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:

• Applications received on or prior to December 21, 2018, will be reviewed under the decision time frames specified in PRIA 3;
• Applications received after December 21, 2018, will be subject to the provisions of FIFRA Section 33(m)(2)(B); and
• Applications received after December 28, 2018, will not be considered as received or processed until the shutdown ends.

Registrants should monitor developments closely.