(a) If necessary, EPA will rank approved reimbursement requests according to the financial burden the response costs impose on the local governments. We will estimate your financial burden by calculating the ratio of your allowable response costs to your annual per capita income adjusted for population. We will make adjustments for population so that a large city with a low per capita income will not necessarily receive a higher rank than a small town with a slightly higher per capita income. We will also consider other relevant financial information you may supply.

(b) We will use the per capita income and population statistics published by the U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, in Current Population Reports, Local Population Estimates, Series P-26, “1988 Population and 1987 Per Capita Income Estimates for Counties and Incorporated Places,” Vols. 88-S-SC, 88-ENC-SC, 88-NE-SC, 88-W-SC, 88-WNC-SC, March 1990. The Director of the Federal Register has approved this incorporation by reference in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR Part 51. Copies are available from the Bureau of the Census, Office of Public Affairs, Department of Commerce, Constitution Avenue, NE., Washington, DC 20230 (1-202-763-4040). You may review a copy at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460 or at the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). For information on the availability of this material at NARA, call 202-741-6030, or go to: http://www.archives.gov/federal_register/code_of_federal_regulations/ibr_locations.html.

(c) Larger ratios receive a higher rank. We will reimburse requests with the highest ranks first. Once we rank your request, we will either:

(1) Reimburse the request; or

(2) Hold the request for reconsideration once additional funding is available.

(d) The EPA reimbursement official will give you a written decision on whether the request will be reimbursed or held for future reconsideration.