The Texas Tier Two Report is an annual hazardous chemical inventory which provides detailed information on chemicals which meet or exceed specified reporting thresholds at any time during a calendar year. There are two types of thresholds that determine whether a hazardous chemical will be included on the Texas Tier Two Report: There are very low thresholds for any of the listed Extremely Hazardous Substances (500 pounds or the Threshold Planning Quantity in pounds for the specific listed chemical, whichever amount is less). For all other "generally hazardous chemicals" [products which require a Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) under the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration's (OSHA's) Hazard Communication Standaundefinedrd], the threshold for reporting is 10,000 pounds.

The Texas Tier Two Report includes facility tracking information, as well as information on the hazardous chemicals being reported, including common and chemical names of products, hazard classifications, reporting ranges, days on site, container types, and storage locations. Under a new state rule, effective August 1, 2006, Tier Two Reports must be submitted to DSHS in electronic format, using the Tier2 Submit software program to prepare the electronic file.  Click on the following for the Tier II Software.

There are four groups of chemicals subject to emergency planning and reporting requirements under the Emergency Planning and Community Right-To-Know Act (EPCRA) and Texas Hazard Community Right-To-Know Acts (TCRAs).

1. Extremely Hazardous Substances (EHSs)   This list currently contains 364 chemicals. Because of their extremely toxic properties, these chemicals were chosen to provide an initial focus for chemical emergency planning. In Texas, the presence of EHSs in quantities above the threshold planning quantity (TPQ) or 500 pounds, whichever is less, requires the submission of a chemical inventory report to the LEPC, local fire department, and the DSHS member of the SERC. The EHSs and their TPQs are listed in 40 CFR Part 355, Appendices A, and B. Because of the hazards they pose, any release of EHSs, greater than the reportable quantity (RQ) established by federal law, must be reported immediately to designated federal, state, and local emergency response officials; the LEPC should receive notice as soon as practicable.

 2. Hazardous Substances   CERCLA hazardous substances are defined in terms of those substances either specifically designated as hazardous under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), otherwise known as the Superfund law, or those substances identified under other laws. In all, the Superfund law includes references to four other laws (Sections 307(a) and 311 (b)(2) of the Clean Water Act (CWA); Section 3001 of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA); Section 112 of the Clean Air Act (CAA); and Section 7 of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)) to designate more than 800 substances as hazardous, and identify many more as potentially hazardous due to their characteristics and the circumstances of their release. Releases of these chemicals above certain RQ amounts must be reported immediately to federal, state, and local agencies, because they may represent an immediate hazard to the community (40 CFR Part 302).

 3. Hazardous Chemicals    These chemicals are not included on a specific list, but are defined by the OSHA Hazard Communication Standard in 29 CFR Part 1910.1200 as chemicals that represent a physical or health hazard. Under this definition, thousands of chemicals can be subject to reporting requirements. Inventories of the chemicals must be submitted to the DSHS member of the SERC, the LEPC, and the local fire department if they are present at the facility in quantities of 10,000 pounds or more at any one time during the year. MSDSs for these chemicals must also be submitted to these groups, if they are requested. The TCRA and EPCRA list some exemptions to inventory reporting for certain foods, household items, and products used in routine agricultural operations, and other substances.

 4. Toxic Chemicals   There are now more than 500 chemicals or chemical categories identified as toxic chemicals. These were selected by Congress primarily because of their chronic or long-term adverse effects on human health. Estimates of releases of these chemicals into the environment (air, land, or water) must be reported annually to the SERC (TCEQ) and the EPA, where they are entered into a national database. The list of toxic chemicals is contained in 40 CFR72.

5.  Obtaining a List of Chemicals   In an effort to simplify the understanding of the various lists of chemicals subject to reporting, the EPA has compiled at least two versions of a list of these chemicals. The first, entitled ‘Title III List of Lists’, is published by EPA Headquarters. The current document is slightly out of date due to recent changes in the regulation but identifies hazardous substances subject to the reporting requirements of EPCRA, CERCLA, and CAA section 112r. Please note that these lists do not cover all the hazardous chemicals subject to inventory reporting under federal regulations.  OSHA regulates some 70,000 chemicals under its hazard communication standard.  To obtain copies of the EPA lists of chemicals subject to reporting requirements, contact:

                    a. Title III List of Lists   Contact the EPCRA Information Hotline at 800/424-9346.  The document is also available online in PDF format, as an Excel spreadsheet, and as a webbased searchable database.

                    b. EPA-VI Consolidated List of Chemicals   The list can be downloaded at the following website: http://yosemite.epa.gov/oswer/ceppoweb.nsf/content/ds-epds.htm