The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has proposed amendments to its PFAS reporting regulations under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), aiming to reduce regulatory burden on businesses while continuing to collect critical data on the manufacture and use of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).
The proposal seeks to revise the PFAS reporting and recordkeeping rule finalized in October 2023 under TSCA section 8(a)(7), which requires manufacturers and importers to report information on PFAS manufactured or imported between 2011 and 2022. That rule has faced criticism over high compliance costs and lack of practical implementation, with EPA citing IT system issues and administrative delays.
Under the new proposal, EPA intends to streamline requirements by exempting certain low-risk or hard-to-identify PFAS activities. These include PFAS present in mixtures or products at concentrations of 0.1% or less, imported articles, certain byproducts, impurities, research and development chemicals, and non-isolated intermediates. EPA also plans technical corrections to clarify reporting instructions and adjust the data submission period.
According to the agency, the revisions align with Administrator Lee Zeldin’s broader policy to reduce unnecessary reporting burdens and improve regulatory certainty. “Today’s proposal is grounded in commonsense and the law, allowing us to collect the information we need to help combat PFAS contamination without placing ridiculous requirements on manufacturers, especially the small businesses that drive our country’s economy,” said EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin.
The EPA will accept public comments on the proposal for 45 days following its publication in the Federal Register, under docket #EPA-HQ-OPPT-2020-0549 at www.regulations.gov.