On April 16, 2020, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) hosted a call on its recently announced plan to reduce the burden for certain stakeholders subject to the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) fees rule requirements for EPA-initiated risk evaluations. The call covered:
- How EPA’s plan to initiate a rulemaking to consider proposing exemptions to the current rule’s requirements impacts manufacturers and other businesses;
- What the “No Action Assurance” means for importers of articles and producers of byproducts and impurities; and
- Reporting obligations during the current comment period, which will close May 27, 2020.
EPA announced on March 25, 2020, that plans to initiate a new rulemaking process to consider proposing exemptions to the current rule’s self-identification requirements associated with EPA-initiated risk evaluations for manufacturers that:
- Import the chemical substance in an article;
- Produce the chemical substance as a byproduct; or
- Produce or import the chemical substance as an impurity.
During the call, EPA stated that it expects to begin rulemaking in the short term with the goal of issuing a final rule by October 1, 2021. As a bridge to the final rule, EPA issued a “No Action Assurance” for these three categories of manufacturers. EPA will not pursue enforcement action against entities in these manufacturer categories for failure to self-identify under 40 C.F.R. Section 700.45(b)(5).
EPA has posted frequently asked questions (FAQ) about TSCA fees for EPA-initiated risk evaluations. The current FAQs include:
March 2020 Rulemaking Announcement and No Action Assurance
- Why is EPA announcing its intention to propose exemptions to the TSCA fees rule?
- What is the expected timing for this rulemaking?
- Is EPA considering any other changes to the TSCA fees rule as part of this rulemaking?
- What does the “No Action Assurance” mean?
- Do entities in the three categories in the planned regulatory change still have to self-identify during the comment period closing on May 27, 2020?
- Are entities in the three categories impacted by the planned regulatory change still responsible for paying a portion of the risk evaluation fee?
- What should I do if I’ve already self-identified as a manufacturer, but fall into one of the three categories in the planned regulatory change?
- What should I do if I’ve been identified on a Preliminary List, but fall into one of the three categories in the planned regulatory change?
- What should I do if I fall into one of the three categories in the planned regulatory change, but have NOT yet self-identified and was NOT identified on a Preliminary List?
- What constitutes an “article” for purposes of the planned regulatory change?
- What constitutes a “byproduct” for purposes of the planned regulatory change?
- What constitutes an “impurity” for purposes of the planned regulatory change?
Reporting for TSCA Fees
EPA has posted the slides for the call. EPA states that it will post a transcript of the call on its website.