On October 29, 2025, the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works favorably reported several nominations, including Jeffrey Hall to be an Assistant Administrator for the Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance (OECA) at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Douglas Troutman to be Assistant Administrator for Toxic Substances at EPA, each by a vote of ten to nine along party lines. The Committee considered Hall’s nomination during a July 23, 2025, hearing, during...
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On August 4, 2025, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) published a notice of determinations that modifies the list of taxable substances to include the following 21 substances: polyphenylene sulfide, cellulose acetate (degree of substitution = 1.5-2.0), 4,4′-isopropylidenediphenol-epichlorohydrin copolymer, nylon 6, caprolactam, methyl ethyl ketoxime, iso-butanol, diethylene glycol monomethyl ether, ethylene glycol phenyl ether, methoxytriglycol, propylene glycol methyl ether acetate, propylene...
April 16, 2025
Petitions Filed to Add Chemicals to List of Chemical Substances Subject to Superfund Excise Tax
On April 2 and April 3, 2025, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced that petitions have been filed to add the following chemicals to the list of taxable substances: Polyisobutylene (90 Fed. Reg. 14521): Petition filed by TPC Group, Inc., an exporter of polyisobutylene; Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (90 Fed. Reg. 14687): Petition filed by Trinseo LLC, an importer and exporter of acrylonitrile butadiene styrene; Acrylonitrile-butadiene rubber (90 Fed. Reg. 14684): Petition filed by...
September 11, 2024
Petitions Filed to Add Several Chemicals to List of Taxable Substances; Comments Due November 4, 2024
On September 3, 2024, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced that petitions have been filed to add the following chemicals to the list of taxable substances: Diethylene Glycol Monomethyl Ether (89 Fed. Reg. 71788): The Dow Chemical Company, an exporter of diethylene glycol monomethyl ether, filed the petition. According to the petition, diethylene glycol monomethyl ether is an ethylene-based glycol ether solvent. Diethylene glycol monomethyl ether is a liquid used in a variety of...
August 16, 2024
IRS Announces Correction to Petition to Add Nylon 6 to List of Chemical Substances Subject to Superfund Excise Tax
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced on August 14, 2024, a correction to the stoichiometric material consumption equation in the notice of filing for the nylon 6 petition that was published in the February 22, 2024, Federal Register. 89 Fed. Reg. 66175. According to the notice, after the comment period for the original notice closed, an error was discovered in the stoichiometric material consumption equation for nylon 6, and the petitioner subsequently provided a corrected petition....
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) published a notice of determination on May 31, 2024, that the list of taxable substances is modified to include polyoxymethylene. 89 Fed. Reg. 47238. As reported in our December 29, 2022, blog item, the IRS announced in December 2022 that it received a petition requesting the addition of polyoxymethylene to the list of taxable substances under Section 4672(a) of the Internal Revenue Code. Celanese Ltd., an exporter of polyoxymethylene, submitted the petition....
February 29, 2024
Petition Filed to Add Iso-butanol to List of Chemical Substances Subject to Superfund Excise Tax
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced on February 27, 2024, that it received a petition requested that iso-butanol (also known as isobutanol, iso butyl alcohol, 2-methyl propan-1-ol, or 2-methyl-1-propanol) be added to the list of taxable substances under Section 4672(a) of the Internal Revenue Code. 89 Fed. Reg. 14558. OQ Chemicals Corporation, an exporter of iso-butanol, filed the petition. The notice states: According to the petition, iso-butanol is an isomer of n-butanol. Iso-butanol...
February 23, 2024
Petitions Filed to Add Caprolactam and Nylon 6 to List of Chemical Substances Subject to Superfund Excise Tax
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced on February 22, 2024, that it received petitions requesting that caprolactam (89 Fed. Reg. 13400) and nylon 6 (89 Fed. Reg. 13399) be added to the list of taxable substances under Section 4672(a) of the Internal Revenue Code. AdvanSix Inc., an exporter of caprolactam and nylon 6, filed the petitions. The notice for caprolactam states: According to the petition, caprolactam, a white solid, is primarily used to manufacture nylon resins and other...
July 17, 2023
Petition Filed to Add Methyl Ethyl Ketoxime to List of Chemical Substances Subject to Superfund Excise Tax
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced on July 17, 2023, that it received a petition requesting that methyl ethyl ketoxime (MEKO) be added to the list of taxable substances under Section 4672(a) of the Internal Revenue Code. 88 Fed. Reg. 45454. The petitioner is AdvanSix Inc., an exporter of MEKO. The notice includes the following description of the petition: According to the petition, MEKO is a clear liquid and a high-efficiency, anti-skinning agent that is used for...
On March 29, 2023, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) published a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) relating to the Superfund excise taxes imposed on certain chemicals and certain imported substances, effective July 1, 2022. 88 Fed. Reg. 18446. There are two separate Superfund chemical excise taxes: a tax on the sale or use of “taxable chemicals” and a tax on the sale or use of imported “taxable substances.” The NPRM contains proposed regulations under Sections 4661, 4662, 4671, and...