South Coast Air Quality Management District

Status of Home Rule Advisory Group

SYNOPSIS: 

This report is to apprise the Board of the status of recent efforts undertaken by the Home Rule Advisory Group.

COMMITTEE: 

Stationary Source, January 26, 2001, Discussed

RECOMMENDED ACTION:

Receive and file.

Barry R. Wallerstein, D.Env.
Executive Officer

Background

The Home Rule Advisory Group (Group) was chartered July 14, 1995, by the Governing Board to develop approaches to simplify and streamline regulatory compliance as part of the AQMD’s Business Clean Air Partnership. Currently co-chaired by Governing Board members Vice Chair Norma Glover and Supervisor Roy Wilson, the Group seeks consolidation of overlapping federal, state, and local regulations and provides proactive regional input on pending legislation and regulatory proposals. Group members are appointed by the Governing Board for two-year terms, and include up to thirty representatives from U.S. EPA, CARB, SCAG, AQMD, environmental groups, business organizations, and community representatives (see attached table listing current members and their respective affiliations).

2000 Goals and Objectives

The Group’s goals and objectives for 2000 included: (1) working with EPA to achieve flexibility and the opportunity for local creativity and innovation in all Economic Incentive Programs (EIP); (2) working with ARB, EPA and the California Air Pollution Control Officers Association (CAPCOA) to simplify the Lowest Achievable Emission Reduction (LAER) determination process and to clearly define the respective roles in the determination process, and to further credit trading programs, compliance flexibility and NSR offsets; (3) conducting outreach efforts with large cities in non-attainment areas, and their respective state and local air regulatory agencies that face a potentially more restrictive non-attainment status, or are impacted by new National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS); (4) working with EPA and AQMD to implement a programmatic approach to the environmental justice (EJ) complaint process; (5) seeking financial assistance for small businesses; and (6) providing input to AQMD proposed air toxics regulations. For each of these objectives, the following summarizes the progress made by the Group in the year 2000.

(1) Economic Incentive Program (EIP)
The subcommittee evaluated several different programs for generating emission reduction credits (ERCs). The Group provided input to proposed Rule 1612.1, which pertains to the generation of NOx mobile source credits from heavy-duty vehicles, and is scheduled for the March 2001 Board meeting. Specifically this proposed Rule is a pilot program that allows generation of NOx credits from heavy-duty captive fleets and marine vessels. The surplus issue must still be resolved with ARB, and once resolved and a rule adopted, EPA has committed to an expedited approval of this program.

(2) BACT/LAER and NSR
The subcommittee efforts were instrumental in the AQMD’s amendments to NSR in October. Specifically, the subcommittee provided inputs on issues including: bifurcation of the NSR program by separating Best Available Control Technology (BACT) for RECLAIM and non-RECLAIM sources into Lowest Achievable Emission Rate (LAER) for federal major sources and BACT for minor sources; cost considerations into determining state BACT for small sources; and a process to update the BACT guidelines. Further, the subcommittee provided comments on CAPCOA’s guidance on "Achieved-in-Practice Criteria" for LAER, and provided input to address the proposed cancellation of VOC ERCs due to the de-listing of perchloroethlene and acetone.

The subcommittee was expanded to address overall credit issues, including: the availability of NOx ERCs; request to transfer ERCs to other air basins; the shortage of PM credits; inter-pollutant trading ratios; and overall ERCs and trading policies. Eight sub-sub committees were created to address the following issues:

1. Shortage of NOx and PM credits for new electricity generation
2. Inter-pollutant trading policies
3. Inter-District trading
4. EPA policy requiring different offsets for PM10 or PM 2.5
5. Use of mobile source credits for stationary offsets
6. Nullification of VOC ERCs for compounds no longer considered VOCs
7. Availability of RTCs
8. Regulatory policies which inhibit the creation of ERCs in the Basin

The Group will continue to review and make recommendations relative to this issue in the year 2001.

(3) Educational Outreach
Various Group members assisted the AQMD with the "Public Sectors for Clean Air Conference" which was held in November 2000. This highly successful conference provided a national review of air quality planning efforts, and a mechanism for networking with other districts or areas to form future strategic alliances in the fight for clean air. The subcommittee plans on making this a periodic event.

(4) Environmental Justice
The subcommittee provided AQMD staff with suggestions for AQMD’s comment letter on EPA’s draft Title VI Guidance on two issues: agencies receiving funds and EPA guidance for investigating complaints challenging permit actions. At the August 2000 Board meeting, AQMD comments on Title VI were approved and sent to EPA. The subcommittee provided EPA suggestions that it should provide guidance or training for city planners on addressing the impacts of local land use decisions.

(5) Small Business Financial Assistance
The subcommittee recently drafted a mission statement and the name was changed from Small Business Financial Assistance to Small Business Assistance. The subcommittee is still recruiting other Group members to assist in the task of identifying the more pressing concerns of the small business community.

(6) Air Toxics
The subcommittee worked extensively with AQMD staff on the proposed amendments to Rules 1401/1402. The subcommittee drafted a statement for the Governing Board to consider at its March 17, 2000 meeting to amend Rule 1402. The AQMD Governing Board adopted the amendments to Rule 1401/1402 in August and March 2000, respectively. Since that time, the subcommittee has been reviewing the implementation of Rule 1402 and the development of source-specific regulations.

California Coalition Issues

In addition, members of the Group also participated with the California Coalition, consisting of state and local representatives, to address four key issues. The first issue involved working with EPA to address the State Implementation Plan (SIP) gap problem by establishing priorities so that EPA can review the most important rules first. The second issue involved reviewing Maximum Achievable Control Technology (MACT) equivalency guidance which provides two tracks for reviewing AQMD rules; a critical track to analyze AQMD requirements that are exactly the same as Federal requirements, and an important track which analyzes requirements that are not line-by-line equivalent. The third issue involved providing EPA with input on Title V implementation including the periodic monitoring guidance. The fourth issue involved meeting with EPA to discuss EPA’s proposed disapproval of AQMD Rule 518.2 – Federal Alternative Operating Conditions, that provides for AQMD variances.

A draft Memorandum of Understanding was published regarding National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) delegation. On September 12, 2000, EPA published guidance under the final Sub-part E package that addressed these issues. The Group requested that the California Coalition Issues be permanently removed from future agendas.

2001 Goals and Objectives

The Group is in the process of finalizing its goals and objectives for the coming year at its February meeting.

Attachment

Membership Roster

Attachment

/ / /