Section 725.171  Use of Manifest System

a)         Receipt of Manifested Hazardous Waste

1)         If a facility receives hazardous waste accompanied by a manifest, the owner, operator, or its agent must sign and date the manifest, as indicated in subsection (a)(2), to certify that the hazardous waste covered by the manifest was received, that the hazardous waste was received except as noted in the discrepancy space of the manifest, or that the hazardous waste was rejected as noted in the manifest discrepancy space.

2)         If a facility receives a hazardous waste shipment accompanied by a manifest, the owner, operator, or its agent must do the following:

A)        The owner, operator, or agent must sign and date, by hand, each copy of the manifest;

B)        The owner, operator, or agent must note any discrepancies (as defined in 35 Ill. Adm. Code 724.172) on each copy of the manifest;

C)        The owner, operator, or agent must immediately give the transporter at least one copy of the manifest;

D)        The owner, operator, or agent must send a copy (Page 3) of the manifest to the generator within 30 days after delivery;

E)        Paper manifest submission requirements are the following:

i)          The owner, operator, or agent must send the top copy (Page 1) of any paper manifest and any paper continuation sheet to the e-Manifest System for purposes of data entry and processing.  In lieu of submitting the paper copy to the e-Manifest System operator, the owner or operator may transmit to the e-Manifest System operator an image file of Page 1 of the manifest and any continuation sheet, or both a data string file and the image file corresponding to Page 1 of the manifest and any continuation sheet, within 30 days after the date of delivery.  Submissions of copies to the e-Manifest System must be made at the mailing address or electronic mail/submission address specified at the e-Manifest program website's directory of services.  Beginning on June 30, 2021, USEPA will not accept mailed paper manifests from facilities for processing in the e-Manifest System; and

ii)         Options for Compliance on June 30, 2021.  Beginning on June 30, 2021, the requirement to submit the top copy (Page 1) of the paper manifest and any paper continuation sheet to the e-Manifest System for purposes of data entry and processing may be met by the owner or operator only by transmitting to the e-Manifest System an image file of Page 1 of the manifest and any continuation sheet, or by transmitting to the e-Manifest System both a data file and the image file corresponding to Page 1 of the manifest and any continuation sheet, within 30 days after the date of delivery.  Submissions of copies to the e-Manifest System must be made to the electronic mail/submission address specified at the e-Manifest program website's directory of services.  Beginning on June 30, 2021, USEPA will not accept mailed paper manifests from facilities for processing in the e-Manifest System; and

F)         The owner, operator, or agent must retain at the facility a copy of each manifest for at least three years after the date of delivery.

3)         The owner or operator of a facility that receives hazardous waste subject to Subpart H of 35 Ill. Adm. Code 722 from a foreign source must:

A)        Additionally list the relevant consent number from consent documentation supplied by USEPA to the facility for each waste listed on the hazardous waste manifest (USEPA Form 8700-22), matched to the relevant list number for the waste from block 9b.  If additional space is needed, the owner or operator should use Continuation Sheets (USEPA Form 8700-22A); and

B)        Send a copy of the manifest to USEPA using the addresses listed in 35 Ill. Adm. Code 722.182(e) within 30 days of delivery until the facility can submit such a copy to the e-Manifest system per subsection (a)(2)(E).

b)         If a facility receives from a rail or water (bulk shipment) transporter hazardous waste that is accompanied by a shipping paper containing all the information required on the manifest (excluding the USEPA identification numbers, generator certification, and signatures), the owner or operator or its agent must do each of the following:

1)         It must sign and date each copy of the manifest or shipping paper (if the manifest has not been received) to certify that the hazardous waste covered by the manifest or shipping paper was received;

2)         It must note any significant discrepancies, as defined in Section 725.172(a), in the manifest or shipping paper (if the manifest has not been received) on each copy of the manifest or shipping paper;

            BOARD NOTE:  The owner or operator of a facility whose procedures under Section 725.113(c) include waste analysis need not perform that analysis before signing the shipping paper and giving it to the transporter.  Section 725.172(b), however, requires reporting an unreconciled discrepancy discovered during later analysis.

3)         It must immediately give the rail or water (bulk shipment) transporter at least one copy of the manifest or shipping paper (if the manifest has not been received);

4)         The owner or operator must send a copy of the signed and dated manifest or a signed and dated copy of the shipping paper (if the manifest has not been received within 30 days after delivery) to the generator within 30 days after the delivery; and

            BOARD NOTE:  35 Ill. Adm. Code 722.123(c) requires the generator to send three copies of the manifest to the facility when hazardous waste is sent by rail or water (bulk shipment).  

5)         Retain at the facility a copy of the manifest and shipping paper (if signed in lieu of the manifest at the time of delivery) for at least three years from the date of delivery.

c)         Whenever a shipment of hazardous waste is initiated from a facility, the owner or operator of that facility must comply with the requirements of 35 Ill. Adm. Code 722.  The provisions of 35 Ill. Adm. Code 722.115, 722.116, and 722.117 apply to the on-site accumulation of hazardous wastes by generators.  Therefore, the provisions of 35 Ill. Adm. Code 722.115, 722.116, and 722.117 only apply to an owner or operator that ships hazardous waste that it generated at that facility or operating as an LQG consolidating hazardous waste from VSQGs under 35 Ill. Adm. Code 722.117(f).

d)         As required by 40 CFR 262.84(d)(2)(O), within three working days after the receipt of a shipment subject to Subpart H of 35 Ill. Adm. Code 722, the owner or operator of a facility must provide a copy of the movement document bearing all required signatures to the foreign exporter and to the competent authorities of the countries of export and transit that control the shipment as an export or transit of hazardous waste.  On or after the electronic import-export reporting compliance date, to USEPA electronically using USEPA's WIETS.  The original copy of the tracking document must be maintained at the facility for at least three years from the date of signature.  The owner or operator of a facility may satisfy this recordkeeping requirement by retaining electronically submitted documents in the facility's account on USEPA's WIETS, provided that copies are readily available for viewing and production if requested by any USEPA or authorized state inspector.  No owner or operator of a facility may be held liable for the inability to produce the documents for inspection under this section if the owner or operator of a facility can demonstrate that the inability to produce the document is due exclusively to technical difficulty with USEPA's WIETS, for which the owner or operator of a facility bears no responsibility.

e)         A facility must determine whether the consignment state for a shipment regulates any additional wastes (beyond those regulated federally) as hazardous wastes under its state hazardous waste program.  A facility must also determine whether the consignment state or generator state requires the facility to submit any copies of the manifest to that state.

f)         Legal Equivalence to Paper Manifests.  E-Manifests that are obtained, completed, transmitted in accordance with 35 Ill. Adm. Code 722.120(a)(3), and used in accordance with this Section in lieu of the paper manifest form are the legal equivalent of paper manifest forms bearing handwritten signatures, and satisfy for all purposes any requirement in 35 Ill. Adm. Code 720 through 728 to obtain, complete, sign, provide, use, or retain a manifest.

1)         Any requirement in 35 Ill. Adm. Code 720 through 728 for the owner or operator of a facility to sign a manifest or manifest certification by hand, or to obtain a handwritten signature, is satisfied by signing with or obtaining a valid and enforceable electronic signature within the meaning of 35 Ill. Adm. Code 722.125.

2)         Any requirement in 35 Ill. Adm. Code 720 through 728 to give, provide, send, forward, or to return to another person a copy of the manifest is satisfied when a copy of an e-Manifest is transmitted to the other person.

3)         Any requirement in 35 Ill. Adm. Code 720 through 728 for a manifest to accompany a hazardous waste shipment is satisfied when a copy of an e-Manifest is accessible during transportation and forwarded to the person or persons who are scheduled to receive delivery of the hazardous waste shipment.

4)         Any requirement in 35 Ill. Adm. Code 720 through 728 for an owner or operator to keep or retain a copy of each manifest is satisfied by the retention of the facility's e-Manifest copies in its account on the e-Manifest System, provided that such copies are readily available for viewing and production if requested by any USEPA or Agency inspector.

5)         No owner or operator may be held liable for the inability to produce an e-Manifest for inspection under this Section if the owner or operator can demonstrate that the inability to produce the e-Manifest is due exclusively to a technical difficulty with the e-Manifest System for which the owner or operator bears no responsibility.

g)         An owner or operator may participate in the e-Manifest System either by accessing the e-Manifest System from the owner's or operator's electronic equipment, or by accessing the e-Manifest System from portable equipment brought to the owner's or operator's site by the transporter that delivers the waste shipment to the facility.

h)         Special Procedures Applicable to Replacement Manifests.  If a facility receives hazardous waste that is accompanied by a paper replacement manifest for a manifest that was originated electronically, the following procedures apply to the delivery of the hazardous waste by the final transporter:

1)         Upon delivery of the hazardous waste to the designated facility, the owner or operator must sign and date each copy of the paper replacement manifest by hand in Item 20 (Designated Facility Certification of Receipt) and note any discrepancies in Item 18 (Discrepancy Indication Space) of the paper replacement manifest;

2)         The owner or operator of the facility must give back to the final transporter one copy of the paper replacement manifest;

3)         Within 30 days after delivery of the hazardous waste to the designated facility, the owner or operator of the facility must send one signed and dated copy of the paper replacement manifest to the generator and send an additional signed and dated copy of the paper replacement manifest to the e-Manifest System; and

4)         The owner or operator of the facility must retain at the facility one copy of the paper replacement manifest for at least three years after the date of delivery.

i)          Special Procedures Applicable to Electronic Signature Methods Undergoing Tests.  If an owner or operator using an e-Manifest signs this manifest electronically using an electronic signature method that is undergoing pilot or demonstration tests aimed at demonstrating the practicality or legal dependability of the signature method, the owner or operator must also sign with an ink signature the facility's certification of receipt or discrepancies on the printed copy of the manifest provided by the transporter.  Upon executing its ink signature on this printed copy, the owner or operator must retain this original copy among its records for at least three years after the date of delivery of the waste.

j)          Imposition of User Fee for e-Manifest Use 

1)         As prescribed in 40 CFR 265.1311, incorporated by reference in 35 Ill. Adm. Code 720.111, and determined in 40 CFR 265.1312, incorporated by reference in 35 Ill. Adm. Code 720.111, an owner or operator that is a user of the e-Manifest System must be assessed a user fee by USEPA for the submission and processing of each e-Manifest and paper manifest.  USEPA has stated that it would update the schedule of user fees and publish them to the user community, as provided in 40 CFR 265.1313, incorporated by reference in 35 Ill. Adm. Code 720.111.

2)         An owner or operator subject to user fees under this Section must make user fee payments in accordance with the requirements of 40 CFR 265.1314, incorporated by reference in 35 Ill. Adm. Code 720.111, subject to the informal fee dispute resolution process of 40 CFR 265.1316, incorporated by reference in 35 Ill. Adm. Code 720.111, and subject to the sanctions for delinquent payments under 40 CFR 265.1315, incorporated by reference in 35 Ill. Adm. Code 720.111.

k)         E-Manifest Signatures.  E-Manifest signatures must meet the criteria described in 35 Ill. Adm. Code 722.125.

l)          Post-Receipt Manifest Data Corrections.  After a facility has certified to the receipt of hazardous wastes by signing Item 20 of the manifest, any interested person (i.e., any waste handler shown on the manifest or the Agency) may submit any post-receipt data corrections at any time.

1)         An interested person must make all corrections to manifest data by electronic submission, either by directly entering corrected data to the web-based service provided in the e-Manifest System for such corrections, or by an upload of a data file containing data corrections relating to one or more previously submitted manifests.

2)         Each correction submission must include the following information:

A)        The Manifest Tracking Number and date of receipt by the facility of the original manifests for which data are being corrected;

B)        The item numbers of the original manifest that is the subject of the submitted corrections; and

C)        For each item number with corrected data, the data previously entered and the corresponding data as corrected by the correction submission.

3)         Each correction submission must include a statement that the person submitting the corrections certifies that, to the best of his or her knowledge or belief, the corrections that are included in the submission will cause the information reported about the previously received hazardous wastes to be true, accurate, and complete:

A)        The person must execute the certification statement with a valid electronic signature; and

B)        The person may submit a batch upload of data corrections under one certification statement.

4)         Upon receipt by the e-Manifest System of any correction submission, other interested persons shown on the manifest will be provided electronic notice of the submitter's corrections.

5)         Other interested persons shown on the manifest may respond to the submitter's corrections with comments to the submitter, or by submitting another correction to the e-Manifest System, certified by the respondent as specified in subsection (l)(3), and with notice of the corrections to other interested persons shown on the manifest.

(Source:  Amended at 44 Ill. Reg. 15374, effective September 3, 2020)