New York Tier II Reporting

In New York, any facility storing hazardous chemicals at or above certain thresholds must comply with Tier II reporting requirements. According to Section 312 of the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act of 1986 (EPCRA), submitting a Tier II form is mandatory when handling such chemicals. This form is used to notify state officials, local officials, and the general public about potential hazards.

Understanding New York’s Tier II Reporting Requirements

Who Needs to Report?

• Facilities must report if they store:
  • At least 10,000 lbs of hazardous chemicals.
  • At least 500 lbs (or the threshold planning quantity, whichever is less) of extremely hazardous substances.
• Retail fuel stations with underground storage tanks storing:
  • At least 75,000 gallons of gasoline
  • At least 100,000 gallons of diesel fuel (all grades combined)
• Key Points:
  • The reporting thresholds apply to the maximum quantity stored at a facility at any one time during the reporting year. 
  • Chemicals with reporting exemptions do not need to be included, even if thresholds are met.
  • Facilities below the reporting thresholds for all chemicals are exempt from submitting a Tier II report.
  • For facilities within New York City, most hazardous substances (including waste) have a significantly stricter reporting threshold of just 10 pounds

Types of Facilities Subject to Tier II Reporting

• Below are some examples of facilities in New York and the chemicals used that would most likely need to submit a Tier Ⅱ form:
  • Oil and gas facilities: crude oil, diesel fuel, lubricating oils, solvents like benzene
  • Petrochemical plants: acids, ammonia, chlorine, propane
  • Manufacturing plants: acids, paints, inks, cleaners, lubricants
  • Wastewater treatment plants: chlorine, sulfur dioxide, ammonia
  • Power plants: ammonia, chlorine, sulfuric acid, diesel fuel
  • Hospitals: ethanol, formaldehyde, ethylene oxide, diesel fuel
  • Universities: lab chemicals like acids, solvents, compressed gasses
  • Transportation/trucking companies: diesel fuel, lubricating oil 
  • Auto repair shops: paints, thinners, solvents, oil
  • Funeral home: Embalming chemicals
• Key Points:
  • Facilities in these industries often store chemicals exceeding Tier II thresholds, such as acids, flammable liquids, fuels, chlorine, and ammonia. 

Need help sorting out tricky thresholds, exemptions, or submitting reports for sites or facilities in New York? Learn more here about how you can partner with Encamp to save you and your team time and hassle this reporting year.

New York’s Electronic Tier II Reporting System (E-Plan)

Overview of E-Plan

New York State encourages and accepts E-Plan (https://tier2.erplan.net) as the primary electronic Tier II reporting system. Facilities required to report Tier II information can use E-Plan to comply with state reporting requirements.While E-Plan satisfies the state reporting requirement, facilities should still verify with their LEPC and local fire department if an additional submission is still required. In some jurisdictions, the report submitted into E-Plan must also be emailed or mailed to the LEPC and Fire Department.

How to Submit a Tier II Report in New York

Here are the key steps for using E-Plan’s Online Tier II Reporting System:

1. Go to https://tier2.erplan.net and either create a new account or sign in with your existing credentials.
2. Add facilities under the Facilities module by entering the facility name, address, coordinates, submitter info, etc.
3. Add contacts under the Contacts module by entering names, addresses, emails, phone numbers for owners, emergency contacts, etc.
4. Add chemical inventory under the Chemicals module by entering chemical properties, storage info, mixtures, etc.
5. E-Plan will generate an invoice – New York has a $25 administrative charge per facility
6. Review and submit your Tier II reports.
7. Note that you may still need to file with local agencies directly. Check with your LEPC and fire department.
8. For more information, use this link to access the Tier II reporting requirements in New York.

Key Points

• In addition to submitting a report through E-Plan, facilities within New York City must submit a report through the NYC online filing system.

Deadlines and Timelines for Tier II Reporting

Annual Reporting Deadline

In New York, the Tier II reporting deadline is March 1 each year, covering information on hazardous chemicals present at the facility during the previous calendar year.

Additional Reporting Requirements

In New York, there may be additional Tier II chemical inventory reporting requirements beyond just the annual report:

• Initial Notification: Facilities must submit a notification within 90 days after they first exceed reporting thresholds for any hazardous chemicals on site. The thresholds for this notification are the same as the Tier II thresholds. This is also referred to as a Section 311 notification.
• Emergency Planning Notification: Facilities must submit a notification within 60 days after they bring an Extremely Hazardous Substance on-site in a quantity that exceeds its Threshold Planning Quantity. This is also referred to as a Section 302 notification.

Tips for Effective Tier II Reporting

Maintain Accurate Inventory Records

Starting early in collecting compliance data will help with making sure all the data is accurate and ready to go when the March 1st deadline comes around. A good rule of thumb is to have data ready to review the first week of January.

Understand State-Specific Reporting Requirements

LEPCs and fire departments are not mandated to use E-Plan in New York but are encouraged to do so. It is up to each agency to decide for themselves. You should contact the county in which the facilities reside to determine if that county is accepting submissions on E-Plan: https://www.dhses.ny.gov/tier-ii-reporting, serc.oem@dhses.ny.gov or via phone at (518) 292-2302.

Keep Copies of All Submitted Reports

Once your facility has passed the validation checks, you can export data as a pdf file only:

1. Log into E-Plan using 7-digit Access ID and password. 
2. Select a year (e.g., 2023) to retrieve your data.
3. Click Validate Record.
4. Click the “PDF File” button to open the “Select Facilities for PDF ” screen. 
5. Select the check box and click Create PDF to generate a copy of the report.

Common Mistakes in Tier II Reporting and How to Avoid Them

Incorrectly Estimating Quantity of Reportable Substances

It’s important to look at all chemicals across your equipment, departments, and processes. You also need to aggregate extremely hazardous substances that may exist at your facility in different forms and containers prior to evaluating it against the reporting threshold. For example, sulfuric acid, an Extremely Hazardous Substance, could be stored in a drum; if you have lead-acid batteries, you would need to take into account the sulfuric acid in the lead-acid batteries, and add those amounts prior to comparing it to the sulfuric acid reporting threshold

Misclassifying Substances

Be sure to check the EPA list of lists to double check if chemicals stored at your facility are or contain an extremely hazardous substance (EHS).

Failing to Keep Up-To-Date with Changes in Regulations

Even if individual requirements don’t change every year in NY, facilities are obligated to comply with the reporting rules of the state, the LEPC, and the local fire department, and should stay informed about all three.

Key Points

• Submit Tier II reports on time by March 1 deadline.
• Ensure all hazardous chemicals above reporting thresholds are included.
• Completely omitting chemicals or the full report leads to the highest fines.
• Even small errors like one chemical can still incur sizable penalties.
• Follow EPCRA closely to avoid violations and protect your business finances.

Penalties for Non-Compliance with Tier II Reporting in New York

Potential Fines and Legal Consequences

Failure to report can result in Federal, state, and local penalties. if an incident occurs and there is no Tier II report on file.

Penalties are assessed based on the nature, extent, gravity, and circumstances of the violation. For example:

• Civil Penalties: New York civil penalties are up to $25,000 per violation per day, mirroring the federal limit.
• Criminal Penalties: Criminal penalties for EPCRA violations in New York can result in fines of up to $50,000 and/or 5 years imprisonment.

Impact on Community Safety and Emergency Preparedness

Here are some potential examples of how failing to accurately report hazardous chemicals on Tier II inventory forms can impact community safety and emergency preparedness in New York:

• Firefighters enter a burning warehouse along the Buffalo River unprepared for exploding drums of industrial solvents that were not properly disclosed on the facility’s Tier II. Several firefighters were injured in the incident.
• Emergency responders in Syracuse cannot account for all employees after an explosion at a semiconductor plant that failed to report the full quantities of ammonia and other chemicals stored on site in their Tier II filing.