Guidance on Developing Fee Programs Required by Clean Air Act Section 185 for the Ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS)

Enforcing attainment within Severe and Extreme ozone nonattainment areas requires owners/operators of major stationary sources of volatile organic compounds (VOC) and nitrogen oxides (NOx)1 to pay a fee to the state as a penalty for failing to timely attain the ozone standard. The fee, established under Clean Air Act (CAA) section 185, shall be applied per ton of VOC and NOx emitted by the source when emissions per calendar year exceed 80 percent of the baseline emissions computed under CAA section 185(b)(2). Each year, the EPA Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards (OAQPS) calculates the annual section 185 fee rate to be used by states to calculate each source’s total annual fee for the calendar year.

• MEMORANDUM: Clean Air Act Section 185 Fee Rates Effective for Calendar Year 2024 (pdf) (327.03 KB, October 16, 2024)
• MEMORANDUM: Clean Air Act Section 185 Fee Rates Effective for Calendar Year 2023  (pdf) (264.9 KB, October 12, 2023)
• MEMORANDUM: Clean Air Action Section 185 Fee Rates Effective for Calendar Year 2022 (pdf) (122.68 KB, September 16, 2022)
• Guidance on Developing Fee Programs Required by Clean Air Act Section 185 for the 1-hour Ozone NAAQS (pdf) (833.32 KB, January 5, 2010)

  • Note: This guidance was vacated by the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals in NRDC v. EPA, 643 F.3d 322 (D.C. Cir. 2011) on procedural grounds, but the Court did not prohibit alternative programs.  It is provided here for reference.