Information Collection Request Submitted to OMB for Review and Approval; Comment Request; Information Collection Request for the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program (Renewal)

AGENCY:

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION:

Notice.

SUMMARY:

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has submitted an information collection request (ICR), Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program (EPA ICR No. 2300.18, OMB Control No. 2060-0629) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act. This is a proposed extension of the ICR, which is currently approved through September 30, 2019. Public comments were previously requested via the Federal Register on February 26, 2019 during a 60-day comment period. This notice allows for an additional 30 days for public comments. A fuller description of the ICR is given below, including its estimated burden and cost to the public. 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.

DATES:

Additional comments may be submitted on or before October 25, 2019.

ADDRESSES:

Submit your comments, referencing Docket ID Number EPA-HQ-OAR-2019-0027, to (1) EPA online using www.regulations.gov (our preferred method), or by mail to: EPA Docket Center, Environmental Protection Agency, Mail Code 28221T, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20460, and (2) OMB via email to oira_submission@omb.eop.gov. Address comments to OMB Desk Officer for EPA.

EPA's policy is that all comments received will be included in the public docket without change including any personal information provided, unless the comment includes profanity, threats, information claimed to be Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Rachel Schmeltz, Climate Change Division, Office of Atmospheric Programs (MC-6207A), Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: (202) 343-9124; fax number: (202) 343-2342; email address: GHGReporting@epa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Supporting documents, which explain in detail the information that the EPA will be collecting, are available in the public docket for this ICR. The docket can be viewed online at www.regulations.gov or in person at the EPA Docket Center, WJC West, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave. NW, Washington, DC. The telephone number for the Docket Center is 202-566-1744. For additional information about EPA's public docket, visit http://www.epa.gov/dockets.

Abstract: In response to the FY2008 Consolidated Appropriations Act (H.R. 2764; Pub. L. 110-161) and under authority of the Clean Air Act, the EPA finalized the Mandatory Reporting of Greenhouse Gases Rule (GHG Reporting Rule) (74 FR 56260; October 30, 2009). The GHG Reporting Rule, which became effective on December 29, 2009, establishes reporting requirements for certain large facilities and suppliers. It does not require control of greenhouse gases. Instead, it requires that sources emitting above certain threshold levels of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO₂ e) monitor and report emissions.

Subsequent rules have promulgated requirements for additional facilities and suppliers; provided clarification and corrections to existing requirements; finalized confidentiality business information (CBI) determinations, amended recordkeeping requirements, and implemented an alternative verification approach. Collectively, the GHG Reporting Rule and its associated rulemakings are referred to as the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program (GHGRP).

The purpose for this ICR is to renew and revise the GHG Reporting Rule ICR to update the burden and cost imposed by the current ICR under the GHGRP.

Form Numbers: None.

Respondents/affected entities: The respondents in this information collection include owners and operators of facilities that must report their GHG emissions and other data to EPA to comply with the rulemaking. To facilitate the analysis, EPA has divided respondents into groups that align with the source categories identified in the rule.

Reporting facilities include, but are not limited to, those operating one or more units that exceed the CO₂ e threshold for the industry sectors listed in Table A-4 of 40 CFR 98.2(a)(2) or those in the categories in which all must report, such as petroleum refining facilities and all other large emitters listed in Table A-3 of 40 CFR 98.2(a)(1). Additionally, the GHGRP requires reporting of GHGs from certain suppliers as listed in Table A-5 of 40 CFR 98.2(a)(4).

Respondent's obligation to respond: Mandatory (Section 114 of the Clean Air Act provides EPA authority to require the information mandated by the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program because such data will inform and are relevant to future policy decisions).

Estimated number of respondents: 13,180 (total).

Frequency of response: Annual.

Total estimated burden: 740,012 hours (per year). Burden is defined at 5 CFR 1320.03(b).

Total estimated cost: $87,945,711 (per year), includes $29,526,397 annualized capital or operation & maintenance costs for respondents, labor cost of $58,419,314 for respondents.

Changes in the Estimates: There is an increase of 825 hours in the total estimated respondent burden compared with the ICR currently approved by OMB. This increase reflects an adjustment in the number of respondents from the previous ICR, an adjustment of capital costs to reflect 2017 dollars and changes to the tax law, a new methodology to determine the numbers of responses and responses per respondent, and a complete and comprehensive re-evaluation of the activities and costs associated with all subparts of the GHGRP. Finally, there is a large decrease in annual cost burden (represented by combined Capital and O&M costs) as compared with the ICR currently approved by OMB due to a data entry error. The amount entered for the previous ICR should have been $30,621,791 instead of $58,815,798.