EPA latest batch of final Significant New Use Rules (SNURs), issued September 2, 2014, covers SNURs for which comments were received and contains responses of interest. EPA offers clarification on what importers and processors of confidential SNUR'd chemical should do (excerpt below). Plain English version - if purchasing from a US company, the supplier is obligated to tell you if the chemical is subject to a SNUR. If you are an importer, you are probably OK if you ask your foreign supplier and get verification of TSCA status. Cross you fingers they are telling you the truth, because you are liable for compliance. If you can't get cooperation or are suspicious, EPA or a third party consultant might be able to act as an intermediary. EPA says:
EPA expects that if a company manufactures or processes chemical substances it will confirm whether those chemical substances are on the TSCA Inventory and if those chemical substances are subject to TSCA regulations, including SNURs. A company may do this by identifying each chemical and confirming its TSCA status. In cases where a company purchases chemical substances, including formulations with multiple chemical substances that may be only generically identified, an importer or processor may rely on their supplier to confirm the identity of a chemical substance or if a chemical substance is subject to a SNUR. According to 40 CFR 721.5(a)(2), manufacturers (including importers) and processors must notify customers if they distribute a chemical substance that is subject to a SNUR unless they can demonstrate that their customer either already knows about the SNUR or cannot undertake any significant new use designated in the SNUR. EPA recognizes that when a company imports a chemical substance into the United States, its foreign manufacturer or processor is not subject to the requirements of 40 CFR 721.5(a)(2) to notify the importer about whether the chemical substance is subject to a SNUR. Nonetheless, importers are subject to the requirements of TSCA section 5(a)(1) with respect to substances not on the TSCA Inventory or subject to an exemption, and must comply with any applicable SNURs. EPA expects that the importer would confirm the identity of chemical substances it is importing, if those chemical substances are on the TSCA Inventory, and whether they are subject to TSCA regulation including SNURs. In the case of chemical substances that are contained in an article, if the exemption of 40 CFR 721.45(f) is revoked then the person distributing that chemical substance in the article must, in accordance with 40 CFR 721.5(a)(2), notify customers that a chemical substance in the article is subject to a SNUR.
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