(a) This part establishes requirements for owners and operators of certain petroleum and natural gas systems facilities to make filings and be assessed waste emission charges as required by section 136 of the Clean Air Act (CAA).

(b) Owners and operators of facilities that are subject to this part must follow the requirements of this subpart and all applicable subparts of this part. If a conflict exists between a provision in subpart A and any other applicable subpart, the requirements of the applicable subpart of this chapter shall take precedence.

All terms used in this part shall have the same meaning given in the Clean Air Act, unless as defined in this section. Terms defined here only apply to this part.

Act means the Clean Air Act, as amended, 42 U.S.C. 7401, et seq.

Administrator means the Administrator of the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) or the Administrator's authorized representative.

Affected facility means, for the purposes of the regulatory compliance exemption of this part, affected facilities, as defined in part 60, subpart A of this chapter, that are subject to methane emissions requirements pursuant to part 60 of this chapter.

Applicable facility means a facility within one or more of the following industry segments, as those industry segment terms are defined in § 98.230 of this chapter. In the case where operations from two or more industry segments are co-located at the same part 98 reporting facility, operations for all co-located segments constitute a single applicable facility under this part:

(1) Offshore petroleum and natural gas production.

(2) Onshore petroleum and natural gas production.

(3) Onshore natural gas processing.

(4) Onshore natural gas transmission compression.

(5) Underground natural gas storage.

(6) Liquefied natural gas storage.

(7) Liquefied natural gas import and export equipment.

(8) Onshore petroleum and natural gas gathering and boosting.

(9) Onshore natural gas transmission pipeline.

Carbon dioxide equivalent or CO2e means the number of metric tons of CO2 emissions with the same global warming potential as one metric ton of another greenhouse gas and is calculated using equation A-1 in § 98.2(b) of this chapter.

Designated facility means, for purposes of the regulatory compliance exemption of this part, designated facilities, as defined in § 60.21a(b) of this chapter, subject to methane emissions requirements pursuant to a State, Tribal, or Federal plan implementing part 60 of this chapter.

Deviation means, for the purposes of the regulatory compliance exemption of this part, the same meaning as defined in part 60, subparts OOOOb and OOOOc of this chapter.

Facility applicable emissions means the annual methane emissions, as calculated in § 99.21, associated with a Waste Emissions Charge (WEC) applicable facility that are either equal to, below, or exceeding the waste emissions threshold for the WEC applicable facility prior to consideration of any applicable exemptions.

Facility ID number means the identification number assigned to a facility by the EPA's Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program (GHGRP).

Gas to oil ratio (GOR) means the ratio of the volume of gas at standard temperature and pressure that is produced from a volume of oil when depressurized to standard temperature and pressure.

Gathering and boosting site means a single gathering compressor station as defined in this section, centralized oil production site as defined in this section, gathering pipeline site as defined in this section, or other fence-line site within the onshore petroleum and natural gas gathering and boosting industry segment.

Gathering and boosting system means a single network of pipelines, compressors and process equipment, including equipment to perform natural gas compression, dehydration, and acid gas removal, that has one or more connection points to gas and oil production or one or more other gathering and boosting systems and a downstream endpoint, typically a gas processing plant, transmission pipeline, Local gas distribution company (LDC) pipeline, or other gathering and boosting system.

Gathering and boosting system owner or operator means any person that holds a contract in which they agree to transport petroleum or natural gas from one or more onshore petroleum and natural gas production wells or one or more other gathering and boosting systems to a downstream endpoint, typically a natural gas processing facility, another gathering and boosting system, a natural gas transmission pipeline, or a distribution pipeline, or any person responsible for custody of the petroleum or natural gas transported.

Global warming potential or GWP means the ratio of the time-integrated radiative forcing from the instantaneous release of one kilogram of a trace substance relative to that of one kilogram of a reference gas (i.e., CO2). GWPs for each greenhouse gas are provided in Table A-1 of part 98, subpart A of this chapter.

Greenhouse gas or GHG means the air pollutants carbon dioxide (CO2), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), perfluorocarbons (PFCs), and sulfur hexafluoride (SF6).

Natural gas means a naturally occurring mixture or process derivative of hydrocarbon and non-hydrocarbon gases found in geologic formations beneath the earth's surface, of which its constituents include, but are not limited to, methane, heavier hydrocarbons, and carbon dioxide. Natural gas may be field quality, pipeline quality, or process gas.

Net WEC emissions means the sum of WEC applicable emissions from facilities with the same WEC obligated party as calculated pursuant to § 99.22 using equation B-8 of this part. If the conditions specified in § 99.7(b)(1)(iv) apply for a reporting year, a single WEC obligated party may have multiple net WEC emissions totals for that reporting year.

Net WEC emissions after transfers means the total quantity of methane emissions subject to charge for a WEC obligated party. If the WEC obligated party is not eligible to, or elects not to, transfer or receive negative net WEC emissions pursuant to § 99.23, the net WEC emissions after transfers are determined pursuant to § 99.22. If the WEC obligated party transfers or receives negative net WEC emissions pursuant to § 99.23, the net WEC emissions after transfers reflect such transfers subject to the requirements of § 99.23.

Nonproduction sector means facilities in the onshore natural gas processing, the liquefied natural gas storage, the liquefied natural gas import and export equipment, and the onshore petroleum and natural gas gathering and boosting industry segments as those industry segments are defined in § 98.230 of this chapter.

Onshore natural gas transmission pipeline owner or operator means, for interstate pipelines, the person identified as the transmission pipeline owner or operator on the Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity issued under 15 U.S.C. 717f,or,for, the person identified as the owneror operator on the transmission pipeline's Statement of Operating Conditions under section 311 of the Natural Gas Policy Act,or for pipelines that fall under the “Hinshaw Exemption” as referenced in section 1(c) of the Natural Gas Act,15.S.C. 717-717 (w)(1994), the person identified as the owner or operator on blanket certificates issued under 18 CFR 284.224. If an intrastate pipeline is not subject to section 311 of the Natural Gas Policy Act (NGPA), the onshore natural gas transmission pipeline owner or operator is the person identified as the owner or operator on reports to the State regulatory body regulating rates and charges for the sale of natural gas to consumers.

Onshore petroleum and natural gas production owner or operator means the person or entity who holds the permit to operate petroleum and natural gas wells on the drilling permit or an operating permit where no drilling permit is issued, which operates a facility in the onshore petroleum and/or natural gas production industry segment (as that industry segment is defined in § 98.230(a)(2) of this chapter). Where petroleum and natural gas wells operate without a drilling or operating permit, the person or entity that pays the State or Federal business income taxes is considered the owner or operator.

Operator means, except as otherwise defined in this section, any person who operates or supervises a facility.

Owner means, except as otherwise defined in this section, any person who has legal or equitable title to, has a leasehold interest in, or control of an applicable facility, except a person whose legal or equitable title to or leasehold interest in the facility arises solely because the person is a limited partner in a partnership that has legal or equitable title to, has a leasehold interest in, or control of the facility shall not be considered an “owner” of the facility.

Parent company means the United States parent company.

Part 98 report means the annual report required under part 98 of this chapter for owners and operators of certain facilities under the Petroleum and Natural Gas Systems source category.

Petroleum means oil removed from the earth and the oil derived from tar sands and shale.

Production sector means facilities in the offshore petroleum and natural gas production and the onshore petroleum and natural gas production industry segments as those industry segments are defined in § 98.230 of this chapter.

Qualified Professional Engineer means an individual who is licensed by a State as a Professional Engineer to practice in one or more disciplines of engineering, is in good standing and who is qualified by education, technical knowledge, and experience to review and interpret the records required under this subpart.

Reporting year means the calendar year during which data are required to be collected for purposes of the annual WEC filing. For example, reporting year 2024 is January 1, 2024, through December 31, 2024, and the annual WEC filing for reporting year 2024 is submitted to the EPA by August 31, 2025.

Standard temperature and pressure means 60 °F and 14.7 psia.

Transmission sector means facilities in the onshore natural gas transmission compression, the underground natural gas storage, and the onshore transmission pipeline industry segments as those industry segments are defined in § 98.230 of this chapter.

United States parent company(s) means the highest-level United States company(s), as reported under § 98.3 of this chapter for a WEC applicable facility, with an ownership interest in the facility as of December 31 of the year for which data are being reported.

Waste emissions threshold means the metric tons of methane emissions calculated by multiplying WEC applicable facility throughput by the industry segment-specific methane intensity thresholds established in CAA section 136(f) and the density of methane (0.0192 metric ton per thousand standard cubic feet).

WEC means waste emissions charge, the charge established in CAA section 136(c) on methane emissions that exceed certain thresholds.

WEC applicable emissions means the annual methane emissions, as calculated in § 99.21, associated with a WEC applicable facility that are either equal to, below, or exceeding the waste emissions threshold for the WEC applicable facility after consideration of any applicable exemptions.

WEC applicable facility means an applicable facility, as defined in this section, for which the owner(s) or operator(s) of the part 98 of this chapter reporting facility was (were) required to report GHG emissions under part 98, subpart W of this chapter of more than 25,000 metric tons CO2e for the reporting year.

WEC filing means the report and payment of applicable WEC obligation required to be submitted by a WEC obligated party under the requirements of this chapter. The WEC filing contains information regarding the WEC obligated party and WEC applicable facilities for the previous reporting year. For example, the WEC filing due on August 31, 2025 contains information regarding reporting year 2024, which is January 1, 2024 through December 31, 2024.

WEC obligated party means the WEC applicable facility's owner or operator as defined in this section for the applicable industry segment as of December 31 of the reporting year or that became an owner or operator of the WEC applicable facility in a transaction occurring subsequent to the end of the reporting year (i.e., between January 1 and December 31 of the year following the reporting year) that resulted in the owner(s) or operator(s) of the facility as of December 31 of the reporting year ceasing to exist prior to the WEC filing date pursuant to § 99.5. In cases where a WEC applicable facility has more than one owner or operator, the WEC obligated party must be one of the owners or operators of the facility selected by an agreement binding on each of the owners and operators of the facility, following the provisions of § 99.4(b). Each WEC applicable facility must have only one WEC obligated party for a reporting year.

WEC obligation means the WEC charge amount resulting from the calculations in § 99.24.

Well identification (ID) number means the unique and permanent identification number assigned to a petroleum or natural gas well. If the well has been assigned a US Well Number, the well ID number required in this subpart is the US Well Number. If a US Well Number has not been assigned to the well, the well ID number is the identifier established by the well's permitting authority.

Well-pad site means all equipment on or associated with a single well-pad. Specifically, the well-pad site includes all equipment on a single well-pad plus all equipment associated with that single well-pad.

You means a WEC obligated party subject to this part.

WEC obligated parties, as defined in § 99.2, are required to submit a WEC filing and remit applicable WEC obligations and payments.

Each WEC obligated party must follow the procedures in paragraphs (a) through (l) of this section, as applicable, to identify a WEC obligated party designated representative. In cases where a WEC applicable facility has more than one owner or operator, the WEC obligated party shall be an owner or operator selected by an agreement binding on each of the owners and operators involved with the facility, following the provisions of paragraph (b) of this section. Failure to select a WEC obligated party for each WEC applicable facility with multiple owners or operators following the procedures of paragraph (b) of this section is considered a violation of this part for each owner and operator (as defined in § 99.2 of this part) for the applicable industry segment of the associated WEC applicable facility. If an owner or operator acquires a WEC applicable facility in a transaction occurring subsequent to the end of the reporting year (i.e., between January 1 and December 31 of the year following the reporting year) that resulted in the owner(s) or operator(s) of the facility as of December 31 of the reporting year ceasing to exist prior to the WEC filing date pursuant to § 99.5, the acquiring owner or operator shall be considered the WEC obligated party for that facility.

(a) General. Except as provided under paragraph (f) of this section, each WEC obligated party that is subject to this part shall have one designated representative, who shall be responsible for certifying, signing, and submitting WEC filings or other submissions to the Administrator under this part.

(b) Authorization of a designated representative. The designated representative of each WEC obligated party shall be an individual selected by an agreement binding on the owner and operator of such entity and shall act in accordance with the certification statement in paragraph (i) of this section. Failure of a WEC obligated party to authorize a designated representative following the procedures of this section is considered a violation of this part.

(c) Responsibility of the designated representative. Upon receipt by the Administrator of a complete certificate of representation under this section for the WEC obligated party, the designated representative identified in such certificate of representation shall represent and, by their representations, actions, inactions, or submissions, legally bind the WEC obligated party in all matters pertaining to this part, notwithstanding any agreement between the designated representative and said WEC obligated party. The owner and operator shall be bound by any decision or order issued to the designated representative by the Administrator or a court.

(d) Timing. No WEC filing or other submissions under this part for a WEC obligated party will be accepted until the Administrator has received a complete certificate of representation for the reporting year under this section for a designated representative of the WEC obligated party. Such certificate of representation shall be submitted at least 60 days before the deadline for submission of the WEC obligated party's WEC filing under § 99.5 in each reporting year.

(e) Certification of the WEC filing. Each WEC filing and any other submission under this part for a WEC obligated party shall be certified, signed, and submitted by the designated representative or any alternate designated representative of the WEC obligated party in accordance with this section and § 3.10 of this chapter.

(1) Each such submission shall include the following certification statement signed by the designated representative or any alternate designated representative: “I am authorized to make this submission on behalf of the WEC obligated party, for which the submission is made. I certify under penalty of law that I have personally examined, and am familiar with, the statements and information submitted in this document and all its attachments. Based on my inquiry of those individuals with primary responsibility for obtaining the information, I certify that the statements and information are to the best of my knowledge and belief true, accurate, and complete. I am aware that there are significant penalties for submitting false statements and information or omitting required statements and information, including the possibility of fine or imprisonment.”

(2) The Administrator will accept a WEC filing or other submission for a WEC obligated party under this part only if the submission is certified, signed, and submitted in accordance with this section.

(f) Alternate designated representative. A certificate of representation under this section for the WEC obligated party may designate one alternate designated representative, who shall be an individual selected by an agreement binding on the owner and operator, and may act on behalf of the WEC obligated party designated representative. The agreement by which the alternate designated representative is selected shall include a procedure for authorizing the alternate designated representative to act in lieu of the designated representative.

(1) Upon receipt by the Administrator of a complete certificate of representation under this section for a WEC obligated party identifying an alternate designated representative, the following apply.

(i) The alternate WEC obligated party designated representative may act on behalf of the WEC obligated party designated representative.

(ii) Any representation, action, inaction, or submission by the alternate designated representative shall be deemed to be a representation, action, inaction, or submission by the WEC obligated party designated representative.

(2) Except in this section, whenever the term “designated representative” is used in this part, the term shall be construed to include the designated representative or any alternate designated representative.

(g) Changing a designated representative or alternate designated representative. The designated representative or alternate designated representative identified in a complete certificate of representation under this section for a WEC obligated party received by the Administrator may be changed at any time upon receipt by the Administrator of another later signed, complete certificate of representation under this section for the WEC obligated party. Notwithstanding any such change, all representations, actions, inactions, and submissions by the previous designated representative or the previous alternate designated representative of the WEC obligated party before the time and date when the Administrator receives such later signed certificate of representation shall be binding on the new designated representative and the owner and operator of the WEC obligated party.

(h) Changes in the WEC obligated party. Within 90 days after any change in the WEC obligated party, the designated representative or any alternate designated representative shall submit a certificate of representation that is complete under this section to reflect the change.

(i) Certificate of representation. The annual certificate of representation shall be complete if it includes the following elements in a format prescribed by the Administrator in accordance with this section:

(1) Identification of the WEC obligated party and the United States address of the WEC obligated party for which the certificate of representation is submitted.

(2) The name, organization name (company affiliation-employer), address, email address, telephone number, and facsimile transmission number (if any) of the designated representative and any alternate designated representative.

(3) The facility ID number for each WEC applicable facility comprising the WEC obligated party.

(4) The name and United States address of the parent company for purposes of netting under subpart B of this part for the WEC obligated party and the WEC applicable facilities. The indicated parent company must meet the requirements specified in paragraphs (i)(4)(i) and (ii) of this section. As an alternative to reporting a parent company, the WEC obligated party may be listed and paragraphs (i)(4)(i) and (ii) of this section do not apply.

(i) The indicated parent company must have been reported pursuant to § 98.3(c)(11) of this chapter for each WEC applicable facility listed in the certificate of representation for which the WEC obligated party was an owner or operator of the facility as of December 31 of the reporting year and was reported pursuant to § 98.3(c)(14) of this chapter.

(ii) The WEC obligated party must be a subsidiary of, or partially owned by, the indicated parent company.

(5) The following certification statements by the designated representative and any alternate designated representative:

(i) “I certify that I was selected as the designated representative or alternate designated representative, as applicable, by an agreement binding on the WEC obligated party.”

(ii) “I certify that I have all the necessary authority to carry out my duties and responsibilities under 40 CFR part 99 on behalf of the WEC obligated party and that such owner and operator shall be fully bound by my representations, actions, inactions, or submissions.”

(iii) “I certify that the owner and operator of the WEC obligated party, as applicable, shall be bound by any order issued to me by the Administrator or a court therein.”

(iv) If there are multiple owners and/or operators reported pursuant to § 98.3(c)(14) of this chapter for any WEC applicable facility listed in the certificate of representation pursuant to paragraph (i)(5) of this section, for each facility, “I certify that I have given a written notice of my selection as the `designated representative' or `alternate designated representative', as applicable, and of the agreement by which I was selected to each owner and operator of the WEC applicable facility for which there are multiple owners and/or operators.”

(6) The signature of the designated representative and any alternate designated representative and the dates signed.

(j) Documents of agreement. Unless otherwise required by the Administrator, documents of agreement referred to in the certificate of representation shall not be submitted to the Administrator. The Administrator shall not be under any obligation to review or evaluate the sufficiency of such documents, if submitted.

(k) Binding nature of the certificate of representation. Once a complete certificate of representation under this section for a WEC obligated party has been received, the Administrator will rely on the certificate of representation unless and until a later signed, complete certificate of representation under this section for the facility is received by the Administrator.

(l) Objections concerning a designated representative. (1) Except as provided in paragraph (g) of this section, no objection or other communication submitted to the Administrator concerning the authorization, or any representation, action, inaction, or submission, of the designated representative or alternate designated representative shall affect any representation, action, inaction, or submission of the designated representative or alternate designated representative, or the finality of any decision or order by the Administrator under this part.

(2) The Administrator will not adjudicate any private legal dispute concerning the authorization or any representation, action, inaction, or submission of any designated representative or alternate designated representative.

Each WEC obligated party must submit their WEC filing including the information specified in § 99.7, which contains payment of the applicable WEC obligation no later than August 31 of the year following the reporting year. All filing revisions must be received according to the schedule in § 99.7(e) to be considered for revisions to WEC obligations. If the submission date falls on a weekend or a Federal holiday, the submission date shall be extended to the next business day.

Each WEC filing, certificate of representation, and remittance of applicable WEC fees for the WEC obligated party must be submitted electronically in accordance with the requirements of this part and in a format specified by the Administrator.

The WEC obligated party that is subject to the requirements of this part must submit a WEC filing to the Administrator as specified in this section.

(a) Schedule. The WEC filing must be submitted in accordance with § 99.5.

(b) Content of the WEC filing. For each WEC obligated party, report the information in paragraphs (b)(1)(i) through (vii) of this section. For each WEC applicable facility comprising the WEC obligated party, report the information in paragraphs (b)(2)(i) through (xiii) of this section, as appropriate. The WEC filing must also include payment of applicable WEC obligation, as specified in paragraph (b)(3) of this section.

(1) Reporting requirements at the WEC obligated party level.

(i) The WEC obligated party company name.

(ii) The United States address for the WEC obligated party.

(iii) The list of facility ID number(s) under which the WEC applicable facilities comprising the WEC obligated party as of December 31 of the reporting year reported under part 98, subpart W of this chapter.

(iv) If the WEC obligated party acquired one or more WEC applicable facilities in a transaction occurring subsequent to the end of the reporting year (i.e., between January 1 and December 31 of the year following the reporting year) that resulted in the owner(s) or operator(s) of the facility as of December 31 of the reporting year ceasing to exist prior to the WEC filing date pursuant to § 99.5, report the facility ID number for each WEC applicable facility. You must include these WEC applicable facilities in the reporting requirements under § 99.7(b)(2). For each such WEC applicable facility, also report an indication of whether the parent company identified in paragraph (b)(1)(vi) of this section was reported in the part 98 report for the reporting year pursuant to § 98.3(c)(11) of this chapter. For any such WEC applicable facilities that were not associated with the parent company identified in paragraph (b)(1)(vi) of this section, you may elect to report a parent company for that WEC applicable facility subject to the requirement that such parent company must have been reported in the part 98 report for the reporting year pursuant to § 98.3(c)(11) of this chapter for that facility.

(v) The net WEC emissions, as calculated pursuant to § 99.22, net WEC emissions after transfers, following the provisions of § 99.23, and WEC obligation, as calculated pursuant to § 99.24, for the WEC obligated party. If the condition specified in § 99.7(b)(1)(iv) applies for the reporting year, report separately the net WEC emissions, net WEC emissions after transfers, and WEC obligation associated with each WEC applicable facility that was acquired.

(vi) The parent company for purposes of netting under subpart B of this part for the WEC obligated party and the WEC applicable facilities. The indicated parent company must meet the requirements specified in paragraphs (b)(1)(vi)(A) and (B) of this section. As an alternative to reporting a parent company, the WEC obligated party may be listed and paragraphs (b)(1)(vi)(A) and (B) of this section do not apply.

(A) The indicated parent company must have been reported pursuant to § 98.3(c)(11) of this chapter for each WEC applicable facility listed pursuant to paragraph (b)(1)(iii) of this section.

(B) The WEC obligated party must be a subsidiary of, or partially owned by, the indicated parent company.

(vii) The United States address of the parent company, if electing to report a parent company for purposes of netting under subpart B of this part.

(2) Reporting requirements for each WEC applicable facility comprising the WEC obligated party.

(i) The facility ID number under which the WEC applicable facility emissions are reported under part 98, subpart W of this chapter.

(ii) The industry segment(s) for the WEC applicable facility.

(iii) For WEC applicable facilities in the offshore petroleum and natural gas production or onshore petroleum and natural gas production industry segment, as those industry segment terms are defined in § 98.230 of this chapter, if the conditions specified in § 99.30 regarding emissions from delays in permitting are met, indicate if you are electing to claim for exemption any emissions from delays in permitting. If so, you must provide information as specified in § 99.31.

(iv) If the WEC applicable facility meets the conditions specified in § 99.41(a) and (b) regarding the regulatory compliance exemption, indicate if you are electing to claim for exemption any emissions related to regulatory compliance. If so, you must report the following:

(A) A list of the State(s) and/or Tribal land(s) meeting the conditions specified in § 99.40 for the reporting year in which the WEC applicable facility is located. For WEC applicable facilities in the onshore petroleum and natural gas production or onshore petroleum and natural gas gathering and boosting industry segments, as those industry segment terms are defined in § 98.230 of this chapter, a WEC applicable facility is considered to be located in each State or Tribal lands within which a well-pad site or gathering and boosting site, as applicable, was reported pursuant to §§ 98.236(aa)(1)(iv)(C) or (aa)(10)(v)(E) of this chapter, as applicable, for the reporting year.

(B) An indication of whether the WEC applicable facility contained any affected facilities subject to methane emissions standards under part 60 of this chapter as of December 31st of the reporting year or any designated facilities subject to methane emissions standards under an applicable approved State, Tribal, or Federal plan in part 62 of this chapter as of December 31st of the reporting year. If so, provide the information specified in § 99.42, as applicable.

(v) For WEC applicable facilities in the onshore petroleum and natural gas production, offshore petroleum and natural gas production, or underground natural gas storage industry segments, as those industry segment terms are defined in § 98.230 of this chapter, if the conditions specified in § 99.50 regarding emissions from permanently shut-in and plugged wells are met, indicate if you are electing to claim for exemption any emissions from plugged wells. If so, you must report the information specified in § 99.51.

(vi) The facility waste emissions threshold as calculated pursuant to § 99.20, and, if there is more than one applicable industry segment within the WEC applicable facility, each industry segment waste emissions threshold for each applicable industry segment within the applicable facility, as calculated pursuant to § 99.20.

(vii) The facility applicable emissions, as calculated pursuant to § 99.21 and the WEC applicable emissions, as calculated pursuant to § 99.21.

(viii) The total emissions for the WEC applicable facility as reported under part 98, subpart W of this chapter for the reporting year, mt CO2e. If the facility reported information related to one or more combustion-related other large release events pursuant to paragraph (b)(2)(xiii) of this section, reduce this amount by the total quantity of emissions reported pursuant to paragraph (b)(2)(xiii)(D) of this section. If the adjusted total emissions for the WEC applicable facility following this reduction are less than or equal to 25,000 metric tons CO2e for the reporting year, then the total facility applicable emissions and WEC applicable emissions for the WEC applicable facility are zero, paragraphs (a) through (d) of § 99.20 do not apply to the WEC applicable facility, and the reporting requirements of paragraphs (b)(2)(iii) through (vii) of this section do not apply.

(ix) The annual methane emissions for the WEC applicable facility, as reported under part 98, subpart W of this chapter for the corresponding reporting year, mt CH4. If the facility reported information related to one or more combustion-related other large release events pursuant to paragraph (b)(2)(xiii) of this section, reduce this amount by the total quantity of emissions reported pursuant to paragraph (b)(2)(xiii)(C) of this section.

(x) The total quantity of natural gas that is sent to sale from the WEC applicable facility in the reporting year, as reported pursuant to part 98, subpart W of this chapter, in Mscf.

(xi) The total quantity of crude oil that is sent to sale from the WEC applicable facility in the reporting year, as reported pursuant to part 98, subpart W of this chapter, in barrels.

(xii) The percentage of ownership interest of the parent company reported pursuant to § 99.7(b)(1)(vi) of the WEC applicable facility as reported pursuant to § 98.3(c)(11) of this chapter for the reporting year. Report 0 for any WEC applicable facilities reported pursuant to § 99.7(b)(1)(iv) for which the parent company was not reported pursuant to § 98.3(c)(11) of this chapter for the reporting year.

(xiii) For reporting year 2025 and later, if one or more combustion-related other large release events were reported pursuant to § 98.236(y) of this chapter and reported emissions pursuant § 98.236(z) of this chapter for the same combustion unit for the timespan of the event for the WEC applicable facility in the part 98 report for that reporting year, then for each combustion-related other large release event report the information specified in paragraphs (b)(2)(xiii)(A) through (D) of this section. For purposes of this part, a combustion-related other large release event is one in which the equipment involved in the release identified pursuant to § 98.236(y)(5)(i) of this chapter is equipment that reports emissions pursuant § 98.236(z) of this chapter.

(A) The unique release event identification number for the other large release event as reported pursuant to § 98.236(y)(2) of this chapter.

(B) The annual CO2 emissions, in metric tons CO2, that were reported pursuant to § 98.236(z) of this chapter from the equipment associated with the release that occurred during the timespan of the release as reported pursuant to § 98.236(y)(4) of this chapter. Determine this quantity using the applicable method in paragraphs § 98.236(z)(1) through (3) of this chapter and using measurement data, if available, or a combination of process knowledge, engineering estimates, and best available data when measurement data are not available.

(C) The annual CH4 emissions, in metric tons CH4, that were reported pursuant to § 98.236(z) of this chapter from the equipment associated with the release that occurred during the timespan of the release as reported pursuant to § 98.236(y)(4) of this chapter. Determine this quantity using the applicable method in paragraphs § 98.236(z)(1) through (3) of this chapter and using measurement data, if available, or a combination of process knowledge, engineering estimates, and best available data when measurement data are not available.

(D) The CO2e emissions, in metric tons CO2e, that were reported pursuant to § 98.236(z) of this chapter from the equipment associated with the release that occurred during the timespan of the release as reported pursuant to § 98.236(y)(4) of this chapter. Calculate this value using equation A-1 of subpart A to part 98 of this chapter, using the values of CO2 and CH4 reported pursuant to paragraphs (b)(2)(xiii)(B) and (C), respectively, of this section.

(3) Payment of applicable WEC obligation, submitted in accordance with § 99.9.

(c) Verification of the WEC filing. To verify the completeness and accuracy of WEC filing, the EPA will consider the verification status of part 98 reports and may review the certification statements described in § 99.4 and any other credible evidence, in conjunction with a comprehensive review of the WEC filing, including attachments. The EPA intends to conduct audits of select WEC obligated parties and associated WEC applicable facilities. During such audits, the records generated under this part must be made available to the EPA. The on-site audits may be conducted by private auditors contracted by the EPA or by Federal, State or local personnel, as appropriate. Nothing in this section prohibits the EPA from requesting or using additional information, including reports, prepared and submitted in accordance with part 60 of this chapter, or an applicable approved State, Tribal, or Federal plan under part 62 of this chapter that implements the emission guidelines contained in part 60 of this chapter, to verify the completeness and accuracy of the filings.

(d) Recordkeeping. A WEC obligated party that is subject to the requirements of this part must keep records as specified in this paragraph (d). You must retain all required records for at least 5 years from the date of submission of the WEC filing for the reporting year in which the record was generated. The records shall be kept in an electronic or hard-copy format (as appropriate) and recorded in a form that is suitable for expeditious inspection and review. Upon request by the Administrator, the records required under this section must be made available to the EPA or a third-party auditor if one is required. Records may be retained off site if the records are readily available for expeditious inspection and review. For records that are electronically generated or maintained, the equipment or software necessary to read the records shall be made available, or, if requested by the EPA, electronic records shall be converted to paper documents. You must retain the following records, in addition to those records prescribed in each applicable subpart of this part:

(1) All information required to be retained by part 98, including subparts A and W of this chapter.

(2) Any other information not included in a part 98 report used to complete the WEC filing.

(3) All information required to be submitted as part of the WEC filing.

(e) Annual WEC filing revisions. Except as specified in paragraph (e)(2) of this section, the provisions of this paragraph (e) apply until December 15 of the year following the reporting year, or for a given reporting year after the December 15 deadline if the resubmission is related to the resolution of unverified filings specified at § 99.8. If the deadline falls on a weekend or a Federal holiday, the deadline date shall be extended to the next business day.

(1) The WEC obligated party shall submit a revised WEC filing within 30 days of discovering that a previously submitted WEC filing contains one or more substantive errors. The revised WEC filing must correct all substantive errors. If the resubmission is due to a correction in a part 98 report resubmitted by a WEC applicable facility, the WEC obligated party must report the number of corrections made in the part 98 report(s) and a description of how the changes impact the assessment of the WEC obligation.

(2) The revisions for substantive errors as described in paragraphs (e)(2)(i) through (iii) of this section are not subject to the December 15 deadline and must be submitted according to the schedule therein.

(i) Revised filings for purposes of the regulatory compliance exemption must be submitted as follows:

(A) Revised filings to submit a CAA section 111(b) or (d) compliance report which covers the remaining portion of a WEC filing year, which were not available at the time of the WEC filing, must be submitted within 30 calendar days of the date that the compliance report covering the remainder of the year is due under the applicable requirements of CAA section 111(b) or (d), as applicable.

(B) Revised filings to submit findings by the WEC obligated party that one or more deviations or violations discovered after the WEC filing must be submitted within 30 days of the discovery.

(ii) The Administrator may notify the WEC obligated party in writing that a WEC filing previously submitted by the WEC obligated party contains one or more substantive errors. Such notification will identify each such substantive error. The WEC obligated party shall, within 30 days of receipt of the notification, either resubmit the WEC filing that, for each identified substantive error, corrects the identified substantive error (in accordance with the applicable requirements of this part) or provide information demonstrating that the previously submitted filing does not contain the identified substantive error or that the identified error is not a substantive error. The EPA reserves the right to revise WEC obligations for a given reporting year after the December 15 final resubmission deadline if data errors are discovered by the EPA at a later date.

(iii) Revised filings submitted pursuant to Administrator approval or an Agreement between the WEC obligated party and the Administrator to correct substantive errors.

(3) A substantive error is an error that impacts the Administrator's ability to accurately calculate a WEC obligated party's WEC obligation, which may include, but is not limited to, the list of WEC applicable facilities associated with a WEC obligated party, the emissions or throughput reported in the WEC applicable facility part 98 report(s), emissions associated with exemptions, and supporting information for each exemption to demonstrate its validity.

(4) Notwithstanding paragraphs (e)(1) and (2) of this section, upon request the Administrator may provide an extension of the 30-day period for submission of a revised report or information under paragraphs (e)(1) and (2) of this section if adequate justification is provided by the WEC obligated party. The Administrator may provide an extension provided that the request is received by email to an address prescribed by the Administrator prior to the expiration of the 30-day period and that the request demonstrates that it is not practicable to submit a revised report or information under paragraphs (e)(1) and (2) of this section within 30 days. In no case shall an extension be granted beyond the December 15 final submission deadline.

(5) The WEC obligated party shall retain documentation for a minimum of 5 years from the date of creation to support any revision made to a WEC filing.

(6) If a WEC applicable facility changes ownership such that there is a change to the WEC obligated party, the entity that was the WEC obligated party as reported pursuant to § 99.7(b)(1)(i) in the WEC filing submitted for a reporting year remains responsible for any revisions to WEC filings for that reporting year.

(f) Designation of unverified filings and reports. Following the verification process discussed in § 98.3(h) of this chapter for part 98 reports and paragraph (c) of this section for WEC filings, the EPA shall designate:

(1) The annual part 98 report associated with each WEC applicable facility as either verified or unverified. An unverified report is one in which the EPA has provided notification under § 98.3(h)(2) of this chapter and the owner or operator of the WEC applicable facility has failed to revise and resubmit the report and resolve the error or provide justification to the satisfaction of the EPA that the identified error is not a substantive error (in accordance with the applicable requirements of § 98.3(h)(3) of this chapter).

(2) The annual WEC filing from each WEC obligated party submitted pursuant to § 99.7 as either verified or unverified. An unverified filing is one in which the EPA has provided notification under § 99.7(e)(2) and the WEC obligated party designated representative has failed to resubmit the filing and for each identified substantive error correct the identified substantive error (in accordance with the applicable requirements of paragraph (e)(3) of this section) or provide information demonstrating that the submitted filing does not contain the identified substantive error or that the identified error is not a substantive error. The determination of verification status of a part 98 report under paragraph (f)(1) of this section will be taken into consideration in the determination of the verification status of a WEC filing. A WEC filing may also be designated as unverified if it includes receipt of a transfer of negative net WEC emissions, pursuant to § 99.23, associated with an unverified part 98 report (i.e., the WEC obligated party which transferred the negative net WEC emissions includes one or more WEC applicable facilities for which the associated part 98 report is unverified).

(a) Assessment of the WEC obligation. WEC obligation assessments shall be made pursuant to § 99.23 on the basis of information submitted by the date specified in § 99.5 and following the submittal requirements of § 99.6.

(b) Assessment of the WEC obligation for unverified filings. If a WEC filing is unverified but the EPA is able to correct the error(s) based on reported data, the EPA may recalculate the WEC obligation using available information and provide an invoice or refund to the WEC obligated party within 60 days of determining a WEC filing to be unverified. If the WEC obligated party resubmits a WEC filing within that timeframe, the EPA will either verify the resubmission, or take the resubmission into account when calculating the WEC obligation.

(c) Third-party audits for unverified reports. If the EPA is unable to calculate the WEC obligation with available information, the EPA may require the WEC obligated party to undergo a third-party audit. The EPA may require the WEC obligated party to fund and arrange the third-party audit. The WEC obligated party must make available for review to the third-party auditor all records related to the WEC filing pursuant to § 99.7. The WEC obligated party will have the audit completed and direct the third-party auditor to submit the audit results to the EPA and to the WEC obligated party pursuant to § 99.8(c)(1)(vi). The WEC obligated party will resubmit the WEC filing, if necessary, in accordance with § 99.8(c)(2)(i) and (ii). Nothing in this section regarding third-party audits shall be construed to limit the authority of the Administrator to exercise its authorities under § 114 of the CAA.

(1) Third-party reviews. An independent third-party audit of the information provided shall be based on a review of the relevant documents and shall identify each item required by the WEC filing, describe how the independent third-party evaluated the accuracy of the information provided, state whether the independent third-party agrees with the information provided, and identify any exceptions between the independent third-party's findings and the information provided.

(i) Audits required under this section must be conducted by an independent third-party. The auditor must have professional work experience in the petroleum engineering field or related to oil and gas production, gathering, processing, transmission, or storage and must be a qualified professional engineer.

(ii) To be considered an independent third-party, the auditor must not be an employee of the WEC obligated party or its WEC applicable facilities at which the auditor is conducting the independent review.

(iii) The independent third-party shall submit all records pertaining to the audit required under this section, including information supporting all of the requirements of § 99.8(c)(1) to the WEC obligated party.

(iv) The independent third-party must provide to the WEC obligated party documentation of qualifications of professional work experience in the petroleum engineering field or related to oil and gas production, gathering, processing, transmission, or storage.

(v) The WEC obligated party must make the following information available to the auditor(s) for review which were used to develop the WEC filing including:

(A) All records described under § 99.7(d) of the general recordkeeping provisions for this chapter.

(B) All units, operations, processes, and activities for which GHG emissions were calculated.

(C) The GHG emissions calculations and methods used.

(D) The calculations for the development of site-specific emissions factors.

(E) The quantity of petroleum and natural gas received, produced, and consumed at the facility in the calendar year.

(F) The dates on which any measurements were conducted as well as the results of all emissions measured.

(G) The calibration reports for detection and measurement instruments used.

(H) The inventory of petroleum and natural gas for the current and/or prior calendar year.

(I) The annual part 98 reports.

(vi) The WEC obligated party will direct the independent third-party auditor to submit the audit results to the EPA and the WEC obligated party within 90 days of notification by the EPA of the requirement to conduct a third-party audit.

(2) Reporting and recordkeeping requirements for WEC obligated parties following third party audits. (i) The WEC obligated party shall direct the independent third-party auditor to provide the results of the audit to the EPA and the WEC obligated party. After receiving notification from the EPA that the audited information has been verified by the EPA, the WEC obligated party must resubmit the WEC filing, including the WEC obligation amount and all supporting documentation information that is included in reporting requirements under § 99.7, 99.31, 99.42, and 99.51, as applicable, within 30 days of receipt of the EPA notification.

(ii) The WEC obligated party shall provide to the EPA documentation of qualifications of the third-party auditor.

(iii) The WEC obligated party shall retain all records pertaining to the audit required under this section for a period of 5 years from the date of creation and shall deliver such records to the Administrator upon request.

(d) Resubmittal of filings and reports for the current or prior reporting year. If resubmittal of a previously submitted part 98 report and/or WEC filing, submitted as specified in § 99.7(e), results in a change to the WEC obligation determined for a WEC obligated party for the reporting year the following process shall apply:

(1) If the WEC obligation based upon the resubmitted report or filing for the reporting year is less than the WEC obligation previously remitted by the WEC obligated party, the Administrator shall authorize a refund to the WEC obligated party equal to the difference in WEC obligation.

(2) If the WEC obligation based upon the resubmitted report or filing for the reporting year is greater than the WEC obligation previously remitted by the WEC obligated party, the Administrator may issue an invoice or bill to the WEC obligated party payable in accordance with § 99.9(b). WEC obligations not paid in full by the specified due date, or within 30 days of the date of the invoice or bill if a due date is not provided, shall be subject to fees as described in § 99.10.

(a) The WEC obligation owed for each reporting year must be paid by the WEC obligated party as part of the annual WEC filing, as required by § 99.7(b), and is considered due at the date specified in § 99.5.

(b) Other than the WEC obligation specified in paragraph (a) of this section, all other charges required by this part, including adjusted WEC obligations, interest fees, and penalties, shall be paid by the WEC obligated party in response to an invoice or bill by the specified due date, or within 30 days of the date of the invoice or bill if a due date is not provided.

(c) All WEC obligations, interest fees, and penalties required by this subpart shall be paid to the Department of the Treasury by the WEC obligated party electronically in U.S. dollars, using an online electronic payment service specified by the Administrator.

(a) Delinquency. WEC obligated party accounts are delinquent if the accounts remain unpaid after the due date specified in the invoice or other notice of the WEC amount owed.

(b) Interest fee. In accordance with 31 U.S.C. 3717(a), delinquent WEC obligated party accounts shall be charged a minimum annual rate of interest equal to the average investment rate for Treasury tax and loan accounts (Current Value of Funds Rate or CVFR) most recently published and in effect by the Secretary of the Treasury.

(c) Non-payment penalty. In accordance with 31 U.S.C. 3717(e), WEC obligated party invoiced debts that are more than 90 days past due shall be charged an additional penalty of 6 percent per year assessed on any part of the invoiced debt that is past due for more than 90 days.

(d) Penalty for non-submittal. In accordance with 42 U.S.C. 7413(d)(1), a WEC obligated party that fails to submit an annual WEC filing by the date specified in § 99.5 may be charged an administrative penalty. The penalty assessment shall be a daily assessment per day that the WEC filing is not submitted, assessed up to the value specified in Table 1 of 40 CFR 19.4, as amended. The assessment of penalty shall begin on the date that the WEC filing was considered past due per § 99.5 and continue until such time that the WEC filing is submitted by the WEC obligated party's designated representative. (For example: A WEC filing for reporting year 2025 submitted on September 4, 2026, may be subject to an assessment of four (4) days of administrative penalty for non-submittal.)

Any violation of any requirement of this part shall be a violation of the Clean Air Act, including section 114 (42 U.S.C. 7414) and section 136 (42 U.S.C. 7436). A violation would include but is not limited to failure to submit, or resubmit as required, a WEC filing, failure to collect data needed to calculate the WEC obligation (including any data relevant to determining the applicability of any exemptions and how the netting was conducted), failure to select a WEC obligated party, failure to authorize a designated representative, failure to retain records needed to verify the amount of WEC obligation, providing false or incorrect information in a WEC filing, and failure to remit WEC payment. Each day of each violation constitutes a separate violation. Any penalty assessed shall be in addition to any WEC obligation due under this part and any fees applicable to delinquent payments due under § 99.10.

All requests, notifications, and communications to the Administrator pursuant to this part must be submitted electronically and in a format as specified by the Administrator.

This section characterizes various categories of information for purposes of making confidentiality determinations, as follows:

(a) This paragraph (a) applies the definition of “Emission data” in 40 CFR 2.301(a)(2)(i) for information reported under this part. “Emission data” cannot be treated as confidential business information and shall be available to be disclosed to the public. The following categories of information qualify as emission data:

(1) Methane emission information, including the net WEC emissions, waste emissions thresholds, WEC applicable emissions, and the quantity of methane emissions to be exempted due to unreasonable delay and wells that were permanently shut-in and abandoned.

(2) Calculation methodology, including the method used to determine the quantity of methane emissions to be exempted due to an unreasonable permitting delay and the method used to quantify emissions exempted from permanently shut-in and plugged wells.

(3) Facility and unit identifier information, including WEC obligated party company name and address, signed and dated certification statements of the accuracy and completeness of the report, facility identifiers, industry segment, well-pad and/or well identifiers, and emission source-specific methane mitigation activities impacted by an unreasonable permitting delay.

(b) The following types of information are not eligible for confidential treatment:

(1) The WEC obligation, as calculated pursuant to § 99.24.

(2) Compliance information, including information regarding applicable emissions standards or other relevant standards of performance or requirements, information in construction or operating permits, and information submitted to document compliance with an emissions standard or a standard of performance, such as a periodic report, prepared and submitted in accordance with part 60 of this chapter, or an applicable approved State, Tribal, or Federal plan under part 62 of this chapter that implements the emission guidelines contained in part 60 of this chapter, (excluding any information redacted from the report and claimed as confidential).

(3) Published information that is publicly available, including information that is made available through publication of annual reports submitted under part 98 of this chapter, on company or other websites, or otherwise made publicly available.

(c) If you submit information that is not described in paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section, you may claim the information as confidential and the information is subject to the process for confidentiality determinations in 40 CFR part 2 as described in §§ 2.201 through 2.208 of this chapter. You may be required to provide information to substantiate your claims. If claimed, the Administrator may consider this substantiating information to be confidential to the same degree as the information for which you are requesting confidential treatment. The determination will be based on your statements, the supporting information submitted, and any other available information. However, the Administrator may determine that your information is not subject to confidential treatment consistent with 40 CFR part 2 and 5 U.S.C. 552(b)(4).

(d) Submitted applications and reports typically rely on software or templates to identify specific categories of information. If you submit information in a comment field designated for users to add general information, the Administrator will respond to requests for disclosing that information consistent with paragraphs (a) through (c) of this section.