Accidental Release Prevention Requirements: Risk Management Programs Under the Clean Air Act; Common Sense Approach to Chemical Accident Prevention (Draft)
Feb. 24, 2026
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or Agency) is
proposing to amend its Risk Management Program (RMP) regulations by making
several proposed changes to the 2024 Safer Communities by Chemical Accident
Prevention (SCCAP) rule. The proposed revisions include changes to provisions
relating to safer technology and alternatives analyses, information
availability, third-party audits, employee participation, community and
emergency responder notification, stationary source siting, natural hazards,
power loss, declined recommendations documentation, emergency response
exercises, process safety information (PSI) and recognized and generally
accepted good engineering practices (RAGAGEP), deregistration form information
collection, hot work permit retention, and the retail facility definition.
These proposed amendments seek to improve chemical process safety by avoiding
duplicative requirements, realigning RMP requirements with Occupational Safety
and Health Administration (OSHA) Process Safety Management (PSM) requirements,
and eliminating unnecessary burdens placed on facilities where there is not
specific data available to show that the current RMP standards would reduce or
have reduced the number of accidental releases. Comments must be received on or
before 10 April 2026. POC is Kristina Guarino, tele: (202) 566-1235; email:
guarino.kristina@epa.gov.