Bergeson & Campbell, P.C.’s (B&C®) April 20, 2022, webinar “FIFRA Hot Topics” is now available for on-demand viewing at https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/recording/7426709986449689102. During this one-hour webinar, Lisa M. Campbell, Partner, B&C, moderated a lively and informative discussion between Edward Messina, Director, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP), and James V. Aidala, Senior Government Affairs Consultant, B&C, as they discussed key OPP developments and priorities.
With year one of the Biden Administration’s term in the history books, EPA OPP is focusing on long-standing challenges, especially EPA-wide efforts to implement Environmental Justice (EJ) work and determining how best to meet core pesticide registration review obligations in 2022. During this webinar, Messina spoke about the recently released Endangered Species Act (ESA) Workplan, chlorpyrifos and dicamba developments, pesticide product performance data requirements, and per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) issues, as Aidala followed up with questions informed by his many years of experience in senior positions at EPA.
We encourage you to view the webinar, subscribe to B&C’s informative FIFRAblog™ and pesticide newsletter, and access more pesticide development news directly from OPP on its website.
|
 
Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. serves small, medium, and large pesticide product registrants and other stakeholders in the agricultural and biocidal sectors, in virtually every aspect of pesticide law, policy, science, and regulation. |
|
Enter keywords: 
Add this blog to your feeds
|
Wednesday, April 20, 2022 Register now to join Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C®) for “FIFRA Hot Topics,” a complimentary webinar covering key Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP) priorities and what companies should know to avoid market delays. Speakers include:
Program:
Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C®) is pleased to provide our Forecast 2022 to FIFRA Blog readers, offering our best informed judgment as to the trends and key developments we expect to see in the new year. For the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP), 2021 was a full year of working from home while addressing ongoing priorities; continuing the march toward meeting the 2022 deadline for registration review of pesticides registered before 2006; attempting to comply with the requirements of the Endangered Species Act (ESA); and meeting Pesticide Registration Improvement Act (PRIA) deadlines for registration applications. OPP is expected to focus on long-standing challenges, especially a renewed effort to meet ESA consultation requirements and to meet core pesticide registration review obligations. More details on this, and expected regulatory changes of all varieties, are available in our Forecast for U.S. Federal and International Chemical Regulatory Policy 2022. WEBINAR B&C will be presenting a complimentary webinar, “What to Expect in Chemicals in 2022,” focusing on themes outlined in the forecast. Join Lynn L. Bergeson, Managing Partner; Richard E. Engler, Ph.D., Director of Chemistry; and James V. Aidala, Senior Government Affairs Consultant, for this informative and forward-looking webinar. By Heather F. Collins, M.S. and Barbara A. Christianson On October 1, 2019, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a Federal Register notice announcing the that fees under the Pesticide Registration Improvement Extension Act of 2018 (PRIA 4) were increased by five percent for pesticide applications received on or after October 1, 2019. The five percent increase is on fee amounts established by Public Law 116-8, which became effective on March 8, 2019. The revised fees will remain in effect until September 30, 2021. The fee schedule provided in PRIA 4 identifies the registration service fees and decision times organized according to the organizational units of the Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP) within EPA. EPA presents the schedules as 19 tables, organized by OPP Division and by type of application or pesticide subject to the fee, and lists the registration service fee for actions received in fiscal years 2020 and 2021. Applicants must submit fee payments at the time of application. EPA will reject any application that does not contain evidence that the PRIA 4 fee has been paid. The revised fee schedule for PRIA 4 fiscal years 2020 and 2021 is available on EPA’s website. More information on the PRIA 4 legislation is available on our blog under key word PRIA. On March 8, 2019, President Trump signed S. 483, the “Pesticide Registration Improvement Extension Act of 2018,” which reauthorizes the Pesticide Registration Improvement Extension Act (PRIA 4) through fiscal year 2023, updates the fee collection provisions and authorities available under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) and addresses worker protection matters. The text is available at Congress.gov, which has not yet been updated to confirm that the bill has been signed (but this appears to be the final amended text of the bill). On February 14, 2019, the Senate approved S. 483 to reauthorize the Pesticide Registration Improvement Extension Act (PRIA 4) and the House of Representatives approved it on February 25, 2019. Further amendments were made and the Senate approved the amended text on February 28, 2019. More information on the PRIA 4 legislation is available on our blog under key word PRIA. On February 14, 2019, the Senate approved S. 483 to reauthorize the Pesticide Registration Improvement Extension Act (PRIA 4). The Senate bill did not have the specific categories and timelines of earlier reauthorization language, referring instead to more general legislative language that the Senate approved during the Farm Bill authorization in 2018. Legislation in this new session of Congress was necessary since PRIA was not reauthorized as part of the appropriations language approved by Congress to end the government shutdown. More information on the Senate bill is available in our blog item “PRIA Not Extended in Appropriations Bill; PRIA 4 Bill Passed by Senate.” When, on February 25, 2019, the House of Representatives also approved S. 483, the legislation included the specific timelines and PRIA categories which appeared in the original PRIA 4 proposal. This meant that either the different language in the legislation would need a House-Senate conference, or, the Senate could simply vote again and approve the House version of S. 483. That is the course of action taken by the Senate, which then approved the amended text (the House approved language) of S. 483 on February 28, 2019. The legislation now awaits signature by the President, and then PRIA 4 will become law. It extends PRIA through fiscal year (FY) 2023. The legislation raises the industry registration fees and refines some of the categories of actions from PRIA 3 (specific legislative text is available here). By Sheryl Lindros Dolan and James V. Aidala The Appropriations Bill that is expected to be signed into law on February 15, 2019, provides funding for the rest of Fiscal Year (FY) 2019 and averts another federal government shutdown. It does not, however, include either an extension of the Pesticide Registration Improvement Extension Act (PRIA 3) or Reauthorization, widely referred to as PRIA 4. This omission was a surprise to industry and to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). On February 13, 2019, the Senate introduced a stand-alone PRIA 4 bill (S. 483). Acting swiftly, the Senate passed the bill on February 14, 2019, by unanimous consent. S. 483 directly references H.R. 1029, the Pesticide Registration Enhancement Act of 2017, from the last Congress, with amendments passed by the Senate on June 28, 2018. S. 483 has moved to the House, where the timing of a vote currently is unclear. The House will go into a week-long recess after today. It is possible that the bill will not further progress until the House reconvenes on February 25, 2019. The effect on EPA and the regulated community during this transition is also unclear. Currently, EPA is sorting out applications and PRIA deadlines along with workload planning in the aftermath of the recently concluded federal government shutdown. The Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) provides for a reduction in applicable fees if PRIA is not reauthorized, but it is unclear if applications submitted during the transition will be assigned a PRIA review date. If PRIA 4 is passed, we expect that the fee provisions will be retroactive and that EPA will send invoices to applicants for submissions made during the transition period for the difference between what was paid and the new PRIA 4 fee. More information on these topics is available in our blog items "Federal Budget Deal Negotiations Fail to Advance PRIA Reauthorization" and "Continuing Resolution to Re-open the Government Includes PRIA Extension." By James V. Aidala, Sheryl Lindros Dolan, and Susan M. Kirsch As reported in the trade press on February 14, 2019, following budget negotiations late on Wednesday, February 13, several legislative riders did not make it into the conference report for the final fiscal year (FY) 2019 omnibus spending package. This purportedly includes an extension of the Pesticide Registration Improvement Extension Act (PRIA 3) or the long-awaited Reauthorization known as “PRIA 4.” This may be the result of political pressure to avoid another government shutdown with a “clean bill” package capable of garnering the necessary votes. The Senate and House are expected to vote on the omnibus package today, February 14, 2019, ahead of the expiration of the current budget resolution on February 15. While much is still in flux, the final omnibus package, once passed, will provide a clearer picture on any PRIA implications. At this time it appears that, contrary to past budget resolutions, PRIA 3 will not be extended. More information on the recent PRIA extensions is available in our blog items Continuing Resolution to Re-open the Government Includes PRIA Extension and Registrants Face PRIA and Shutdown Issues. In the event of a lapse, the “phase-down” provisions in the statute will mean that new submissions require a reduced fee schedule, but submissions will no longer have an associated PRIA deadline for a decision on the application. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will likely “clarify” in the coming days and weeks what this means for any expectation for an application submitted during this time. During the recent shutdown, EPA stated that applications submitted during that temporary lapse only required the reduced fee. At that time, however, since no deadline was required for such an application, EPA advised that applicants should expect guidance as to when to expect a decision (that is, in effect, do not bother to submit things during the shutdown period since PRIA actions with an associated deadline will have priority for the foreseeable future). When the federal government reopened on January 28, however, EPA processed all applications received during the shutdown as PRIA actions submitted on January 28. Now with PRIA likely not in effect after February 15, 2019, even with an approved EPA budget for FY2019, EPA will have to evaluate what to communicate to applicants about what to expect during the time of the PRIA 3 phase-down. Any plans for this period may be affected by provisions in PRIA 4. On February 13, 2019, the Senate introduced standalone PRIA 4 legislation (S. 483) with bipartisan support which could facilitate relatively quick Senate action on a PRIA 4 proposal. The House would also need to take action to renew the program. Because no PRIA action was taken in the budget agreement, important questions now swirl about the program, including:
EPA will be addressing these and many other important questions over the next few days. The short-term continuing resolution (CR) includes an extension of the Pesticide Registration Improvement Extension Act (PRIA 3) through the duration of the funding measure, February 15, 2019. This was expected, and is welcome news to registrants who have delayed submittal of registration applications due to the shutdown. The status of applications submitted during the shutdown period is uncertain at best. As described in our earlier blog item Registrants Face PRIA and Shutdown Issues, registrants were advised to not submit applications during the shutdown as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has previously indicated that applications submitted during the shutdown would not be subject to any PRIA deadline. During this period of budget battles and shutdown uncertainty, it would appear to be prudent to ensure that any applications for registration are submitted while EPA (and PRIA) are operational under appropriated funding. While this is good news, the uncertainty surrounding the possibility of another shutdown at the end of this period not only makes planning difficult for registrants, it also creates workload management problems at EPA to deal with backlogs and unpredictable resources for processing pending and new applications. EPA will have to clarify what the extended shutdown period means for processing times and priorities. As of today, EPA is still literally sorting out applications and PRIA deadlines along with workload planning to determine how best to proceed. Stay tuned … By James V. Aidala, Lisa M. Campbell, and Sheryl Lindros Dolan Although the Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP) was able to operate through December 28, 2018, despite the current partial federal government shutdown, EPA will now join other parts of the federal service and shut down. Meanwhile, the Pesticide Registration Improvement Extension Act (PRIA 3) sunset on December 21, 2018, in the absence of a Continuing Resolution (CR) and the onset of the shutdown. According to Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) Section 33(m)(2)(B) [7 USC § 136w-8(m)(2)(B)], the fee for any pesticide application that is subject to a service fee and submitted after December 21, 2018, will be reduced by 70 percent below the fee in effect on September 30, 2017, but no corresponding review period will be assigned. Any applications submitted now thus will not have a required EPA review period and thus will likely be the lowest priority for EPA review when the shutdown ends. For this reason, despite the lower fees, registrants should not submit applications until PRIA is enacted and defined review periods once again are established. The enactment of some version of PRIA is expected soon, especially given the consequences of the current situation for EPA and government functions generally. Most likely any kind of authorization for funding government operations, such as a CR for a limited time period or for Fiscal Year 2019, is expected to include at least a simple reauthorization of the PRIA 3 for the duration of the CR. This would also mean the new Congress will have to act sometime in the next session to reauthorize PRIA either to continue PRIA 3 beyond a new CR time period or approve amendments such as those considered as PRIA 4 during the 115th Congress. Given the difficulty of Congress in reaching agreement on appropriations legislation, it is possible that PRIA reauthorizations continue to be included as part of CRs for an indefinite time period. This uncertainty about the status of PRIA may also impact generally the program’s ability to plan and schedule review of registration applications. Regardless of when PRIA is enacted, however, the shutdown will prevent EPA action on newly submitted applications. OPP states on its web site:
Registrants should monitor developments closely. |
|
FIFRAblog®
BERGESON & CAMPBELL, P.C. 2200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Suite 100W, Washington, D.C., 20037-1701 (202) 557-3800 | www.lawbc.com Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C®) serves small, medium, and large pesticide product registrants in virtually every aspect of pesticide law, policy, science, and regulation.
Also published by B&C:
    Copyright © 2023, Bergeson & Campbell, P.C.
All Rights Reserved. |
Subscribe
Add this blog to your feeds |