In less than two months, renewable fuel and biobased chemical companies that have successfully moved from research and development to commercialization will be required to respond to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Chemical Data Reporting (CDR) rule under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). This may come as a surprise to some biobased chemicals companies that are under the misperception that they are not regulated under TSCA. This is simply wrong. Unless otherwise regulated as a pesticide, food, food additive, drug, cosmetic, or nuclear material, biobased chemicals used for a commercial purpose, including fuels regulated under the Renewable Fuel Standard program, are subject to the rules and requirements under TSCA. Companies that do not comply are subject to enforcement actions and significant fines of up to $37,500 per violation, per day.

The reporting window for the 2016 CDR is June 1, 2016, to September 30, 2016. CDR reporting includes detailed information on volumes of chemicals produced, imported, used on site, and exported. It also requires information on amounts and functions for downstream uses in industrial, commercial and consumer applications. CDR reporting is further complicated with numerous potential exemptions that must be carefully analyzed for applicability.