Proposed NPDES Electronic Reporting Rule


United States	Office of Enforcement and
Environmental Protection Agency Compliance Assurance	July 2013
Proposed NPDES Electronic Reporting Rule
On July 30, 2013, the proposed National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES)
Electronic Reporting Rule was published in the Federal Register. EPA is requesting comment on the
proposed rule and solicits comments and data to inform the final rule. This rule proposes to
replace several paper-based Clean Water Act (CWA) NPDES permitting and compliance monitoring
reporting requirements with electronic reporting.
Purpose of the Proposed Rule
This proposed rule is designed to save authorized state, tribe, or territorial NPDES programs
considerable resources, make reporting easier for NPDES-regulated entities, streamline permit
renewals, ensure full exchange of NPDES general permit data between states and EPA to the
public, improve better environmental decision-making, and to protect human health and the
environment.
This proposed rule would require that NPDES regulated entities electronically submit the following
permit and compliance monitoring information instead of using paper reports:
•	Discharge Monitoring Reports (DMRs);
•	Notices of Intent to discharge in compliance with a general permit; and
•	Program reports.
Authorized NPDES programs will also electronically submit NPDES program data to EPA to ensure
that there is consistent and complete reporting nationwide, and to expedite the collection and
processing of the data, thereby making it more accurate and timely. Importantly, while the
proposed rule changes the method by which information is provided (i.e., electronic rather than
paper-based), it does not increase the amount of information required from NPDES regulated
entities facilities under existing regulations.
Overview of Benefits
EPA anticipates that the proposed rule will save significant resources for states, tribes, and
territories as well as EPA and NPDES permittees, while resulting in a more complete, accurate, and
nationally-consistent set of data about the NPDES program. With full implementation, the
anticipated savings are:
•	Authorized State NPDES programs: $28.7 million annually,
•	NPDES regulated entities: $1.2 million annually, and
•	EPA: $0.5 million annually.


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EPA would also incur incremental costs with full implementation of approximately $0.82 million
per year.
As an example demonstrating the benefits of electronic reporting, the State of Ohio's electronic
reporting program for Discharge Monitoring Reports has resulted in a 99.9 percent adoption rate,
has increased data quality and improved environmental protection, while also saving significant
time and resources (e.g., Ohio was able to shift resources from five full-time staff to less than one
to support the DMR program).
To promote transparency and accountability, EPA intends to make this more complete set of data
available to the public, providing communities and citizens with information on facility and
government performance that is not currently available. This can serve to elevate the importance
of permitting and compliance information and environmental performance within regulated
entities, providing opportunity for them to quickly address any potential environmental problems.
The benefits of this proposed rulemaking should allow NPDES-authorized programs in states,
tribes, and territories to shift precious resources from data management activities to those more
targeted to solving water quality issues.
The proposed rule will also lighten the reporting burden currently placed on the states. Upon
successful implementation, the proposed rule would provide states with regulatory relief from
reporting associated with the Quarterly Non-Compliance Report (QNCR), the Annual Non-
Compliance Report (ANCR), the Semi-Annual Statistical Summary Report, and the biosolids
information required to be submitted to EPA annually by states.
Proposed Implementation
EPA will phase in the requirements of the rule over a two year period following the effective date
of the final rule.
Phase 1 - One year after effective date of final rule
In Phase 1 EPA would electronically receive the basic facility and permit information from the
authorized states, tribes, and territories and information from facilities covered by Federal general
permits [e.g., notices of intent to discharge (NOIs), notices of terminations (NOTs), no exposure
certifications (NECs), and low erosivity waivers (LEWs)]. EPA would also begin to electronically
receive information from states, tribes, and territories regarding inspections, violation
determinations, and enforcement actions. Finally, EPA, states, tribes, and territories would
electronically receive Discharge Monitoring Report (DMR) information from NPDES permittees -
the largest volume of data for the NPDES program.
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Phase 2—Two years after effective date of final rule
In addition to Phase 1 data, EPA, states, tribes, and territories would receive information from
state, tribal, and territorial general permit covered facilities and program reports from all facilities
(i.e., all NPDES program data identified in Appendix A to the proposed rule) during Phase 2.
Program reports are currently required by existing EPA regulations and include annual and
episodic compliance reports from regulated entities to their permitting authority.
These program reports include: Pretreatment Program Annual Reports, Industrial Users in Cities
Without Approved Pretreatment Programs Periodic Compliance Monitoring Reports, Biosolids
Program Annual Reports, CAFO Annual Reports, Municipal Separate Storm Sewer Systems (MS4)
Reports, and Sewer Overflow or Bypass Event Reports [Combined Sewer Overflows (CSOs),
Sanitary Sewer Overflows (SSO), and Bypass Event Reports],
Further Information
For additional information, please contact John Dombrowski, Director, Enforcement Targeting and
Data Division, Office of Compliance (mail code 2222A), Environmental Protection Agency, 1200
Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, DC, 20460; telephone number: (202) 566-0742; e-mail
address: dombrowski.iohn(5)epa.gov.
Useful Proposed Rule Links:
Federal Register Link
https://www.federalregister.gov/articles/2013/07/30/2Q13-17551/npdes-electronic-reporting-
rule
EPA Website Link
http://www2.epa.gov/compliance/proposed-npdes-electronic-reporting-rule
Press Release Link
http://vosemite.epa.gOv/opa/admpress.nsf/0/A38B17B5643E001D85257BB9005882DA
Email sign up for outreach events
https://public.govdeliverv.com/accounts/USAEPAOECA/subscriber/new?
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