EPA's Fall 2024 regulatory agenda impacts air, land, water rules

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published the Fall 2024 Semiannual Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions on December 13, 2024. The agenda reveals the agency’s upcoming regulatory actions and where each action is in the rulemaking process.

The agenda includes major EPA updates, such as:

• Finalizing a rule to add 16 individual per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and 15 PFAS categories to the Toxics Release Inventory as chemicals of special concern, making them subject to reporting (final rule expected August 2025);
• Establishing greenhouse gas emission guidelines for existing fossil fuel-fired combustion turbine electric generating units (proposed rule expected February 2025);
• Lowering the 2024 cellulosic biofuel volume and associated percentage standard requirements under the Renewable Fuel Standard program (final rule expected in March 2025);
• Issuing renewal decisions for each of the six applications of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) prioritized under the HFC allowance allocation program starting in calendar year 2026 (final rule expected in July 2025); and
• Proposing and finalizing regulations to control unreasonable risks from multiple chemical substances regulated under the Toxic Substances Control Act, like:
  • C. I. Pigment Violet 29 (proposed rule expected in April 2025),
  • N-methylpyrrolidone (final rule expected in August 2025), and
  • 1,4-dioxane (proposed rule expected in October 2025).

This article highlights some of the major rules we’re watching closely. You’ll want to review the entire agenda to learn about all the rulemakings on EPA’s docket. Please note that the agenda dates are tentative; they're when the agency seeks to publish the rulemakings in the Federal Register.

Final Rule Stage
Project Publication Date	Title
December 2024	New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) and Emission Guidelines (EG) for Large Municipal Waste Combustors (MWCs)
December 2024	Removal of Affirmative Defense Provisions From Specified New Source Performance Standards and National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants
January 2025	Water System Restructuring Assessment Rule
March 2025	Regulatory Requirements for New HAP Additions to Part 63
July 2025	Listing of Specific PFAS as Hazardous Constituents
August 2025	Clean Water Act Effluent Limitations Guidelines and Standards for the Meat and Poultry Products Point Source Category
October 2025	Revisions to Standards for the Open Burning/Open Detonation of Waste Explosives
November 2025	Stationary Combustion Turbines New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) Technology Review
Proposed Rule Stage
Projected publication date of Notice of Proposed Rulemaking	Title
December 2024	Reconsideration of Standards of Performance for New, Reconstructed and Modified Sources and Emissions Guidelines for Existing Sources: Oil and Natural Gas Sector Climate Review
January 2025	National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for the Polyether Polyols Production Industry
March 2025	Clean Water Act Effluent Limitations Guidelines and Standards for PFAS Manufacturers Under the Organic Chemicals, Plastics and Synthetic Fibers Point Source Category
April 2025	Phasedown of Hydrofluorocarbons: Reconsideration of Technology Transitions Final Rule Under the American Innovation and Manufacturing Act of 2020
May 2025	National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants: Stationary Combustion Turbines; Amendments
June 2025	Improving Recycling and Management of Renewable Energy Wastes: Universal Waste Regulations for Solar Panels and Lithium Batteries
June 2025	PFAS Requirements in NPDES Permit Applications
June 2025	Tiered Data Reporting to Inform Prioritization, Risk Evaluation and Risk Management Under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)
November 2025	Revisions to Establish the Sixth Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR 6) for Public Water Systems
November 2025	Revise/Update the Standards of Performance and Emission Guidelines for Municipal Solid Waste Landfills
Pre-Rule Stage
Projected publication date or other action	Title
December 2024 (Notice of Proposed Rulemaking)	Lead Wheel Weights; Regulatory Investigation Under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)
January 2025 (End Review)	610 Review of Standards of Performance for New Residential Wood Heathers, New Residential Hydronic Heaters and Forced-Air Furnaces
January 2025 (Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking Comment Period End)	Regulatory Investigation of N-(1,3-Dimethylbutyl)-N′-phenyl-p-phenylenediamine ("6PPD") and its Transformation Product, 6PPD-quinone Under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)

Key to remember: EPA’s Fall 2024 regulatory agenda includes upcoming actions with possible impacts on industry compliance with air, land, and water rules.