USEPA’s PFAS Interim Reporting Rule: Industry Insights and Next Steps Under TSCA

The USEPA’s TSCA PFAS reporting rule, which requires manufacturers and importers of PFAS between 2011 and 2022 to submit detailed information to EPA about the production, use, disposal, exposure, and environmental and health effects of Perfluoroalkyl and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS), has faced multiple delays due to budgetary constraints, with the submission period now postponed to April 13, 2026.

While public comments on the interim final rule closed in June 2025, EPA stated that it is considering reopening other parts of the rule for comment. The Spring 2025 Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions released on September 4, 2025, provided additional insights into USEPA’s plans for modifying the TSCA PFAS reporting rule. EPA indicated that the agency plans to publish a proposed rule by December 2025, which would include certain exemptions and other modifications to the scope of the reporting rule, and finalize it by June 2026¹. On August 29, 2025, prior to the release of the Agenda, a proposed rule, “Perfluoroalkyl and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) Data Reporting and Recordkeeping under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA); Revision to Regulation” was submitted to the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review. OMB review typically takes 90 days but can take more or less time depending on the regulation.

The interim final rule received comments from a total of 665 commenters and 27 publicly available comment documents^2,3. Publicly-available comments were received from citizens, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), industry, and industry associations.

In general, citizens and NGOs were not supportive of the delay in reporting. For instance, one comment from the West Virginia Rivers Coalition emphasized the “urgent and critical need for this information to be made public as soon as possible” and “every week and month we continue to delay this reporting, we put the health and safety of West Virginians and Americans at further risk”⁴.

The primary type of comments received from industry and industry associations included the following:

1. Need for a robust and functioning electronic reporting tool: Comments from industry generally supported the USEPA’s decision to delay the start of the data submission period from July 11, 2025, to April 13, 2026, stating that the delay is essential to allow industry to collect accurate information and for USEPA to develop and test the electronic reporting tool to ensure smooth and efficient data submission. Industry highlighted the need for beta testing the portal on USEPA’s electronic reporting tool, Central Data Exchange (CDX), to identify and resolve errors before the submission window opens. The American Chemistry Council (ACC) stated that “it is critical that CDX functions properly to help ensure that the Agency receives high-quality data and that the confidential business information, including trade secrets and national security interests, is adequately protected”⁵.
2. Reevaluate the usual exemptions for reporting: Commenters called for the usual exemptions to reduce the reporting burden on industry and to align with the exemptions available for other reporting requirements under TSCA. These include exemptions for small businesses, imported articles, impurities, byproducts, research and development activities, and establishing a de minimis reporting threshold for reporting. For example, the semiconductor industry trade association (SEMI) stated, “most article importers will likely report estimated data that is not granular enough for USEPA to use in a risk-based decision-making process” and “domestic manufacturers are unlikely to have information on byproducts and impurities without testing”. Industry generally advocated for these exemptions to make compliance more feasible and reduce the impact on the affected entities.
3. Reduced historical lookback period: Several stakeholders suggested reducing the lookback period from the current 12 years to a shorter timeframe, such as three years. The Information Technology Industry Council (ITI) stated that “the complexity of…supply chains make it extremely difficult to trace chemical content, and information about PFAS use is often unavailable or unreliable due to the multi-tiered nature of global supply chains, lack of contractual obligations, absence of full material disclosure standards, and limited access to historical or legacy data”⁶. Furthermore, many companies have a maximum record retention policy as short as five years. Industry argued that a shorter period would decrease the reporting burden and ensure the collection of relevant, high-quality data.
4. Clarification on guidance and reporting standards: Industry argued for USEPA to provide clear guidance on what constitutes "known or reasonably ascertainable" information in the context of this rule, particularly in complex and multi-tiered supply chains. Commenters request detailed instructions to help businesses understand their reporting obligations and ensure consistent compliance.

The above comments reflect industry's primary concerns with practical aspects of compliance, the need for efficient implementation, and the minimization of unnecessary burdens while providing meaningful data for regulatory purposes. These comments align with the announcement made by the USEPA Administrator Lee Zeldin on April 28, 2025, suggesting potential updates to the rule such that USEPA will “implement section 8(a)(7) to smartly collect necessary information, as Congress envisioned and consistent with TSCA, without overburdening small businesses and article importers”⁷.

Furthermore, on May 2, 2025, USEPA received a petition from a coalition of chemical companies requesting modifications to the TSCA PFAS reporting rule to reduce the burden on potential submitters⁸. The petition calls for making the usual exemptions applicable for imported articles, research and development activities, PFAS manufactured in quantities less than 2,500 pounds, impurities, byproducts, and non-isolated intermediates. Ultimately, the coalition withdrew its petition shortly after the publication of the interim final rule on May 16, 2025, and USEPA considers the petition closed.

Comments from industry on the interim final rule are not only consistent with statements made by the USEPA Administrator and a petition from a coalition of chemical companies but also align with other TSCA Section 8(a) reporting and recordkeeping requirements, such as the Chemical Data Reporting (CDR) rule. CDR collects information every four years on chemical substances manufactured and imported into the United States. The last CDR reporting cycle in 2024 included reportable activities for the 2020 to 2023 period. CDR includes an annual reporting threshold and exemptions for articles, byproducts, impurities, non-isolated intermediates, and research and development activities. CDR submitters also enter information on EPA’s CDX portal, and the reporting tool for the TSCA PFAS reporting rule is expected to be very similar to the CDR reporting tool.

Ramboll recommends that entities who may be affected by the TSCA PFAS reporting rule closely monitor USEPA’s publication of a proposed rule in December 2025. . Although it is unclear whether imported articles will be exempt from reporting, companies that manufactured and/or imported PFAS chemical substances between 2020 and 2022 should still review their chemical substance portfolio for the manufacture or import of potential PFAS. Furthermore, Ramboll suggests leveraging the additional information previously collected for the 2024 CDR reporting cycle which partially overlaps with the current lookback period (2011-2022). By initiating this preliminary data collection, submitters will effectively assess potential reporting obligations while awaiting USEPA’s decision on possible exemptions for activities listed in 40 CFR 711.10(a)-(c), reporting threshold, reporting period, and other aspects of reporting requirements.

Background

On October 11, 2023, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) published the final rule under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) for TSCA Reporting and Recordkeeping Requirements of Perfluoroalkyl and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) with a submission period from November 12, 2024, through May 8, 2025⁹. In September 2024, EPA announced a direct final rule and a parallel proposed rule to delay the beginning of the submission period from November 12, 2024, to July 11, 2025, due to budgetary constraints.¹⁰

On May 13, 2025, the USEPA published an interim final rule¹¹ to further postpone the start date of the submission period for the TSCA PFAS reporting rule to April 13, 2026. Public comments on the interim final rule were due by June 12, 2025. EPA further announced that it is separately considering reopening certain aspects of the rule to public comment. EPA indicated that comments regarding topics other than the commencement of the reporting period are outside the scope of the interim final rule.

For further information on TSCA PFAS reporting rule or general TSCA regulatory support, please contact David K. Liu, PhD at dliu@ramboll.com or Ashish Deshmukh, PhD at adeshmukh@ramboll.com.