In a recent article from Chemical Watch, “Industry backs small business panel recommendations for TSCA PFAS reporting rule,” Principal Ryan Carra (Washington, DC) commented on the new Small Business Advocacy Review Panel (SBAR) recommendations for changes to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)’s Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Per-and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) reporting rule.

Last week, EPA published an initial regulatory flexibility analysis (IRFA) and economic analysis that the proposed TSCA reporting rule would cost approximately 80 times greater than originally thought. EPA claims that it will contemplate ways to mitigate costs.

One of the recommendations SBAR suggested is to grant exemptions for small entities and to add “carveouts for imported articles, impurities, research and development substances, and non-isolated intermediates, or de minimis concentrations in mixtures and articles.” Ryan emphasized how essential a total exclusion of articles would be and added that it is a “default exemption for several current TSCA obligations.”

Beveridge & Diamond’s Chemicals Regulation practice group provides strategic, business-focused advice to the global chemicals industry. We work with large and small chemical companies whose products and activities are subject to EPA’s broad chemical regulatory authority under TSCA and state chemical restrictions.