On October 19, 2023, the EPA issued a proposed rule titled Phasedown of Hydrofluorocarbons: Management of Certain Hydrofluorocarbons and Substitutes under Subsection (h) of the American Innovation and Manufacturing Act of 2020 (88 FR 72216). For additional information on the proposed rule and supporting documents,

The rulemaking proposes the following requirements:

• Leak repair provisions for certain appliances;

• Use of automatic leak detection for certain new and existing equipment;

• A proposed reclamation standard;

• Use of reclaimed HFCs for certain types of equipment in certain refrigeration, air conditioning, and heat pump (RACHP) subsectors and use of recycled HFCs in fire suppression equipment;

• Certain provisions for equipment in the fire suppression sector, including technician training;

• Recovery of HFCs from disposable cylinders, prior to disposal;

• Container tracking for HFCs that could be used in the servicing, repair, and/or installation of refrigerant-containing equipment or fire suppression equipment;

• Recordkeeping, reporting, and labeling; and

• Alternative recycling criteria for ignitable used refrigerants, including some HFCs and their equivalents, under the authority of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act.

On November 2, 2023, the EPA will host a virtual public hearing using Microsoft Teams to provide an opportunity for any interested persons to offer oral comments on the proposed rule and related support documents (e.g., regulatory impact analysis). The virtual public hearing is scheduled from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. EDT, but may end early if there are no remaining interested persons present who wish to provide oral comment.