EPA Renews Farm Worker Pesticide Safety Paperwork Rules
Published Date: 11/18/2025
Notice
Summary
The EPA wants to renew its rules that help protect farm workers by making sure they get proper training, notifications, and recordkeeping about pesticide safety. This affects farmers and agricultural businesses who must keep up with these requirements, with no big changes or extra costs expected. You’ve got until January 20, 2026, to share your thoughts before the renewal is finalized.
Analyzed Economic Effects
3 provisions identified: 1 benefits, 2 costs, 0 mixed.
Agricultural Employers Keep Paperwork Rules
If you run a farm, nursery, greenhouse, or commercial pesticide handling establishment, you must continue to provide training, notifications, and keep records under the Worker Protection Standard (40 CFR part 170). The information collection renewal is mandatory and the ICR remains approved through June 30, 2026; EPA is seeking comments on the renewal by January 20, 2026.
Large Estimated Annual Burden and Cost
EPA estimates 10,840,082 potential respondent entities and a total annual respondent burden of 10,137,696 hours with total estimated annual costs of $446,339,743 for this information collection. The ICR shows a reduction of 50,974 burden hours compared with the prior OMB-approved ICR.
Workers Keep Pesticide Safety Protections
If you work on agricultural sites or handle pesticides, the renewal keeps rules that require annual training, posting of pesticide-treated areas, access to application-specific information, and additional information before entering areas during a restricted entry interval (REI). These protections are maintained to improve worker and handler safety and enforcement under the Worker Protection Standard.
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