)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 41924-41925]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-13787]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R01-OAR-2020-0132; FRL-10011-52-Region 1]


Air Plan Approval and Air Quality Designation; Connecticut; 
Determination of Clean Data for the 2008 8-Hour Ozone Standard for the 
Greater Connecticut Area

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Final action.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is finalizing a 
clean data determination for the Greater Connecticut Serious 8-hour 
ozone nonattainment area, concluding that the area has monitored 
attainment of the 2008 8-hour National Ambient Air Quality Standard 
(NAAQS) for ozone, based upon certified 2016-2018 ozone data. This 
action suspends the requirements for this area to submit an attainment 
demonstration, a reasonable further progress plan, contingency 
measures, and other planning State Implementation Plan (SIP) revisions 
related to attainment of the 2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS on the condition 
that the area continues to attain the 2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS. This 
action is being taken in accordance with the Clean Air Act.

DATES: This final action is effective on August 12, 2020.

ADDRESSES: EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket 
Identification No. EPA-R01-OAR-2020-0132. 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: Elizabeth Townsend, Air Quality 
Branch, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 1, 5 Post Office 
Square--Suite 100, (Mail code 05-2), Boston, MA 02109-3912, tel. (617) 
918-1614, email townsend.elizabeth@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. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

I. Background and Purpose

    On March 27, 2020 (85 FR 17301), EPA published a notice of proposed 
rulemaking (NPRM) for the State of Connecticut. The NPRM proposed to 
determine that the Greater Connecticut Serious 8-hour ozone 
nonattainment area has attained the 2008 8-hour NAAQS for ozone, based 
on 2016-2018 ozone data. Since the NPRM was published, EPA has 
finalized and published the design values for 2019, based on 2017-2019 
ozone data. These data support the conclusion that the Greater 
Connecticut area attains the 2008 8-hour NAAQS for ozone.
    On April 20, 2020 (85 FR 21796), EPA published a correction to the 
proposed rule which corrected information, displayed in Table 1, of the 
2016 fourth-high 8-hour ozone average concentration values for the 
Abington, Cornwall, and East Hartford monitors. Although incorrect 
values were displayed in the original version of the proposed rule, the 
correct values were utilized in the calculation of the design values 
and in the analysis for the clean data determination and therefore did 
not change our analysis or conclusions. EPA proposed to determine that 
the obligation for Connecticut to make submissions to meet certain CAA 
requirements related to attainment of the NAAQS for this area is not 
applicable for as long as the area continues to attain the NAAQS. The 
rationale for EPA's proposed action is explained in the NPRM and will 
not be restated here. No public comments were received on the NPRM.

II. Final Action

    For the reasons stated in the proposed action, EPA is finalizing a 
clean data determination for the Greater Connecticut Serious 8-hour 
ozone nonattainment area based on the area's current attainment of the 
2008 8-hour ozone standard. Pursuant to 40 CFR 51.1118, this action 
suspends the requirements for this area to submit State Implementation 
Plan (SIP) revisions related to attainment of the 2008 8-hour ozone 
NAAQS on the condition that the area continues to attain the 2008 8-
hour ozone NAAQS. In particular, as discussed in the proposed action 
(85 FR 17301), the obligation for Connecticut to submit attainment 
demonstrations and associated reasonably available control measures, 
reasonable further progress plans, contingency measures for failure to 
attain or make reasonable progress and other planning SIPs related to 
attainment of the 2008 ozone NAAQS shall be suspended until such time 
as:

[[Page 41925]]

(1) The area is redesignated to attainment for the 2008 8-hour ozone 
NAAQS, at which time the requirements no longer apply; or (2) EPA 
determines that the area has violated the 2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS, at 
which time the area is again required to submit such plans.

III. 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 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 action 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 September 11, 2020. Filing a 
petition for reconsideration by the Administrator of this final action 
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, Incorporation by 
reference, Ozone, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

    Dated: June 22, 2020.
Dennis Deziel,
Regional Administrator, EPA Region 1.
[FR Doc. 2020-13787 Filed 7-10-20; 8:45 am]
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