HR6082-119

What This Bill Does

The Fracturing Responsibility and Awareness of Chemicals Act of 2025 amends the Safe Drinking Water Act. It replaces the hydraulic-fracturing exclusion in section 1421(d)(1) so underground injection of fluids or propping agents for hydraulic fracturing related to oil, gas, or geothermal production is included in underground-injection regulation, while natural gas injection for storage remains excluded. It also requires regulations to make hydraulic fracturing operators disclose intended chemicals before operations at a lease area and actual chemicals used within 30 days after operations end. Disclosures must include mixture constituents, Chemical Abstracts Service numbers, material safety data sheets when available, and anticipated or actual volumes. States or EPA must make chemical constituent disclosures public, including online. Routine rules do not authorize public disclosure of proprietary chemical formulas, but when a regulator, treating physician, or nurse determines that a medical emergency exists and the proprietary formula or identity is needed for treatment, the operator must immediately disclose it on request, with confidentiality paperwork allowed as soon as circumstances permit.

Who Benefits and How

Residents near hydraulic fracturing operations benefit from public chemical-disclosure information and Safe Drinking Water Act oversight. Health care providers treating exposure emergencies benefit because operators must immediately disclose trade-secret chemical identities when needed for treatment. States and EPA benefit from pre-operation and post-operation chemical lists, CAS numbers, safety data sheets, and volume information. Environmental and public health organizations benefit from online access to chemical constituent disclosures.

Who Bears the Burden and How

Hydraulic fracturing operators must comply with underground-injection regulation and disclose intended and actual chemical use. Oil, gas, and geothermal production companies face new reporting, timing, and public-disclosure obligations for fracturing operations. Chemical suppliers to fracturing operators may need to support disclosure of constituents, CAS numbers, safety data sheets, and emergency trade-secret information. State primacy agencies and EPA must receive disclosures, post public information, administer trade-secret limits, and enforce the new rules.

Key Provisions

• Includes hydraulic fracturing underground injection in Safe Drinking Water Act regulation.
• Continues excluding natural gas underground injection for storage.
• Requires pre-operation disclosure of intended fracturing chemicals and volumes.
• Requires post-operation disclosure of chemicals actually used within 30 days after operations end.
• Requires public online disclosure of chemical constituents while preserving routine trade-secret protection.
• Requires immediate trade-secret disclosure to regulators or treating clinicians during medical emergencies.