	Introduction

Hydraulic fracturing is a technique used to free oil and natural gas trapped underground in low-permeability rock formations by pumping a fracturing fluid under high pressure in order to crack the formations. The composition of a fracturing fluid varies with the nature of the formation, but typically contains mostly water; a proppant to keep the fractures open, such as sand; and a small percentage of chemical additives. Although some of these chemical additives may be harmless, others may be hazardous to health and the environment. This report provides an overview of current and proposed laws and regulations at the state and federal levels that require the disclosure of the chemicals added to the fluid used in hydraulic fracturing. Although a few provisions of federal law require some disclosure of information about the chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing, none of them requires that detailed information about the chemical composition of a fracturing fluid be provided. In his 2012 State of the Union Address, President Barack Obama said he would obligate "all companies that drill for gas on public lands to disclose the chemicals they use," citing health and safety concerns. In May 2012, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) published a proposed rule that would require disclosure of the content of fracturing fluids used on lands managed by the agency. In addition, there were legislative efforts in the 112 th Congress. H.R. 1084 and S. 587 , the Fracturing Responsibility and Awareness of Chemicals Act (FRAC Act), would have created more broadly applicable disclosure requirements for parties engaged in hydraulic fracturing. For a table summarizing some of the hydraulic fracturing fluid chemical disclosure laws and proposals described in this report, see Appendix B . In addition, environmental advocacy groups have petitioned the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to regulate hydraulic fracturing chemicals under the Toxic Substances Control Act and to require the oil and gas extraction industry to report the toxic chemicals it releases under the EPA's Toxics Release Inventory. On August 4, 2011, Earthjustice and more than 100 other environmental advocacy organizations petitioned the EPA to promulgate rules under sections 4 and 8 of TSCA for chemical substances and mixtures used in oil and gas exploration or production (E&P Chemicals). 1084 would have created a new statutory obligation requiring anyone conducting hydraulic fracturing to
disclose to the State (or the Administrator [of the Environmental Protection Agency] if the Administrator has primary enforcement responsibility in the State)—(I) prior to the commencement of any hydraulic fracturing operations at any lease area or portion thereof, a list of chemicals intended for use in any underground injection during such operations, including identification of the chemical constituents of mixtures, Chemical Abstracts Service numbers for each chemical and constituent, material safety data sheets when available, and the anticipated volume of each chemical; and (II) not later than 30 days after the end of any hydraulic fracturing operations the list of chemicals used in each underground injection during such operations, including identification of the chemical constituents of mixtures, Chemical Abstracts Service numbers for each chemical and constituent, material safety data sheets when available, and the volume of each chemical used. Appendix A provides a glossary of some of the terms used in this section. The Shale Gas Production Subcommittee of the Secretary of Energy Advisory Board has recommended the public disclosure, on a well-by-well basis, of all of the chemical ingredients added to fracturing fluids—even those ingredients that do not meet OSHA's standards for hazardous chemicals requiring MSDSs. Chemical disclosure laws at the state level vary widely. Of the 15 laws examined in this report, fewer than half require direct public disclosure of chemical information by mandating that parties post the information on the FracFocus chemical disclosure website. The level of detail required to be disclosed often depends on how states protect trade secrets, as these protections may allow submitting parties to withhold information from disclosure at their discretion or to submit fewer details about proprietary chemicals, except, perhaps, in emergencies. Even if a disclosure law does not protect information from public disclosure, other state laws, such as an exemption in an open records law, may do so.
Hydraulic fracturing is a technique used to free oil and natural gas trapped underground in low-permeability rock formations by injecting a fluid under high pressure in order to crack the formations. The composition of a fracturing fluid varies with the nature of the formation, but typically contains mostly water; a proppant to keep the fractures open, such as sand; and a small percentage of chemical additives. Some of these additives may be hazardous to health and the environment.
The Shale Gas Production Subcommittee of the Secretary of Energy Advisory Board has recommended public disclosure, on a well-by-well basis, of all of the chemical ingredients added to fracturing fluids, with some protection for trade secrets. Although a few provisions of federal law require some disclosure of information about the chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing, none of them requires that detailed information about the chemical composition of a fracturing fluid be provided. In August 2011, environmental groups petitioned the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to promulgate rules under sections 4 and 8 of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) for chemical substances and mixtures used in oil and gas exploration or production. In October 2012, environmental groups asked the EPA to require the oil and gas extraction industry to report the toxic chemicals it releases under the Toxics Release Inventory.
In his 2012 State of the Union Address, President Barack Obama said he would obligate "all companies that drill for gas on public lands to disclose the chemicals they use," citing health and safety concerns. In May 2012, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) published a proposed rule that would require companies employing hydraulic fracturing on lands managed by BLM to disclose the content of the fracturing fluid. In addition, there were legislative efforts in the 112th Congress. H.R. 1084 and S. 587, the Fracturing Responsibility and Awareness of Chemicals Act (FRAC Act), would have created more broadly applicable disclosure requirements for parties engaged in hydraulic fracturing.
Chemical disclosure laws at the state level vary widely. Of the 15 laws examined in this report, fewer than half require direct public disclosure of chemical information by mandating that parties post the information on the FracFocus chemical disclosure website. The level of detail required to be disclosed often depends on how states protect trade secrets, as these protections may allow submitting parties to withhold information from disclosure at their discretion or to submit fewer details about proprietary chemicals, except, perhaps, in emergencies. Even if a disclosure law does not protect information from public disclosure, other state laws, such as an exemption in an open records law, may do so. States also have varying laws regarding the timing of these disclosure requirements.
This report provides an overview of current and proposed laws and regulations at the state and federal levels that require the disclosure of the chemicals added to the fluid used in hydraulic fracturing. Appendix A provides a glossary of many of the terms used in this report. Appendix B contains a table summarizing some of the fracturing chemical disclosure requirements described in this report. For an overview of the relationship between hydraulic fracturing and the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA), see CRS Report R41760, Hydraulic Fracturing and Safe Drinking Water Act Regulatory Issues, by [author name scrubbed] and [author name scrubbed].