Resubmitting, Correcting, De-registering or Withdrawing a Risk Management Plan

 

Resubmitting an RMP

RMPs must be updated at least once every five years. Owners and operators responsible for RMP implementation should review A Checklist for Submitting your Risk Management Plan (RMP).

You may use RMP*eSubmit for your resubmission. For additional information see: RMP*eSubmit Users' Manual.

You must fully update your RMP for resubmission sooner than the five-year anniversary date, if any of the changes specified below occur [as specified in 40 CFR 68.190(b)]. 

  • If a change alters the Program Level that applies to any covered process, the RMP must be resubmitted within six months of that change.
  • If a change requires a revised Off-site Consequence Analysis, the RMP must be resubmitted within six months of that change.
  • If a change requires a revised process hazard analysis or hazard review, the RMP must be resubmitted within six months of that change.
  • If a new regulated substance is present above the threshold quantity in an already covered process, the RMP must be resubmitted on the date which the new substance is present.
  • If a regulated substance is present above the threshold quantity in a new process, the RMP must be resubmitted on the date which the substance is present above the threshold quantity.
  • If EPA begins regulating a new substance, the RMP must be resubmitted within three years of the date the substance is first regulated.

Resubmissions reset the five-year anniversary date by which you must next update your RMP. To resubmit, you must update all nine sections of your RMP.

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Correcting an RMP

Correcting an RMP refers to changing only a part of an existing RMP, such as changing a contact name or revising only a certain section. Corrections do not generate a new anniversary date.

Facilities who have complete RMPs in the RMP*eSubmit system can make administrative corrections online. For more detailed information see: RMP*eSubmit Users' Manual.

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De-registering a Facility

Changes may occur at your facility that make it no longer subject to the RMP regulations at 40 CFR 68 (e.g. you replace the regulated substances in your process with unregulated substances.) In that event, you should submit a letter to the RMP Reporting Center within six months and include the effective date of the de-registration (the date on which your facility was no longer covered by the RMP regulation). The letter should be signed by the owner or operator and include your RMP Facility ID number (the 12-digit ID number assigned by EPA).

You can print a de-registration form from the RMP*eSubmit Users' Manual.

Remember to include the 12-digit EPA Facility Identification number (usually beginning with 1000) that was assigned to your facility. The EPA Facility ID was given to you in the notification letter you received from the RMP Reporting Center regarding the submission status of your RMP. You should keep a record of your Facility ID# upon de-registering.

If you de-register your facility and it later becomes subject to the RMP regulation again, you will need to resubmit an RMP using the resubmission process (see Resubmitting Your RMP above). You must use the original EPA Facility ID# to resubmit.

RMPs for de-registered facilities are retained in the RMP database.

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Withdrawing an RMP for Flammable Fuels

Who can withdraw?

If you submitted an RMP reporting only flammable substances that are:

  • used at your facility as fuel, or
  • held for sale as a fuel at a retail facility (defined below),

you may remove the RMP from the database because you never were subject to the RMP rule.

What if I submitted an RMP that includes other RMP-listed substances, in addition to a flammable substance used as fuel or held for sale as a fuel at a retail facility?

If your RMP includes such fuels and also other RMP-listed substances, you can submit a new RMP with the fuels deleted (See “Resubmitting an RMP” and “Correcting an RMP”). Or you can leave your current RMP, including the fuels, in the database and delete the fuel information when you next submit your RMP.

Why are flammable substances that are used as a fuel, or that are held for sale as a fuel, at a retail facility excluded from RMP reporting? 

When originally issued in 1996, the Chemical Accident Prevention rule required facilities having more than a threshold amount of certain flammable substances to submit an RMP by June 21,1999. However, shortly before that date, the rule was stayed with respect to flammable substances used as fuel or held for sale as a fuel at a retail facility, so that facilities with such fuels were not required to include them in their initial RMPs. In August of 1999, Congress enacted the Chemical Safety Information, Site Security and Fuels Regulatory Relief Act (CSISSFRRA) to permanently remove from the rule flammable substances used as a fuel or held for sale as a fuel at a retail facility (defined in the Act as a “stationary source at which more than one-half of the income is obtained from direct sales to end users or at which more than one-half of the fuel sold, by volume, is sold through a cylinder exchange program”). In March 2000, EPA amended the Chemical Accident Prevention Regulations (40 CFR 68) to exclude flammable fuels that are used as fuel or that are held for sale as a fuel at a retail facility.

Why should I withdraw or revise my RMP?

A number of RMPs reporting such fuels may still remain in EPA’s RMP database. They have come to EPA’s attention because EPA's database identifies RMPs that have not been updated by their five-year anniversary, which last occurred for many facilities in 2009. Any facilities that submitted RMPs reporting exempt fuels still have the options of withdrawing or revising their RMPs. 

What does “withdrawal” mean?

“Withdrawal” of such an RMP means that the RMP will be completely removed from the database, since its submission was never required. By contrast, de-registration of an RMP occurs when changes at a facility which has been subject to the rule, make the facility no longer subject to the RMP requirements. RMPs of deregistered facilities remain in the database as non-current RMPs for fifteen years.

How do I withdraw my RMP?

The owner or operator of a facility who has an RMP reporting only exempt flammable fuels (i.e., flammable substances used as fuel or held for sale as a fuel at a retail facility) can write a letter or use the RMP Withdrawal Form. In the letter, the owner or operator should provide us his or her:

  • EPA facility ID number, 
  • facility name and address as listed in the RMP,
  • a signed statement that the chemical listed in the RMP is not subject to the RMP rule per the exclusion described above, and
  • that the facility wishes to withdraw its RMP.

Mail the completed RMP Withdrawal Form to us:

RMP Reporting Center
P.O. Box 10162
Fairfax, VA  22038

If you prefer to send your RMP Withdrawal Form by certified mail, courier or overnight mail (e.g., Fed Ex, UPS, etc.), please address it to:

CGI Federal, Inc
c/o EPA Reporting Center
12601 Fair Lakes Circle
Fairfax, VA 22033

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