ISCD Updates 2 FAQS – 9-4-20

On Friday CISA’s Infrastructure Security Compliance Division (ISCD) corrected the responses to two frequently asked questions (FAQs) on the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) Knowledge Center. The changes were non-substantive editorial changes.

The following FAQ responses were revised Friday:

FAQ #1666 Does a covered chemical facility have an obligation to notify the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) if the facility is closing?

FAQ #1724 How do National Terrorism Advisory System (NTAS) Alerts and Bulletins affect a CFATS facility’s RBPS 13 compliance responsibilities?

NOTE: The links provided for all FAQs in this post were copied from the CFATS Knowledge Center but may not work when followed from your machine. This is an artifact of that web site. If the links do not take you to the referenced FAQ you will have to use the ‘Advanced Search’ function on the page to link to the FAQ or download the ‘All FAQs’ document at the bottom of the ‘Advanced Search’ page.

The following changes were made in the referenced FAQs:

#1666 Correct minor typo (caps), and

#1724 Correct minor typo (caps)

ISCD Publishes 1 New FAQ and Updates 6 FAQ Responses – 9-2-20

Today CISA’s Infrastructure Security Compliance Division (ISCD) published one new frequently asked question (FAQ) and updated responses to six existing FAQ’s on the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) Knowledge Center. The updates are generally not substantive changes in policy or guidance, but rather issued to increase their ease of use.

New FAQ

The newly published FAQ is:

FAQ #1666 Does a covered chemical facility have an obligation to notify the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) if the facility is closing?

NOTE: The links provided for all FAQs in this post were copied from the CFATS Knowledge Center but may not work when followed from your machine. This is an artifact of that web site. If the links do not take you to the referenced FAQ you will have to use the ‘Advanced Search’ function on the page to link to the FAQ or download the ‘All FAQs’ document at the bottom of the ‘Advanced Search’ page.

The short answer is found in the first paragraph of the response:

“A covered chemical facility that has closed must report the closure to CISA so that the facility record may be archived. Notification is accomplished by submitting a revised Top-Screen and sending a signed letter to CISA notifying CISA of the facility’s closure.”

This ‘must report’ answer is based upon the requirement in 6 CFR 27.210(d) to report ‘material modifications’ to a facility’s operations or site within 60 days.

Not mentioned in the FAQ response is the necessity of informing ISCD (if you do not do it in your letter submission, they will certainly ask) about the disposition of the remaining DHS chemicals of interest at the site. It is unlikely that ISCD will relieve a facility owner of the responsibility of maintaining the site security plan operations while COI remains on site.

Updated FAQ

The following FAQ responses were revised today:

FAQ #1724 How do National Terrorism Advisory System (NTAS) Alerts and Bulletins affect a CFATS Facility’s RBPS 13 compliance responsibilities?

FAQ #1738 What is the difference between the Expedited Approval Program (EAP) and the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) program?

FAQ #1739 What is the difference between the Risk Based Performance Standards (RBPS) Guidance document and the DHS Guidance for the Expedited Approval Program (EAP)?

FAQ #1758 I am the owner/operator of a farm that possesses anhydrous ammonia (AA) at or above the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) screening threshold quantity (STQ) for commercial sale and distribution to facilities that then use my business’s product for treatment of crops. Is my facility eligible to claim the CFATS agricultural production facility Top-Screen extension?

FAQ #1759 I am the owner/operator of a farm that possesses anhydrous ammonia (AA) at or above the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) screening threshold quantity (STQ) of 10,000 lb for use as a refrigerant in a cold storage facility for fresh produce (fruits, vegetables, etc.). Is my facility eligible to claim the CFATS agricultural production facility Top-Screen extension?

FAQ #1769 My facility must perform background checks in accordance with the Risk-Based Performance Standard (RBPS) 12 “Personnel Surety” on affected individuals. Who is an affected individual?

The following changes were made in the referenced FAQs:

• #1724 – Corrected grammatical error is question,

• #1738 – Added reference to “Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards Act of 2014 (CFATS Act)”,

• #1739 – Added links to referenced documents,

• #1758 – Added linked reference to Federal Register Notice,

• #1759 – Added linked reference to Federal Register Notice, and

• #1769 – Changed URL to link to CFR reference.

ISCD Updates 3 FAQ Responses – 9-1-20

Today the CISA Infrastructure Security Compliance Division (ISCD) updated the responses to three frequently asked questions (FAQ’s) on the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) Knowledge Center.

With the exception of the response to FAQ #1620, the changes were minor, non-substantive editorial changes dealing with the provision of links to official documents.

The three updated FAQs were:

FAQ #1253 How can I request a Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) presentation?

FAQ #1490 Must all employees involved in filling out the Top-Screen, Security Vulnerability Assessment (SVA), or Site Security Plan (SSP) at my facility be Chemical-terrorism Vulnerability Information (CVI) Authorized Users?

FAQ #1620 How does an individual report a possible security concern involving the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) regulation at one’s facility or another facility?

NOTE: The links provided above were copied from the CFATS Knowledge Center but may not work when followed from your machine. This is an artifact of that web site. If the links do not take you to the referenced FAQ you will have to use the ‘Advanced Search’ function on the page to link to the FAQ or download the ‘All FAQs’ document at the bottom of the ‘Advanced Search’ page.

The following changes were made in the referenced FAQs:

• #1253 – Revised list of questions to be answered in request email,

• #1490 – Changed listing URL’s to link to document name,

• #1620 – Changed snail mail address for reporting CFATS violations.

ISCD Updates 3 FAQ Responses – 8-26-20

Today the CISA Infrastructure Security Compliance Division (ISCD) updated the responses to three frequently asked questions (FAQs) on the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) Knowledge Center. The changes were minor, non-substantive editorial changes dealing with the provision of links to official documents.

The three updated FAQs were:

FAQ # 1398 Are chemicals of interest (COI) in hazardous waste to be counted towards a screening threshold quantity (STQ)?

FAQ #1481 What factors does a facility need to account for when calculating whether a facility possesses the screening threshold quantity (STQ) for a theft/diversion chemical of interest (COI)

FAQ #1673 Where can I read about the current indefinite extension to the Top-Screen deadline for agricultural production facilities?

NOTE: The links provided above were copied from the CFATS Knowledge Center but may not work when followed from your machine. This is an artifact of that web site. If the links do not take you to the referenced FAQ you will have to use the ‘Advanced Search’ function on the page to link to the FAQ or download the ‘All FAQs’ document at the bottom of the ‘Advanced Search’ page.

The following changes were made in the referenced FAQs:

• #1398 Added link for ‘40 CFR 261.33’

• #1481 Added link for ‘49 CFR § 171.8’

• #1673 Added link for ‘(73 FR 1640)’

ISCD Publishes Two New FAQs

Today the DHS Infrastructure Security Compliance Division (ISCD) published two new (mainly) frequently asked questions (FAQs) on their Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) Knowledge Center. The responses to both FAQs are videos that run about 8 minutes each.

The two new FAQs are:

#1790 What is CFATS?

#1791 What are Reportable Chemicals?

Sharp eyed readers will recognize that ISCD attempted to publish the second FAQ last Friday but had problems with the video. As I reported earlier (as an addendum to the initial post) the FAQ came down yesterday. Today the FAQ was republished (with today’s date as the ‘date published’) and the videos for both FAQs work.

I am not a big fan of video tutorials, but that probably has more to do with my age than the efficacy of medium. Both videos are fairly typical of the quality one expects to see on video tutorials on YouTube. That is not a criticism, just a statement on the lack of “professional production values” folks of my era would expect to see in a training film.