As the longest federal government shutdown on record continued earlier this week, EPA stayed busy putting the finishing touches on one of its PFAS-related priorities — enabling EPA to “smartly collect” information about PFAS substances under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) as required by Congress in the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020. Early signs of EPA’s desire to simplify the TSCA PFAS reporting rule, which was finalized by the Biden EPA in 2023, were evident in the agency’s April 2025 announcement of “Major Actions to Combat PFAS Contamination” discussed here, where EPA committed to implement the required information collection “without overburdening small businesses and article importers.”

Earlier this week, EPA announced and then promptly published in the Federal Register its proposal to deliver on that promise. If finalized, the rule would significantly rein in what many see as an overly broad TSCA PFAS reporting scheme. This scheme requires manufacturers of certain PFAS, including importers of PFAS and PFAS-containing articles, to submit a one-time report to EPA regarding these manufacturing and importing activities over an 11-year window stretching from January 1, 2011, through December 31, 2022. Due to both the long lookback period and the breadth of activities covered by the rule, the reporting scheme has presented a host of challenges for regulated entities, many of whom have expended significant resources simply to determine whether they are subject to the rule, and if so, what information they should report.

Many companies fall within the reach of the TSCA PFAS reporting rule solely due to their import of items that may contain PFAS during the reporting period. Given the ubiquitous presence of PFAS in hundreds of kinds of ordinary articles, many companies that import everyday items like electronic devices, cables, or gaskets have had to engage in significant due diligence to assess their reporting obligations. This is particularly true given the long lookback period, which left some companies sifting through vintage records to determine whether they even possess the necessary information. In many cases, document retention policies do not require companies to keep records that old, and in cases of mergers, acquisitions, or other corporate changes, determining which entity has the records and which entities must report is no simple task.

Recognizing these challenges, EPA has proposed several new exemptions to the PFAS reporting rule aimed at providing relief to entities that are least likely to have relevant information. The most impactful of these proposed exemptions is probably the exemption for article importers. In the economic analysis supporting the 2023 rule, EPA estimated that of the universe of article importers who have or will conduct due diligence to identify reportable PFAS, only 10% would determine that they possess reportable information. The remaining 90% would be burdened by compliance determination activities only to determine that they do not need to report because they either do not possess or cannot reasonably ascertain the information. Of course, with the proposed exemptions coming exactly two years after the reporting rule became effective, many companies have already expended significant resources on the very effort the proposal is designed to alleviate.

EPA also proposes a broad de minimis exemption for mixtures or articles with PFAS concentrations under 0.1%. This low-concentration exemption would apply regardless of total production volume of the mixture or article. This exemption, along with the article importer exemption, is likely to remove the reporting obligation for a large swath of entities if finalized as proposed. Other proposed but less widely applicable exemptions cover PFAS byproducts, impurities, and non-isolated intermediates, as well as PFAS manufactured or imported in small quantities for research and development purposes.

For entities that will still have a reporting obligation despite the new exemptions, EPA has proposed a new reporting window: the reporting portal will open 60 days after the proposed rule is finalized and entities will have three months to report. This time frame is shorter than the original rule’s reporting window of six months, which is currently slated to begin on April 13, 2026, and end October 13, 2026. Given how much time has passed since the rule was originally promulgated, EPA believes that companies have had adequate time to consider their reporting obligations and three months should be sufficient.

Comments on the proposed rule are due by December 29, 2025.