Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) Enforcement
CFATS Announcement
As of July 28, 2023, Congress has allowed the statutory authority for the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) program (6 CFR Part 27) to expire.
Therefore, CISA cannot enforce compliance with the CFATS regulations at this time. This means that CISA will not require facilities to report their chemicals of interest or submit any information in CSAT, perform inspections, or provide CFATS compliance assistance, amongst other activities. CISA can no longer require facilities to implement their CFATS Site Security Plan or CFATS Alternative Security Program.
CISA encourages facilities to maintain security measures. CISA’s voluntary ChemLock resources are available on the ChemLock webpages.
If CFATS is reauthorized, CISA will follow up with facilities in the future. To reach us, please contact CFATS@hq.dhs.gov.
The Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) program requires any facility that possesses chemicals of interest (COI) at or above the screening threshold quantities and concentrations listed in Appendix A of the CFATS regulation to report the facility’s holdings via a Top-Screen. Based on the Top-Screen and other available information, CISA conducts a risk assessment. A facility that CISA determines to be high-risk must develop and implement a security plan incorporating security measures that meet applicable risk-based performance standards (RBPS).
While CISA is committed to helping facility personnel understand and comply with CFATS by providing technical assistance or on-site consultation, the Agency also has the authority to enforce compliance with the program.
CFATS Violations
CFATS violations are divided into several categories:
- Failure to File Violations
- Submission of False Information
- Security Vulnerability Assessment (SVA)/Site Security Plan (SSP)/Alternative Security Program (ASP) Deficiencies (generally found during the authorization and approval process)
- SSP/ASP Infractions (generally found during Compliance Inspections)
- Chemical-terrorism Vulnerability Information (CVI) Violations
CFATS Penalty Policy
Pursuant to 6 CFR 27.300(a) and (b), CISA is authorized to issue an Administrative Order (A Order) and an Order Assessing Civil Penalty (B Order) to a chemical facility found to be in violation of CFATS. In addition, 6 USC 624(b)(2) authorizes CISA, in certain circumstances, to issue an Order Assessing Civil Penalty without first issuing an Administrative Order. Both A Orders and B Orders may be appealed pursuant to the procedures set forth in 6 CFR Part 27 Subpart C.
On June XX, 2023, CISA published an update to the Policy for Assessing a Civil Penalty under the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS). These edits are non-substantive and include technical edits to reflect current organizational structure, updated definitions, and various formatting edits.
Contact Information
For questions or to get more information, please email CFATS@hq.dhs.gov.