Phasedown of Hydrofluorocarbons: Review and Renewal of Eligibility for Application-Specific Allowances

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is finalizing, pursuant to the statutory framework established in the American Innovation and Manufacturing Act of 2020 (AIM Act), the eligibility of six applications to continue to receive priority access to allowances to produce or import hydrofluorocarbons. In this final rule, EPA establishes the framework for how EPA interprets the statutory criteria for assessing whether to renew the eligibility of applications to receive application-specific allowances and sets out determinations to renew or not renew each of the six applications that currently receive application-specific allowances. EPA is also finalizing revisions to the Technology Transitions regulations relevant to the specific applications under review, a procedural process for submitting a petition to designate a new application as eligible for priority access to allowances, the methodology used to allocate allowances to application-specific allowance holders for calendar years 2026 and beyond, and limited revisions to existing regulations. In addition, EPA is authorizing an entity to produce regulated substances for export. Lastly, EPA is finalizing certain regulatory confidentiality determinations for newly reported information.