Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) Advisory Opinion 2016-001
CFATS Announcement
As of July 28, 2023, Congress has allowed the statutory authority for the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) program (6 CFR Part 27) to expire.
Therefore, CISA cannot enforce compliance with the CFATS regulations at this time. This means that CISA will not require facilities to report their chemicals of interest or submit any information in CSAT, perform inspections, or provide CFATS compliance assistance, amongst other activities. CISA can no longer require facilities to implement their CFATS Site Security Plan or CFATS Alternative Security Program.
CISA encourages facilities to maintain security measures. CISA’s voluntary ChemLock resources are available on the ChemLock webpages.
If CFATS is reauthorized, CISA will follow up with facilities in the future. To reach us, please contact CFATS@hq.dhs.gov.
This is the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) Advisory Opinion 2016-001: RBPS-12 Background Check Requirements for Legacy Employees.
Summary: Under CFATS, covered chemical facilities must ensure that background checks are conducted on certain individuals with or seeking access to restricted areas or critical assets. See 6 CFR 27.230(a)(12). The attached letter addresses the requirement to conduct these background checks on legacy/long-time employees in addition to conducting them on newer employees. The Agency's longstanding position and interpretation of 6 CFR 27.230(a)(12) is that background checks are required to be conducted for all facility personnel with access to restricted areas or critical assets at high-risk chemical facilities, regardless of their length of service, as described in more detail in the attachment.