EPA’s May 13 interim final rule, which extended the start and end dates of the PFAS Toxic Substances Control Act Section 8(a)(7) reporting period for all manufacturers by nine months, was EPA’s second such extension to the rule, the first having taken place on September 5, 2024. Pursuant to the latest interim final rule, which became effective upon its May 13 publication in the Federal Register, the data submission period is now set to begin on April 13, 2026 and end October 13, 2026 for most regulated parties. Small manufacturers reporting exclusively as article importers have until April 13, 2027 to complete their reporting.
As with the prior extension, EPA cited the need to fully develop and test its reporting program before reporting can begin, noting in the Executive Summary to the recent rulemaking that “[t]his action provides additional time for the Agency’s reporting application to be completed and sufficiently tested to ensure that reporting entities do not experience technical issues that prevent or complicate successful submission of data as required under TSCA section 8(a)(7) during the regulatory submission period.”[1]
The extension arrives as EPA continues to wrestle with budget cuts under a new administration. EPA had identified budget constraints as part of its prior delay announcement.
As originally set out in the National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2020, the US Congress amended TSCA Section 8(a) and required EPA to develop a PFAS reporting program by January 1, 2023. The program applies to “each person who has manufactured [PFAS] in any year since January 1, 2011.” The act required covered entities to submit “a report that includes, for each year since January 1, 2011, the information described in [TSCA Section 8(a)(2)].”
The resulting reporting requirement memorialized in the ensuing TSCA Section 8(a)(7) PFAS reporting rule is intentionally broad and does not include protections found in other TSCA regulations for de minimis PFAS producers or small businesses. It also expressly includes PFAS found in articles.[2] This has forced regulated entities—which includes importers—to consider whether their own operations involve articles that contain any amount of PFAS and whether the products within their broader supply chain might contain PFAS.
EPA’s PFAS reporting requirement under TSCA will entail a substantial undertaking both for regulated entities and the agency. The need for a second extension to continue developing the reporting database speaks to the magnitude of this task.
EPA has stated[3] that it is considering reopening certain aspects of the rule for public comment regarding potential modifications consistent with Executive Order 13219, Unleashing Prosperity through Deregulations.[4] EPA further stated that the delay of the reporting commencement date will help ensure that EPA “has adequate time to consider the public comments and propose and finalize any modifications to the rule before the submission period begins.”[5]
This is consistent with statements made by EPA in its April 28 PFAS agenda, wherein the agency identified an intended action to “smartly” collect information under the TSCA Section 8(a)(7) PFAS reporting rules that is both consistent with how Congress envisioned it and with TSCA more generally, while not overburdening small businesses and article importers.[6]
Requiring all manufacturers (which by definition includes importers) to report any amount of PFAS in any manufactured and imported articles since 2011 will result in reporting of an imposing amount of information if the reporting rule goes forward as currently proposed, and it may prove to be an unworkable task for EPA to evaluate such information in a meaningful way. Public comments to the interim final rule, however, were expressly limited to only those relating to the commencement of the reporting period.
For companies gathering more than a decade of PFAS reporting data (including for years in which that information may not be readily available or widely reported), the delay presents yet another opportunity to complete those evaluations. However, despite another extension and clear budget constraints, EPA’s position in the Federal Register suggests that it remains committed to putting some form of this broad PFAS reporting rule in place. Accordingly, regulated entities should continue to prepare for reporting when the data submission period opens on April 13, 2026.
For additional information about the TSCA PFAS reporting rule, please refer to our October 2023 and February 2024 LawFlashes.
For additional information about the prior extension, refer to our September 2024 LawFlash.
If you have any questions or would like more information on the issues discussed in this LawFlash, please contact any of the following: