[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 75 (Tuesday, April 21, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 18226-18227]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-9118]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[EPA-HQ-OAR-2005-0490; FRL-8894-2]
Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection;
Comment Request; Consolidated Emissions Reporting Rule (Renewal); EPA
ICR No. 0916.13, OMB Control No. 2060-0088
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) (44
U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), this document announces that EPA is planning to
submit a request to renew an existing approved Information Collection
Request (ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). This ICR is
scheduled to expire on October 31, 2009. Before submitting the ICR to
OMB for review and approval, EPA is soliciting comments on specific
aspects of the proposed information collection as described below.
DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before June 22, 2009.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-
OAR-2005-0490, by one of the following methods:
http://www.regulations.gov: Follow the on-line
instructions for submitting comments.
E-mail: [email protected].
Fax: (919) 541-0684.
Mail: Consolidated Emissions Reporting (Renewal), EPA-HQ-
OAR-2005-0490, Environmental Protection Agency, Mailcode: 2822T, 1200
Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460.
Hand Delivery: EPA Docket Center, 1301 Constitution
Avenue, NW., EPA Headquarters Library, Room 3334, EPA West Building,
Washington, DC 20460. Such deliveries are only accepted during the
Docket's normal hours of operation, and special arrangements should be
made for deliveries of boxed information.
Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-
2005-0490. EPA's policy is that all comments received will be included
in the public docket without change and may be made available online at
http://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information
provided, unless the comment includes information claimed to be
Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information whose
disclosure is restricted by statute. Do not submit information that you
consider to be CBI or otherwise protected through http://www.regulations.gov or e-mail. The http://www.regulations.gov Web site
is an ``anonymous access'' system, which means EPA will not know your
identity or contact information unless you provide it in the body of
your comment. If you send an e-mail comment directly to EPA without
going through http://www.regulations.gov, your e-mail address will be
automatically captured and included as part of the comment that is
placed in the public docket and made available on the Internet. If you
submit an electronic comment, EPA recommends that you include your name
and other contact information in the body of your comment and with any
disk or CD-ROM you submit. If EPA cannot read your comment due to
technical difficulties and cannot contact you for clarification, EPA
may not be able to consider your comment. Electronic files should avoid
the use of special characters, any form of encryption, and be free of
any defects or viruses. For additional information about EPA's public
docket, visit the EPA Docket Center homepage at http://www.epa.gov/epahome/dockets.htm.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dennis Beauregard, Office of Air
Quality Planning and Standards, Air Quality Assessment Division, Mail
Code C339-02, Environmental Protection Agency, Research Triangle Park,
NC 27711; telephone number: (919) 541-5512; fax number: (919) 541-0684;
e-mail address: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
How Can I Access the Docket and/or Submit Comments?
EPA has established a public docket for this ICR under Docket ID
No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2005-0490, which is available for online viewing at
http://www.regulations.gov, or in person viewing at the Air and
Radiation Docket in the EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC), EPA West, Room
3334, 1301 Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, DC. The EPA/DC 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 Reading
Room is 202-566-1744, and the telephone number for the Air and
Radiation Docket is 202-566-1742.
Use http://www.regulations.gov to obtain a copy of the draft
collection of information, submit or view public comments, access the
index listing of the contents of the docket, and to access those
documents in the public docket that are available electronically. Once
in the system, select ``search,'' then key in the docket ID number
identified in this document.
What Information Is EPA Particularly Interested in?
Pursuant to section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA, EPA specifically
solicits comments and information to enable it to:
(i) Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the Agency,
including whether the information will have practical utility;
(ii) Evaluate the accuracy of the Agency's estimate of the burden
of the proposed collection of information, including the validity of
the methodology and assumptions used;
(iii) Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information
to be collected; and
(iv) Minimize the burden of the collection of information on those
who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated
electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or
other forms of
[[Page 18227]]
information technology, e.g., permitting electronic submission of
responses. In particular, EPA is requesting comments from very small
businesses (those that employ less than 25) on examples of specific
additional efforts that EPA could make to reduce the paperwork burden
for very small businesses affected by this collection.
What Should I Consider When I Prepare My Comments for EPA?
You may find the following suggestions helpful for preparing your
comments:
1. Explain your views as clearly as possible and provide specific
examples.
2. Describe any assumptions that you used.
3. Provide copies of any technical information and/or data you used
that support your views.
4. If you estimate potential burden or costs, explain how you
arrived at the estimate that you provide.
5. Offer alternative ways to improve the collection activity.
6. Make sure to submit your comments by the deadline identified
under DATES.
7. To ensure proper receipt by EPA, be sure to identify the docket
ID number assigned to this action in the subject line on the first page
of your response. You may also provide the name, date, and Federal
Register citation.
What Information Collection Activity or ICR Does This Apply to?
Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2005-0490.
Affected entities: Entities potentially affected by this action are
state air pollution control agencies.
Title: Consolidated Emissions Reporting (Renewal).
ICR numbers: EPA ICR No. 0916.13, OMB Control No. 2060-0088.
ICR status: This ICR is currently scheduled to expire on October
31, 2009. An Agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not
required to respond to, a collection of information, unless it displays
a currently valid OMB control number. The OMB control numbers for EPA's
regulations in title 40 of the CFR, after appearing in the Federal
Register when approved, are listed in 40 CFR part 9 and are displayed
either by publication in the Federal Register or by other appropriate
means, such as on the related collection instrument or form, if
applicable. The display of OMB control numbers in certain EPA
regulations is consolidated in 40 CFR part 9.
Abstract: EPA has promulgated a Consolidated Emissions Reporting
Rule (CERR) (40 CFR part 51, subpart A) to coordinate new emissions
inventory reporting requirements with existing requirements of the
Clean Air Act (CAA) and 1990 Amendments. Under the CERR, 55 state and
territorial air quality agencies, including the District of Columbia
(DC), as well as an estimated 49 local air quality agencies, must
annually submit emissions data for point sources emitting specified
levels of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), oxides of nitrogen
(NOX), carbon monoxide (CO), sulfur dioxide
(SO2), particulate matter less than or equal to 10
micrometers in diameter (PM10), particulate matter less than
or equal to 2.5 micrometers in diameter (PM2.5), lead (Pb),
and ammonia (NH3).
Every 3 years, states will be required to submit a point source
inventory, as well as a statewide stationary nonpoint, nonroad mobile,
onroad mobile, and biogenic source inventory for all criteria
pollutants and their precursors. The emissions data submitted for the
annual and 3-year cycle inventories for stationary point, nonpoint,
nonroad mobile, and onroad mobile sources will be used by EPA's Office
of Air Quality Planning and Standards to assist in developing ambient
air quality emission standards, performing regional modeling, and
preparing national trends assessments and special analyses and reports.
Any data submitted to EPA under the CERR is in the public domain and
cannot be treated as confidential.
Burden Statement: The annual public reporting and recordkeeping
burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 28.5
hours per response. The total number of respondents is assumed to be
2,038. This total number of respondents includes 104 state agencies
that are subject to the CERR data reporting requirements and 1,934
sources that are not subject, but are assumed to incur the burden for
reporting estimates of PM2.5 and NH3 to state
agencies. Burden means the total time, effort, or financial resources
expended by persons to generate, maintain, retain, or disclose or
provide information to or for a federal agency. This includes the time
needed to review instructions; develop, acquire, install, and utilize
technology and systems for the purposes of collecting, validating, and
verifying information, processing and maintaining information, and
disclosing and providing information; adjust the existing ways to
comply with any previously applicable instructions and requirements
which have subsequently changed; train personnel to be able to respond
to a collection of information; search data sources; complete and
review the collection of information; and transmit or otherwise
disclose the information.
The ICR provides a detailed explanation of the Agency's estimate,
which is only briefly summarized here:
Estimated total number of potential respondents: 2,038.
Frequency of response: Annual.
Estimated total average number of responses for each respondent: 1.
Estimated total annual burden hours: 58,172.
Estimated total annual costs: $231,000. This includes an estimated
burden cost of $218,400 and an estimated cost of $12,480 for capital
investment or maintenance and operational costs.
Are There Changes in the Estimates From the Last Approval?
There are no changes to the reporting requirements under the CERR
so the actual state burden will remain unchanged. However, the final
ICR may show a minor decrease to the total hours estimated for state
reporting that are currently approved by OMB due to the use of updated
data on state emissions reporting for annual and three-year emission
inventories. In addition, the final ICR may show minor increased costs
due to use of updated labor rates since the earlier ICR.
What Is the Next Step in the Process for This ICR?
EPA will consider the comments received and amend the ICR as
appropriate. The final ICR package will then be submitted to OMB for
review and approval pursuant to 5 CFR 1320.12. At that time, EPA will
issue another Federal Register notice pursuant to 5 CFR
1320.5(a)(1)(iv) to announce the submission of the ICR to OMB and the
opportunity to submit additional comments to OMB. If you have any
questions about this ICR or the approval process, please contact the
technical person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
Dated: April 9, 2009.
Jenny N. Edmonds,
Acting Director, Office of Air Quality, Planning and Standards.
[FR Doc. E9-9118 Filed 4-20-09; 8:45 am]
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