(a) Production.
(1) As of January 1, 2022, no person may produce regulated substances, intentionally or unintentionally, in excess of the quantity of unexpended production allowances and consumption allowances or unexpended application-specific allowances held by that person under the authority of this subpart at that time in that control period. Every kilogram of production in excess of allowances expended constitutes a separate violation of this subpart. The required amount of allowances that must be expended will be calculated to the tenth with a minimum expenditure of 0.1 allowances for any production of regulated substances.
(2) As of January 1, 2022, no person may expend production allowances to produce a quantity of regulated substances unless that person expends an equal quantity of consumption allowances at the same time.
(3) A person is not required to expend production, consumption, or application-specific allowances to produce regulated substances if the regulated substances are destroyed using a technology approved by the Administrator for destruction under § 84.29 within 30 days of generating the regulated substance if the destruction technology is located at the facility where production occurred or 120 days of generating the regulated substance if the destruction technology is not located at the facility where production occurred.
(4) No person may expend production or consumption allowances for generation of HFC-23 that is emitted at the same facility as where it is produced. Consistent with this prohibition, prior to the emissions standard compliance date established in § 84.27, neither production nor consumption allowances are required for HFC-23 emitted at the same facility as where it is produced.
(b) Import. This paragraph applies starting January 1, 2022.
(1) No person may import bulk regulated substances, except:
(i) By expending, at the time of the import, consumption or application-specific allowances in a quantity equal to the exchange-value weighted equivalent of the regulated substances imported, with the required amount of allowances calculated to the tenth, but a minimum expenditure of 0.1 allowances is required for any import of regulated substances;
(ii) After receipt of a non-objection notice for substances for use in a process resulting in their transformation or their destruction in accordance with § 84.25(a);
(iii) After receipt of a non-objection notice for used regulated substances imported for destruction in accordance with § 84.25(b); or
(iv) As a transhipment in accordance with § 84.31(c)(3) if all transhipped regulated substance is exported from the United States within six months of its import.
(2) Each person meeting the definition of importer for a particular regulated substance import transaction is jointly and severally liable for a violation of paragraph (b)(1) of this section, unless they can demonstrate that another party who meets the definition of an importer met one of the exceptions set forth in paragraph (b)(1).
(3) Imports authorized under paragraph (b)(1)(ii) of this section may not be in containers designed to hold 100 pounds or less of a regulated substance.
(4) A person issued a non-objection notice for the import of an individual shipment of regulated substances under paragraph (b)(1)(ii) or (iii) of this section may not transfer or confer the right to import.
(5) No person may introduce into U.S. commerce any regulated substance claimed as a transhipment.
(6) Every kilogram of bulk regulated substances imported contrary to this paragraph (b) constitutes a separate violation of this subpart. Import of less than one kilogram of bulk regulated substance contrary to this paragraph (b) constitutes a separate violation of this subpart.
(c) Application-specific uses.
(1) As of January 1, 2022, no person may confer application-specific allowances for the production or import of a regulated substance in excess of the amount of unexpended application-specific allowances held by that person under the authority of this subpart at that time in that control period. No person may expend an application-specific allowance for regulated substances to be used in any application other than the one identified by the application-specific allowance expended. Every kilogram of production or import in excess of the application-specific allowances expended by the producer or importer constitutes a separate violation of this subpart. Production or import of less than one kilogram of regulated substance in excess of the application-specific allowances expended by the producer or importer constitutes a separate violation of this subpart.
(2) No person may use a regulated substance produced or imported by expending application-specific allowances for any purpose other than those for which the application-specific allowance was allocated, and as set forth in this paragraph (c). Application-specific allowances are apportioned to a person under §§ 84.13 and 84.15 for the production or import of regulated substances solely for the individual application listed on the allowance, which may include:
(i) A propellant in metered dose inhalers;
(ii) Defense sprays;
(iii) Structural composite preformed polyurethane foam for marine use and trailer use;
(iv) The etching of semiconductor material or wafers and the cleaning of chemical vapor deposition chambers within the semiconductor manufacturing sector;
(v) Mission-critical military end uses, such as armored vehicle engine and shipboard fire suppression systems and systems used in deployable and expeditionary applications; and
(vi) On board aerospace fire suppression.
(3) This provision applies starting January 1, 2022.
(i) No person may acquire application-specific allowances unless for use in the same application as associated with the application-specific allowance. No person may transfer or confer application-specific allowances unless for use in the same application as associated with the application-specific allowance.
(ii) No person may acquire or sell regulated substances produced or imported using application-specific allowances for use in anything other than the application for which it was originally allocated. Every kilogram of a regulated substance imported or exported in contravention of this paragraph constitutes a separate violation of this subpart. Import or export of less than one kilogram of regulated substance in contravention of this paragraph constitutes a separate violation of this subpart.
(d) Calendar-year allowances. All production, consumption, and application-specific allowances are valid only for the calendar year for which they are allocated (i.e., January 1 through December 31). No person may expend, transfer, or confer a production, consumption, or application-specific allowance after December 31 of the year for which it was issued.
(e) International transfers. This paragraph applies starting January 1, 2022.
(1) No person subject to the requirements of this subpart may transfer a production allowance to a person in a foreign country unless that country has established the same or similar requirements or otherwise undertaken commitments regarding the production and consumption of regulated substances as are contained in the AIM Act, as determined by the relevant agency official.
(2) No person may transfer production allowances to or from a person in a foreign country without satisfying the requirements in § 84.19. Every production allowance transferred in contravention of this paragraph constitutes a separate violation of this subpart.
(f) Sale and distribution. No person may sell or distribute, or offer for sale or distribution, any regulated substance that was produced or imported in violation of paragraphs (a) through (d) of this section, except for such actions needed to re-export the regulated substance. Every kilogram of a regulated substance sold or distributed, or offered for sale or distribution, in contravention of this paragraph constitutes a separate violation of this subpart. Sale or distribution, or offer for sale or distribution, of less than one kilogram of regulated substance in contravention of this paragraph constitutes a separate violation of this subpart.
(g) False information. No person may provide false, inaccurate, or misleading information to the EPA when petitioning, reporting, or for any communication required under this subpart.
(h) Disposable cylinders.
(1) As of July 1, 2025, no person may import or domestically fill a regulated substance in a non-refillable cylinder.
(2) As of January 1, 2027, no person may sell or distribute, or offer for sale or distribution regulated substances contained in a non-refillable cylinder.
(3) Small cans containing less than two pounds of regulated substances that have a self-sealing valve that meets the requirements in 40 CFR 82.154(c)(2) are not subject to this restriction.
(i) Labeling.
(1) As of January 1, 2022, no person may sell or distribute, offer for sale or distribution, or import containers containing a regulated substance that lacks a label or other permanent markings stating the common name(s), chemical name(s), or ASHRAE designation of the regulated substance(s) or blend contained within, and the percentages of the regulated substances if a blend.
(2) No person other than the importer may repackage regulated substances that were initially unlabeled or mislabeled. In order to repackage the regulated substances, the importer must either:
(i) Expend consumption allowances equal to the amount of allowances that would be required if each cylinder were full of HFC-23; or
(ii) Verify the contents with independent laboratory testing results and affix a correct label on the container that matches the lab-verified test results before the date of importation (consistent with the definition at 19 CFR 101.1) of the container.
(3)
(i) No person producing, importing, reclaiming, recycling for fire suppression, or repackaging regulated substances may sell or distribute, or offer for sale or distribution, regulated substances without first testing a representative sample of the regulated substances that they are producing, importing, reclaiming, recycling for fire suppression, or repackaging to verify that the composition of the regulated substance(s) matches the container labeling. For regulated substances sold or distributed or offered for sale and distribution as refrigerants, sampling must be done consistent with appendix A to 40 CFR part 82, subpart F - Specifications for Refrigerants.
(ii) No person may sell or distribute, or offer for sale or distribution, regulated substances as a refrigerant that do not meet the specifications in appendix A to 40 CFR part 82, subpart F - Specifications for Refrigerants.
(j) Relationship to other laws. Section
(k) of the AIM Act states that sections 113, 114, 304, and 307 of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7413, 7414, 7604, 7607) shall apply to this section and any rule, rulemaking, or regulation promulgated by the Administrator pursuant to this section as though this section were expressly included in title VI of that Act (42 U.S.C. 7671 et seq.). Violation of this part is subject to Federal enforcement and the penalties laid out in section 113 of the Clean Air Act.
[86 FR 55206, Oct. 5, 2021]