Tier II Chemical Reporting in South Carolina: Who Files & How
Short answer: if your South Carolina 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 South Carolina the State Emergency Response Commission requires filing through E-Plan, administered by the South Carolina Department of Environmental Services (SCDES); the state charges no 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 South Carolina.
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 South Carolina
The trigger is federal and applies the same way in South Carolina 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 South Carolina 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.
The SC State Emergency Response Commission requires Tier II reports, and the program page is run by the South Carolina Department of Environmental Services (SCDES). Filing is through E-Plan: “We require the use of E-Plan to satisfy the state's Tier II reporting requirements” and “We no longer accept other reporting methods.” You can enter data directly in E-Plan or import a Tier II Submit file.
After submitting, SCDES says to “print the email and sign the Tier II report (PDF) from E-Plan and file them at the site for a minimum of five years.” For your local copies, SCDES tells facilities to contact their county LEPC and local fire department “for fees and specific reporting requirements for Tier II reporting.” Details are on the SCDES Tier II page.
State systems and instructions can change year to year, so confirm current details with SCDES and your county LEPC before you file.
The deadline
SCDES: “The SC State Emergency Response Commission requires an annual submission of a Tier II report due March 1 from qualifying facilities.” Build in time to set up your E-Plan account and to print, sign and file the confirmation afterwards.
Are there South Carolina state fees?
No state fee. SCDES: “The state doesn't charge Tier II reporting fees. Facilities should contact their County LEPC and local fire department for fees and specific reporting requirements for Tier II reporting.” So check with your county LEPC whether a local fee applies.
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 E-Plan — 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 South Carolina?
South Carolina requires Tier II reports to be filed through E-Plan for the SC State Emergency Response Commission; SCDES no longer accepts other reporting methods. Print and sign the E-Plan report and confirmation email and keep them on site for at least five years, and contact your county LEPC and local fire department for their requirements.
When is the Tier II deadline in South Carolina?
March 1 each year. SCDES states that the SC State Emergency Response Commission requires an annual Tier II report due March 1.
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 South Carolina state fee for Tier II?
The state charges no Tier II reporting fee, according to SCDES, but it tells facilities to contact their county LEPC and local fire department about fees and local requirements.