^t0 S7^ * o \ I® I PLAN EJ 2014 INCORPORATING ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE INTO RULEMAKING DRAFT IMPLEMENTATION PLAN Led by Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention, Office of Policy, Office of Research and Development, Office of Environmental Justice and Region 9 Plan EJ 2014 is EPA's roadmap to integrate environmental justice (EJ) into its programs and policies. 2014 represents the 20th anniversary of the signing of Executive Order 12898 on environmental justice. ------- Comments regarding the Incorporating Environmental Justice into Rulemaking Draft Implementation Plan can be submitted on Regulations.gov Docket # EPA-HQ-OECA-2011-0291. Comments will be accepted through April 29, 2011. For more information on Plan EJ 2014, visit the US EPA's Office of Environmental Justice website at: http://www.epa.gov/environmentaliustice/plan-ei/index.html. ------- Plan IEJ 2014: Incorporating IEJ into Rulemaking Draft Implementation Plan, March 1, 2011 1.0 INT Far too often and for far too long, environmentalism has been viewed as a distant issue for low- income and minority communities. That view has persisted despite the fact that these same communities often carry the greatest environmental burdens. Dirty air, polluted water, and contaminated lands have significant impacts on the health and economic opportunities of the people who live in overburdened communities. Administrator Jackson has called on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to change both the perception and the situation on the ground, by broadly expanding our conversation on environmentalism and developing policies that have a tangible effect on the health and environment of disproportionately communities. The Interim Guidance on Considering Environmental Justice During the Development of an Action, also known as the EJ in Rulemaking Guidance, and the associated development of Technical Guidance for Rulemaking Activities (EJ Technical Guidance) are important tools for answering that call. 1.1 Goals The goal of this Implementation Plan is to more effectively protect human health and the environment for disproportionately burdened populations by developing and implementing guidance for incorporating environmental justice considerations into EPA's rulemaking process. Specifically, this Implementation Plan will: • By December, 2011, elevate the procedural aspects of the EJ in Rulemaking Guidance to final status. • In 2011, establish and commence mechanisms to facilitate and monitor implementation by National Program Managers (NPMs) and their rule-writing teams of the Interim and to-be- developed Final Guidance to maximize its effectiveness. NPMs refers to the major media offices in EPA which are responsible for protecting air, water, land, or regulation of pesticides and other toxic substances. • By August 2012, develop final technical guidance on how to perform the technical analyses needed to determine the potential distributional effects of rulemaking activities and to support development of strategies for addressing them. Successful implementation of this plan will significantly advance this Administration's commitment to the goals of environmental justice in EPA's rulemaking work to protect human health and the environment. The EJ in Rulemaking Guidance provides information to rule-writers on when during the Action Development Process (ADP) to consider environmental justice, as well as the types of questions to ask. It outlines multiple steps that every program office can take to incorporate the needs of overburdened neighborhoods into our decision-making, scientific analysis, and rule development. Issuing the EJ in Rulemaking Guidance as Interim Final in July 2010 represented an historic accomplishment, documenting for the first time EPA's commitment to consider EJ concerns in the rulemaking process - one of the Agency's most important and publically visible endeavors - and providing specific, detailed instructions for steps that should be taken procedurally to fulfill this commitment through the ADP. 1 ------- Plan IEJ 2014: Incorporating IEJ into Rulemaking Draft Implementation Plan, March 1, 2011 Complementary to the EJ in Rulemaking Guidance is the development of the EJ Technical Guidance that will provide technical direction to EPA analysts to aid them in incorporating environmental justice into the development of risk assessment, economic analysis, and other scientific input and policy choices during the development of a rule. 1 ;anizational Structure Distinct organizational structures are being employed under each goal of this Implementation Plan: • Leadership for finalizing the EJ in Rulemaking Guidance is being provided by the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention (OCSPP), which has reconvened the Agency-wide EJ in Rulemaking Workgroup and its Process Guidance Subgroup. The Final Guidance document developed by the Workgroup and the associated issues requiring senior management attention are raised first with the Principles for this effort - the Deputy Assistant Administrators (DAA's) or Deputy Regional Administrators (DRA's) for OCSPP, Office of Policy, Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance (OECA), Region 9, and the Associate Assistant Administrator for Environmental Justice - and then elevated to the Environmental Justice Committee (EJC) and the Executive Management Council (EMC) prior to being presented to the Administrator for final approval. • A Steering Committee comprised of senior executives from OCSPP, OP and OECA/Office of Environmental Justice (OEJ), Region 9, along with the Associate Assistant Administrator for Environmental Justice, will oversee the implementation facilitation and monitoring efforts, which are expected to continue after the guidance documents are made final to promote continuous learning and improvement and to ensure effective implementation. The EJ in Rulemaking Workgroup will provide support to the Steering Committee as needed. • The EJ Technical Guidance is being developed as a Tier 1 Action through the ADP. As such, the Administrator is the decision-maker in each stage of the ADP. The second subgroup originally formed under the EJ in Rulemaking Workgroup to support the development of the Technical Guidance has been elevated to a Tier 1 Agency-wide ADP Workgroup under the leadership of the Office of Policy (OP), the Office of Environmental Justice (OEJ) within the Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assistance (OECA), and the Office of Research and Development (ORD). 2 ------- Plan IEJ 2014: Incorporating IEJ into Rulemaking Draft Implementation Plan, March 1, 2011 2.0 MPLEMI 2.1 itegies Strategies to achieve the goals of this implementation plan are specific to each goal: • Finalize the EJ in Rulemaking Guidance: o Assess internal and external comments provided on the Interim Guide through Agency websites. o Evaluate documents produced by rule-writing workgroups since the Interim Guide was released to assess the extent to which the guidance is being addressed and its effect on EPA's rulemaking decisions. o Interview members of rule-writing workgroups, their supervisors and their senior managers to assess the clarity and usefulness of the guide, the burdens associated with its implementation and obtain suggestions for improvement. o Revise the Guide for presentation to and approval by the Executive Management Council (EMC), its Environmental Justice Committee (EJC), and the Administrator. • Facilitate and Monitor Implementation of Guidance: o Work with the NPMs, which are primarily responsible for incorporating EJ considerations in their own rulemaking efforts. o Provide training to rule-writing teams, their managers and decision-makers. o Initiate a continuous learning effort to identify effective practices and lessons learned from the NPM's ongoing rulemaking efforts. o Develop and commence implementing a monitoring scheme to assess the extent to which the guidance is being applied, the resources being devoted to its application, and the effect it is having on rulemaking decisions. • Develop EJ Technical Guidance: o Develop Draft Guidance through an Agency-wide ADP Tier 1 Workgroup. o Establish and conduct a peer consultation on the Draft Guidance with a special panel of EPA's Science Advisory Board (SAB). o Execute an outreach strategy to obtain internal and external comments on the Draft Guidance. o Incorporate SAB, EPA, and external comments in developing the Final EJ Technical Guidance for approval by the Administrator. 2.2 Activities EJ in Rulemaking Guidance: • Announce March/April closure of public comment period via EJ listserve. o Time Frame: Early March 2011 3 ------- Plan IEJ 2014: Incorporating IEJ into Rulemaking Draft Implementation Plan, March 1, 2011 • Review internal and external comments provided during the Interim Final Implementation period. o Time Frame: June 2011 • Review documents produced by and interview members of EPA rule-writing workgroups. o Time Frame: October 2011 • Revise and release Guidance document. o Time Frame: ¦ Draft to OCSPP, OP, and OAR principles by end of October 2011 ¦ Draft to EJ Committee by mid-November 2011 ¦ Draft to ESC by end of November 2011 ¦ Draft to Administrator by mid-December 2011 ¦ Release by end of December 2011 Guidance Implementation: • Distribute model training presentations to Agency-wide and NPM-specific regulatory development trainers. o Time Frame: March 2011 • Initiate a continuous learning effort to identify effective practices and lessons learned from the NPM's ongoing rulemaking efforts. o Time Frame: May 2011 • Develop and commence implementation of a monitoring scheme to assess the extent to which the guidance is being applied, the resources being devoted to its application, and the effect it is having on rulemaking decisions. o Time Frame: May 2011 EJ Technical Guidance: • Establish a cross-Agency EJ Technical Guidance workgroup. o Time Frame: Completed in February 2010 • Tier the EJ Technical Guidance as a Tier 1 Action in the Action Development Process. o Time Frame: Completed in November 2010 • Obtain Early Guidance from Administrator. o Time Frame: March 2011 • Establish, brief, and consult with special panel of the Science Advisory Board. o Time Frame: ¦ Winter 2011: Establish special panel ¦ Spring 2011: Technical briefing on the draft outline with the panel ¦ Fall 2011: Consultation with the panel on first draft • Develop Draft Technical Guidance. o Time Frame: ¦ Draft for Internal Review by end of August 2011 ¦ SAB consultation in Fall 2011 ¦ Final draft in August 2012 4 ------- Plan IEJ 2014: Incorporating IEJ into Rulemaking Draft Implementation Plan, March 1, 2011 • Obtain and evaluate Internal Comments on Draft Technical Guidance. o Time Frame: August 2011 and Winter 2012 • Develop and release Final Technical Guidance. o Time Frame: End of August 2012 2.3 Community Engagement and Stakeholder Partnership Plan • Consultations at regularly scheduled National Environmental Justice Advisory Council meetings and conference calls. • Solicitation of internal and external comments via established web sites. • Engagement with state and local governments through consortia and direct contact, to the extent possible. • Coordination with outreach activities of the other Plan EJ 2014 initiatives. • Technical briefings and consultation with a special panel of the EPA Science Advisory Board. • Consultations at regularly scheduled CHPAC Meetings. • Consultations at regularly scheduled Technical Conferences/Meetings. 2.4 Adjustments Interim Final and Draft documents will be adjusted in being elevated to final status and may be subsequently adjusted based on experience and lessons learned during implementation. 5 ------- Plan EJ 2014: Incorporating EJ into Rulemaking Draft Implementation Plan, March 1, 2011 3.0 DELIVERABLES ACTIVITIES DELIVERABLES MILESTONES Develop Final EJ in ¦ Report Summarizing Internal and ¦ Commence: January, Rulemaking Guidance External Comments, Rulewriting 2011 Documentation Assessment, and ¦ Complete: October, 2011 Experiences of EPA Rule-Writers in Implementing Interim Final Guidance ¦ Draft Final Guidance on Considering ¦ Commence: August, 2011 Environmental Justice During the ¦ Complete: October, 2011 Development of an Action ¦ Draft Final Guidance on Considering ¦ Commence: November, Environmental Justice During the 2011 Development of an Action ¦ Complete: December, 2011 Facilitate and Monitor ¦ Distribute model training presentations ¦ March, 2011 Implementation of the to Agency and NPM regulatory Guidance development trainers ¦ Initiate a continuous learning effort to ¦ May, 2011 identify effective practices and lessons learned from the NPM's ongoing rulemaking efforts ¦ Develop and commence implementing ¦ May, 2011 a monitoring scheme to assess the extent to which the guidance is being applied, the resources being devoted to its application, and the effect it is having on rulemaking decisions Develop Draft and Final EJ ¦ Draft Final Technical Guidance on ¦ Commence: February, Technical Guidance Considering Environmental Justice 2010 During the Development of an Action ¦ Complete: August, 2012 6 ------- Plan IEJ 2014: Incorporating IEJ into Rulemaking Draft Implementation Plan, March 1, 2011 3.2 Measures Performance measures tracking progress in implementing this plan are the milestones established in Section 3.1 above, augmented by more detailed interim milestones as they are established. Implementation of the guidance to be developed under this plan may support development of future outcome and activity measures. 3.3 Reports Reporting on progress in implementing this plan will occur as required in preparing for meeting the scheduled deliverables. Annual progress reports will be provided and updates to this Implementation Plan will be made at that time. For information, please contact: Mike Burns, 202- 564-8273, burns.mike@epa.gov or Kelly Maguire, 202-566-2273, maguire.kelly@epa.gov. 7 ------- Plan IEJ 2014: Incorporating IEJ into Rulemaking Draft Implementation Plan, March 1, 2011 4.0 APPENDICES Appendix A: Acronyms ADP Action Development Process CHPAC Children's Health Protection Advisory Committee DAA Deputy Assistant Administrator DRA Deputy Regional Administrator EJ Environmental Justice ESC Executive Steering Committee EMC Executive Management Council NPM National Program Manager OCSPP Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention OECA Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assistance OEJ Office of Environmental Justice OP Office of Policy ORD Office of Research and Development SAB Science Advisory Board 8 ------- |