Clean Fuel Fleet Program

[Federal Register: April 23, 1998 (Volume 63, Number 78)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Page 20159-20162]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr23ap98-34]

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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 88

[FRL-5994-6]
RIN 2060-AH56

Clean Fuel Fleet Program

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency.

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking; delay of implementation date.

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SUMMARY: The provisions of subpart C of Title II of the Clean Air Act
require states with certain ozone and carbon monoxide (CO)
nonattainment areas to revise their State Implementation Plans (SIP) to
incorporate a Clean Fuel Fleet Program. Under this program, specified
percentages of new vehicles acquired by covered fleet operators in
certain ozone and CO nonattainment areas must meet EPA's clean-fuel
vehicle (CFV) emissions standards. In this action, EPA proposes to
delay by one model year, the requirement that a covered area's State
Implementation Plan implement a Clean Fuel Fleet Program (CFFP) fleet
operator purchase requirement. As a result, EPA would approve a CFFP
SIP revision which provides that covered fleet operators must include a
certain percentage of CFVs in their fleet vehicle purchases each year
beginning with model year 1999. This proposal is intended to ensure
successful implementation of the CFFP, and to ensure that an adequate
supply of appropriate vehicles is available for fleet operators to
purchase and use once the program is underway, so that compliance with
the mandatory purchase requirements will be possible and economically
feasible for covered fleet operators.

DATES: Written comments on this proposal must be received no later than
May 26, 1998.

ADDRESSES: Interested parties may submit written comments in response
to this rule (in duplicate if possible) to Public Docket No. A-97-53.
It is requested that a duplicate copy may be submitted to Sally
Newstead at the address in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section
below. The docket is located at the Air Docket, Room M-1500 (6102),
Waterside Mall SW, Washington, DC 20460. The docket may be inspected
between 8:00 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. on weekdays, excluding holidays. A
reasonable fee may be charged for copying docket material.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sally Newstead, Office of Mobile
Sources, National Vehicle and Fuel Emissions Laboratory, 2565 Plymouth
Road, Ann Arbor, Michigan, 48105. Telephone (734) 668-4474.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Statutory Authority

The statutory authority for this action is provided by sections 246
and 301 of the Clean Air Act.

Background

In the Rules and Regulations section of this Federal Register, EPA
is adopting this provision as a direct final rule without prior
proposal because the Agency views this as a noncontroversial action and
anticipates no adverse comments. A detailed rationale for this action
is set forth in the direct final rule. If no adverse comments are
received in response to this proposed rule, no

[[Page 20160]]

further activity is contemplated in relation to this rule. If EPA
receives adverse comments, the direct final rule will be withdrawn and
all public comments received will be addressed in a subsequent final
rule based on this proposed rule. EPA will not institute a second
comment period on this action.
The Clean Air Act, as amended in 1990 (``CAA'' or ``the Act''),
requires certain states to adopt and submit to EPA a State
Implementation Plan (SIP) containing a CFFP for nonattainment areas
with 1980 populations greater than 250,000 that are classified as
Serious or worse for ozone, or with a design value of at least 16.0 ppm
for carbon monoxide (CO). The nonattainment areas currently covered by
the requirement to adopt and submit a CFFP are Atlanta, Washington DC
metropolitan area, Chicago-Gary-Lake Counties, Milwaukee-Racine, Baton
Rouge, and Denver-Boulder.1
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\1\ States with covered nonattainment areas may opt out of the
CFFP with an adequate substitute program. See CAA Section
182(c)(4)(B). Eleven states have opted out of the CFFP pursuant to
this provision. Areas reclassified for ozone, that have a 1980
population of at least 250,000, must also submit a SIP revision with
a CFFP within one year of such reclassification. See CAA Section
246(a)(3).
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Section 246 of the CAA provides that a states' SIP submission must
require fleet operators with 10 or more vehicles that are centrally
fueled or capable of being centrally fueled, to include a specified
percentage of clean-fuel vehicles (CFVs) in their new vehicle purchases
each year. In addition, states CFFP SIP submissions must comply with
other specifications in Section 246, including the requirement that
covered fleet operators must operate their CFVs in covered
nonattainment areas on a clean alternative fuel, defined as a fuel on
which the vehicle meets EPA's CFV standards when using such fuel. EPA
promulgated emissions standards for CFVs in September 1994. See 40 CFR
Part 88. EPA estimates that demand for CFVs by covered fleets in model
year 2 1998 would be approximately 47,000 light duty
vehicles and 12,000 heavy duty vehicles.
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\2\ A ``model year'' for purposes of fleet operators''
compliance with CFFP purchase requirements, and as used in this
notice, is not the same as ``model year'' as defined for purposes of
motor vehicle production. The definition of ``model year'' for the
CFFP means September 1 of the preceding year through August 31 of
the named year. Therefore, model year 1998 for the CFFP runs from
September 1, 1997 through August 31, 1998. See 40 CFR 88.302-94.
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Start Date for CFFP Purchase Requirement

Section 246(c) of the CAA provides that the specified percentage of
new light duty vehicle purchases by covered fleet operators that must
be CFVs in a given model year shall be 30% in model year 1998, 50% in
model year 1999, and 70% in model year 2000 and later years, if certain
categories of new vehicles (light duty trucks (LDTs) below 6000 lbs
gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) and light duty vehicles (LDVs))
certified to the Phase II CFV exhaust emissions standards are offered
for sale in California.3 In March 1993, EPA stated its
expectation that the vehicles specified in Section 246(c) would be
offered for sale in California by model year 1997, and therefore
states' SIP submissions should provide for implementation of the CFFP
purchase requirement beginning in model year 1998. EPA also stated its
intent to delay this implementation date if it later determined that
the requisite vehicles would not be offered for sale in California in
model year 1997. See 58 FR 11888 (March 1, 1993).
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\3\ The Phase II CFV exhaust emissions standards are found in
CAA Section 243(a)(2) and 243(b)(2), and include standards for non-
methane organic gases (NMOG), CO, oxides of nitrogen
(NO_X), particulate matter (PM), and formaldehyde that are
identical to California's Low Emission Vehicle (LEV) exhaust
emissions standards.
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EPA cannot mandate that vehicle manufacturers produce CFVs for
fleets to purchase to meet the CFFP requirements--Congress intended
that the creation of a market for CFVs would provide an incentive for
vehicle manufacturers to produce and sell such vehicles outside
California, ultimately resulting in broader market penetration. The
specification in section 246 (c) that certain vehicles meeting CFV
exhaust emissions standards must be available for sale in California
for implementation of the CFFP purchase requirement to begin in model
year 1998 was intended to provide a minimum level of reasonable
assurance that complying vehicle technology was available and being
produced.4 Without some such evidence of vehicle
availability, fleet operators cannot realistically be expected to
comply with the CFFP purchase requirements. However, Section 246 is not
clear on the issue of how many of the vehicles specified in Section
246(c) must be offered for sale in California before triggering
implementation of the CFFP purchase requirements.
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\4\ See A Legislative History of the Clean Air Act Amendments of
1990, Volume 1 at 903.
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EPA is proposing to delay the start date that the SIP must contain
for implementation of the CFFP purchase requirements from model year
1998 to model year 1999, and would approve state SIP submissions with
CFFPs that start in model year 1999. EPA has received information from
various stakeholders, including states, covered fleet operators, and
vehicle manufacturers on this issue, and has concluded that a delay
until model year 1999 will result in a successful, effective fleet
program that advances the penetration of CFVs and clean alternative
fuels into the national market, and is consistent with the provisions
of Section 246(c) and with Congress' intent in adopting the CFFP
provisions of the Act.
The legislative history of the 1990 amendments to the CAA indicates
that, in adopting the CFFP, Congress made a clear choice between two
alternatives: requiring auto manufacturers to produce and sell CFVs, or
creating a market for CFVs and for clean alternative fuels by requiring
fleet operators to purchase such vehicles and operate on such fuels. In
choosing the latter option, Congress attempted to minimize the burden
on fleet operators by requiring some evidence of vehicle availability
in California as a precondition to implementation of the purchase
requirement before model year 2001. However, the Act does not provide a
clear indication of Congressional intent regarding the number of
vehicles in each weight category specified in Section 246(c) that must
be offered for sale in California to trigger the fleet operators'
purchase requirement. Because the CAA is silent on this particular
issue, and in the absence of a clear indication of Congressional
intent, it is appropriate for EPA to reasonably exercise its discretion
in a way that furthers the goals of the CFFP provisions, and determine
whether a sufficient number of requisite vehicle models are offered for
sale in California to require that other states SIPs implement the CFFP
in MY1998.
Auto manufacturers have certified a number of vehicle models to the
LEV standards in California on California reformulated gasoline, and
EPA expects these vehicles could be certified as federal CFVs. However,
because of the Act's requirement that fleet operators operate CFVs on
clean alternative fuels, as defined in Section 241(b), fleet operators
who purchase such CFVs to meet CFFP purchase requirements may have to
operate these vehicles on California reformulated gasoline, which is
generally not available outside California. EPA cannot conclude at this
time that federal reformulated gasoline or federal conventional
gasoline qualify as clean alternative fuels for CFVs certified to LEV
standards on California reformulated gasoline, due to potential
emissions differences resulting from differences in fuel composition
between

[[Page 20161]]

California reformulated gasoline and federal fuels. EPA expects that
manufacturers could certify LEVs that have been certified to California
LEV standards on California reformulated gasoline as federal CFVs on
federal fuels--if manufacturers did so, fleet operators could purchase
such vehicles to meet CFFP purchase requirements, and operate them on
federal fuels in covered nonattainment areas without violating the fuel
use requirement of the CFFP. Certain new light duty trucks (LDTs) below
6000 pounds GVWR and new light duty vehicles (LDVs) certified to LEV
exhaust emissions standards are currently being offered for sale in
California. However, only a limited number of LDTs below 6000 lbs. GVWR
were certified to California's LEV standards and offered for sale in
California in MY1997 as indicated in the following chart.

List of Certified CA LEVs Offered for Sale in California in MY97
[As of April 1997]
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Manufacturer Certification number Models Type Standard Fuel
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Ford............................. FORD-LDV-97-01-00........ Escort, Escort Wagon..... LDV LEV CA RFG.
FORD-LDV-97-38-00........ Sable, Sable Wagon, LDV LEV CA RFG.
Taurus, Taurus Wagon.
General Motors................... GM-LDT-97-29-00.......... Astro AWD (C&P)* LDT LEV CA RFG.
Passenger.
GM-LDT-97-40-00.......... Safari AWD (P), Astro AWD LDT LEV CA RFG.
(C&P).
Honda............................ HONDA-LDV-97-19-00....... Civic, del Sol........... LDV LEV CA RFG.
HONDA-LDV-97-20-00....... Civic.................... LDV LEV CA RFG.
HONDA-LDV-97-21-00....... Civic, del Sol........... LDV LEV CA RFG.
HONDA-LDV-97-22-00....... Civic.................... LDV LEV CA RFG.
Nissan........................... NISSN-LDV-97-06-00....... Sentra/200SX............. LDV LEV CA RFG.
Suzuki........................... SUZUK-LDV-97-05-00....... Metro.................... LDV LEV CA RFG.
SUZUK-LDV-97-06-00....... Metro, Swift............. LDV LEV CA RFG.
Toyota........................... TOYOT-LDV-97-11-00....... Camry.................... LDV LEV CA RFG.
TOYOT-LDV-97-12-00....... Camry.................... LDV LEV CA RFG.
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*P=Passenger, C=Cargo.

In order to meet the MY98 purchase requirements, fleet operators
must have placed vehicle orders in April, 1997; however, the supply of
federally certified CFVs at this time was limited. Based on the limited
numbers of light duty vehicles and trucks offered for sale in
California in MY1997, and particularly the limited number of LDTs <6000
pounds GVWR, EPA believes that a short delay of the required
implementation date of the CFFP for one model year is reasonable to
avoid the potential for serious disruption of the initial
implementation of this program from an inadequate supply of vehicles.
Given the list of current federally certified CFVs, the available
choices for passenger cars, pick-up trucks, vans and sport utility
vehicles is limited to the following:

List of Certified CFVs Offered for Sale in MY97
[As of April 30, 1997]
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Manufacturer Certification number Models Type Standard Fuel
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IMPCO Tech....................... IMPCO-LDCNGT-97-01....... Sierra C Pickup.......... LDT LEV CNG.
Chrysler......................... CHRYSLER-LDCLT-97-01-00.. Caravan(2WD), LDCLT ILEV + ULEV CNG.
Voyager(2WD).
CHRYS-ZEV-97-01.......... Caravan(2WD), LDT ZEV Electricity.
Voyager(2WD).
Ford............................. FORD-LDCNGV-97-01........ Crown Victoria........... LDV ILEV + ULEV CNG.
FORD-LDCNGT-97-01........ F250(2WD)................ LDT ILEV + ULEV CNG.
FORD-LDCNGT-97-02........ E250(2WD), E350(2WD)..... LDT ILEV + ULEV CNG.
General Motors................... GM-ZEV-97-01............. EV1...................... LDV ILEV + ZEV Electricity.
GN-ZEV-LDT-97-01......... S10 Pickup............... LDT ILEV + ZEV Electricity.
Honda............................ HN-ZEV-97-01............. EV Plus.................. LDV ILEV + ZEV Electricity.
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Manufacturer Certification number Models Standard Fuel
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Cummins........................... CUMMINS-NGE(MHDD)-97-18............. B5.9-195G....................... LEV CNG.
CUMMINS-NGE(MHDD)-97-19............. B5.9-195F....................... LEV CNG.
CUMMINS-NGE(MHDD)-97-22............. C8.3-250G....................... LEV CNG.
CUMMINS-NGE(MHDE)-97-01............. B5.9-195G....................... ULEV CNG
Detroit Diesel.................... DDC-NGE(LHDDE)-97-01................ Series 30G...................... LEV CNG.
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SIP Revisions

In light of this proposal, states with adopted CFFP SIPs would
revise their SIPs to provide for a model year 1999 start date for the
CFFP purchase requirements. Fleet operators could still earn credits
for early purchase of CFVs that meet all applicable requirements,
including the requirement that fleet operators operate their CFVs on
clean alternative fuels when in the covered nonattainment area. The EPA
believes this proposed delay would provide states and fleet

[[Page 20162]]

owners the necessary flexibility in those areas that are unable to meet
the CFF purchase requirements cited in the CAA.

Administrative Requirements

A. Administrative Designation

Under Executive Order 12866, (58 FR 51735 (October 4, 1993)), the
Agency must determine whether the regulatory action is ``significant''
and therefore subject to Office of Management and Budget (OMB) review
and the requirements of the Executive Order. The Order defines
``significant regulatory action'' as one that is likely to result in a
rule that may:
(1) Have an annual effect on the economy of $100 million or more or
adversely affect in a material way the economy, a sector of the
economy, productivity, competition, jobs, the environment, public
health or safety, or State, local, or tribal governments or
communities;
(2) Create a serious inconsistency or otherwise interfere with an
action taken or planned by another Agency;
(3) Materially alter the budget impact of entitlement, grants, user
fees, or loan programs or the rights and obligations of recipients
thereof; or
(4) Raise novel legal or policy issues arising out of legal
mandates, the President's priorities, or the principles set forth in
the Executive Order.
Pursuant to the terms of Executive Order 12866, EPA believes that
this proposed action is not a significant regulatory action and
therefore not subject to OMB review. Approvals of SIP submittals under
section 110 and subchapter I, part D of the Clean Air Act do not create
any new requirements but simply approve requirements that the State is
already imposing. This proposed action simply revises regulations
governing the requirements states' CFFP SIP submissions must meet. It
serves to delay states' required implementation of CFFP purchase
requirements. Therefore, it has been determined that this proposal does
not constitute a ``major'' regulation.

B. Reporting and Recordkeeping Requirement

There are no information requirements in this proposed rule which
require the approval of the Office of Management and Budget under the
Paperwork Reduction Act 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.

C. Regulatory Flexibility

The Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) generally requires an agency
to conduct a regulatory flexibility analysis of any rule subject to
notice and comment rulemaking requirements unless the agency certifies
that the rule will not have a significant economic impact on a
substantial number of small entities. Small entities include small
businesses, small not-for-profit enterprises, and small governmental
jurisdictions. This proposed rule would not have a significant impact
on a substantial number of small entities. This is based on the fact
that this proposed action would not impose any new requirements, but
simply would delay the applicable start date of the CFFP purchase
requirements that must be included in certain state's SIPs, pursuant to
the CAA. Thus, the impact created by the proposed action would not
increase the preexisting burden of the existing rules which this
proposal seeks to amend. Therefore, this proposed action would not have
a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small
entities.

D. Unfunded Mandates Act

Under section 202 of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995
(``Unfunded Mandates Act''), signed into law on March 22, 1995, EPA
must prepare a budgetary impact statement to accompany any proposed or
final rule where the estimated costs to State, local, or tribal
governments, or to the private sector, will be $100 million or more.
Under section 205, EPA must select the most cost-effective and least
burdensome alternative that achieves the objective of the rule and is
consistent with statutory requirements. Section 203 requires EPA to
establish a plan for informing and advising any small governments that
may be significantly impacted by the rule. To the extent that the rules
being proposed in this action would impose any mandate at all as
defined in section 101 of the Unfunded Mandates Act upon the state,
local, or tribal governments, or the private sector, as explained
above, this proposal is not estimated to impose costs in excess of $100
million. EPA has determined that today's proposed action would simply
delay the purchase requirements under state CFFPs and would not impose
additional costs or regulatory burdens. In fact, the one-year delay of
implementation of the purchase requirements is expected to reduce costs
of compliance and ease regulatory burdens.

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 88

Environmental protection, Labeling, Motor vehicle pollution,
Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

Dated: April 3, 1998.
Carol M. Browner,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 98-10152 Filed 4-22-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P

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