Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; Comment Request; Prevention of Significant Deterioration Nonattainment Area New Source Review (Renewal), EPA ICR Number 1230.17, OMB Control Number 2060-0003.

AGENCY:

Environmental Protection Agency.

ACTION:

Notice.

SUMMARY:

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), this document announces that EPA is planning to submit a continuing Information Collection Request (ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). This is a request to renew an existing approved collection. This ICR is scheduled to expire on October 31, 2004. 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 October 4, 2004.

ADDRESSES:

Submit your comments, referencing docket ID number OAR-2004-0081, to EPA online using EDOCKET (our preferred method), or by mail to: EPA Docket Center, Environmental Protection Agency, Air and Radiation Docket and Information Center, Mail Code 6102T, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, Northwest, Washington, DC 20460.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Juan E. Santiago, Information Transfer and Program Integration Division (C339-03), U.S. EPA Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina 27711, telephone 919-541-1084, fax 919-541-5509, or electronic mail at santiago.juan@epa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

The EPA has established a public docket for this ICR under Docket ID number OAR-2004-0081, which is available for public viewing at the Air Docket in the EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC), EPA West, Room B102, 1301 Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, DC. The EPA Docket Center 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 Docket is (202) 566-1742. An electronic version of the public docket is available through EPA Dockets (EDOCKET) at http://www.epa.gov/edocket. Use EDOCKET to obtain a copy of the draft collection of information, submit or view public comments, access the index listing of the contents of the public 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 above.

Any comments related to this ICR should be submitted to EPA within 60 days of this notice. The EPA's policy is that public comments, whether submitted electronically or in paper, will be made available for public viewing in EDOCKET as EPA receives them and without change, unless the comment contains copyrighted material, CBI, or other information whose public disclosure is restricted by statute. When EPA identifies a comment containing copyrighted material, EPA will provide a reference to that material in the version of the comment that is placed in EDOCKET. The entire printed comment, including the copyrighted material, will be available in the public docket. Although identified as an item in the official docket, information claimed as CBI, or whose disclosure is otherwise restricted by statute, is not included in the official public docket, and will not be available for public viewing in EDOCKET. For further information about the electronic docket, see EPA's Federal Register notice describing the electronic docket at 67 FR 38102 (May 31, 2002), or go to http://www.epa.gov./edocket.

Affected entities: Entities potentially affected by this action are business or other non-profits; Federal, State, local, or tribal governments.

Title: Prevention of Significant Deterioration Non-Attainment Area New Source Review (Renewal).

Abstract: Part C of the Clean Air Act (Act)—“Prevention of Significant Deterioration,” and Part D—“Plan Requirements for Nonattainment Areas,” require all States to adopt preconstruction review programs for new or modified stationary sources of air pollution. In addition, the provisions of section 110 of the Act include a requirement for States to have a preconstruction review program to manage the emissions from the construction and modification of any stationary source of air pollution to assure that the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) are achieved and maintained. Implementing regulations for these three programs are promulgated at 40 CFR 51.160 through 51.166 to part 51 and 40 CFR 52.21 and 52.24. In order to receive a construction permit for a major new source or major modification, the applicant must conduct the necessary research, perform the appropriate analyses and prepare the permit application with documentation to demonstrate that their project meets all applicable statutory and regulatory NSR requirements. Specific activities and requirements are listed and described in the Supporting Statement for the ICR.

Reviewing authorities, either State, local or Federal, review the permit application and provides for public review of the proposed project and issues the permit based on its consideration of all technical factors and public input. The EPA, more broadly, reviews a fraction of the total applications and audits the State and local programs for their effectiveness. Consequently, information prepared and submitted by the source is essential for the source to receive a permit, and for Federal, State and local environmental agencies to adequately review the permit application and thereby properly administer and manage the NSR programs.

Information that is collected and handled according to EPA's policies set forth in title 40, chapter 1, part 2, subpart B—Confidentiality of Business Information (see 40 CFR part 2). See also section 114(c) of the Act.

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 40 CFR are listed in 40 CFR part 9.

The EPA solicits comments 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 information technology, e.g., permitting electronic submission of responses.

Burden Statement: The annual public reporting and recordkeeping burden for this collection of information is broken down as follows:

Respondents/Affected Entities: Industrial plants, State and local permitting agencies.

Estimated Number of Respondents: (150,723).

Frequency of Response: (1 per respondent).

Estimated Total Annual Hour Burden: (5,851,126) hours.

Estimated Annualized Cost Burden: $(0).

The estimated total annual burden is adjusted upward by 1,135,866 hours. The actual change in burden is 0, but there is an adjustment of $73.286 million upward due to the upward adjustment in the number of minor source actions estimated for this renewal. The revised number of minor source actions results from the upward revision to the number of reviewing authorites and the estimated number of actions per reviewing authority. The total number of respondents is increased by 35,903. The burden per type of permit remains unchanged.

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; 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.