iThe U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is publishing a final rule that will substantially increase the fees applicable to a variety of actions under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) (15 U.S.C. § 2601 et seq.). Under the 2016 Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act, EPA is directed to collect fees to offset up to 25% of TSCA’s implementation costs. The rule’s increased fees will go into effect 60 days after the final rule is published in the Federal Register, and will apply to the 2024, 2025, and 2026 fiscal years.
According to a pre-publication notice of the final rule, the program cost estimates have been reduced by almost 20% since the 2022 supplemental notice, allowing EPA to slightly decrease the fee amounts in the final rule.
The final fee amounts, as compared to the current fees, are shown below.
| Fee category | Current Fees* | Final Fees |
|---|---|---|
| §4 Test Order | $11,650 | $25,000 |
| §4 Test Rule | $35,080 | $50,000 |
| §4 ECA | $27,110 | $50,000 |
| §5 PMN, consolidated PMN, SNUN, MCAN, consolidated MCAN | $19,020 | $37,000 |
| §5 LoREX, LVE, TME, Tier II exemption, TERA, Film Articles | $5,590 | $10,870 |
| §6 EPA-Initiated Risk Evaluation | Two payments resulting in $2,560,000 | Two payments resulting in $4,287,000 |
| §6 MRRE on Chemical Included in TSCA Work Plan | Two payments of $945,000, with final invoice to recover 50% of actual costs | Two payments of $1,414,924, with final invoice to recover 50% of actual costs |
| §6 MRRE on Chemical Not Included in TSCA Work Plan | Two payments of $1.89M, with final invoice to recover 100% of actual costs | Two payments of $2,829,847, with final invoice to recover 100% of actual costs |
* The current fees reflect an adjustment for inflation effective January 1, 2022.
The rule finalizes six fee exemptions from EPA-initiated risk evaluations or test rules, including an exemption for manufacturers of “byproducts,” which only includes manufacturers of byproducts not later used for commercial purposes or distributed for commercial use. The five other exemptions apply to articles, impurities, non-isolated intermediates, small quantities used for research and development, and low volumes.
EPA provides an approximately 80% fee discount to companies that qualify as a “small business concern,” as defined in the rule, and is providing an extended timeline to remit fees. In the final rule, EPA is also finalizing its 2022 proposed changes related to cost-sharing for EPA-initiated risk evaluations, requiring the top 20th percentile of manufacturers to evenly split 80% of the total fee. If three or fewer manufacturers are identified for a substance, EPA will distribute the fee evenly among those three or fewer fee payors, regardless of production volume.
Other changes include amending the self-identification and reporting requirements for EPA-initiated risk evaluation and test rule fees; expanding the fee requirements to non-manufacturers required to submit information for test orders; and requiring processors to pay fees when no manufacturers can be identified.
Companies considering making TSCA submissions in the upcoming weeks should strive to make them prior to the effective date of the increased fees.
