Those required to comply with certain reporting and recordkeeping requirements for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) have been afforded an eight-month delay, shifting reporting to commence July 11, 2025, and be completed by Jan. 11, 2026. Reporting was supposed to commence Nov. 12, 2024, before this delay was announced by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The delay is driven by funding shortages leading to delays in the reporting software development.

Under the rule, persons that manufacture or have manufactured or imported PFAS and PFAS-containing articles in any year since Jan. 1, 2011, are required to report to EPA PFAS uses, production volumes, byproducts, disposal, exposures, and existing information on environmental or health effects. The reporting rule is intended to allow EPA “to better characterize the sources and quantities of manufactured PFAS in the United States.”

In the direct final rule extending the reporting deadlines, EPA indicated that it did not anticipate receiving adverse comments on the extensions but, if it did, it would withdraw the direct final rule allowing for the extension. The direct final rule is open for comment through Oct. 7, 2024. Given that the EPA identified that a five percent reduction to the TSCA program’s 2024 budget was resulting in the EPA making “difficult choices” on priorities, it is not clear how the agency would achieve the software deployment by Nov. 12, 2024, if it withdraws the direct final rule due to adverse comments.

Under the EPA’s definition of PFAS, the EPA has identified at least 1,462 PFAS for possible reporting under TSCA. This extension, if it holds, will allow more time for manufacturers to gather the necessary information to be ready for reporting submissions on July 11, 2025. The additional time will also allow for more outreach to these manufacturers to ensure that those affected by the reporting requirements are aware of them and able to familiarize themselves with the applicable requirements.