crs_reports: R49348

Congressional Research Service reports with summaries, authors, and topic classifications.

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R49348 U.S. Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program: Overview and Considerations for Congress 2026-09-11T04:00:00Z 2026-09-16T09:24:34Z Active Reports Kathryn G. Kynett Greenhouse Gases (GHGs), Climate Change, Environmental Policy, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) established the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program (GHGRP) in 2009 in response to a congressional directive mandating economy-wide reporting of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. EPA described the program’s purpose as gathering comprehensive emissions data to inform the development of future climate change policies. The GHGRP requires reporting from three broad groups of covered entities. Direct-emitting facilities in covered source categories report the GHG emissions released directly from their on-site processes and fuel combustion. Suppliers of fuels and industrial gases report the potential emissions associated with their products if combusted, released, or oxidized. Facilities that inject carbon dioxide (CO2) underground must report the quantities of CO2 injected or sequestered underground. Reporting is generally subject to emissions thresholds for both direct-emitting facilities and suppliers, primarily a threshold of 25,000 metric tons of CO2 equivalent (MTCO2e) per year, although certain source categories are required to report regardless of their emissions levels. There is no threshold for CO2 injection facilities, which must report all quantities of CO2 sequestered or injected underground. EPA began collecting GHGRP data in 2011 and has since collected data annually from approximately 8,000 direct-emitting facilities, suppliers, and CO2 injection facilities nationwide. EPA states these data represent 85%-90% of annual U.S. GHG emissions. The GHGRP requires covered entities to calculate and report annual GHG emissions using methodologies specified in regulation, tailored to each source category. Covered entities must report data on the following GHGs: CO2, methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), sulfur hexafluoride (SF6), perfluorinated compounds (PFCs), and other fluorinated gases. The program also includes verification and recordkeeping requirements. EPA generally makes reported emissions data publicly available. According to EPA, the GHGRP is the only national dataset containing facility-level and economy-wide GHG emissions data. GHGRP data have been used across a range of federal activities, including developing emissions standards, administering tax incentive programs, and implementing and enforcing regulations. The data also inform EPA’s Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks. Different Administrations have expressed varying views about whether, and to what extent, the Clean Air Act (CAA) authorizes EPA to collect economy-wide GHG data. EPA established the GHGRP under CAA Section 114 information collection authority, and under Section 821 for electric generating units specifically, following a directive in the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2008 (P.L. 110-161). Beginning in 2025, EPA initiated a series of actions to reconsider the scope and requirements of the GHGRP. In its 2025 proposed rule, EPA asserts that Section 114 does not authorize continued economy-wide data collection, that the data are not needed to carry out the CAA, and that eliminating most reporting requirements would relieve reporting entities of compliance costs. EPA estimates the proposal would produce significant cost savings for reporting entities. Stakeholder positions on EPA’s proposal reflect a range of views. Some stakeholders support the proposal, arguing that the program is burdensome and its costs outweigh its benefits, while others oppose it, arguing that the standardized, facility-level GHG data provide essential benefits across the public and private sectors. EPA’s reconsideration raises a number of policy questions for Congress. These include whether existing statutory authority adequately supports the program as currently implemented, whether to retain these authorities, or whether to modify these authorities. Congress may weigh the benefits of having standardized emissions data against the compliance costs for reporting the data. Congress could address these questions through legislation or through oversight of EPA’s reconsideration of the program. https://www.congress.gov/crs_external_products/R/PDF/R49348/R49348.3.pdf https://www.congress.gov/crs_external_products/R/HTML/R49348.html

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