E- Plan: The Future of Tier II Reporting

What is E-Plan?

E-Plan is the nation’s largest database of chemical and facility hazards, with over 200,000 Tier II and 17,500 RMP facilities form across the nation in one database. E-Plan was developed by the US EPA Office of Emergency Management in collaboration with the University of Texas at Dallas. It is a means of collecting chemical facility reporting information and addressing federal regulations regarding chemicals in the community.

The Environmental Protection Division (SERC), will continue to offer the yearly Tier II Submit software on line. However, the Division strongly encourages all regulated facilities to become a user of E-Plan and considers E-Plan as the preferred method of submittal of yearly Tier II information.

How to Become an E-Plan User

If you are a facility submitting Tier II information, the process is simple and involves just a few minutes of your time. Go to https://erplan.net/eplan/onlinefiling/filingLogin.htm Click on the link to "Register Now" to begin the process. You will be asked to create a password, enter the submitter’s name, and e-mail address. You will then be assigned an Access ID number, which is a unique identifier for your facility. You will then be taken to the "E-Plan Online Filing Submission Management" page where you will need to either Enter new Data for your facility or upload your Tier2 .zip, t2s or CAMEO .zip file from the previous year into the system.

Enter new facility Data: under the "Enter new Data/Retrieve old Data" section, chose 2009 for the filing year and press continue. Enter in your Facility Information. Press the Save & Continue button and then enter in your Facility Identification (NAICS required). Return to the 2009 Online Filing Home page by clicking the "Filing Management" link in the upper left hand corner. From there, you will see the link to Add Chemical. Follow the prompts. When complete, return to the 2009 Online Filing Home page again, and press the link to Add Contact information.

Upload last year's .zip or .t2s file: under the "Upload Tier2 .zip, Tier2 .t2s, or CAMEO.zip file" section, press the continue button. Locate your file, and press the Upload button. Once the file is successfully uploaded press continue. You will be automatically taken back to the E-Plan Online Filing Submission Management page. The next step will be copying your 2008 data to 2009. Under the "Copy data from previous year" section, copy the data from 2008 to 2009 in the drop down menus. Once this step is complete, you should see the years 2008 and 2009 listed under Currently filed years in the top section. Select to retrieve Tier II data for 2009 in the drop down menu and press continue. You will be taken to the 2009 Online Filing Home page where you can edit your information if needed.

Submitting your report online: From the 2009 Online Filing Home page, press the Validate Record button at the bottom of the page. If any errors are found, they will be listed here, or it will indicate that the facility passed all checks. Press the "Upload Data to E-Plan" button, select your facility, and press the Update button. The status should change from Not Filed to Filed when the report has been properly submitted. A confirmation email will be sent to the account listed during the registration process, with a copy of your report attached in .pdf format. Print and save these documents as proof of submission.

If you are a state, local authority, or first responder wanting to access E-Plan facility information, go to https://erplan.net/eplan/user/accountSignup.htm and follow the registration steps under the "First Responders" section. Enter in the information as an Account Type: USER.

As a part of completing the registration, you will be asked to select an Authorizing Authority. The Authorizing Authority is someone from your State or County that has been tasked with ensuring you are an individual that has a need to be an E-Plan user. The certification may take up to one week. Following your approval by the Certifying Official, you will receive a confirmation e-mail from the E-Plan Administrative Team that will include your user name and password.

That’s it! If you are a first responder, you can begin using the information in E-Plan to ensure your responders are fully knowledgeable of the hazards posed by the chemicals in a facility within their jurisdiction.

To assist you in understanding E-Plan and its available functions, there are a number of tutorials available. Links to these tutorials can be found on the E-Plan Home Page, or directly at:
http://eplannews.utdallas.edu/Training.htm