[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 96 (Wednesday, May 20, 2009)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 23678-23679]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-11644]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 80
[EPA-HQ-OAR-2005-0161; FRL-8906-9]
RIN 2060-A081
Public Hearing for the RFS2 Rule
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Announcement of public hearing.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The EPA is announcing a public hearing to be held for the
proposed rule ``Regulation of Fuels and Fuel Additives: Changes to
Renewable Fuel Standard Program'' (the proposed rule is hereinafter
referred to as ``RFS2''), which will be published separately in the
Federal Register. The hearing will be held in Washington, DC on June 9,
2009.
In a separate notice of proposed rulemaking, EPA is proposing a
regulation to implement changes to the Renewable Fuel Standard program
as mandated by the Clean Air Act (as amended by Sections 201, 202, and
210 of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007). The revised
statutory requirements specify the volumes of cellulosic biofuel,
biomass-based diesel, advanced biofuel, and total renewable fuel that
must be used in transportation fuel each year, with the volumes
increasing over time. The rule proposes regulations designed to ensure
that refiners, blenders, and importers of gasoline and diesel would use
enough renewable fuel each year so that the four volume requirements of
the Energy Independence and Security Act would be met with renewable
fuels that also meet the required lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions
performance standards. The RFS2 proposed rule describes the standards
that would apply to these parties and the renewable fuels that would
qualify for compliance, and the proposed regulations make a number of
changes to the current Renewable Fuel Standard program while retaining
many elements of the compliance and trading system already in place.
The signed notice of proposed rulemaking was posted on the EPA Web site
prior to publication in the Federal Register, and contained the same
public hearing date presented in this announcement.
DATES: The public hearing will be held on June 9, 2009 in Washington,
DC. To register to testify at the hearing, notify the contact person
listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT by June 1, 2009.
Information regarding time of the hearing, as well as the Lifecycle
Greenhouse Gas (GHG) workshop, is also listed below in SUPPLEMENTARY
INFORMATION.
ADDRESSES: The hearing will be held at the following location: Dupont
Hotel, 1500 New Hampshire Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20036. Written
comments on the proposed rule may also be submitted to EPA
electronically, by mail, by facsimile, or through hand delivery/
courier. Please refer to the notice of proposed rulemaking for the
addresses and detailed instructions for submitting written comments.
When the proposed rule is published in the Federal Register, a
complete set
[[Page 23679]]
of documents related to the proposal will be available for public
inspection at the EPA Docket Center, located at 1301 Constitution
Avenue, NW., Room 3334, Washington, DC between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.,
Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. A reasonable fee may
be charged for copying. Documents are also available through the
electronic docket system at http://www.regulations.gov. The EPA Web
site for the rulemaking, which includes information about the public
hearings and a copy of the signed proposal (which is essentially the
same as the proposal that will be published) can be found at: http://www.epa.gov/otaq/renewablefuels/index.htm.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Julia MacAllister, Office of
Transportation and Air Quality, Assessment and Standards Division,
Environmental Protection Agency, 2000 Traverwood Drive, Ann Arbor, MI
48105; telephone number: (734) 214-4131; fax number: (734) 214-4816; e-
mail address: [email protected], or Assessment and Standards
Division Hotline; telephone number (734) 214-4636; E-mail address:
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The proposal for which EPA is holding the
public hearing will be published separately in the Federal Register. A
copy of the signed notice of proposed rulemaking, which is essentially
the same as the proposal that will be published in the Federal
Register, has been available since May 5, 2009, on the following Web
site: http://www.epa.gov/otaq/renewablefuels/index.htm. The notice on
the Web site contains the same public hearing date, addresses, and
registration information presented in this announcement of public
hearing.
Public Hearing: The public hearing will provide interested parties
the opportunity to present data, views, or arguments concerning the
proposed rule. The EPA may ask clarifying questions during the oral
presentations but will not respond to the presentations at that time.
Written statements and supporting information submitted during the
comment period will be considered with the same weight as any oral
comments and supporting information presented at the public hearing.
Written comments must be received by the last day of the comment
period, as specified in the proposal of the RFS2 rule.
The public hearing will be held on June 9 in Washington, DC and
will begin at 10 a.m. and end at 5 p.m., local time. To testify at the
public hearing, please notify the contact person listed under FOR
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT by June 1, 2009.
Verbatim transcripts of the hearings and written statements will be
included in the rulemaking docket.
Workshop: We will also hold a workshop on June 10-11, 2009 at the
Dupont Hotel in Washington, DC to present details of our lifecycle GHG
analysis. During this workshop, we intend to go through the lifecycle
GHG analysis included in this proposal. The intent of this workshop is
to help ensure a full understanding of our lifecycle analysis, the
major issues identified and the options discussed. We expect that this
workshop will help ensure that we receive submission of the most
thoughtful and useful comments to this proposal and that the best
methodology and assumptions are used for calculating GHG emissions
impacts of fuels for the final rule. While this workshop will be held
during the comment period, it is not intended to replace either the
formal public hearing or the need to submit comments to the docket.
How Can I Get Copies of This Document, the Proposed Rule, and Other
Related Information?
The EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket ID
No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2005-0161. The EPA has also developed a Web site for the
proposed RFS2 rule, including the notice of proposed rulemaking, at the
address given above. Please refer to the notice of proposed rulemaking
for detailed information on accessing information related to the
proposal.
Dated: May 13, 2009.
Margo T. Oge,
Director, Office of Transportation and Air Quality.
[FR Doc. E9-11644 Filed 5-19-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P