[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 210 (Monday, November 1, 2010)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 67059-67060]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-27510]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Parts 85, 86, 1036, 1037, 1065, 1066, and 1068
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
49 CFR Parts 523, 534, and 535
[EPA-HQ-OAR-2010-0162; NHTSA-2010-0079; FRL-9219-2]
RIN 2060-AP61; RIN 2127-AK74
Public Hearings for Greenhouse Gas Emissions Standards and Fuel
Efficiency Standards for Medium- and Heavy-Duty Engines and Vehicles
AGENCIES: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).
ACTION: Notice of public hearings.
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SUMMARY: EPA and NHTSA are announcing public hearings to be held for
the joint proposed rules ``Greenhouse Gas Emissions Standards and Fuel
Efficiency Standards for Medium- and Heavy-Duty Engines and Vehicles,''
which will be published in the near future in the Federal Register. The
agencies will also accept comment on NHTSA's Draft Environmental Impact
Statement. Two hearings will be held, on November 15 and 18, 2010.
DATES: NHTSA and EPA will jointly hold a public hearing on Monday,
November 15, 2010, beginning at 11 a.m. local time, and a second
hearing on Thursday, November 18, 2010, beginning at 10 a.m. local
time. EPA and NHTSA will make every effort to accommodate all speakers
that arrive and register. Each hearing will continue until 5 p.m. or
until everyone has had a chance to speak. If you would like to present
oral testimony at one of these public hearings, please contact the
person identified under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT, at least ten
days before the hearing.
ADDRESSES: The November 15 hearing will be held at the Millennium
Knickerbocker Hotel Chicago, 163 East Walton Place (at N. Michigan
Ave.), Chicago, Illinois 60611. The November 18, 2010 hearing will be
held at the Hyatt Regency Cambridge, 575 Memorial Drive, Cambridge,
Massachusetts 02139-4896. The hearings will be held at sites accessible
to individuals with disabilities.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If you would like to present oral
testimony at a public hearing, please contact Julia MacAllister at EPA
by the date specified under DATES, at: Office of Transportation and Air
Quality, Assessment and Standards Division (ASD), Environmental
Protection Agency, 2000 Traverwood Drive, Ann Arbor, MI 48105;
telephone number: (734) 214-4131; fax number: (734) 214-4050; e-mail
address: macallister.julia@epa.gov (preferred method for registering),
or Assessment and Standards Division Hotline; telephone number; (734)
214-4636; e-mail: asdinfo@epa.gov. Please provide the following
information: Time you wish to speak (morning, afternoon), name,
affiliation, address, e-mail address, and telephone and fax numbers,
and whether you require accommodations such as a sign language
interpreter.
Questions concerning the proposed rules should be addressed to
NHTSA: Rebecca Yoon, Office of Chief Counsel, National Highway Traffic
Safety Administration, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., Washington, DC
20590. Telephone: (202) 366-2992. EPA: Lauren Steele, Office of
Transportation and Air Quality, Assessment and Standards Division
(ASD), Environmental Protection Agency, 2000 Traverwood Drive, Ann
Arbor, MI 48105; telephone number: (734) 214-4788; fax number: (734)
214-4816; e-mail address: steele.lauren@epa.gov, or Assessment and
Standards Division Hotline; telephone number; (734) 214-4636; e-mail:
asdinfo@epa.gov. You may learn more about the proposal by visiting
NHTSA's or EPA's Web pages at http://www.nhtsa.gov/fuel-economy or
http://www.epa.gov/otaq/climate/regulations.htm or by searching the
rulemaking dockets (NHTSA-2010-0079; EPA-HQ-OAR-2010-0162) at http://www.regulations.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The purpose of the public hearings is to
provide the public an opportunity to present oral comments regarding
NHTSA and EPA's proposal for ``Greenhouse Gas Emissions Standards and
Fuel Efficiency Standards for Medium- and Heavy-Duty Engines and
Vehicles.'' These hearings also offer an opportunity for the public to
provide oral comments regarding NHTSA's draft Environmental Impact
Statement, accompanying the proposed NHTSA fuel efficiency standards.
The proposed rules would establish a comprehensive Heavy-Duty National
Program that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions and increase fuel
efficiency for on-road heavy-duty vehicles. NHTSA's proposed fuel
consumption standards and EPA's proposed carbon dioxide
(CO2) emissions standards would be tailored to each of three
regulatory categories: (1) Combination Tractors; (2) Heavy-duty Pickup
Trucks and Vans; and (3) Vocational Vehicles, as well as gasoline and
diesel heavy-duty engines. EPA's proposed hydrofluorocarbon emissions
standards would apply to air conditioning systems in tractors, pickup
trucks, and vans, and EPA's proposed nitrous oxide (N2O) and
methane (CH4) emissions standards would apply to all heavy-
duty engines, pickup trucks, and vans. The proposal also includes a
request for comment on possible alternative CO2-equivalent
approaches for light-duty vehicles in model years 2012-14.
The proposal for which EPA and NHTSA are holding the public
hearings will be published in the near future in the Federal Register
and is available at the Web pages listed above under FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT and also in the rulemaking dockets. NHTSA's draft
Environmental Impact Statement is available on the NHTSA Web page and
in NHTSA's rulemaking docket, both
[[Page 67060]]
referenced above. Once NHTSA and EPA learn how many people have
registered to speak at each public hearing, we will allocate an
appropriate amount of time to each participant, allowing time for
necessary breaks. In addition, we will reserve a block of time for
anyone else in the audience who wants to give testimony. For planning
purposes, each speaker should anticipate speaking for approximately ten
minutes, although we may need to shorten that time if there is a large
turnout. We request that you bring three copies of your statement or
other material for the EPA and NHTSA panels. To accommodate as many
speakers as possible, we prefer that speakers not use technological
aids (e.g., audio-visuals, computer slideshows). However, if you plan
to do so, you must notify the contact persons in the FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT section above. You also must make arrangements to
provide your presentation or any other aids to NHTSA and EPA in advance
of the hearing in order to facilitate set-up.
NHTSA and EPA will conduct the hearings informally, and technical
rules of evidence will not apply. We will arrange for a written
transcript of each hearing and keep the official record of each hearing
open for 30 days to allow speakers to submit supplementary information.
Panel members may ask clarifying questions during the oral
presentations, but will not respond to the presentations at that time.
You may make arrangements for copies of the transcripts directly with
the court reporter. Written statements and supporting information
submitted during the comment period will be considered with the same
weight as oral comments and supporting information presented at the
public hearings. Written comments on the proposal must be postmarked by
60 days after the date of publication of the proposal in the Federal
Register.
Dated: October 26, 2010.
Ronald Medford,
Deputy Administrator, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
Dated: October 25, 2010.
Margo T. Oge,
Director, Office of Transportation and Air Quality Environmental
Protection Agency.
[FR Doc. 2010-27510 Filed 10-29-10; 8:45 am]
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