[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 18 (Thursday, January 27, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 4235-4236]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-01590]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-SFUND-2004-0006; FRL-9497-01-OMS]


Information Collection Request Submitted to OMB for Review and 
Approval; Comment Request; Community Right-to-Know Reporting 
Requirements Under Sections 311 and 312 of the Emergency Planning and 
Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) (Renewal)

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has submitted 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 (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. This is a 
proposed extension of the ICR, which is currently approved through 
March 31, 2022. Public comments were previously requested via the 
Federal Register on August 20, 2021 during a 60-day comment period. 
This notice allows for an additional 30 days for public comments. A 
fuller description of the ICR is given below, including its estimated 
burden and cost to the public. 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: Additional comments may be submitted on or before February 28, 
2022.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments to EPA, referencing Docket ID No. EPA-
HQ-SFUND-2004-0006; online using www.regulations.gov (our preferred 
method) 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 [email protected]. 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.
    Submit written comments and recommendations to OMB for the proposed 
information collection within 30 days of publication of this notice to 
www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. Find this particular information 
collection by selecting ``Currently under 30-day Review--Open for 
Public Comments'' or by using the search function.

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: (202) 
564-8794; email address: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Supporting documents, which explain in 
detail the information that the EPA will be collecting, are available 
in the public docket for this ICR. The docket can be viewed online at 
www.regulations.gov or in person at the EPA Docket Center, WJC West, 
Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave. NW, Washington, DC. The telephone 
number for the Docket Center is 202-566-1744. For additional 
information about EPA's public docket, visit http://www.epa.gov/dockets. 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.
    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

[[Page 4236]]

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.
    Form Numbers: Tier I Emergency and Hazardous Chemical Inventory 
Form, EPA Form No. 8700-29, Tier II Emergency and Hazardous Chemical 
Inventory Form, EPA Form No. 8700-30.
    Respondents/affected entities: 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: 471,787 facilities (total). This 
figure includes 3,052 LEPCs and SERCs.
    Frequency of response: Annual.
    Total estimated burden: 6,963,271 hours (per year). Burden is 
defined at 5 CFR 1320.03(b).
    Total estimated cost: $306,735,727 (per year), includes $1,715,094 
annualized capital or operation & maintenance costs.
    Changes in the Estimates: O&M costs were reduced from the previous 
ICR renewal for two reasons. First, mailing costs were reduced by two-
thirds because electronic communications have greatly reduced the 
reliance on the use of mail services. In addition, EPA no longer 
assumes that filing cabinets used to store paper forms are replaced 
every 15 years. Instead, EPA now believes it is more reasonable to 
assume that the file cabinets are used indefinitely.

Courtney Kerwin,
Director, Regulatory Support Division.
[FR Doc. 2022-01590 Filed 1-26-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P