Notice of action: The State Air Pollution Control Board is considering the amendment of a regulation on the Definition of Volatile Organic Compound (Rev. C25). A regulation is a general rule governing people's rights or conduct that is upheld by a state agency.
Regulations affected: The regulation of the board affected by this regulatory action is 9VAC5-10, General Definitions.
Purpose of notice: The board is seeking comments through the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) on (i) the proposal, (ii) the costs and benefits of the proposal, (iii) the potential impacts of the proposal on the regulated community, and (iv) the effects of the proposal on farm and forest land preservation.
Public comment period: June 15 through July 15, 2026.
Public comment stage: Under the provisions of § 2.2-4012.1 of the Administrative Process Act, agencies may use the fast-track rulemaking process for regulations that are expected to be noncontroversial. The reasons for using the fast-track rulemaking process may be found in the agency background document. If an objection to the use of the fast-track process is received within the 30-day public comment period from 10 or more persons, any member of the applicable standing committee of either house of the General Assembly or of the Joint Commission on Administrative Rules, DEQ will (i) file notice of the objection with the Registrar of Regulations for publication in the Virginia Register and (ii) proceed with the normal promulgation process with the initial publication of the fast-track regulation serving as the Notice of Intended Regulatory Action. Otherwise, the regulation becomes effective 15 days after the end of the public comment period.
Description of proposal: The general definitions impose no regulatory requirements in and of themselves but provide support to other provisions of the Regulations for the Control and Abatement of Air Pollution. The list of substances not considered to be volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in Virginia has been revised to add cis-1,1,1,4,4,4 hexafluorobut-2-ene (HFO-1336mzz-Z) in order to be consistent with the federal definition as promulgated on November 28, 2018 (83 FR 61127).
Locality particularly affected: There is no locality which will bear any identified disproportionate material air quality impact due to the proposal which would not be experienced by other localities.
How to comment: DEQ accepts written comments by email and postal mail. In order to be considered, written comments must include the full name, address and telephone number of the person commenting and be received by DEQ by the last day of the comment period. All materials received are part of the public record.
To review regulation documents: The proposal and any supporting documents are available on the DEQ Air Public Notices web site: https://www.deq.virginia.gov/permits/public-notices/air. The documents may also be obtained by contacting the DEQ representative named below. The public may review the documents between 8:30 am and 4:30 pm of each business day until the close of the public comment period at the following DEQ locations: 1) Main Street Office, 22nd Floor, 1111 E. Main St, Richmond VA, 804-659-1973, 2) Southwest Regional Office, 355-A Deadmore St, Abingdon VA, 276-676-4800, 3) Blue Ridge Regional Office, 901 Russell Drive, Salem VA, 540-562-6700, 4) Valley Regional Office, 4411 Early Rd, Harrisonburg VA, 540-574-7800, 5) Piedmont Regional Office, 4949-A Cox Rd, Glen Allen VA, 804-527-5020, 6) Northern Regional Office, 13901 Crown Ct, Woodbridge VA, 703-583-3800, and 7) Tidewater Regional Office, 5636 Southern Blvd, Virginia Beach VA, 757-518-2000. Supporting documents can also be viewed by clicking the links below:
Agency Background Document-Form TH-04
Office of Regulatory Management-Economic Review Form
9VAC5 Chapter 10
Contact for public comments, document requests and additional information: Julia Wack, Office of Air Data Analysis and Planning, Department of Environmental Quality, P.O. Box 1105, Richmond VA 23218, phone 804-432-3581, email Julia.N.Wack@deq.virginia.gov.
