[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 194 (Tuesday, October 6, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 63131-63132]
[FR Doc No: 2020-22084]

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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

Federal Emergency Management Agency

[Docket ID FEMA-2020-0002; Internal Agency Docket No. FEMA-B-2055]

Proposed Flood Hazard Determinations

AGENCY: Federal Emergency Management Agency, DHS.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: Comments are requested on proposed flood hazard
determinations, which may include additions or modifications of any
Base Flood Elevation (BFE), base flood depth, Special Flood Hazard Area
(SFHA) boundary or zone designation, or regulatory floodway on the
Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs), and where applicable, in the
supporting Flood Insurance Study (FIS) reports for the communities
listed in the table below. The purpose of this notice is to seek
general information and comment regarding the preliminary FIRM, and
where applicable, the FIS report that the Federal Emergency Management
Agency (FEMA) has provided to the affected communities. The FIRM and
FIS report are the basis of the floodplain management measures that the
community is required either to adopt or to show evidence of having in
effect in order to qualify or remain qualified for participation in the
National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). In addition, the FIRM and FIS
report, once effective, will be used by insurance agents and others to
calculate appropriate flood insurance premium rates for new buildings
and the contents of those buildings.

DATES: Comments are to be submitted on or before January 4, 2021.

ADDRESSES: The Preliminary FIRM, and where applicable, the FIS report
for each community are available for inspection at both the online
location https://www.fema.gov/preliminaryfloodhazarddata and the
respective Community Map Repository address listed in the tables below.
Additionally, the current effective FIRM and FIS report for each
community are accessible online through the FEMA Map Service Center at
https://msc.fema.gov for comparison.
    You may submit comments, identified by Docket No. FEMA-B-2055, to
Rick Sacbibit, Chief, Engineering Services Branch, Federal Insurance
and Mitigation Administration, FEMA, 400 C Street SW, Washington, DC
exception occurred on : 2020-22084.htm
exception occurred on : 2020-22084.htm
20472,<PHONE_NUMBER>, or (email) pat[email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rick Sacbibit, Chief, Engineering
Services Branch, Federal Insurance and Mitigation Administration, FEMA,
400 C Street SW, Washington, DC 20472,<PHONE_NUMBER>, or (email)
<EMAIL_ADDRESS>or visit the FEMA Map Information
eXchange (FMIX) online at https://www.floodmaps.fema.gov/fhm/fmx_main.html.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: FEMA proposes to make flood hazard
determinations for each community listed below, in accordance with
section 110 of the Flood Disaster Protection Act of 1973, 42 U.S.C.
4104, and 44 CFR 67.4(a).
    These proposed flood hazard determinations, together with the
floodplain management criteria required by 44 CFR 60.3, are the minimum
that

are required. They should not be construed to mean that the community
must change any existing ordinances that are more stringent in their
floodplain management requirements. The community may at any time enact
stricter requirements of its own or pursuant to policies established by
other Federal, State, or regional entities. These flood hazard
determinations are used to meet the floodplain management requirements
of the NFIP and are used to calculate the appropriate flood insurance
premium rates for new buildings built after the FIRM and FIS report
become effective.
    The communities affected by the flood hazard determinations are
provided in the tables below. Any request for reconsideration of the
revised flood hazard information shown on the Preliminary FIRM and FIS
report that satisfies the data requirements outlined in 44 CFR 67.6(b)
is considered an appeal. Comments unrelated to the flood hazard
determinations also will be considered before the FIRM and FIS report
become effective.
    Use of a Scientific Resolution Panel (SRP) is available to
communities in support of the appeal resolution process. SRPs are
independent panels of experts in hydrology, hydraulics, and other
pertinent sciences established to review conflicting scientific and
technical data and provide recommendations for resolution. Use of the
SRP only may be exercised after FEMA and local communities have been
engaged in a collaborative consultation process for at least 60 days
without a mutually acceptable resolution of an appeal. Additional
information regarding the SRP process can be found online at https://www.floodsrp.org/pdfs/srp_overview.pdf.
    The watersheds and/or communities affected are listed in the tables
below. The Preliminary FIRM, and where applicable, FIS report for each
community are available for inspection at both the online location
https://www.fema.gov/preliminaryfloodhazarddata and the respective
Community Map Repository address listed in the tables. For communities
with multiple ongoing Preliminary studies, the studies can be
identified by the unique project number and Preliminary FIRM date
listed in the tables. Additionally, the current effective FIRM and FIS
report for each community are accessible online through the FEMA Map
Service Center at https://msc.fema.gov for comparison.

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance No. 97.022, ``Flood
Insurance.'')

Michael M. Grimm,
Assistant Administrator for Risk Management, Department of Homeland
Security, Federal Emergency Management Agency.

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                                             Community map repository
               Community                             address
------------------------------------------------------------------------
               Louisa County, Iowa and Incorporated Areas
     Project: 15-07-0720S Revised Preliminary Date: January 31, 2020
------------------------------------------------------------------------
City of Columbus Junction..............  City Hall, 232 2nd Street,
                                          Columbus Junction, IA 52738.
City of Fredonia.......................  Louisa County Courthouse, 117
                                          South Main Street, Wapello, IA
                                          52653.
City of Letts..........................  City Hall, 125 South Cherry
                                          Street, Letts, IA 52754.
City of Morning Sun....................  City Hall, 11 East Division
                                          Street, Morning Sun, IA 52640.
City of Oakville.......................  City Hall, 601 2nd Street,
                                          Oakville, IA 52646.
City of Wapello........................  City Hall, 335 North Main
                                          Street, Wapello, IA 52653.
Unincorporated Areas of Louisa County..  Louisa County Courthouse, 117
                                          South Main Street, Wapello, IA
                                          52653.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
              Muscatine County, Iowa and Incorporated Areas
         Project: 16-07-2337S Preliminary Date: August 29, 2018
------------------------------------------------------------------------
City of Atalissa.......................  City Hall, 122 3rd Street,
                                          Atalissa, IA 52720.
City of Nichols........................  City Hall, 429 Ijem Avenue,
                                          Nichols, IA 52766.
City of West Liberty...................  City Hall, 409 North Calhoun
                                          Street, West Liberty, IA
                                          52776.
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[FR Doc. 2020-22084 Filed 10-5-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 9110-12-P


[Federal Register: July 19, 2010 (Volume 75, Number 137)]
[Notices]
[Page 41914-41916]
[DOCID:fr19jy10-126]

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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

[Release No. 34-62485; File No. SR-NYSEArca-2010-67]

Self-Regulatory Organizations; Notice of Filing and Immediate
Effectiveness of Proposed Rule Change by NYSE Arca, Inc. To Establish
Trading Collars for Market Orders

July 13, 2010.
    Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
(the ``Act'') \1\ and Rule 19b-4 thereunder,\2\ notice is hereby given
that, on July 9, 2010, NYSE Arca, Inc. (the ``Exchange'' or ``NYSE
Arca'') filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the
``Commission'') the proposed rule change as described in Items I and II
below, which Items have been prepared by the Exchange. The Commission
is publishing this notice to solicit comments on the proposed rule
change from interested persons.
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    \1\ 15 U.S.C.78s(b)(1).
    \2\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4.
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I. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Terms of Substance
of the Proposed Rule Change

    The Exchange proposes to amend NYSE Arca Equities Rule 7.31 to add
trading collars for market orders at the Exchange. The text of the
proposed rule change is available at the Exchange's principal office,
the Commission's Web site at http://www.sec.gov, the Commission's
Public Reference Room, and http://www.nyse.com.

II. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Purpose of, and
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change

    In its filing with the Commission, the self-regulatory organization
included statements concerning the purpose of, and basis for, the
proposed rule change and discussed any comments it received on the
proposed rule change. The text of those statements may be examined at
the places specified in Item IV below. The Exchange has prepared
summaries, set forth in sections A, B, and C below, of the most
significant parts of such statements.

A. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Purpose of, and the
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change

1. Purpose
    The Exchange is proposing to amend NYSE Arca Equities Rule 7.31(a),
governing Market Orders, to add trading collars that would prevent a
market order from trading more than a certain percentage away from a
calculated reference price that would be continuously updated based on
market activity. The proposed trading collars are distinct from the
five-minute trading pauses pursuant to NYSE Arca Equities Rule 7.11
that, as a consequence of recent extreme market volatility, will now be
issued by listing markets if the transaction price of a security moves
ten percent or more from a price in the preceding five-minute period.
The Exchange believes that the proposed trading collars will serve as
an additional safeguard that could help limit potential harm from
extreme price volatility such as that recently experienced on May 6,
2010 by preventing executions that occur a specified percentage away
from the last sale in the first place.
    Under the proposed rule change, during Core Trading Hours, a market
order to buy (sell) will not execute or route to another market center
at a price above (below) the Trading Collar. As proposed, Trading
Collars will apply only to market orders and not limit orders.
    As proposed, the Trading Collar will be based on a price that is a
specified percentage away from the consolidated last sale price, which
can be a price either reported on the Consolidated Tape or the UTP
Trade Data Feed, depending on which market the security is listed. The
upper boundary of the Trading Collar will be calculated by increasing
the consolidated last sale price by a specific percentage, and the
lower boundary will be calculated by decreasing the consolidated last
sale price by the same specified percentage.
    The numerical percentage proposed to be used in the Trading Collar
price calculations will be equal to the appropriate ``numerical
guideline'' percentage set forth in paragraph (c)(1) of NYSE Arca
Equity Rule 7.10 (Clearly Erroneous Executions) for the Core Trading
Session, as applied to the Consolidated Last Sale Price. The current
values of those percentages for various price ranges are indicated in
the following table, but the percentages for Trading Collars will
automatically be adjusted to match any future changes in the numerical
guidelines in NYSE Arca Equity Rule 7.10. The Exchange notes that
leveraged ETF/ETN securities will follow the 10%, 5%, and 3% percentage
guidelines below, and will not be multiplied by a leverage multiplier,
as provided for in NYSE Arca Equity Rule 7.10 for leveraged ETF/ETN
securities.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                           Collar price
              Consolidated last sale price                  percentage
                                                             deviation
------------------------------------------------------------------------
$25.00 or less..........................................              10
Above $25.00 to (and including) $50.00..................               5
Above $50.00............................................               3
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The Exchange believes that the numerical guidelines applicable for
clearly erroneous executions provide an appropriate threshold for
determining whether to trigger a Trading Collar. These numerical
guidelines have already been vetted through the notice and comment
process as appropriate thresholds for when an execution may be found to
be clearly erroneous. As proposed, because the Trading Collar will be
based on an execution that is outside of a price that is already
established as appropriate for being considered an erroneous execution,
the Trading Collar will provide for a mechanism to prevent such clearly
erroneous executions in the first instance.
    Collar prices will be continuously calculated and published for all
securities traded on the Exchange regardless of listing market. A
trading halt in a security will zero out the collar values, and
calculations will restart with the first print after trading resumes.
    Market orders will interact with the Trading Collars on a given
equity security in the following manner. A market order to sell will
not execute at a price below the bottom Trading Collar price, but will
execute at prices equal to or above it, including prices displayed by
other automated markets that involve the routing of volume from the
order to the other markets. Similarly, a market order to buy will not
execute at a price above the top Trading Collar price but will execute
at prices equal to or below it, including prices displayed by other
automated markets that involve the routing of volume from the order to
the other markets.
    Exchange systems will hold market orders, or portions thereof, that
become restricted by the Trading Collar (unless marked immediate-or-
cancel) until (i) additional opportunities for execution consistent
with the Trading Collar become available, either on the Exchange or on
other markets, or (ii) a new Trading Collar is calculated based on a
new consolidated last sale price, and the remaining portion of the
order is then able to execute at prices consistent with the new Trading
Collar. If there are multiple market orders that become restricted by
the collar price, they will be ranked in time priority.

    The following example illustrates the operation of the Trading
Collar:
    Consolidated last sale price of XYZ Corp. is 40.00.
    Bottom Trading Collar price is 38.00 (5% below 40.00).
    Market Evaluation (Buy Orders):
NYSE Arca 2000 shares at 39.00.
NYSE Arca 2000 shares at 38.60.
NYSE Arca 1000 shares at 38.40.
BATS 1000 shares at 38.20.
NYSE Arca 1000 shares at 38.00.
NYSE Arca 2000 shares at 37.50.
NYSE Arca 1000 shares at 37.00.
    Assume arrival of an order to Sell 10,000 shares at Market.
    Results:
     2000 shares execute on NYSE Arca at 39.00.
     2000 shares execute on NYSE Arca at 38.60.
     1000 shares execute on NYSE Arca at 38.40.
     1000 shares routed to BATS and execute there at 38.20.
     1000 shares execute on NYSE Arca at 38.00.
    The Sell Order is then restricted by the bottom Trading Collar and
cannot execute below 38.00.
    Next, assume the first trade above at 39.00 is printed to the tape
and becomes the new consolidated last sale price. Bottom collar price
is now 37.05 (5% below 39.00).
    Results:
     2000 shares execute on NYSE Arca at 37.50.
    The Sell Order is then restricted by the new bottom Trading Collar
and cannot execute below 37.05.
    Next, assume the second trade above at 38.60 is printed to the tape
and becomes the new consolidated last sale price. Bottom collar price
is now 36.67 (5% below 38.60).
    Results:
     1000 shares execute on NYSE Arca at 37.00, completing the
order.
    The Trading Collar for the security will continue to adjust as each
of the remaining executions above (as well as any executions in the
security on other markets) is printed to the tape and becomes the new
consolidated last sale price.
2. Statutory Basis
    The statutory basis for the proposed rule change is Section 6(b)(5)
of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the ``Act''),\3\ which requires
the rules of an exchange to promote just and equitable principles of
trade, to remove impediments to and perfect the mechanism of a free and
open market and a national market system and, in general, to protect
investors and the public interest. The proposed rule change also is
designed to support the principles of Section 11A(a)(1) \4\ of the Act
in that it seeks to assure fair competition among brokers and dealers
and among exchange markets. The Exchange believes that the proposed
rule meets these requirements in that it ensures that market orders
will not cause the price of a security to move beyond prices that could
otherwise be determined to be a clearly erroneous execution, thereby
protecting investors from receiving executions away from the prevailing
prices at any given time.
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    \3\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(5).
    \4\ 15 U.S.C. 78k-1(a)(1).
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B. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement on Burden on Competition

    The Exchange does not believe that the proposed rule change will
impose any burden on competition that is not necessary or appropriate
in furtherance of the purposes of the Act.

C. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement on Comments on the Proposed
Rule Change Received From Members, Participants, or Others

    No written comments were solicited or received with respect to the
proposed rule change.

III. Date of Effectiveness of the Proposed Rule Change and Timing for
Commission Action

    Because the proposed rule change does not: (i) Significantly affect
the protection of investors or the public interest; (ii) impose any
significant burden on competition; and (iii) become operative for 30
days from the date on which it was filed, or such shorter time as the
Commission may designate, if consistent with the protection of
investors and the public interest, the proposed rule change has become
effective pursuant to Section 19(b)(3)(A) of the Act \5\ and Rule 19b-
4(f)(6) thereunder.\6\
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    \5\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A).
    \6\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4(f)(6). In addition, Rule 19b-4(f)(6)
requires the Exchange to give the Commission written notice of the
Exchange's intent to file the proposed rule change, along with a
brief description and text of the proposed rule change, at least
five business days prior to the date of filing of the proposed rule
change, or such shorter time as designated by the Commission. The
Commission has waived the five-day pre-filing requirement.
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    The Exchange has asked the Commission to waive the 30-day operative
delay so that the proposal may become operative immediately upon
filing. The Commission believes that waiving the 30-day operative delay
is consistent with the protection of investors and the public interest,
because it will allow the Exchange to implement immediately a measure
designed to reduce market volatility, and because the proposal is
generally consistent with the rules of other exchanges.\7\ Therefore,
the Commission designates the proposed rule change as operative upon
filing.\8\
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    \7\ See BATS Rule 11.9(a)(2) and NYSE Arca Equities Rule 7.10.
    \8\ For purposes only of waiving the 30-day operative delay, the
Commission has considered the proposed rule's impact on efficiency,
competition, and capital formation. See 15 U.S.C. 78c(f).
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    At any time within 60 days of the filing of the proposed rule
change, the Commission may summarily abrogate such rule change if it
appears to the Commission that such action is necessary or appropriate
in the public interest, for the protection of investors, or otherwise
in furtherance of the purposes of the Act.

IV. Solicitation of Comments

    Interested persons are invited to submit written data, views, and
arguments concerning the foregoing, including whether the proposed rule
change is consistent with the Act. Comments may be submitted by any of
the following methods:

Electronic Comments

     Use the Commission's Internet comment form (http://
www.sec.gov/rules/sro.shtml); or
     Send an e-mail to<EMAIL_ADDRESS>Please include
File Number SR-NYSEArca-2010-67 on the subject line.

Paper Comments

     Send paper comments in triplicate to Elizabeth M. Murphy,
Secretary, Securities and Exchange Commission, 100 F Street, NE.,
Washington, DC 20549-1090.

All submissions should refer to File Number SR-NYSEArca-2010-67. This
file number should be included on the subject line if e-mail is used.
To help the Commission process and review your comments more
efficiently, please use only one method. The Commission will post all
comments on the Commission's Internet Web site (http://www.sec.gov/
rules/sro.shtml). Copies of the submission, all subsequent amendments,
all written statements with respect to the proposed rule change that
are filed with the Commission, and all written communications relating
to the proposed rule change between the Commission and any person,
other than those that may be withheld from the public in accordance
with the provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552, will be available for Web site
viewing and printing in the Commission's Public

Reference Room, on official business days between the hours of 10 a.m.
and 3 p.m. Copies of the filing also will be available for inspection
and copying at the principal office of the Exchange. All comments
received will be posted without change; the Commission does not edit
personal identifying information from submissions. You should submit
only information that you wish to make available publicly. All
submissions should refer to File Number SR-NYSEArca-2010-67 and should
be submitted on or before August 9, 2010.

    For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets,
pursuant to delegated authority.\9\
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    \9\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(12).
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Florence E. Harmon,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2010-17490 Filed 7-16-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011-01-P


[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 123 (Wednesday, June 26, 2019)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 30028-30038]
[FR Doc No: 2019-13290]

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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 2

[FRL-9995-48-OGC]
RIN 2015-AA02

Freedom of Information Act Regulations Update

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) takes final action
to revise the Agency's regulations under the Freedom of Information Act
(FOIA or Act). This action supports the Agency's mission by updating
the process by which the public may access information about EPA
actions and activities. These revisions include changes required by
amendments to the Act in 2007, 2009, and 2016, updates to correct
obsolete information, and changes to reflect internal EPA realignment.

DATES: This final rule is effective on July 26, 2019.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Christopher T. Creech, Office of
General Counsel, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 1200
Pennsylvania Avenue NW, (2310A), Washington, DC 20460; telephone, 202-
564-4286; email<EMAIL_ADDRESS>
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This supplementary information section is
organized as follows:

I. Scope of This Action
II. Why is EPA Using the Good Cause and Procedural Exceptions?
    A. Procedural Exception
    B. Good Cause Exception
III. Background
    A. Background on EPA's FOIA Regulations and FOIA Processes
    B. Why EPA is Proposing Changes to its FOIA Regulations
IV. Revisions Related to the Amendments to the FOIA
    A. Revisions Related to the 2007 Amendments
    1. Incorporating the Definition of ``Representative of the News
Media''
    2. Methods of Submitting FOIA Requests
    3. Tolling of the Time-Period To Respond to Requests
    4. FOIA Public Liaison
    B. Revision Related to the 2009 Amendments to FOIA--Elimination
of List of FOIA Exemptions
    C. Revisions Related to the 2016 Amendments to FOIA
    1. When the Agency May Charge Search Fees
    2. Content of Response Letters
    3. Agency- or Government-Wide Submission Tool
    4. Extension of Minimum Time To File Administrative Appeal
V. Clarifications to EPA's FOIA Process
    A. Authority To Respond to Requests
    B. Administrative Appeals
VI. Other Changes
    A. Timing of Received Date
    B. References to the National FOIA Office
    C. Clear Writing Changes
VII. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
    A. Executive Order 12866: Regulatory Planning and Review and
Executive Order 13563: Improving Regulation and Regulatory Review
    B. Executive Order 13771: Reducing Regulation and Controlling
Regulatory Costs
    C. Paperwork Reduction Act
    D. Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA)
    E. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA)
    F. Executive Order 13132: Federalism
    G. Executive Order 13175: Consultation and Coordination With
Indian Tribal Governments
    H. Executive Order 13045: Protection of Children From
Environmental Health and Safety Risks
    I. Executive Order 13211: Actions That Significantly Affect
Energy Supply, Distribution, or Use
    J. National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act
    K. Executive Order 12898: Federal Actions To Address
Environmental Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income
Populations
    L. Congressional Review Act

I. Scope of This Action

    This action makes changes to the Agency's FOIA regulations at 40
CFR part 2, to implement statutory updates, correct obsolete
information, and reflect internal EPA realignment and processing
changes to improve the Agency's FOIA response process. These changes
affect the process by which any individuals and entities request
records from EPA under the Act. The EPA makes changes to bring EPA's
FOIA regulations into compliance with the FOIA, as amended by the OPEN
Government Act of 2007, Public Law 110-175, 121 Stat. 2524 (2007
Amendments), the OPEN FOIA Act of 2009, Public Law 111-83, 123 Stat.
2142 (2009 Amendments), and the FOIA Improvement Act of 2016, Public
Law 114-185, 130 Stat. 538 (2016 Amendments).
    Although EPA also makes these revisions as a single action, EPA
intends that the revisions detailed below would be severable from each
other on judicial review. At this time, the EPA makes these changes to
its regulations to comply with the 2007, 2009, and 2016 Amendments, and
to remove and correct provisions that are superseded by the statutory
amendments.
    The EPA has reserved for a later, second rulemaking phase certain

discretionary and modernizing changes that the EPA is considering and
on which the EPA will consider taking public comment. The changes in
today's rule bring EPA's regulations into compliance with
nondiscretionary provisions of the amended statute and reflect changes
in the Agency's organization, procedure, or practice.

II. Why is EPA using the good cause and procedural exceptions?

A. Procedural Exception

    The Administrative Procedure Act, 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(3)(A), provides
that an agency may issue interpretive rules, general statements of
policy, or rules of agency organization, procedure, or practice without
providing notice and an opportunity for public comment. Certain
revisions in this action update the EPA's rules to accurately reflect
the Agency's organizational structure and implement statutorily
directed changes, which are self-executing. Importantly, these
revisions do not change the substantive standards the Agency applies in
implementing the FOIA to the extent they conform with the Act and the
2007. 2009, and 2016 Amendments. As such, these revisions will not
significantly affect the substantive rights of regulated entities or
the general public.
    EPA has determined that the following changes announced in the
preamble in this rule are exempt from notice and comment under the
procedural exception: Modifying the methods of submitting a FOIA
request (Section IV.A.2); reflecting the statutory language for the
tolling of the time-period for responding to requests (Section IV.A.3);
reflecting the statutory requirements to make the Agency's FOIA Public
Liaison available (Section IV.A.4); updating the Agency's standard
requirements for response letters (Section IV.C.2); acknowledging the
possibility of an agency- or government-wide electronic submission tool
(Section IV.C.3); extending the minimum time to file an administrative
appeal (Section IV.C.4); clarifying the positions that have authority
to respond to FOIA requests (Section V.A); modifying methods for
submitting an administrative appeal and clarifying positions that have
authority to respond to administrative appeals (Section V.B);
clarifying that requests, appeals, and other communications from
requesters, must be submitted before 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time for the
Agency to consider the communication as received on that business day
(Section VI.A); and replacing references to ``Agency FOI Office'' with
references to the National FOIA Office (Section V.B).

B. Good Cause Exception

    The Administrative Procedure Act, 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(3)(B), provides
that, when an agency for good cause finds that public notice and
comment procedures are impracticable, unnecessary, or contrary to the
public interest, the agency may issue a rule without providing notice
and an opportunity for public comment. The EPA has determined that
there is good cause to revise portions of its FOIA regulations without
prior proposal and opportunity for comment. Notice and opportunity for
comment on the revisions identified below is unnecessary because the
agency lacks discretion to reach a different outcome in response to
comment.
    It is routine for agencies to update their FOIA regulations to
reflect self-executing statutory provisions. The 2016 Amendments
provide that ``each agency . . . shall review the regulations of such
agency and shall issue regulations in accordance with the [2016
Amendments].'' Under section 3 of the FOIA Improvement Act (130 Stat.
544) . The significance and consequence of the recent FOIA amendments
derive from the amendments themselves. Whereas Congress required the
Agency to follow the statutory provisions of the FOIA, these regulatory
revisions are insignificant in impact and inconsequential to the
public.
    This rule revises or strikes provisions in the EPA's prior
regulations that are repetitive of the FOIA: Replacing the outdated
definition of ``news media'' with a cross-reference to the FOIA
(Section IV.A.1 in this preamble); and striking the obsolete list of
FOIA exemptions as incorrect and duplicative of the FOIA (Section IV.B
in this preamble). This rule also corrects certain provisions in the
EPA's prior regulations to conform to the amended statutory text:
Reflecting the statutory requirements to make the Agency's FOIA Public
Liaison available (Section IV.A.4 in this preamble); incorporating the
text of the 2016 Amendments, which changed when an agency may charge
search fees (Section IV.C.1 in this preamble); and incorporating the
statutorily required information that the agency must include in FOIA
determinations (Section IV.C.2 in this preamble). These provisions now
accurately reflect the statutory language of the FOIA, and the EPA is
exercising no discretion in revising these sections. Further, any
portions of this rule that have slightly different phrasing than the
FOIA have no independent effect.
    Additionally, EPA has made minor and purely ministerial changes:
Replacing references to ``Agency FOI Office'' with references to the
National FOIA Office (Section V.B in this preamble); and making certain
non-substantive style and grammatical corrections to the regulations
(Section VI.C in this preamble).

III. Background

A. Background on EPA's FOIA Regulations and FOIA Processes

    EPA's FOIA regulations at 40 CFR part 2 set forth the process and
administrative rules by which EPA handles FOIA requests. These
regulations address such topics as: Where and how to make a FOIA
request to the Agency; who within the Agency is responsible for
responding to FOIA requests; how and when the Agency will respond to
requests; how to appeal final FOIA determinations and how the Agency
handles appeals; and how FOIA fees are charged and processed. The
Agency has not substantively updated these regulations since 2002. See
67 FR 67303 (November 5, 2002).

B. Why EPA Is Proposing Changes to Its FOIA Regulations

    EPA revises its FOIA regulations to ensure compliance with
amendments to the FOIA. Since the last time the EPA substantially
revised these regulations in 2002, Congress has enacted three laws
amending the FOIA. Congress passed the 2007 Amendments, which addressed
several procedural issues that concern FOIA administration. Congress
passed the 2009 Amendments, which revised the requirements of FOIA
Exemption 3 regarding records exempt from disclosure by other statutes.
Congress passed the 2016 amendments, which addressed a range of
procedural and substantive issues and directed all agencies to amend
their FOIA regulations to incorporate these required changes.
    EPA is also updating its FOIA regulations to correct obsolete
information and reflect internal EPA realignment and processing changes
to improve the Agency's FOIA response process.

IV. Revisions Related to the Amendments to the FOIA

    This action revises the Agency's FOIA regulations to incorporate
certain required changes brought about by the 2007 Amendments, the 2009
Amendments, and the 2016 Amendments.

A. Revisions Related to the 2007 Amendments

1. Incorporating the Definition of ``Representative of the News Media''
    EPA incorporates by reference the statutory definition provide by
the 2007 Amendments of ``representative of the news media.'' Section 3
of the 2007 Amendments amends 5 U.S.C. 552(a)(4)(A)(ii) by providing a
definition of ``a representative of the news media'' directly in the
statute. The amended statutory provision defines the term ``news,''
gives examples of news-media entities such as ``television or radio
stations broadcasting to the public at large,'' and includes provision
for a ``freelance journalist.'' Further, the amended statutory
provision recognizes the evolution of ``methods of news delivery''
through, for example, ``electronic dissemination,'' and notes that
news-media entities might make their products available by ``free
distribution to the general public.''
2. Methods of Submitting FOIA Requests
    EPA also revises the location to which requesters may submit a FOIA
request. By this action, EPA makes the National FOIA Office (NFO) in
the Office of General Counsel (OGC) the point of entry for all
requests. EPA clarifies that requesters may submit FOIA requests to the
NFO only by the following four methods: 1) EPA's FOIA submission
website at https://www.foiaonline.gov; 2) an electronic government
submission website established pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552(m); (3) U.S.
Mail sent to the following address: National FOIA Office, U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue NW (2310A),
Washington, DC 20460; or (4) overnight delivery service to National
FOIA Office, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania
NW, Room 5315, Washington, DC 20460. EPA removes certain existing
provisions in 40 CFR 2.102(a) and (b) regarding the routing of requests
to conform with the approach for the submission of requests. A request
triggers the statutory time-periods for response and the tolling
provisions of the Act only when the NFO receives a FOIA request through
one of the methods outlined above. The 2007 Amendments also decreased
the amount of time an agency may take to route a request to the
appropriate component of the agency to ten working-days or less. 5
U.S.C. 552(a)(6)(A)(ii). The Agency makes these revisions above to
address this change and to minimize the number of misdirected requests
sent to the Agency.
    Under EPA's former regulations, requesters may have submitted FOIA
requests to EPA Headquarters as well as to each of EPA's ten Regional
Offices through various means. EPA will no longer accept FOIA requests
sent (1) to any office by facsimile; (2) to any office by email; or (3)
to Regional FOIA Offices by U.S. Mail or other non-electronic means. If
a requester erroneously submits a FOIA request to an EPA program or
regional office, the EPA will not consider the request received by the
Agency. Consistent with the 2007 Amendments, the EPA will no longer
consider these methods and offices ``components of the agency'' that
are ``designated in the agency's regulations . . . to receive
requests.'' 5 U.S.C. 552(a)(6)(A)(ii). Requests submitted by one of
these three methods will not trigger the statutory time-periods for
response or the tolling provisions of the Act. The requester therefore
needs to submit a new request to the NFO by one of the four acceptable
methods identified in the previous paragraph. Only when a requester
properly submits a request by one of the four acceptable methods will
EPA's timelines to respond begin to run.
3. Tolling of the Time-Period To Respond to Requests
    EPA revises the regulations regarding when the Agency may toll its
time-period for responding to requests. The FOIA provides that agencies
have 20 working days to respond to requests (unless ``unusual
circumstances'' exist). Consistent with the 2007 Amendments to 5 U.S.C.
552(a)(6)(A)(ii), the Agency may toll the response time once during the
first 20 working days to obtain necessary clarification from a
requester and as many times as necessary to address issues related to
fees.
4. FOIA Public Liaison
    The 2007 Amendments to FOIA require agencies to make the FOIA
Public Liaison available to requesters to resolve disputes. Therefore,
this action includes information about the existence and role of EPA's
FOIA Public Liaison, who is available to work with requesters and
Agency staff concerning issues related to the Agency's response to FOIA
requests.

B. Revision Related to the 2009 Amendments to FOIA--Elimination of List
of FOIA Exemptions

    EPA repeals the list of the FOIA exemptions in its regulations at
40 CFR 2.105. Providing this list of exemptions by regulation is
unnecessary and redundant of the statute. EPA will continue to apply
the exemptions found in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552(b) as appropriate.
In 2009, Congress amended the FOIA to revise the requirements of FOIA
Exemption 3, 5 U.S.C. 552(b)(3), regarding records exempted from
disclosure by other statutes. If the EPA were to retain the list of
statutory exemptions in its regulations, the EPA would be required to
update the list to reflect the changes to Exemption 3. Further, EPA's
removal of the list of exemptions from its regulations reduces the need
for conforming amendments to EPA's regulations if Congress enacts
future changes to the FOIA exemptions and reduces confusion regarding
EPA's FOIA process, as it will eliminate any potential for
inconsistency between EPA's regulations and the statute. By undertaking
this change, no further changes to EPA's regulations would be required
by the 2009 Amendments.

C. Revisions Related to the 2016 Amendments to FOIA

1. When the Agency May Charge Search Fees
    EPA does not charge search fees (or duplication fees for
educational or noncommercial scientific institutions, or
representatives of the news media) if the Agency fails to meet FOIA's
period to respond to a FOIA request except where the following criteria
are met: (1) ``unusual circumstances'' (as defined in FOIA) exist; (2)
timely written notice is provided to the requester; (3) more than 5,000
pages are necessary to respond to the request; and (4) Agency staff
have made at least three good faith attempts to discuss limiting the
scope of the request with the requester as provided for in section
552(a)(6)(B)(ii), which includes notice of the availability of the FOIA
Public Liaison and the right to seek dispute resolution services from
the Office of Government Information Services (OGIS) at the National
Archives and Records Administration (NARA).
    The 2016 Amendments limited agencies' ability to charge for search
or duplication fees for certain requests. Specifically, the 2016
Amendments limited agencies from assessing search fees (or duplication
fees for educational or noncommercial scientific institutions, or
representatives of the news media) if an agency's response time is
delayed beyond statutory time-periods. 5 U.S.C. 552(a)(4)(viii). In
general, the time-period for determining whether to comply with a FOIA
request is 20 working days. When agencies determine that ``unusual''
circumstances apply to the processing of a request, and they have
provided timely written notice to the requester, a delay may be excused
for an additional 10 working

days. However, if the agency fails to comply with the extended time
limit, it may not charge search fees (or duplication fees for
educational or noncommercial scientific institutions, or
representatives of the news media). The law contains an exception: if
unusual circumstances apply (as defined by 5 U.S.C. 552(a)(6)(B)(iii))
and more than 5,000 pages are necessary to respond to the request,
agencies may charge search fees (or duplication fees for educational or
noncommercial scientific institutions, or representatives of the news
media) if timely written notice has been made to the requester and
``the agency has discussed with the requester by written mail,
electronic mail, or telephone (or made not less than 3 good-faith
attempts to do so) how the requester could effectively limit the scope
of the request [under 5 U.S.C. 552(a)(6)(B)(ii)] .'' Id. Sec.
552(a)(A)(4)(viii)(II)(bb).
2. Content of Response Letters
    EPA now requires that final determinations include information
about the right to seek assistance from the FOIA Public Liaison, and in
the case of an adverse determination, of the existence and role of OGIS
in providing dispute resolution services in FOIA-related matters. EPA
also requires that the office which is processing the FOIA requests to
include information about the existence and role of the OGIS when any
request for an extension exceeds the 10-day period, as required by the
2016 Amendments. The 2016 Amendments established new requirements for
providing notification of assistance from public liaisons. When
agencies make determinations on requests they now must offer the
services of their FOIA Public Liaison and must notify requesters of the
dispute resolution services provided by OGIS. Agencies must also allow
requesters a period of at least 90 days within which to file an
administrative appeal. Specifically, agencies must notify requesters of
``the right of such person to seek assistance from the FOIA Public
Liaison of the agency,'' and, in the case of an adverse determination,
the right to appeal within a period of time ``that is not less than 90
days after the date of such adverse determination'' and ``the right of
such person to seek dispute resolution services from the FOIA Public
Liaison of the agency or the Office of Government Information
Services.''
3. Agency- or Government-Wide Submission Tool
    EPA amends the regulations to permit electronic submission of FOIA
requests to the Agency through an agency- or government-wide electronic
submission tool that may be approved in the future pursuant to 5 U.S.C.
552(m), such as FOIA.gov, in addition to permitting electronic
submission through the Agency's current electronic submission tool,
FOIAonline.
4. Extension of Minimum Time To File Administrative Appeal
    EPA extends the time in which a requester is required to file an
administrative appeal from 30 calendar days to 90 calendar days, which
reflects changes made by the 2016 Amendments.

V. Clarifications to EPA's FOIA Process

    The Agency is taking this opportunity to make additional changes to
its regulations to improve the FOIA process.

A. Authority To Respond to Requests

    EPA clarifies that the Administrator and Deputy Administrator and
all assistant administrator-level positions and regional administrator
positions in the Agency, or their deputies, and certain other office
heads have the authority to respond to FOIA requests. This change
eliminates a potential conflict in the existing regulations and ensures
consistency of responses across the Agency. The previous regulations
contained a potential inconsistency. EPA simplifies and consolidates
section 2.103(b), which empowered the ``head of an office, or that
individual's designee'' to grant or deny requests, and section
2.104(h), which empowered division directors or equivalents authority
to issue ``denials.''
    In addition, the Agency clarifies the authorities, and delegation
of the authority, because the term ``division director'' is not easily
interpreted across the Agency. The Agency does not intend to affect the
Agency's use of delegation directives to set forth specific rules and
limitations regarding who may be delegated FOIA decision making
authority; it is not necessary to set forth such delegations, and
limitations, in Agency regulations.

B. Administrative Appeals

    EPA revises the provisions of its regulations relating to
administrative appeals to further streamline the appeals process. Like
the changes regarding the receipt of FOIA requests, EPA accepts
administrative appeals through centralized means to ensure timely
receipt by the Agency of the appeal. EPA accepts appeals only by 1)
electronic means through the Agency's FOIA management system, or 2) by
U.S. Mail to the NFO.
    Final determinations made by the General Counsel or the General
Counsel's delegates will be heard by an authorized decisionmaker within
OGC who did not make the final determination. This change ensures the
most efficient receipt and processing of FOIA appeals by the Agency.

VI. Other Changes

    In addition to revisions related to the amendments to the FOIA, EPA
is making both changes to procedural provisions to improve the way the
Agency responds to FOIA requests and non-substantive edits for clarity.

A. Timing of Received Date

    The Agency must receive all requests, appeals, and other
communications from requesters, submitted electronically (through EPA's
electronic FOIA management system or otherwise) before 5:00 p.m.
Eastern Time for the Agency to consider the communication as received
on that business day. EPA considers any such communications received
after 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time as received on the next working day (i.e.,
excluding weekends and federal holidays). This timing rule will govern
how the Agency calculates its time-periods for action under FOIA, as
well as time-periods requesters may face (such as the requirement to
file administrative appeals within 90 days).

B. References to the National FOIA Office

    EPA revises references to the Headquarters FOI Office, Headquarters
FOIA Office, National FOI Office, etc., to refer to the National FOIA
Office. The Chief FOIA Officer designates the office that performs the
duties of the National FOIA Office.

C. Clear Writing Changes

    The EPA makes certain non-substantive changes to clarify references
to Agency offices, correct grammatical errors, remove gendered
language, remove second person pronouns, and correct passive voice.

VII. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

A. Executive Order 12866: Regulatory Planning and Review and Executive
Order 13563: Improving Regulation and Regulatory Review

    This action is not a significant regulatory action and was
therefore not submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB)
for review.

B. Executive Order 13771: Reducing Regulation and Controlling
Regulatory Costs

    This action is not an Executive Order 13771 regulatory action
because this action is not significant under Executive Order 12866.

C. Paperwork Reduction Act

    This action does not impose an information collection burden under
the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act, 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.

D. Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA)

    I certify that this action will not have a significant economic
impact on a substantial number of small entities under the RFA. This
action will not impose any requirements on small entities. Submission
of a FOIA request is a voluntary action that any member of the public,
including small entities, can elect to do and the rule relates to the
procedures for submitting and processing a FOIA request for EPA
records.

E. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA)

    This action does not contain any unfunded mandates as described in
UMRA, 2 U.S.C. 1531-1538, and does not significantly or uniquely affect
small governments. The action imposes no enforceable duty on any state,
local or tribal governments or the private sector.

F. Executive Order 13132: Federalism

    This action does not have federalism implications. It will not have
substantial direct effects on the states, on the relationship between
the national government and the states, or on the distribution of power
and responsibilities among the various levels of government.

G. Executive Order 13175: Consultation and Coordination With Indian
Tribal Governments

    This action does not have tribal implications as specified in
Executive Order 13175. It will not have substantial direct effects on
Indian Tribal governments or on the relationship between the national
government and the Indian Tribal governments. Thus, Executive Order
13175 does not apply to this action.

H. Executive Order 13045: Protection of Children From Environmental
Health and Safety Risks

    The EPA interprets Executive Order 13045 as applying only to those
regulatory actions that concern environmental health or safety risks
that EPA has reason to believe may disproportionately affect children,
per the definition of ``covered regulatory action'' in section 2-202 of
the Executive Order. This action is not subject to Executive Order
13045 because it does not concern an environmental health risk or
safety risk.

I. Executive Order 13211: Actions That Significantly Affect Energy
Supply, Distribution, or Use

    This action is not subject to Executive Order 13211, because it is
not a significant regulatory action under Executive Order 12866.

J. National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act

    This rulemaking does not involve technical standards.

K. Executive Order 12898: Federal Actions To Address Environmental
Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations

    The EPA believes that this action is not subject to Executive Order
12898 (59 FR 7629 (February 16, 1994)) because it does not establish an
environmental health or safety standard. This regulatory action is a
procedural change and does not have any impact on human health or the
environment.

L. Congressional Review Act

    This rule is exempt from the Congressional Review Act because it is
a rule of agency organization, procedure or practice that does not
substantially affect the rights or obligations of non-agency parties.

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 2

    Environmental Protection, Administrative practice and procedure,
Confidential Business Information, Freedom of Information, government
employees.

    Dated: June 14, 2019.
Andrew R. Wheeler,
Administrator.
    For the reasons stated in the preamble, the Environmental
Protection Agency amends 40 CFR part 2, as follows:

PART 2--PUBLIC INFORMATION

0
1. The authority citation for Part 2 is revised to read as follows:

    Authority:  5 U.S.C. 301, 552, 552a, 553; 28 U.S.C. 509, 510,
534; 31 U.S.C. 3717.

0
2. Subpart A of Part 2 is revised to read as follows:

Subpart A--Procedures for Disclosure of Records Under the Freedom of
Information Act
Sec.
2.100 General provisions.
2.101 Where to file requests for records.
2.102 Procedures for making requests.
2.103 Responsibility for responding to requests.
2.104 Responses to requests and appeals.
2.105 [Reserved]
2.106 Preservation of records.
2.107 Fees.
2.108 Other rights and services.

Subpart A--Procedures for Disclosure of Records Under the Freedom
of Information Act

Sec.  [thinsp]2.100   General provisions.

    (a) This Subpart contains the rules that the Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA or Agency) follows in processing requests for
records under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552. The
Agency also has rules that it follows in processing FOIA requests for
records submitted to it as Confidential Business Information (CBI).
Such records are covered in Subpart B of this Part. Requests made by
individuals for records about themselves under the Privacy Act of 1974,
which are processed under 40 CFR part 16, will also be treated as FOIA
requests under this Subpart. This ensures that the requestor has access
to all responsive records. Information routinely provided to the public
as part of a regular EPA activity may be provided to the public without
following this Subpart.
    (b) EPA will inform the requester of the steps necessary to obtain
records from agencies operating statutory-based fee schedule programs,
such as, but not limited to, the Government Printing Office or the
National Technical Information Service.
    (c) The Chief FOIA Officer designates the office that performs the
duties of the National FOIA Office. The National FOIA Office reports to
the Chief FOIA Officer.
    (d) The Chief FOIA Officer designates the FOIA Public Liaisons. The
FOIA Public Liaisons report to the Chief FOIA Officer. A FOIA Public
Liaison is an official to whom a requester can raise concerns about the
service the requester received from the FOIA Requester Service Center.
A FOIA Public Liaison is responsible for assisting in reducing delays,
increasing transparency and understanding of the status of requests,
and assisting in the resolution of disputes. The public can find more
information about the FOIA Public Liaisons at EPA's website.

Sec.  [thinsp]2.101   Where to file requests for records.

    (a) Requesters must submit all requests for records from EPA under
the

FOIA in writing and by one of the following methods:
    (1) EPA's FOIA submission website at https://www.foiaonline.gov;
    (2) An electronic government submission website established
pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552(m), such as FOIA.gov;
    (3) U.S. Mail sent to the following address: National FOIA Office,
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
(2310A), Washington, DC 20460; or
    (4) Overnight delivery service to National FOIA Office, U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania NW, Room 5315,
Washington, DC 20460. EPA will not treat a request submitted by any
other method as a FOIA request, and the Agency will not re-route the
request. The requester or requester organization must include the full
name of their point of contact and their mailing address for EPA to
process the request. For all requests, requesters should provide an
email address and daytime telephone number whenever possible. For
requests submitted through EPA's FOIA submission website or as provided
by an electronic government submission website established pursuant to
5 U.S.C. 552(m), requesters must include an email address. For requests
submitted through U.S. Mail, the requester must mark both the request
letter and envelope ``Freedom of Information Act Request.'' The
requester should not provide social security numbers when making a
request for information under the FOIA. Requesters submitting requests
electronically must do so before 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time for the Agency
to consider the request as received on that date.
    (b) EPA provides access to all records that the FOIA requires an
agency to make regularly available for public inspection and copying.
Each office is responsible for determining which of the records it
generates are required to be made publicly available and for providing
access by the public to them. The Agency will also maintain and make
available for public inspection and copying a current subject matter
index of such records and provide a copy or a link to the respective
website for Headquarters or the Regions. Each index will be updated
regularly, at least quarterly, with respect to newly-included records.
    (c) All records created by EPA on or after November 1, 1996, which
the FOIA requires an agency to make regularly available for public
inspection and copying, will be made available electronically through
EPA's website, located at http://www.epa.gov, or, upon request, through
other electronic means. EPA will also include on its website the
current subject matter index of all such records.

Sec.  [thinsp]2.102   Procedures for making requests.

    (a) General information. EPA will consider a request received when
the Agency receives a request by one of the methods identified in Sec.
2.101(a).
    (b) EPA employees may attempt in good faith to comply with oral
requests for inspection or disclosure of EPA records publicly available
under Sec.  [thinsp]2.201(a) and (b), but such requests are not subject
to the FOIA or this Part.
    (c) Description of records sought. A request should reasonably
describe the records the requester seeks in a way that will permit EPA
employees to identify and locate them. Whenever possible, a request
should include specific information about each record sought, such as
the date, title or name, author, recipient, and subject matter. If
known, the requester should include any file designations or
descriptions for the records that the requester wants. The more
specific the requester is about the records or type of records that the
requester wants, the more likely EPA will be able to identify and
locate records responsive to the request. If EPA determines that the
request does not reasonably describe the records, EPA will tell the
requester either what additional information the requester needs to
provide or why the request is otherwise insufficient. EPA will also
give the requester an opportunity to discuss and modify the request to
meet the requirements of this Section.
    (d) Agreement to pay fees. If the requester makes a FOIA request,
EPA will consider the request to be an agreement that the requester
will pay all applicable fees charged under Sec.  [thinsp]2.107, up to
$25.00, unless the requester seeks a waiver of fees. The EPA office
responsible for responding to the request ordinarily will confirm this
agreement in writing. When making a request, the requester may specify
a willingness to pay a greater or lesser amount.

Sec.  [thinsp]2.103   Responsibility for responding to requests.

    (a) In general. Upon receipt of a FOIA request under Sec.  2.101(a)
of this Subpart, the National FOIA Office will assign the request to an
appropriate office within the Agency for processing. To determine which
records are within the scope of a request, an office will ordinarily
include only those records in the Agency's possession as of the date
the request was received by one of the methods described in Sec.
2.101(a). The Agency will inform the requester if any other date is
used.
    (b) Authority to issue final determinations. The Administrator,
Deputy Administrators, Assistant Administrators, Deputy Assistant
Administrators, Regional Administrators, Deputy Regional
Administrators, General Counsel, Deputy General Counsels, Regional
Counsels, Deputy Regional Counsels, and Inspector General or those
individuals' delegates, are authorized to make determinations required
by 5 U.S.C. 552(a)(6)(A), including to issue final determinations
whether to release or withhold a record or a portion of a record on the
basis of responsiveness or under one or more exemptions under the FOIA,
and to issue ``no records'' responses.
    (c) Authority to grant or deny fee waivers or requests for
expedited processing. EPA's Chief FOIA Officer or EPA's Chief FOIA
Officer's delegates are authorized to grant or deny requests for fee
waivers or requests for expedited processing.
    (d) Consultations and referrals. When a request to EPA seeks
records in its possession that originated with another Federal agency,
the EPA office assigned to process the request shall either:
    (1) In coordination with the National FOIA Office, consult with the
Federal agency where the record or portion thereof originated and then
respond to the request, or
    (2) With the concurrence of the National FOIA Office, refer the
request to the Federal agency where the record or portion thereof
originated. The National FOIA Office will notify the requester whenever
all or any part of the responsibility for responding to a request has
been referred to another agency.
    (e) Law enforcement information. Whenever a requester makes a
request for a record containing information that relates to an
investigation of a possible violation of law and the investigation
originated with another agency, the assigned office, with the
concurrence of the National FOIA Office, will refer the request to that
other agency or consult with that other agency prior to making any
release determination.

Sec.  [thinsp]2.104   Responses to requests and appeals.

    (a) Timing of response. The EPA office assigned to process the FOIA
request will initiate the search, collection, and review process, and
respond to a request within 20 working days from the date the request
was received by one of the methods identified in Sec.  2.101(a), unless
unusual or exceptional circumstances

exist as provided in paragraph (e) of this section. If EPA fails to
respond to the request within the statutory time-period, or any
authorized extension of time, the requester may seek judicial review to
obtain the records without first making an administrative appeal.
    (b) On receipt of a request, the National FOIA Office ordinarily
will send a written acknowledgment advising the requester of the date
the Agency received the request and of the processing number assigned
to the request for future reference.
    (c) Multitrack processing. The Agency uses three or more processing
tracks by distinguishing between simple and complex requests based on
the amount of work, time needed to process the request, or both,
including limits based on the number of pages involved. The Agency will
advise the requester of the processing track in which the Agency placed
the request and the limits of the different processing tracks. The
Agency may place the request in a slower track while providing the
requester with the opportunity to limit the scope of the request to
qualify for faster processing within the specified limits of a faster
track. If the Agency places the request in a slower track, the Agency
will contact the requester.
    (d) Tolling the request. Once the request is received, the Agency
shall not toll the processing time-period except:
    (1) The Agency may toll the processing time-period one time while
seeking clarification from the requester; or
    (2) The Agency may toll the processing time-period as many times as
necessary to resolve fee issues.
    (e) Unusual circumstances. When the Agency cannot meet statutory
time limits for processing a request because of ``unusual
circumstances,'' as defined in the FOIA, and the time limits are
extended on that basis, the Agency will notify the requester in
writing, as soon as practicable, of the unusual circumstances and of
the date by which processing of the request should be completed. If the
20 working-day period is extended, EPA will give the requester an
opportunity to limit the scope of the request, modify the request, or
agree to an alternative time-period for processing, as described by the
FOIA. EPA will also provide contact information for its FOIA Public
Liaison to assist in the resolution of any disputes between the
requester and the Agency, and the Agency will notify the requester of
their right to seek dispute resolution services from the Office of
Government Information Services within the National Archives and
Records Administration.
    (f) Expedited processing. (1) EPA will take requests or appeals out
of order and give expedited treatment whenever EPA determines that such
requests or appeals involve a compelling need, as follows:
    (i) Circumstances in which the lack of expedited treatment could
reasonably be expected to pose an imminent threat to the life or
physical safety of an individual; or
    (ii) An urgency to inform the public about an actual or alleged
Federal government activity, if the information is requested by a
person primarily engaged in disseminating information to the public.
    (2) Requesters must make a request for expedited processing at the
time of the initial request for records or at the time of appeal.
    (3) If the requester seeks expedited processing, the requester must
submit a statement, certified to be true and correct to the best of the
requester's knowledge and belief, explaining in detail the basis for
the request. For example, if the requester fits within the category
described in paragraph (f)(1)(ii) of this section and is not a full-
time member of the news media, the requester must establish that they
are a person whose primary professional activity or occupation is
information dissemination, although it need not be the requester's sole
occupation. If the requester fits within the category described in
paragraph (f)(1)(ii) of this section, the requester must also establish
a particular urgency to inform the public about the government activity
involved in the request, beyond the public's right to know about
government activity generally.
    (4) Within 10 calendar days from the date of the request for
expedited processing, the Chief FOIA Officer, or the Chief FOIA
Officer's delegates, will decide whether to grant the request and will
notify the requester of the decision. If the Agency grants the request
for expedited processing, the Agency will give the request priority and
will process the request as soon as practicable. If the Agency denies
the request for expedited processing, the Agency will act on any appeal
of that decision expeditiously.
    (g) Grants of requests. Once the Agency determines to grant a
request in whole or in part, it will release the records or parts of
records to the requester and notify the requester of any applicable fee
charged under Sec.  [thinsp]2.107. The office will annotate records
released in part, whenever technically feasible, with the applicable
FOIA exemption or exemptions at that part of the record from which the
exempt information was deleted.
    (h) Adverse determinations of requests. When the Agency makes an
adverse determination, the Agency will notify the requester of that
determination in writing. Adverse determinations include:
    (1) A decision that the requested record is exempt from disclosure,
in whole or in part;
    (2) A decision that the information requested is not a record
subject to the FOIA;
    (3) A decision that the requested record does not exist or cannot
be located;
    (4) A decision that the requested record is not readily
reproducible in the form or format sought by the requester;
    (5) A determination on any disputed fee matter, including a denial
of a request for a fee waiver; or
    (6) A denial of a request for expedited processing.
    (i) Content of final determination letter. The appropriate official
will issue the final determination letter in accordance with Sec.
2.103(b) of this subpart and will include:
    (1) The name and title or position of the person responsible for
the determination;
    (2) A brief statement of the reason or reasons for the denial,
including an identification of records being withheld (either
individually or, if a large number of similar records are being denied,
described by category) and any FOIA exemption applied by the office in
denying the request;
    (3) An estimate of the volume of records or information withheld,
in number of pages or in some other reasonable form of estimation. This
estimate does not need to be provided if the volume is otherwise
indicated through annotated deletions on records disclosed in part, or
if providing an estimate would harm an interest protected by an
applicable exemption;
    (4) A statement that an adverse determination may be appealed under
(j) of this section and description of the requirements for submitting
an administrative appeal; and
    (5) A statement that the requester has the right to seek dispute
resolution services from an EPA FOIA Public Liaison or the Office of
Government Information Service.
    (j) Appeals of adverse determinations. If the requester is
dissatisfied with any adverse determination of their request, the
requester may appeal that determination by letter to the National FOIA
Office, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue
NW (2310A), Washington, DC 20460 or<EMAIL_ADDRESS>The requester must
make their appeal in writing, and

the Agency must receive the requester's appeal no later than 90
calendar days from the date of the letter that denied the request. The
Agency will not consider appeals received after the 90-calendar day
limit. Requesters submitting appeals electronically must do so before
5:00 p.m. Eastern Time for the Agency to consider the appeal as
received on that date. The appeal letter may include as much or as
little related information as the requester wishes, as long as it
clearly identifies the determination being appealed (including the
assigned FOIA request number, if known). For quickest handling, the
requester must mark their appeal letter and its envelope with ``Freedom
of Information Act Appeal.'' Unless the Administrator directs
otherwise, the General Counsel or the General Counsel's delegate will
act on behalf of the Administrator on all appeals under this Section,
except that:
    (1) The Counsel to the Inspector General will act on any appeal
where the Inspector General or the Inspector General's delegate has
made the final adverse determination; however, if the Counsel to the
Inspector General has signed the final adverse determination, the
General Counsel or the General Counsel's delegate will act on the
appeal;
    (2) An adverse determination by the Administrator on an initial
request will serve as the final action of the Agency; and
    (3) If a requester seeks judicial review because the Agency has not
responded in a timely manner, any further action on an appeal will take
place through the lawsuit.
    (k) EPA will make the decision on the appeal in writing, normally
within 20 working days of its receipt by the National FOIA Office. A
decision affirming an adverse determination in whole or in part will
contain a statement of the reason or reasons for the decision,
including any FOIA exemption or exemptions applied, and inform the
requester of the FOIA provisions for judicial review of the decision.
If the Agency reverses or modifies the adverse determination on appeal,
the Agency will notify the requester in a written decision. In the
written decision, the Agency will attach the requested information that
the Agency determined on appeal to be releasable, or the Agency will
return the request to the appropriate office so that the office may
reprocess the request in accordance with the appeal decision.
    (l) If the requester wishes to seek judicial review of any adverse
determination, the requester must first appeal that adverse
determination under this Section, except when EPA has not responded to
the request within the applicable time-period. In such cases, the
requester may seek judicial review without making an administrative
appeal.

Sec.  [thinsp]2.105   [Reserved]

Sec.  [thinsp]2.106   Preservation of records.

    The Agency shall preserve all correspondence pertaining to the FOIA
requests that it receives until disposition or destruction is
authorized by title 44 of the United States Code or the National
Archives and Records Administration's General Records Schedule 14.
Copies of all responsive records should be maintained by the
appropriate program office. Records shall not be disposed of while they
are the subject of a pending request, appeal, or lawsuit under the
FOIA.

Sec.  [thinsp]2.107   Fees.

    (a) In general. The Agency will charge for processing requests
under the FOIA in accordance with paragraph (c) of this section, except
where fees are limited under paragraph (d) of this section or where a
waiver or reduction of fees is granted under paragraph (l) of this
section. Requesters will pay fees by check or money order made payable
to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
    (b) Definitions. For purposes of this section:
    (1) Commercial use request means a request from or on behalf of a
person who seeks information for a use or purpose that furthers the
requester's commercial, trade, or profit interests, which can include
furthering those interests through litigation. The Agency will
determine, whenever reasonably possible, the use to which a requester
will put the requested records. When it appears that the requester will
put the records to a commercial use, either because of the nature of
the request itself or because the Agency has reasonable cause to doubt
a requester's stated use, the Agency will provide the requester a
reasonable opportunity to submit further clarification.
    (2) Direct costs means those expenses that the Agency actually
incurs in searching for and duplicating (and, in the case of commercial
use requests, reviewing) records to respond to a FOIA request. Direct
costs include, for example, the salary of the employee performing the
work and the cost of operating duplication equipment. Not included in
direct costs are overhead expenses such as the costs of space and
heating or lighting of the facility in which the records are kept.
    (3) Duplication means the making of a copy of a record, or of the
information contained in it, necessary to respond to a FOIA request.
Copies can take the form of paper, microform, audiovisual materials, or
electronic records (for example, magnetic tape, disk, or compact disk),
among others. The Agency will honor a requester's specified preference
of form or format of disclosure if the record is readily reproducible
with reasonable efforts in the requested form or format.
    (4) Educational institution means a preschool, a public or private
elementary or secondary school, an institution of undergraduate higher
education, an institution of graduate higher education, an institution
of professional education, or an institution of vocational education,
that operates a program of scholarly research. To be in this category,
a requester must show that the request is authorized by, and is made
under the auspices of, a qualifying institution and that the records
are not sought for a commercial use but are sought to further scholarly
research.
    (5) Noncommercial scientific institution means an institution not
operated on a ``commercial'' basis, as defined in paragraph (b)(1) of
this section, and that is operated solely for conducting scientific
research that is not intended to promote any particular product or
industry. To be in this category, a requester must show that a
qualifying institution authorizes the request, that the requester makes
the request under the auspices of the qualifying institution, and that
the requester does not seek the records for a commercial use but to
further scientific research.
    (6) Representative of the news media has the meaning provided at 5
U.S.C. 552(a)(4)(A)(ii).
    (7) Review means the examination of a record located in response to
a request to determine whether any portion of it is exempt from
disclosure. It also includes processing any record for disclosure (for
example, doing all that is necessary to redact it and prepare it for
disclosure). Review costs are recoverable even if a record ultimately
is not disclosed. Review time includes time spent considering any
formal objection to disclosure made by a business submitter requesting
confidential treatment but does not include time spent resolving
general legal or policy issues regarding the application of exemptions.
    (8) Search means the process of looking for and retrieving records
or information responsive to a request. It includes page-by-page or
line-by-line identification of information within

records and includes reasonable efforts to locate and retrieve
information from records maintained in electronic form or format.
Offices will ensure that searches are done in the most efficient and
least expensive manner reasonably possible. For example, offices will
not search line-by-line where duplicating an entire document would be
quicker and less expensive.
    (c) Fees to be charged. (1) There are four categories of requests.
The Agency charges fees for each of these categories as follows:
    (i) Commercial use requests. The Agency will charge a requester
seeking access to records for a commercial use for the time spent
searching for the records, reviewing the records for possible
disclosure, and for the cost of each page of duplication. The Agency
may charge for searching for and/or reviewing the records even if no
responsive records are found or if the records are located but are
determined to be exempt from disclosure.
    (ii) Educational or non-commercial scientific requests. The Agency
will charge requesters from educational or noncommercial scientific
institution, whose purpose is scholarly or scientific research, only
for the cost of record duplication, except that the Agency will furnish
the first 100 pages of duplication at no charge.
    (iii) News media requests. The Agency will charge requesters who
are representatives of the news media, and whose purpose in seeking
records is noncommercial, for the cost of duplication, except that the
first 100 pages of duplication will be furnished at no charge.
    (iv) All other requests. The Agency will charge requesters not
covered by one of the three categories above for the full cost of
search and duplication, except that the Agency will furnish without
charge the first two hours of search time and the first 100 pages of
duplication. The Agency will charge for searching for the records even
if no responsive records are found or if the records are located but
are determined to be exempt from disclosure.
    (2) In responding to FOIA requests, the Agency will charge the
following fees unless a waiver or reduction of fees has been granted
under paragraph (l) of this section:
    (i) Search. (A) The Agency will charge search fees for all requests
except for those made by educational institutions or noncommercial
scientific institutions, or representatives of the news media subject
to the limitations of paragraph (d) of this section. The Agency will
charge for time spent searching even if no responsive records are found
or if the records are located but are determined to be exempt from
disclosure.
    (B) For searches and retrievals of requested records, either
manually or electronically, conducted by clerical personnel, the fee
will be $4.00 for each quarter hour of time. For searches and
retrievals of requested records, either manually or electronically,
requiring the use of professional personnel, the fee will be $7.00 for
each quarter hour of time. For searches and retrievals of requested
records, either manually or electronically, requiring the use of
managerial personnel, the fee will be $10.25 for each quarter hour of
time.
    (C) When contractors conduct searches and retrievals, the Agency
will charge requesters for the actual charges up to but not exceeding
the rate that the Agency would have charged the requester had EPA
employees conducted the search. The Agency will charge the costs of
actual computer resource usage in connection with such searches, to the
extent they can be determined.
    (ii) Duplication. The Agency will charge duplication fees to all
requesters, subject to the limitations of paragraph (d) of this
section. For either a photocopy or a computer-generated printout of a
record (no more than one copy of which need be supplied), the fee will
be fifteen (15) cents per page. For electronic forms of duplication,
other than a computer-generated printout, offices will charge the
direct costs of that duplication. Such direct costs will include the
costs of the requested electronic medium on which the copy is to be
made and the actual operator time and computer resource usage required
to produce the copy, to the extent they can be determined.
    (iii) Review. The Agency will charge review fees to requesters who
make a commercial use request. The Agency will charge review fees only
for the initial record review (that is, the review done when an office
is deciding whether an exemption applies to a particular record or
portion of a record at the initial request level). The Agency will not
charge for review at the administrative appeal level for an exemption
already applied. However, the Agency may again review records or
portions of records withheld under an exemption that the Agency
subsequently determines not to apply to determine whether any other
exemption not previously considered applies; the Agency will charge
costs of that review when a change of circumstances makes it necessary.
The Agency will charge review fees at the same rates as those charged
for a search under paragraph (c)(1)(i) of this section.
    (d) Limitations on charging fees. (1) The Agency will charge no
search or review fees for requests by educational institutions or
noncommercial scientific institutions, or representatives of the news
media.
    (2) The Agency will charge no search fee or review fee for a
quarter-hour period unless more than half of that period is required
for search or review.
    (3) Except for requesters seeking records for a commercial use,
offices will provide without charge:
    (i) The first 100 pages of duplication, and
    (ii) The first two hours of search.
    (4) The Agency will charge no fee when a total fee calculated under
paragraph (c) of this section is $14.00 or less for any request.
    (5) The provisions of paragraphs (d)(3) and (4) of this section
work together. This means that for requesters other than those seeking
records for a commercial use, the Agency will charge no fee unless the
cost of search in excess of two hours plus the cost of duplication in
excess of 100 pages totals more than $14.00.
    (6) If EPA fails to comply with the FOIA's time limits for
responding to a request, EPA will not charge search fees, or, in the
instance of requesters described in paragraphs (b)(4) through (6) of
this section, duplication fees, except as follows:
    (i) If EPA determined that unusual circumstances as defined by the
FOIA apply and the Agency provided timely written notice to the
requester in accordance with the FOIA, a failure to comply with the
time limit shall be excused for an additional 10 working days;
    (ii) If EPA determined that unusual circumstances as defined by the
FOIA apply and more than 5,000 pages are necessary to respond to the
request, EPA may charge search fees, or, in the case of requesters
described in paragraph paragraphs (b)(4) through (6) of this section,
may charge duplication fees, if the following steps are taken: EPA must
have provided timely written notice of unusual circumstances to the
requester in accordance with the FOIA and the EPA must have discussed
with the requester by written mail, email, or telephone (or made not
less than three good-faith attempts to do so) how the requester could
effectively limit the scope of the request in accordance with 5 U.S.C.
552(a)(6)(B)(ii), which includes notification to the requester of the
availability of the FOIA Public Liaison and the right to seek dispute
resolution services from the Office of Government

Information Services. If this exception is satisfied, EPA may charge
all applicable fees incurred in the processing of the request; or
    (iii) If a court determines that exceptional circumstances exist,
as defined by the FOIA, a failure to comply with the time limits shall
be excused for the length of time provided by the court order.
    (e) Notice of anticipated fees in excess of $25.00. When the Agency
determines or estimates that the fees the Agency will charge under this
Section will amount to more than $25.00, the Agency will notify the
requester of the actual or estimated amount of the fees, unless the
requester has indicated a willingness to pay fees as high as those
anticipated. The amount of $25.00 is cumulative for multi-office
requests. If the Agency can only readily estimate a portion of the fee,
the Agency will advise the requester that the estimated fee may be only
a portion of the total fee. When the Agency notifies a requester that
actual or estimated fees will amount to more than $25.00, the Agency
will do no further work on the request until the requester agrees to
pay the anticipated total fee. The Agency will exclude time from the
twenty (20) working day time limit. EPA will memorialize any such
agreement in writing. A notice under this paragraph will offer the
requester an opportunity to discuss the matter with Agency personnel to
reformulate the request to meet the requester's needs at a lower cost.
    (f) Charges for other services. Apart from the other provisions of
this section, when the Agency chooses as a matter of administrative
discretion to provide a special service--such as certifying that
records are true copies or sending records by other than ordinary
mail--the Agency will ordinarily charge the direct costs of providing
the service.
    (g) Charging interest. EPA may charge interest on any unpaid bill
starting on the 31st day following the date of billing the requester.
The Agency will assess interest charges at the rate provided in 31
U.S.C. 3717 and will accrue from the date of the billing until the
Agency receives payment. EPA will follow the provisions of the Debt
Collection Act of 1982 (Pub. L. 97-365), as amended, and its
administrative procedures, including the use of consumer reporting
agencies, collection agencies, and offset. The Agency will assess no
penalty against FOIA requesters for exercising their statutory right to
ask the Agency to waive or reduce a fee or to dispute a billing. If a
fee is in dispute, the Agency will suspend penalties upon notification.
    (h) Delinquent requesters. If requesters fail to pay all fees
within 60 calendar days of the fees assessment, the Agency will place
the requester on a delinquency list. The Agency will not process
subsequent FOIA requests until the requester makes payment of the
overdue fees.
    (i) Aggregating requests. When the Agency reasonably believes that
a requester or a group of requesters acting together is attempting to
divide a request into a series of requests for the purpose of avoiding
fees, the Agency may aggregate those requests and charge accordingly.
The Agency may presume that multiple requests of this type made within
a 30-day period have been made to avoid fees. When requests are
separated by a longer period, the Agency will aggregate them only if
there exists a solid basis for determining that aggregation is
warranted under all the circumstances involved. The Agency will not
aggregate multiple requests involving unrelated matters.
    (j) Advance payments. (1) For requests other than those described
in paragraphs (j)(2) and (3) of this section, the Agency will not
require the requester to make an advance payment (that is, a payment
made before EPA begins or continues work on a request). Payment owed
for work already completed (that is, a prepayment before the Agency
sends copies to a requester) is not an advance payment.
    (2) When the Agency determines or estimates that a total fee to be
charged under this section will be more than $250.00, it may require
the requester to make an advance payment of an amount up to the amount
of the entire anticipated fee before beginning to process the request,
except when it receives a satisfactory assurance of full payment from a
requester that has a history of prompt payment.
    (3) When a requester has previously failed to pay a properly
charged FOIA fee to the Agency within 30 calendar days of the date of
billing, the Agency may require the requester to pay the full amount
due, plus any applicable interest, and to make an advance payment of
the full amount of any anticipated fee, before the Agency begins to
process a new request or continues to process a pending request from
that requester.
    (4) When the Agency requires advance payment or payment due under
paragraph (j)(3) of this section, the Agency will not consider the
request, and EPA will do no further work on the request until the
requester makes the required payment.
    (k) Other statutes specifically providing for fees. The fee
schedule of this section does not apply to fees charged under any other
statute that specifically requires an agency to set and collect fees
for particular types of records. When records responsive to requests
are maintained for distribution by agencies operating such statutorily
based fee schedule programs, EPA will inform requesters of the steps
for obtaining records from those sources so that they may do so most
economically.
    (l) Waiver or reduction of fees. (1) Records responsive to a
request will be furnished without charge or at a charge reduced below
that established under paragraph (c) of this section when the Agency
determines, based on all available information, that disclosure of the
requested information is in the public interest because it is likely to
contribute significantly to public understanding of the operations or
activities of the government and is not primarily in the commercial
interest of the requester.
    (2) To determine whether the request meets the first fee waiver
requirement, the Agency will consider the following factors:
    (i) The subject of the request. Whether the subject of the
requested records concerns ``the operations or activities of the
government.'' The subject of the requested records must concern
identifiable operations or activities of the Federal government, with a
connection that is direct and clear, not remote.
    (ii) The informative value of the information to be disclosed.
Whether the disclosure is ``likely to contribute'' to an understanding
of government operations or activities. The disclosable portions of the
requested records must be meaningfully informative about government
operations or activities in order to be ``likely to contribute'' to an
increased public understanding of those operations or activities. The
disclosure of information that already is in the public domain, in
either a duplicative or a substantially identical form, would not be as
likely to contribute to such understanding when nothing new would be
added to the public's understanding.
    (iii) The contribution to an understanding of the subject by the
public is likely to result from the disclosure. Whether disclosure of
the requested information will contribute to ``public understanding.''
The disclosure must contribute to the understanding of a reasonably
broad audience of persons interested in the subject, as opposed to the
individual understanding of the requester. The Agency will consider a
requester's expertise in the subject area and ability and intention to
effectively

convey information to the public. The Agency presumes that a
representative of the news media will satisfy this consideration.
    (iv) The significance of the contribution to public understanding.
Whether the disclosure is likely to contribute ``significantly'' to
public understanding of government operations or activities. The
public's understanding of the subject in question, as compared to the
level of public understanding existing prior to the disclosure, must be
enhanced by the disclosure to a significant extent. The Agency will not
make value judgments about whether information that would contribute
significantly to public understanding of the operations or activities
of the government is ``important'' enough to be made public.
    (3) To determine whether the request meets the second fee waiver
requirement, the Agency will consider the following factors:
    (i) The existence and magnitude of a commercial interest. Whether
the requester has a commercial interest that would be furthered by the
requested disclosure. The Agency will consider any commercial interest
of the requester (with reference to the definition of ``commercial use
request'' in paragraph (b)(1) of this section), or of any person on
whose behalf the requester may be acting, that would be furthered by
the requested disclosure. The Agency will give the requester an
opportunity in the administrative process to provide explanatory
information regarding this consideration.
    (ii) The primary interest in disclosure. Whether any identified
commercial interest of the requester is sufficiently large, in
comparison with the public interest in disclosure, that disclosure is
``primarily in the commercial interest of the requester.'' A fee waiver
or reduction is justified where the public interest standard is
satisfied and that public interest is greater in magnitude than that of
any identified commercial interest in disclosure. The Agency ordinarily
will presume that when a news media requester has satisfied the public
interest standard, the public interest will be the interest primarily
served by disclosure to that requester. The Agency will not presume
that disclosure to data brokers or others who merely compile and market
government information for direct economic return is to primarily serve
the public interest.
    (4) When only some of the requested records satisfy the
requirements for a waiver of fees, the Agency will grant a waiver for
only those records.
    (5) Requests for the waiver or reduction of fees must address the
factors listed in paragraphs (k)(l) through (3) of this section, as far
as they apply to each request. Offices will exercise their discretion
to consider the cost-effectiveness of their investment of
administrative resources in deciding whether to grant waivers or
reductions of fees and will consult the appropriate EPA offices as
needed. Requesters must submit requests for the waiver or reduction of
fees along with the request.
    (6) When the EPA denies a fee waiver request, EPA will do no
further work on the request until it receives an assurance of payment
from the requester, or until the requester appeals the fee waiver
adverse determination and the EPA completes its final appeal
determination pursuant to Sec.  [thinsp]2.104(j).

Sec.  [thinsp]2.108   Other rights and services.

    Nothing in this Subpart shall be construed to entitle any person,
as a right, to any service or to the disclosure of any record to which
such person is not entitled under the FOIA.

[FR Doc. 2019-13290 Filed 6-25-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6560-50-P