May 30, 1997



MEMORANDUM

SUBJECT:  Title V Permit Objection Communication Strategy

FROM:     Thomas C. Curran, Director /s/
          Information Transfer and Program
            Integration Division (MD-12)

TO:       Deputy Office Director, Office of Ecosystem Protection
            Region I
          Director, Division of Environmental Planning and
            Protection, Region II
          Director, Air, Toxics and Radiation Division,
            Region III
          Director, Air, Pesticides and Toxics Management
            Division, Region IV
          Director, Air and Radiation Division, Region V
          Director, Multimedia Planning and Permitting Division,
            Region VI
          Director, Air, RCRA, and Toxics Division, Region VII
          Assistant Regional Administrator, Pollution Prevention,
            State and Tribal Programs, Region VIII
          Director, Air and Toxics Division, Region IX
          Director, Office of Air Quality, Region X
         

     As the Headquarters' lead office for title V, OAQPS serves
as the overall EPA coordination office on operating permits.
Acknowledging the need for the Regions to review title V permits,
Headquarters management wishes to stay abreast of objections
raised by the Regions during title V permit reviews and of all
final Regional permit objection decisions.  This information will
be useful to Regional offices since problematic permit issues in
one Region might also be found in other Regions.  By gaining
information about similar issues in other Regions and how they
were addressed, then each Region can take this information and
make more informed decisions on its own permit review issues.  In
addition, given the limited resources available in the Agency
which make thorough review of all permits difficult, enhanced
communications provides a mechanism for sharing expertise.  This
memorandum outlines a communications strategy to keep
Headquarters and Regional offices aware of official objections to
title V permits.

                     Communication Strategy
                     
     The biweekly title V permits call has been, and will 
continue to be, our principal mechanism for raising and
discussing issues related to review of proposed title V permits.
This approach provides opportunities to keep the EPA title V
community abreast of troublesome permits and how Regions are
resolving the concerns.  Most often these troublesome permits get
resolved before EPA's review period is up.  However, where there
is the need for an EPA objection letter, it is requested that the
Region send the Headquarters contacts listed below, via the LAN,
an electronic draft of the objection letter with as much advance
notice as possible (but at least by the time the letter is being
routed for Regional signoff), to allow for reasonable
Headquarters review.  (The objection letter should clearly
identify the basis for the objection--see the letter from Region
IX for an example.)  The LAN copy should be sent to Kirt Cox in
the Operating Permits Group, John Walke in the Office of General
Counsel, Robert Dresdner in the Office of Enforcement and
Compliance Assurance, David Garcia in Region VI as sublead Region
for permits, and the Region's Desk Officer in OAQPS. 
Headquarters management will be appropriately informed. For the
benefit of the other Regions and Headquarters, a one-page summary
of the issue(s) should also be prepared and forwarded to the
above mentioned individuals, ideally at the same time the
objection letter is shared and, hopefully, no later than the
ensuing biweekly permits call.  The objection letter, along with
the one-page summary, will then be an agenda topic during the
subsequent biweekly call (as was done by Regions IV and IX for
the permits in Mississippi and Bay Area).  It is also important
to note that appropriate and timely contact with Regional Counsel
and the Office of General Counsel should be undertaken during
preparation of the objection letter.  This will ensure the needed
legal support should the objection be the subject of later legal
challenge.

     It is still too early in the implementation phase of title V
programs around the country to tell how often issues will arise
that may result in official Agency objections.  As noted earlier,
it has been a rare occurrence to date.  Given this, a
computerized tracking system is not being developed at this time
to track these objection letters.  Presently, tracking can be
done solely through the notification process described above. At
some future date, we will revisit this question and devise a data
base management system, in consultation with each Region, if the
volume of permit objections warrants it.
     Should you have any questions on this memorandum, please
contact Kirt Cox of my staff at (919) 541-5399.

cc:  R. Dresdner
     A. Duncan
     D. Garcia
     B. Kellam
     J. Seitz
     J. Walke
     L. Wegman
     OAQPS Regional Desk Officers
     Operating Permits Group Staff
     Regional Air Program Managers
     Regional Title V Contacts