Tier II Chemical Reporting in Colorado: Who Files & How
Short answer: if your Colorado facility stores a hazardous chemical at or above its EPCRA reporting threshold — generally 10,000 pounds, or as low as 500 pounds for an Extremely Hazardous Substance — you must file an annual Tier II chemical-inventory report by March 1, covering the prior calendar year. It goes to your State Emergency Response Commission (SERC), your Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC), and your local fire department. In Colorado you upload a Tier2 Submit file to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) through AccessGov and pay a Pollution Prevention Fee. The hardest part is compiling an accurate inventory with quantities — which is exactly what SDSentry ($24 per location per month) keeps current for you year-round. Here is how Tier II works in Colorado.
Free, no signup: the SDS binder builder at sdsentry.0xpi.com/sds-binder.html turns a pasted list of the products you keep on site into one printable index of their current safety data sheets.
What Tier II is (and isn't)
Tier II is the annual chemical-inventory report required under Section 312 of the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA). Its purpose is to tell fire departments and emergency planners what hazardous chemicals are stored at your facility, in what quantities, and where, so responders know what they are walking into. It is a separate obligation from OSHA Hazard Communication — the same chemicals on your shelves, but a different law and a different audience. Meeting your HazCom duties does not satisfy Tier II, and vice versa.
Who has to file in Colorado
The trigger is federal and applies the same way in Colorado as everywhere else. You must file Tier II if any hazardous chemical for which you are required to keep a safety data sheet is present at your facility at or above its reporting threshold at any point during the year:
- 10,000 lbs for most hazardous chemicals (those that require an SDS).
- 500 lbs — or the chemical's Threshold Planning Quantity, whichever is lower — for Extremely Hazardous Substances (EHSs) on EPA's list.
Quantities are based on the maximum amount present at any one time, aggregated across the facility. A small clinic or shelter often stays under these limits, but bulk propane or diesel tanks, stored fuel, pool and spa chemicals, fertilizer, or a large supply of a single disinfectant can push you over — and EHS thresholds are low enough that a modest amount of the wrong chemical can trigger a report.
Where Colorado facilities submit
EPCRA sends every Tier II report to three places: your State Emergency Response Commission (SERC), your Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC), and your local fire department.
Colorado's SERC is the Colorado Emergency Planning Commission (CEPC), and Tier II reports go to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE). You prepare the report in the newest version of EPA's Tier2 Submit and upload it through CDPHE's AccessGov platform: “All reports must be submitted through AccessGov. Email submissions will NOT be accepted.” Colorado also “requires businesses to include their Dun and Bradstreet Number on their Tier II report” (government entities and universities are excepted).
Colorado is unusual about local copies. CDPHE: “Facilities are not required to provide the same report to the local emergency planning committee (LEPC) or the local fire department unless those agencies maintain local reporting requirements. Please check with your LEPC and fire department for local requirements.” Start from CDPHE's Tier II reporting page.
State systems and instructions can change year to year, so confirm current details with CDPHE before you file.
The deadline
CDPHE: “The deadline for report submission is 5:00 p.m. (MST) on March 1 each year.” Note the time of day, and that a report built in an older Tier2 Submit version has to be redone in the current one.
Are there Colorado state fees?
Yes. CDPHE charges Pollution Prevention Fees, calculated in AccessGov when you submit:
- Facility fee: $10 for each facility required to report.
- Tier II chemical fee: $10 for each hazardous or extremely hazardous substance over the EPA thresholds.
- TRI chemical fee: $25 per substance, only for facilities that also report under Section 313.
“Fees are capped at $1,000 maximum for any one reporting organization that owns or operates multiple reporting facilities in Colorado.” Agricultural businesses with NAICS codes beginning 111 through 115 still file but are exempt from the fees.
What to have ready before you file
The report itself is mostly a structured list. What slows people down is assembling accurate underlying data. Before you start, have on hand:
- A complete chemical inventory for the location, with the product name and chemical identity for each item.
- The maximum quantity on site during the year and the average daily quantity, with units.
- Storage details — container type, pressure, temperature, and the specific location or building.
- Hazard information from each product's safety data sheet.
- Facility identifiers, emergency contacts, and (where required) latitude and longitude.
If you keep a current SDS library and a per-location inventory with quantities throughout the year, the February scramble largely disappears. See our guide on building a chemical inventory from scratch for a starting point.
How SDSentry helps
SDSentry tracks quantity and unit per item in your per-location inventory, flags items over a threshold you set, and exports an EPCRA Tier II CSV so your preparer is not rebuilding the inventory by hand each February. It keeps a current SDS on file for every product, which is where most of the hazard and storage details on the report come from. It will not submit the report for you — you still file through Tier2 Submit and CDPHE's AccessGov platform — but it turns the worst part, compiling and maintaining the data, into a download. Pair it with our HazCom compliance checklist so your OSHA and EPCRA obligations stay covered at the same time.
Track inventory for Tier II — free trial
Frequently asked questions
Who do I send my Tier II report to in Colorado?
Colorado facilities build the report in the current version of EPA's Tier2 Submit and upload it to CDPHE through AccessGov; email is not accepted, and businesses must include a Dun and Bradstreet number. CDPHE says facilities do not have to send the same report to the LEPC or fire department unless those agencies have local reporting requirements.
When is the Tier II deadline in Colorado?
5:00 p.m. MST on March 1 each year, according to CDPHE.
What are the Tier II reporting thresholds?
You report if a hazardous chemical that requires a safety data sheet is on site at or above 10,000 pounds at any time during the year, or at or above 500 pounds — or the Threshold Planning Quantity, whichever is lower — for an Extremely Hazardous Substance. Quantities are the maximum amount present at any one time.
Is there a Colorado state fee for Tier II?
Yes. CDPHE charges a $10 facility fee plus $10 for each Tier II chemical over the EPA thresholds (and $25 per TRI chemical for Section 313 reporters), capped at $1,000 per reporting organization. Agricultural businesses with NAICS codes beginning 111 to 115 are exempt from the fees.