Adopted rule
Administrative Order No.: DEQ-5-2022Filed and effective: April 7, 2022
See Oregon Bulletin, May 2022The Environmental Quality Commission adopted language designed specifically to ensure that federal regulations adopted by reference are implemented in Oregon as promulgated by EPA.
Many federal regulations are adopted as Oregon Administrative Rules by reference. Divisions 238 and 244 refer to specific federal regulations which are adopted as state rule. After rules are adopted, DEQ requests that EPA delegate these standards to the state. This delegation process establishes the state permitting agency as the 'administrator' of the rules, the primary entity responsible for implementation. DEQ has historically proposed to adopt federal regulations by reference to expedite the rulemaking process, ensure consistency with federal regulations, and expedite the delegation process. The expedited delegation process is contingent upon the federal regulations being adopted by reference, or 'as-is'. DEQ has found that in some cases, definitions included in Divisions 200, 238, and 244 conflict with or could be found to change the intent or implementation of a federal regulation adopted by reference.