§7506a Interstate Transport Commissions

Summary

The EPA Administrator can make a "transport region" when pollution moving across state lines helps cause a breach of air quality standards in other states. The Administrator can add or remove whole states or parts of states from that region if they believe emissions from that place do or do not significantly affect air quality in the region. The Administrator must approve or deny any petition about these changes within 18 months and must set up public notice and comment for those petitions. When a transport region is set up, the Administrator must create a transport commission. It includes each Governor (or their designee), the EPA Administrator (or a designee), the EPA Regional Administrators for affected regions (or designees), and a state air pollution official from each state. The commission studies how pollution moves, suggests ways to fix it, and recommends actions so state air plans meet federal planning rules. Commission votes and recommendations to the Administrator require a majority vote of the members other than the EPA Administrator and the Regional Administrators. The commission is not subject to chapter 10 of title 5. The commission can ask the EPA to find a state's plan substantially inadequate; the EPA must act on that request within 18 months, allow public input, address each recommendation, and the EPA’s decision is final agency action.