On February 21, 2024, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finalized amendments to the 2018 Fee Rule that established fees for the administration of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). This rule is effective on April 22, 2024.
The revised TSCA fee requirements are determined by considering changes in program costs, inflation, and addressing certain implementation issues related to the fee requirements. EPA has determined that these adjustments will ensure a sustainable source of funding for the agency to effectively administer specific provisions of the TSCA.
In finalizing the final fee amounts, EPA has considered several factors, including activity cost and numbers associated with the individual fee-triggering events(such as fee refunds, proportion of small businesses); the cost to industry to implement the activity (e.g., test order fees are not as high due to reduce burden to industry which are already paying for testing); and the potential burden of the fee to industry (e.g., whether a fee is shared by multiple manufacturers).
The final fee amounts as compared to the current fees are listed below:
| Fee category | Current fees | Final fees |
| TSCA Section 4 | ||
| Test order | $11,650 | $25,000 |
| Test rule | $35,080 | $50,000 |
| Enforceable Consent Agreement (ECA) | $27,110 | $50,000 |
| TSCA Section 5 | ||
| PMN and consolidated PMN, SNUN, MCAN and consolidated MCAN | $19,020 | $37,000 |
| LoREX, LVE, TME, Tier II exemption, TERA, Film Articles | $5,590 | $10,870 |
| TSCA Section 6 | ||
| EPA-Initiated Risk Evaluation | $1,605,000 | Two payments resulting in $4,287,000 |
| MRRE on a Chemical Included in the TSCA Work Plan | 50% of total actual costs with a $1,490,000 initial payment | Two payments of $1,414,924, with final invoice to recover 50% of actual costs |
| MRRE on a Chemical Not Included in the TSCA Work Plan | 100% of total actual costs with a $2,970,000 initial payment | Two payments of $2,829,847, with final invoice to recover 100% of actual costs |
In addition, EPA is providing an approximately 80% reduction in TSCA fees to submitters who qualify as a "small business concern" as defined in the final TSCA fees rule. Accordingly, the adjusted final fee amounts for small businesses are listed below:
| Fee category | Current fees | Final fees |
| TSCA Section 4 | ||
| Test order | $2,320 | $5,000 |
| Test rule | $7,020 | $10,000 |
| ECA | $5,470 | $10,000 |
| TSCA Section 5 | ||
| PMN and consolidated PMN, SNUN, MCAN and consolidated MCAN | $3,330 | $6,480 |
| LoREX, LVE, TME, Tier II exemption, TERA, Film Articles | $1,120 | $2,180 |
| TSCA Section 6 | ||
| EPA-Initiated Risk Evaluation | $320,000 | $857,400 |
The final rule can be accessed here.
