Regulation of Fuels and Fuel Additives: Renewable Fuel Standard ...

IV. Registration, Recordkeeping, And Reporting Requirements
A. Introduction
Registration, recordkeeping and reporting are necessary to track compliance with
the renewable fuels standard and transactions involving RINs. We are proposing to
utilize the same basic forms for registration that we use under the reformulated gasoline
(RFG) and anti-dumping program. 37 These forms are well known in the regulated
community and are simple to fill out. Information requested includes company and
facility names and addresses and the identification of a contact person with phone
number and e-mail address. Registrations do not expire and upon receipt of a completed
registration form, EPA will issue unique company and facility identification numbers that
will appear in compliance reports and, in the case of renewable fuels producers, will be
incorporated in the unique RINs they generate for each batch of renewable fuel. We
intend to use the same simplified registration method we use for existing fuels programs
under 40 CFR part 80, and parties who have already registered with EPA under an
existing fuels program will not be required to re-register and will be able to use their
existing EPA-issued company and facility registration numbers.
We plan to use a simplified method of reporting via the Agency’s Central Data
Exchange (CDX). CDX will permit us to accept reports that are electronically signed and
certified by the submitter in a secure and robustly encrypted fashion. Guidance for
reporting will be issued prior to implementation and will contain specific instructions and
formats consistent with provisions in the final rule. We intend to accept electronic
reports generated in virtually all commercially available spreadsheet programs and to
permit parties to submit reports in comma delimited text, which can be generated with a
variety of basic software packages. In order to permit maximum flexibility in meeting
the RFS program requirements, we must track activities involving the creation and use of
RINs, as well as any transactions such as purchase or sale of RINs. Reports will be
included in a compliance database managed by EPA’s Office of Transportation and Air
Quality and will be reviewed for completeness and for potential violations. Potential
violations will be referred to enforcement personnel.
Records related to RIN transactions may be kept in any format and the period of
record retention by reporting parties is five (5) years, which is the time frame for
retention under similar 40 CFR part 80 fuels compliance reporting programs. Records
retained would include copies of all compliance reports submitted to EPA and copies of
product transfer documents (PTDs). Records would have to be provided to the
Administrator or the Administrator’s representative upon request and they may have to be
converted to a readable, usable format.
37 Please refer to http://www.epa.gov/otaq/regs/fuels/rfgforms.htm. The relevant registration forms for our
existing fuels programs are 3520-20A, 3520-20B, and 3520-20B1. Interested parties may wish to view
these forms, as they may be useful in preparing comments on this proposed rule.
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