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PA EPA GIVES INDIAN TRIBES SAME RIGHTS AS STATES UNDER CLEAN AIR ACT
Release Date: 02/06/98
Contact Information:
FOR RELEASE: FRIDAY, FEB. 6, 1998
EPA GIVES INDIAN TRIBES SAME
RIGHTS AS STATES UNDER CLEAN AIR ACT
RIGHTS AS STATES UNDER CLEAN AIR ACT
In an important Clinton Administration action to empower Indian Tribes, EPA is announcing a final rule that for the first time will allow -- but not require -- them to implement programs under the Clean Air Act (CAA). The rulemaking, is required by Congress in Section 301(d) of the CAA, establishes the requirements they must meet to administer Act programs, and also provides for financial assistance. The regulation grants Tribes (with approved EPA programs) authority over all emission sources within the exterior boundaries of a reservation, including non-Indian owned “fee lands”. Fee lands are reservation properties that have been sold to non-Indians. They will have the same authority as states to supersede federal air regulations. Tribes can also apply for federal money under today’s action, both under Section 103 of the Act for studies and air quality assessments and under Section 105 for support of air pollution control programs. Under Section 105 in EPA’s Fiscal Year 1998 budget $10.2 million is authorized to the program. The amount by which they must match federal assistance under the rulemaking is significantly reduced, from 40 to 5 percent, with the possibility of a waiver if financial hardship can be demonstrated. (Apart from the CAA, Tribes can also apply for financial assistance for environmental programs under EPA’s Indian Environmental General Assistance Grants Program.) Today’s action supports the Agency's Indian Policy, a commitment to working with federally-recognized Tribes to enhance environmental protection. In 1994 EPA Administrator Carol M. Browner set up an American Indian Environmental Office and a Tribal Operations Committee as part of her commitment to fully institutionalize the Indian Policy into EPA’s planning and management activities. Today’s final rule will appear soon in the Federal Register and become effective 30 days after the publication date. The rule can be downloaded immediately from the EPA Office of Air and Radiation website on the Internet, under “recently signed rules” at: https://www.epa.gov/ttn/oarpg/rules.html . The backup number for Internet access problems is 919-541-5384. For further technical information on the proposal, contact David LaRoche of EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation at 202-260-7652.
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