EPA to Revise TSCA Small Business Size Standards

US EPA announced in the Federal Register today that it will adjust the current size standard for what constitutes a “small manufacturer or processor” for the purpose of TSCA Section 8(a) chemical data reporting requirements.

Under TSCA—as amended by the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21^st Century Act—EPA is required to consider whether to adjust the TSCA small business standard. Today’s announcement makes no regulatory changes, but it starts the process of updating the small business standard for TSCA CDR reporting.

TSCA Small Business Size Threshold Is Likely to Rise

EPA codified the general size standards for chemical manufacturers, processors, and importers in 1988.

EPA notes that the lowest threshold for a “small business” under TSCA is annual sales of $4 million, whereas the lowest threshold for a “small business” under Small Business Administration standards is annual sales of $5.5 million.

Further, when EPA set small business standards under its TSCA nanoscale reporting rules in 2016, the Agency chose annual sales of $11 million as the small business threshold. So, the $4 million threshold may no longer be realistic—especially given the cost of chemicals in 2017. From 1988 to 2015, the Producer Price Index (PPI) for Chemicals and Allied Products rose by 129%.

TSCA Online Training

Do you know your responsibilities for chemical reporting under the reformed TSCA rules?

The TSCA Regulations Online Course guides EHS managers through these complex requirements—including how to use the TSCA Chemical Inventory; inventory, IUR, or “Form U” reporting responsibilities; Chemical Data Reporting; Pre Manufacture Notifications (PMN); Significant New Use Rules (SNUR); management standards for PCBs, and much more.
 

Tags: chemicals, EPA, hazardous substances, new rules, TSCA