2021-17903. Proposed Information Collection Request; Comment Request: Community Right-to-Know Reporting Requirements Under Sections 311 and 312 of the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA), EPA ICR Number 1352.16, OMB Control ...

AGENCY:

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION:

Notice.

SUMMARY:

The Environmental Protection Agency is planning to submit an information collection request (ICR), “Community Right-to-Know Reporting Requirements under Sections 311 and 312 of the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA),” (EPA ICR Number 1352.16, OMB Control Number 2050-0072) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA). Before doing so, EPA is soliciting public comments on specific aspects of the proposed information collection as described in Supplementary Information. This is a proposed extension of the ICR, which is currently approved through March 31, 2022. An Agency may not conduct or sponsor and a person is not required to respond to a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number.

DATES:

Comments must be submitted on or before October 19, 2021.

ADDRESSES:

Submit your comments, referencing Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-SFUND-2004-0006, to: (1) EPA online using www.regulations.gov (our preferred method), by email to [e-mail] or by mail to: EPA Docket Center, Environmental Protection Agency, Mail Code 28221T, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20460, and (2) OMB via email to [e-mail]. Address comments to OMB Desk Officer for EPA.

EPA's policy is that all comments received will be included in the public docket without change including any personal information provided, unless the comment includes profanity, threats, information claimed to be Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Wendy Hoffman, Office of Emergency Management, Mail Code 5104A, Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: [phone]; email address: [e-mail].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Supporting documents which explain in detail the information that EPA will be collecting are available in the public docket for this ICR. The docket can be viewed online at http://www.regulations.gov. Out of an abundance of caution for members of the public and our staff, the EPA Docket Center and Reading Room is closed to the public, with limited exceptions, to reduce the risk of transmitting COVID-19. Our Docket Center staff will continue to provide remote customer service via email, phone, and webform. For further information about the EPA's public docket, Docket Center services and the current status, please visit us online at https://www.epa.gov/​dockets. The telephone number for the Docket Center is 202-566-1744.

Pursuant to section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA, EPA is soliciting comments and information to enable it to: (i) Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the Agency, including whether the information will have practical utility; (ii) evaluate the accuracy of the Agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used; (iii) enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (iv) minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic submission of responses. EPA will consider the comments received and amend the ICR as appropriate. The final ICR package will then be submitted to OMB for review and approval. At that time, EPA will issue another Federal Register notice to announce the submission of the ICR to OMB and the opportunity to submit additional comments to OMB.

Abstract: The authority for these requirements is sections 311 and 312 of the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) of 1986 (42 U.S.C. 11011, 11012). EPCRA section 311 requires owners and operators of facilities subject to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Hazard Communication Standard (HCS) to submit a list of chemicals or Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDSs) (for those chemicals that exceed thresholds, specified in 40 CFR part 370) to the State Emergency Response Commission (SERC) or Tribal Emergency Response Commission (TERC), Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC) or Tribal Emergency Planning Committee (TEPC), and the local fire department (LFD) with jurisdiction over their facility. This is a one-time requirement unless a facility becomes subject to the regulations or has updated information on the hazardous chemicals that were already submitted by the facility. EPCRA section 312 requires owners and operators of facilities subject to the OSHA HCS to submit an inventory form (for those chemicals that exceed the thresholds, specified in 40 CFR part 370) to the SERC (or TERC), LEPC (or TEPC), and LFD with jurisdiction over their facility. This inventory form, the Tier II Emergency and Hazardous Chemical Inventory Form, is to be submitted on or before March 1 of each year and must include the inventory of hazardous chemicals present at the facility in the previous calendar year. Currently, all states require facilities to submit the Federal Tier II form or the state-equivalent, including electronic submission.

The burden estimates, numbers and types of respondents, wage rates and unit and total costs for this ICR renewal will be revised and updated if needed during the 60-day comment period while the ICR Supporting Statement is undergoing review at OMB.

Form Numbers: Tier II Emergency and Hazardous Chemical Inventory Form, EPA Form No. 8700-30.

Respondents/affected entities: Entities potentially affected by this ICR are manufacturers and non-manufacturers required to have available a MSDS (or Safety Data Sheet (SDS)) under the OSHA HCS.

Respondent's obligation to respond: Mandatory (sections 311 and 312 of EPCRA).

Estimated number of respondents: 465,692. This figure includes 3,052 LEPCs and SERCs and will be updated as needed during the 60-day OMB review period.

Frequency of response: Annual.

Total estimated burden: 6,825,633 hours (per year) (includes LEPCs and SERCs). This figure will be updated as needed during the 60-day OMB review period. Burden is defined at 5 CFR 1320.03(b).

Total estimated cost: $312,284,992 (per year), includes annualized capital or operation & maintenance costs. This figure will be updated to account for any changes in O&M costs, burden and number of respondents during the 60-day OMB review period.

Changes in Estimates: Changes in estimated costs are attributable to updated wage rates and a reduction in O&M costs. Any additional change in burden or cost resulting from the 60-day OMB review period will be described and explained in this section when the updated ICR Supporting Statement is completed.

Donna Salyer,

Director, Office of Emergency Management.