[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 55 (Wednesday, March 22, 2006)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 14442-14444]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-4145]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 281
[FRL-8048-2]
Indiana; Tentative Approval of State Underground Storage Tank
Program
ACTION: Proposed rule; notice of tentative determination on application
of State of Indiana for final approval, public hearing and public
comment period.
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SUMMARY: The State of Indiana has applied for approval of the
underground storage tank program under Subtitle I of the Resource
Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). The Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) has reviewed the Indiana application and has made the
tentative decision that Indiana's underground storage tank program
satisfies all of the requirements necessary to qualify for approval.
The Indiana application for approval is available for public review and
comment. A public hearing will be held if sufficient public interest is
expressed.
DATES: A public hearing will be held if sufficient public interest is
expressed and communicated to EPA in writing by April 11, 2006. EPA
will determine by April 21, 2006, whether there is significant interest
to hold the public hearing. The State of Indiana will participate in
any public hearing held by EPA on this subject. Written comments on the
Indiana approval application, as well as requests to present oral
testimony, must be received by the close of business on April 11, 2006.
ADDRESSES: EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket ID
No. EPA-R05-UST-2006-0188. All documents in the docket are listed on
the http://www.regulations.gov Web site. Although listed in the index,
some information is not publicly available (e.g., 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 form. Publicly available
docket materials are available either electronically through http://www.regulations.gov or in hard copy as follows. You can view and copy
Indiana's approval application at the following addresses:
Indiana Department of Environmental Management, File Room located
on the 12th floor of the Indiana Government Center--North, 100 North
Senate Avenue 46204, Telephone: (317) 234-0963, Monday through Friday,
8:30 a.m. through 4:30 p.m.; and
U.S. EPA Region 5, Underground Storage Tank Section, 77 West
Jackson Blvd., Chicago, Illinois 60604. This facility is open from 8:30
a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. We
recommend you telephone Sandra Siler, Enforcement Officer, at (312)
886-0429 before visiting the Region 5 office.
Submit written comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R05-UST-
2006-0188, by one of the following methods: http://www.regulations.gov:
Follow the online instructions for submitting comments.
E-mail: [email protected].
Fax: (312) 353-3159.
Mail: Mr. Andrew Tschampa, Chief of Underground Storage Tank
Section, U.S. EPA Region 5, DU-7J, 77 West Jackson Blvd., Chicago,
Illinois 60604.
Hand Delivery: Andrew Tschampa, Chief of Underground Storage Tank
Section, U.S. EPA, DU-7J, 77 W. Jackson Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois
60604. Such deliveries are only accepted during the Regional Office
normal hours of operation, and special
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arrangements should be made for deliveries of boxed information. The
Regional Office Official hours of business are Monday through Friday,
8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. excluding Federal holidays.
Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. EPA-R05-UST-
2006-0188. 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://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.
Unless sufficient public interest is expressed, EPA will not hold a
public hearing on the State of Indiana's application for program
approval. Anyone who wishes to learn whether or not a public hearing on
the State's application has been scheduled should telephone the
following contacts after April 21, 2006:
Mr. Andrew Tschampa, Chief, Underground Storage Tank Section, U.S.
EPA Region 5, DU-7J, 77 West Jackson Blvd., Chicago, Illinois 60604,
Telephone: (312) 886-6136, or
Mr. Skip Powers, Chief, Underground Storage Tank Section, Indiana
Department of Environmental Management, 100 N. Senate Avenue,
Indianapolis, Indiana 46206, Telephone: (317) 308-3039.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Andrew Tschampa, Chief,
Underground Storage Tank Section, U.S. EPA Region 5, DU-7J, 77 West
Jackson Blvd., Chicago, Illinois, Telephone: (312) 886-6136.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
Section 9004 of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)
authorizes EPA to approve State underground storage tank programs to
operate in the State in lieu of the Federal underground storage tank
(UST) program. Program approval may be granted by EPA pursuant to RCRA
section 9004(b), if the Agency finds that the State program: Is ``no
less stringent'' than the Federal program for the seven elements set
forth at RCRA section 9004(a)(1) through (7); includes the notification
requirements of RCRA section 9004(a)(8); and provides for adequate
enforcement of compliance with UST standards of RCRA section 9004(a).
Note that RCRA sections 9005 (on information-gathering) and 9006 (on
Federal enforcement) by their terms apply even in states with programs
approved by EPA under RCRA section 9004. Thus, the Agency retains its
authority under RCRA sections 9005 and 9006, 42 U.S.C. 6991d and 6991e,
and other applicable statutory and regulatory provisions to undertake
inspections and enforcement actions in approved states. With respect to
such an enforcement action, the Agency will rely on Federal sanctions,
Federal inspection authorities, and Federal procedures rather than the
State authorized analogues to these provisions.
II. Indiana
The Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) is the
implementing agency for underground storage tank (UST) activities in
the State.
IDEM UST/LUST program was first implemented in 1986 and IDEM
recently amended its technical rules, which came into effect October
2004. Indiana adopted UST program regulations for petroleum and
hazardous substance underground storage tanks. Prior to the adoption of
the regulations, Indiana solicited public comments on the draft UST
program regulations.
IDEM submitted their application for State Program Approval (SPA)
of Indiana's UST program to U.S. EPA by letter dated April 5, 2005. EPA
reviewed IDEM's application and determined it to be complete. EPA
notified IDEM in a June 22, 2005, letter that the Indiana application
was complete. In addition, EPA has reviewed the IDEM application and
has tentatively determined that the State's UST program meets all of
the requirements necessary to qualify for final approval.
EPA will not hold a public hearing on its tentative decision,
unless sufficient public interest is expressed. The public may also
submit written comments on EPA's tentative determination until April
11, 2006. Copies of the Indiana application are available for
inspection and copying at the locations indicated in the ADDRESSES
section of this document.
EPA will consider all public comments on its tentative
determination received at a public hearing if scheduled, or received in
writing during the public comment period. Issues raised by those
comments may be the basis for a decision to deny final approval to
Indiana. EPA expects to make a final decision on whether or not to
approve Indiana's program within 60 days of the close of the public
comment period, and will give notice of it in the Federal Register. The
document will include a summary of the reasons for the final
determination and a response to all significant and pertinent comments.
Included in the State's Application is an Attorney General's
statement. In some instances, the State program may be broader in scope
or more stringent than the Federal program. The Attorney General's
statement provides an outline of the State's statutory and regulatory
authority and details concerning areas where the State program is
broader in scope or more stringent than the Federal program.
III. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
This rule only applies to the Indiana Department of Environmental
Management's underground storage tank program requirements pursuant to
RCRA section 9004 and imposes no requirements other than those imposed
by State law (see supplementary Information). Therefore, this rule
complies with applicable executive orders and statutory provisions as
follows.
1. Executive Order 12866: Regulatory Planning Review--The Office of
Management and Budget has exempted this rule from its review under
Executive Order (EO) 12866.
2. Paperwork Reduction Act--This rule does not impose an
information collection burden under the Paperwork Reduction Act.
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3. Regulatory Flexibility Act--After considering the economic
impacts of today's rule on small entities under the Regulatory
Flexibility Act, I certify that this rule will not have a significant
economic impact on a substantial number of small entities.
4. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act--Because this rule codifies pre-
existing requirements under State law and does not impose any
additional enforceable duty beyond that required by State law, it does
not contain any unfunded mandate or significantly or uniquely affect
small governments, as described in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act.
5. Executive Order 13132: Federalism--EO 13132 does not apply to
this rule because it will not have federalism implications (i.e.,
substantial direct effects on the States, on the relationship between
the national government and the States, or on the distribution of power
and responsibilities among the various levels of government).
6. Executive Order 13175: Consultation and Coordination with Indian
Tribal Governments--EO 13175 does not apply to this rule because it
will not have tribal implications (i.e., substantial direct effects on
one or more Indian tribes, on the relationship between the Federal
Government and Indian tribes, or on the distribution of power and
responsibilities between the Federal Government and Indian tribes).
7. Executive Order 13045: Protection of Children from Environmental
Health & Safety Risks--This rule is not subject to EO 13045 because it
is not economically significant and it is not based on health or safety
risks.
8. Executive Order 13211: Actions that Significantly Affect Energy
Supply, Distribution, or Use--This rule is not subject to EO 13211
because it is not a significant regulatory action as defined in EO
12866.
9. National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act--Section 12(d)
of the National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995
(``NTTAA''), Public Law 104-113, 12(d) (15 U.S.C. 272 note) directs EPA
to use voluntary consensus standards in its regulatory activities
unless to do so would be inconsistent with applicable law or otherwise
impractical. Voluntary consensus standards are technical standards
(e.g., materials specifications, test methods, sampling procedures, and
business practices) that are developed or adopted by voluntary
consensus standards bodies. The NTTAA directs EPA to provide Congress,
through OMB, explanations when the Agency decides not to use available
and applicable voluntary consensus standards.
This action does not involve technical standards. Therefore, EPA is
not considering the use of any voluntary consensus standards.
List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 281
Environmental protection, Administrative practice and procedure,
Hazardous materials, State program approval, Underground storage tanks.
Authority: This notice is issued under the authority of Sections
2002(a), 7004(b), and 9004 of the Solid Waste Disposal Act as
amended, 42 U.S.C. 6912(a), 6974(b), and 6991(c).
Dated: March 9, 2006.
Bharat Mathur,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 5.
[FR Doc. E6-4145 Filed 3-21-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P