§ 702.5 Candidate selection.

(a) General objective. In selecting candidates for a High-Priority Substance designation, it is EPA's general objective to select those chemical substances with the greatest hazard and exposure potential first, considering reasonably available information on the relative hazard and exposure of potential candidates. In selecting candidates for Low-Priority Substance designation, it is EPA's general objective to select those chemical substances with hazard and/or exposure characteristics under the conditions of use such that a risk evaluation is not warranted at the time to determine whether the chemical substance presents an unreasonable risk of injury to health or the environment, including an unreasonable risk to potentially exposed or susceptible subpopulations identified as relevant by EPA.

(b) Available information. EPA expects to ensure that there is reasonably available information to meet the deadlines for prioritization under the Act.

(c) Preferences and TSCA work plan. In selecting a candidate for prioritization as a High-Priority Substance, EPA will:

(1) Give preference to:

(i) Chemical substances that are listed in the 2014 update of the TSCA Work Plan for Chemical Assessments as having a persistence and bioaccumulation score of 3; and

(ii) Chemical substances that are listed in the 2014 update of the TSCA Work Plan for Chemical Assessments that are known human carcinogens and have high acute and chronic toxicity; and

(2) Identify a sufficient number of candidates from the 2014 update of the TSCA Work Plan for Chemical Assessments to ensure that, at any given time, at least 50 percent of risk evaluations being conducted by EPA are drawn from that list until all substances on the list have been designated as either a High-Priority Substance or Low-Priority Substance pursuant to § 702.11.

(d) Purpose. The purpose of the preferences and criteria in paragraphs (a) through (c) of this section is to inform EPA's decision whether or not to initiate the prioritization process pursuant to § 702.7, and the proposed designation of the chemical substance as either a High-Priority Substance or a Low-Priority Substance pursuant to § 702.9.

(e) Insufficient information. If EPA believes it would not have sufficient information for purposes of prioritization, EPA generally expects to obtain the information necessary to inform prioritization prior to initiating the process pursuant to § 702.9, using voluntary means of information gathering and, as necessary, exercising its authorities under the Act in accordance with the requirements of 15 U.S.C. 2603, 15 U.S.C. 2607, and 15 U.S.C. 2610. In exercising its authority under 15 U.S.C. 2603(a)(2), EPA will identify the need for the information in accordance with 15 U.S.C. 2603(a)(3).