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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 119 / Thursday, June 24, 2021 / Proposed Rules nonattainment area. New Jersey submitted a SIP detailing plans to attain the 1997 standard on October 29, 2007, while New York submitted their SIP on February 8, 2008. EPA approved both SIPs on February 11, 2013. 78 FR 9596
February 11, 2013.
On March 12, 2008 73 FR 16436, the EPA revised the ozone NAAQS to a level of 75 ppb to further increase the protection of public health and the environment. State and Federal emission reduction efforts adopted to meet the 1997 8-hour ozone standard continued with the implementation of the 2008 ozone NAAQS. On May 21, 2012 77 FR 30088, the EPA designated the NY-NJ-CT as a Marginal ozone nonattainment area for the 2008 ozone NAAQS. See 40 CFR 81.307, 81.331, and 81.333. As a result of its Marginal classification, the area was required to attain the 2008 ozone standard by July 20, 2015 but was not required to submit an attainment demonstration for the 2008 ozone standard. 42 U.S.C 7511aa.
On May 4, 2016, the EPA determined that the NY-NJ-CT nonattainment area failed to attain by the attainment date, resulting in the area to be reclassified from a Marginal to a Moderate nonattainment area. 81 FR 26697 May 4, 2016. State attainment plans for the 2008 Moderate ozone NAAQS
nonattainment areas were due by January 1, 2017. 81 FR 26697 May 4, 2016. Furthermore, the EPA once again revised the ozone NAAQS in 2015, setting both levels of the primary and secondary NAAQS at 70 ppb. 80 FR
65292 October 26, 2015. The NY-NJCT area was designated by the EPA as a Moderate nonattainment area for the 2015 ozone NAAQS. 83 FR 25776 June 4, 2018.
On June 18, 2012, the EPA issued a CDD for the NY-NJ-CT area with respect to the 1997 8-hour ozone NAAQS and determined that the area attained the 1997 standard by the June 15, 2010
attainment deadline. 77 FR 36163 June 18, 2012. The purpose of the CDD was to suspend the involved states obligations to submit attainment-related planning requirements, including the obligation to submit attainment demonstrations, reasonably available control measures RACM, reasonable further progress RFP plans, and contingency measures with respect to the 1997 8-hour ozone standard. On May 15, 2014 79 FR 27830, the EPA
proposed to rescind the CDD for the area based on the 20102012 monitoring data showing the area was no longer attaining the 1997 8-hour ozone standard, and the EPA proposed a SIP
Call for submittal of a new ozone attainment demonstration for the NY-

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NJ-CT area for the 1997 ozone NAAQS.
As an alternative to submitting a new attainment demonstration for the 1997
ozone NAAQS, the EPA proposed to affected states to respond to the SIP Call by voluntarily requesting they be reclassified to Moderate for the 2008
ozone standard, therefore the states would prepare SIP revisions demonstrating how they would attain the more stringent 2008 standard.
However, the NY-NJ-CT area failed to attain the 2008 ozone NAAQS by the applicable attainment date of July 20, 2015. 80 FR 51992 August 27, 2015. By the operation of law, the NY-NJ-CT area was reclassified to Moderate nonattainment for the 2008 ozone standard. This effectively eliminated the need for the three states involved to voluntarily request reclassification. The NY-NJ-CT area submitted Moderate nonattainment plans for the more stringent 2008 ozone standard, satisfying the final SIP Call for the 1997
ozone standard, since an approvable plan would demonstrate attainment of a more stringent NAAQS. 81 FR 26687
May 4, 2016. Both New Jersey and New York submitted combined attainment demonstrations for the 1997
and 2008 ozone standards for their portions of the NY-NJ-CT area. New Jersey submitted its SIP revision to the EPA on January 2, 2018 and New York submitted its SIP revision to the EPA on November 13, 2017. Connecticut submitted comprehensive revisions to its SIP for the 8-hour ozone NAAQS on August 8, 2017 and the EPA approved the 1997 8-hour ozone NAAQS
attainment demonstration revision in that submittal. 83 FR 39890 August 13, 2018.
B. Moderate Nonattainment Area and Anti-Backsliding Requirements The EPAs November 29, 2005 Phase 2 ozone implementation rule addresses, among other things, the control obligations that apply to areas designated nonattainment for the 1997
8-hour ozone NAAQS. The Phase 1 and Phase 2 ozone implementation rules outline the SIP requirements and deadlines for various requirements in areas designated as Moderate nonattainment. For such areas, modeling and attainment demonstrations with projection year emission inventories were due by June 15, 2007, along with RFP plans, RACM, motor vehicle emissions budgets and contingency measures 40 CFR 51.908a and c, 51.910, 51.912. In addition, Moderate nonattainment areas were also required to submit a reasonably available control technology RACT
SIP. New Jersey and New York
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previously submitted attainment demonstrations to present plans to attain the 1997 84 ppb 8-hour ozone standard and were approved by the EPA. 78 FR 9596 February 11, 2013.
On June 18, 2012, the EPA issued a Clean Data Determination CDD for the 1997 84 ppb 8-hour ozone standard for the NY-NJ-CT Nonattainment area. 77
FR 17341 March 26, 2012. However, on May 4, 2016, EPA rescinded the CDD
since EPA determined that areas within the NY-NJ-CT Nonattainment area exceeded the 1997 84 ppb standard based on 20102012 monitoring data. 81
FR 26697 May 4, 2016. EPA
simultaneously issued a SIP Call for the affected states within the nonattainment area to address the 1997 84 ppb 8-hour ozone standard. The SIP revisions submitted by New Jersey and New York address the requirements of the May 4, 2016 SIP Call. The EPAs review of this material indicates that ambient air quality monitors within the NY-NJ-CT
Nonattainment area are attaining the 1997 ozone NAAQS.
In the 2008 ozone NAAQS SIP
Requirements rule, the EPA revoked the 1997 ozone NAAQS for all purposes and established anti-backsliding requirements for that NAAQS, which include submittal of an attainment demonstration. See 80 FR 12296 March 6, 2015.3 The EPA retained a listing of the designated areas for the revoked 1997 NAAQS in 40 CFR part 81, for identifying anti-backsliding requirements that may apply to those areas. Accordingly, in an area designated nonattainment for the 2008
ozone NAAQS and nonattainment for the 1997 ozone NAAQS, as is the case with the NY-NJ-CT nonattainment area, New Jersey and New York were obligated to implement the applicable requirements set forth in 40 CFR
51.1100o, including the requirement to submit an attainment demonstration.
III. What is the EPA proposing to approve?
New Jersey submitted a SIP revision to the EPA on January 2, 2018 and New York submitted a SIP revision to the EPA on November 13, 2017, these submittals addressed, among other things, the ozone attainment demonstrations for the revoked 1997 8hour ozone standard for their respective 3 In South Coast Air Quality Management District v. EPA, the D.C. Circuit vacated a number of provisions in the 2008 Ozone SIP Requirements Rule, but that decision did not affect the rules antibacksliding requirement to submit an attainment demonstration for the 1997 ozone NAAQS. South Coast Air Quality Management District v. EPA, No.
151115 D.C. Cir. February 16, 2018.

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