2019 EnviroFlash Announcements about EPA Fuel Programs

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This page lists recent EnviroFlash announcements that have been released to update stakeholders about EPA fuel programs.

On this page:
 

EMTS functionality has been restored

The updates to EMTS are now complete and full system functionality has been restored. You may now proceed with file submission and other EMTS activities. Thank you for your patience. 

If you have questions, please contact Fuels Programs Support at support@epamts-support.com.

EMTS - Notice of system downtime on Wednesday, Dec 18

On Wednesday, December 18, 2019 at 3:00pm ET, EPA will release updates to the EPA Moderated Transaction System (EMTS). To avoid failed submissions and other possible issues, please do not attempt to submit any node-based or web-based transactions in EMTS between 3:00PM to 6:00PM ET on Wednesday, December 18, 2019. 

Information Regarding Implementation of RIN Market Reform (RMR)

Beginning January 1, 2020, parties must meet all requirements in the RFS RIN Market Reform (RMR) final rule, including collecting all information necessary to meet the RIN primary and secondary threshold calculations, reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

For example, separated RINs that are bought or sold must be identified as one of the following types of trades in EPA Moderated Transaction System (EMTS): Spot, Term-Contract, or Consignment. Trades designated as Spot or Term-Contract will be subject to additional validation checks, including a matching Price per RIN that is not $0.00.

For more information on RFS RMR including requirements for quarterly compliance reporting, please see the following web page:  https://www.epa.gov/renewable-fuel-standard-program/compliance-overview-e15-rvp-and-rin-market-reform-final-rule

Additionally, EPA will be posting the updated RFS Activity Report (RFS0105) on January 1. This form is to be used for the 2020 first quarter compliance period due on June 1, 2020 and will be available at the following web page: https://www.epa.gov/fuels-registration-reporting-and-compliance-help/list-all-quarterly-and-annual-reports-renewable.

EPA Moderated Transaction System (EMTS) - XML Submissions

As of approximately 10:30 p.m. ET on 9/9/2019, the EPA Moderated Transaction System (EMTS) is experiencing slow response in processing XML file submissions. We are aware of the issue and are working to restore full EMTS functionality. Until this occurs, please do not submit XML file submissions to EMTS, as all submissions will be processed once system functionality is restored. Thank you for your patience.

EMTS v5.2.5 Patch Release Outage Scheduled for Friday, August 23, 2019

On Friday, August 23, 2019 at 6:00 p.m. ET, the EPA Moderated Transaction System (EMTS) will be offline in order to deploy v5.2.5 of the application. This version will include updated sync processing functionality that resolves a post-processing issue that does not have any impacts on the end-user community. To avoid failed submissions and other possible issues, please do not attempt to submit any node-based or web-based transactions in EMTS between 6:00 p.m. ET on Friday, August 23, 2019, and 8:00 a.m. ET on Saturday, August 24, 2019.

EMTS Web Application is Down

As of 1:00 pm ET on 8/16/2019, the web application for the EPA Moderated Transaction System (EMTS) is down, which prevents users from submitting transactions through the website and prevents RIN transaction reports from being generated. Node submissions to EMTS are still functioning as expected. We are working to restore full EMTS functionality and will send another Enviroflash once the issue has been resolved. Thank you for your patience.

Notice of EPA's Intent to Update RFS Small Refinery Exemption Data

At 6 p.m. (EDT) today , August 9, 2019, EPA will provide decisions to small refineries with outstanding RFS small refinery exemption petitions before the agency.  At the same time, EPA will update the Renewable Fuel Standard Small Refinery Exemption website (https://www.epa.gov/fuels-registration-reporting-and-compliance-help/rfs-small-refinery-exemptions) to reflect that information.

PBR Rule Effective Date

EPA recently issued a final rule titled "Modifications to Fuel Regulations To Provide Flexibility for E15; Modifications to RFS RIN Market Regulations" (84 FR 26980), which is available at https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2019-06-10/pdf/2019-11653.pdf.

There are a range of different dates listed in the Federal Register regarding when responsible parties must satisfy the various provisions of the final rule; therefore, EPA is issuing this Enviroflash to clarify which dates apply for compliance purposes.

All parties, including fuel retailers, may start taking advantage of the 1-psi RVP waiver for E15 on June 1, 2019. Fuel and fuel additive manufacturers must still have an EPA-approved E15 misfuelling mitigation plan (MMP) prior to the introduction into commerce of E15 or ethanol for use in producing E15. Fuel and fuel additive manufacturers must also satisfy the other parameters of the substantially similar determination in the final rule. The requirements, including the requirement to submit an MMP, are located in the final rule (see 84 FR at 27021) and more information regarding how to submit an MMP is located at https://www.epa.gov/fuels-registration-reporting-and-compliance-help/e15-fuel-registration#mmp.

Parties will be required to comply with the RIN market reforms beginning on January 1, 2020. This means all RIN calculation, recordkeeping, and reporting requirements (including those in EMTS) finalized in the rule will be required beginning January 1, 2020. The first quarterly RFS activity report including this new information is due to EPA by June 1, 2020. 

EPA will continue to work with affected stakeholders to ensure clarity with these new requirements and will be available to assist with specific questions via the Fuels Program Helpdesk .

RFS Public Data for June - Delayed

EPA routinely publishes data from the RFS program on the third Thursday of each month. Due to an internal Agency outage that impacted web publications, EPA's publication of the RFS data will be delayed until Monday, June 24. For questions or concerns, please contact support@epamts-support.com.

Scheduled maintenance of Facility Registry Service (FRS) will affect OTAQREG this weekend

EPA will be performing maintenance on the Facility Registry System (FRS) this weekend.  From 7:00 AM Eastern Time on Saturday, April 27 until 7:00 PM Sunday, April 28, 2019,  the FRS widget in OTAQREG may be temporarily unavailable. If you have any additional questions, please contact support@epamts-support.com.

Notice of EPA's Intent to Update RFS Small Refinery Exemption Data

At 2pm today (EST), March 28, 2019, EPA will issue a decision document for one small refinery with an outstanding petition for a 2017 exemption, and at the same time will update the Renewable Fuel Standard Small Refinery Exemption website (https://www.epa.gov/fuels-registration-reporting-and-compliance-help/rfs-small-refinery-exemptions) to reflect that information.

Notice of EPA's Intent to Update RFS Small Refinery Exemption Data

At 2:00 pm today, March 14, 2019, EPA will issue decision documents for five small refineries with outstanding petitions for 2017 exemptions, and at the same time will update the Renewable Fuel Standard Small Refinery Exemption website (https://www.epa.gov/fuels-registration-reporting-and-compliance-help/rfs-small-refinery-exemptions) to reflect that information.

RFS EMTS Copy of Record (COR) Status

We recently identified that the Q4, 2018 Copy of Record (COR) report from EMTS did not include submissions dated October 1, 2018. The Q4, 2018 COR report was corrected and regenerated and now includes October 1, 2018 submissions as well as any other unsigned Q4 submissions.

Additionally, we found that for some companies, December 2018 submissions were improperly included in the Q1, 2019 COR report, rather than the Q4, 2018 COR report.  We are currently working on this issue and expect to apply a fix this coming weekend.  In the meantime, we ask that you please do not sign any Q1, 2019 COR reports until they have been regenerated.

EMTS email notifications will be sent if a COR e-signature is required.  You may, after this weekend, also review the list of COR reports requiring signature under the e-Signature menu option in EMTS. 

Reminder, the annual and Q4 2018 reporting deadline is March 31, 2018. Please refer to the following web page for additional details and for a link to the Job Aid instructions on  How to Use e-Signature to Sign RIN Transaction Reports in EMTS: https://www.epa.gov/fuels-registration-reporting-and-compliance-help/how-use-e-signature-sign-rin-transaction-reports

Cellulosic Biofuel Waiver Credits Pay.gov Application

The Cellulosic Biofuel Waiver Credits Pay.gov Application available on EPA's Central Data Exchange portal (CDX) has been updated to allow purchase of 2018 Cellulosic Waiver Credits. Also, a reminder, for parties submitting paper checks for purchase of Cellulosic Waiver Credits, the mailing address was changed last year to:

For normal mail delivery (USPS):
US EPA Fees and Collections Branch
Attention: Collection Team
1200 Pennsylvania Ave, NW MC-2733R
Washington, DC 20460

For courier services (UPS/FEDEX/etc):
US EPA Fees and Collections Branch
Attention: Collection Team
1300 Pennsylvania Ave, NW
Washington, DC 20004

Additional information regarding Cellulosic Waiver Credits may be found on EPA's Renewable Fuels Standard Program website at:  https://www.epa.gov/renewable-fuel-standard-program/cellulosic-waiver-credits-under-renewable-fuel-standard-program

If you have questions, please contact Fuels Programs Support at support@epamts-support.com.

EMTS Maintenance on Sunday, February 10

EMTS will be unavailable on Sunday, February 10 from 6 PM until midnight while system maintenance is being performed. In order to prevent potential issues, please do not submit files or attempt to access EMTS during this time.

RFS Quarterly Reports and COR Report Status

2018 Quarterly Reports: A partial set of quarterly reports from 4th Quarter 2018 are now available. If you are a node user, you may retrieve these reports from the CDX node using the document download service.  If you are a web user, you may download the document from the  EMTS web site.

Important Note on Copy of Record Reports and E-Signature: The new Copy of Record (COR) reports have not run since January 1, 2019 and are still pending. A cause has been identified and an upcoming patch release for EMTS will resolve the issue. EPA will send a subsequent enviroflash when the COR reports are available. For more information on new procedures for RFS compliance reporting, please see: https://www.epa.gov/fuels-registration-reporting-and-compliance-help/how-use-emts-report-transactions-fuel-programs

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