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The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on April 24, 2026, the release of a publicly accessible list of Confidential Business Information (CBI) claims scheduled to expire under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). EPA states that the list includes claims that will expire between June 22, 2026, and July 31, 2026. According to EPA, to maintain accuracy and provide timely updates, it will refresh the list on a monthly basis as claims continue to approach their expiration dates. EPA “strongly encourage[s]” companies to review the list carefully and verify whether any of their claims are included.
To request extension of an expiring CBI claim, companies must submit a request electronically via the Central Data Exchange (CDX) no later than 30 days prior to the expiration date of the claims. The request must include substantiation of the need to extend the period of CBI protection. EPA notes that it has deployed a new “TSCA Section 14(e) CBI Claim Extension Request” tool in CDX to collect these requests. EPA states that if it does not receive a request for extension at least 30 days prior to the claim expiration, “the agency is not required to safeguard the CBI from disclosure, and the information may be made public without further notice to the submitter.”
EPA’s web page on CBI claim expiration includes frequently asked questions (FAQ). The Acta Group’s (Acta®) affiliate, Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C®), held a webinar on April 9, 2026, “TSCA CBI Re-substantiation: When, Why, and How to Prepare,” that is available to view on YouTube, Vimeo, and on B&C’s website. During the webinar, Richard E. Engler, Ph.D., Director of Chemistry, B&C; Ryan N. Schmit, Of Counsel, B&C; and Lynn L. Bergeson, Managing Partner, B&C, discuss EPA’s implementation efforts to date and the significant implications these provisions will have on the regulated community moving forward.
Commentary
It is no secret: TSCA CBI claims are set to start expiring in June of this year. B&C’s April webinar on this topic was both well-attended and prompted a significant number of follow-up questions, demonstrating that the regulated community is starting to take notice and prepare for this new and exciting chapter of TSCA compliance. EPA’s timely release of this list (i.e., 60 or more days in advance of the expiration dates, as required by statute) and the availability of the reporting application within EPA’s CDX system are promising signs that EPA is taking its responsibilities seriously. For companies impacted and inclined to request an extension of their CBI claim, they now must do so no later than 30 days prior to the listed expiration date. EPA’s website provides a 13-step process to create and submit a CBI claim extension request.
In what will be the first of many more to come, EPA’s list identifies a whopping 294 submissions with expiring CBI claims over a roughly five-week timeframe, including CBI claims in pre-manufacture notices (PMN), low-volume exemptions (LVE), test marketing exemption applications (TMEA), notices of commencement (NOC), microbial commercial activity notices (MCAN), modifications to such submissions, chemical data reporting (CDR) submissions, import certifications, export notifications, and submissions under TSCA Sections 8(b) and (e). If one assumes this number to be typical, that means companies can expect over 3,000 submissions with expiring CBI claims each year. Those who care about their trade secrets and proprietary information should not underestimate the significance of these requirements, and are advised to prepare in advance, review this list of submissions with expiring CBI claims closely for applicability, and stay vigilant on any future EPA communications regarding expiring CBI moving forward.
The good news is that the tool in CDX appears to be fairly straightforward. For CBI claims other than chemical identity, the user enters the case number and has the option to provide a new substantiation, refer back to the substantiation in the original submission, or refer to a substantiation in another submission. There is also a page in which a submitter can explain a company change if the submitter of the request is different than the original submitter. Claims for extension of chemical identity allow a user to either provide new substantiation or refer to a previous submission. Being able to refer to previous submissions, such as a recent CDR submission, rather than having to prepare an entirely new substantiation may save a significant amount of effort.