PRIA 5 Implementation

The Pesticide Registration Improvement Act (PRIA) was enacted in 2004 and established a new system for registering pesticides including registration service fees to be paid by applicants and specified decision review times, along with funding for farmworker protection activities. PRIA was reauthorized in 2007, 2012, 2019, and most recently on December 29, 2022 (PRIA 5). Registration service fees authorized by PRIA fund approximately one third of EPA’s pesticide program activities.

PRIA 5 revised registration service fees and decision review times, and included several new provisions, such as implementation of farmworker protections and health clinician training in recognizing and treating pesticide incidences, requirements for bilingual pesticide labeling, and a requirement for EPA to promulgate guidance on Endangered Species Act review for certain categories of PRIA actions. EPA has been working to meet the requirements in the law within the statutory deadlines. Below are some highlights of EPA’s progress related to PRIA 5 deliverables.

PRIA 5 Accomplishments in 2023

• Implemented increased maintenance fees: EPA sent out invoices for pesticide maintenance fees reflecting new PRIA 5 fee levels. Read EPA’s announcement.
• Updated PRIA fee tables: EPA posted the revised PRIA 5 pesticide registration service fees for new PRIA applications. Read EPA’s announcement.
• Received feedback on bilingual labeling accessibility: EPA conducted significant outreach to and solicited feedback from a broad array of stakeholders, including farmworkers and farmworker advocacy groups, the National Environmental Justice Advisory Council, the Pesticide Program Dialogue Committee (PPDC), pesticide companies, states, and EPA regions. In June 2023, EPA conducted a public webinar and received comments from stakeholders on ways to make bilingual pesticide labeling accessible to farmworkers. For more information see EPA’s bilingual labeling webpage.
• Provided funding to SENSOR program for pesticide incidence surveillance: EPA provided funding through an interagency agreement between EPA and CDC/NIOSH to support the Sentinel Event Notification System for Occupational Risk (SENSOR) program’s monitoring of acute pesticide-related illness and injury, with the goal of increasing the number of participating states and improving reporting by participating states.
• Consulted with state partners on bilingual labeling implementation: EPA met with state lead agency groups such as the State FIFRA Issues Research and Evaluation Group (SFIREG) and the Association of American Pesticide Control Officials (AAPCO) on numerous occasions to discuss implementation of the PRIA 5 bilingual labeling requirements. For more information see EPA’s bilingual labeling webpage.
• Addressed backlog of non-fee for service actions: EPA began efforts to reduce the backlog of non-PRIA actions and process these actions according to their timeframes. In FY 2023, EPA closed out over 3,000 notification actions as part of backlog clean-up, and in November implemented a wholistic strategy for non-PRIA actions for conventional pesticides. This effort has included outreach to industry stakeholders on proposed approaches, as well as outreach to state partners. In total, EPA completed or closed out over 6,000 non-PRIA actions in FY 2023.
• Created a centralized guidance webpage: EPA posted a centralized webpage for guidance and pesticide-related links. Over 1,000 guidance documents relating to pesticide regulation are included on this page. View the webpage.
• Announced a funding opportunity under the partnership grant set-aside: EPA announced a funding opportunity for the National Pesticide Information Center. Read EPA’s announcement.
• Implemented PRIA 5 process changes for review of applications: EPA implemented several changes to its processes for review of fee-related actions, most notably those relating to renegotiation of PRIA due dates, but also regarding activities to be completed prior to the preliminary technical screen due date and communication to applicants when a PRIA decision review date has passed but review of the application is ongoing.
• Developed and issued ESA guidance for conventional and biopesticides: EPA opened a public comment period on draft guidance to applicants intended to improve the efficiency of EPA’s Endangered Species Act (ESA) analyses for new pesticide active ingredient applications and active ingredients undergoing registration review. EPA considered comments received and issued final guidance in September 2023. Read EPA’s announcement. EPA similarly opened a public comment period on draft guidance for new use applications, considered public comment, and issued final guidance in December 2023.
• Communicated with interested parties: EPA held meetings with the PPDC that included sessions on PRIA 5 process improvements, bilingual labeling, and ESA activities.
• Awarded new Pesticide Safety Education Program (PSEP) cooperative agreement: EPA awarded a new five-year cooperative agreement for the PSEP which includes collaboration between PSEPs and minority serving institutions and translation of pesticide safety materials. Read EPA’s announcement.
• Provided farmworker training and education: EPA supported farmworker training and development of educational materials through continuation of existing cooperative agreements, including subawards to non-profit, community-based organizations.
• Requested stakeholder input for health care provider training cooperative agreement: EPA published the Request for Information to solicit stakeholder input on the program design for the Health Care Provider Training cooperative agreement Notice of Funding Opportunity in September 2023. Read EPA’s announcement.
• Improved electronic registration submission process: EPA successfully migrated all divisions within the Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP) into the new information technology (IT) system for electronic registration submissions and application tracking.
• Established a Vector Expedited Review Voucher (VERV) program: EPA established the VERV program to incentivize registration of new insecticides to control the spread of vector-borne disease. Read EPA’s announcement.
• Developed a process for the sharing of data evaluation records (DERs): EPA has developed a process for sharing DERs associated with PRIA applications with the applicant at the time of the regulatory decision, has shared this process with industry and received feedback, and will fully implement the process across all regulatory divisions.
• Finalized a contract for analysis of training gaps: EPA expanded an existing EPA contract with a third party to provide analysis of training gaps regarding regulatory responsibilities and policies relating to PRIA. EPA concurrently developed a competitive grant for training which was directed to institutions of higher education.

PRIA 5 Accomplishments in 2024:

• Issued process assessment and workforce assessment contracts: EPA engaged with potential candidates regarding an independent assessment of the process for reviewing PRIA pesticide applications as well as an assessment of current methodologies and data or metrics to represent the workforce implementing PRIA 5. EPA finalized contracts in 2024.
• Requested stakeholder input for farmworker training grants: EPA developed a Request for Information for farmworker training and education grants, which proposed a design which incorporates recommendations made by the PPDC workgroup and aligned with PRIA 5 requirements.
• Enhanced electronic registration submission process: EPA continued to enhance internal IT systems for the receipt and review of pesticide applications, as well as initiate outreach to pesticide registrants regarding the development of a customer portal allowing applicants to view EPA progress on review of their applications.
• Implemented the tracking of the adoption of bilingual labeling: EPA developed and implemented, and made publicly available, a plan for tracking the adoption of bilingual labeling. For more information see EPA’s bilingual labeling webpage.
• Bega technology reporting: EPA began reporting on the progress of meeting IT-improvement requirements of PRIA 5.
• Proposed guidance to improve efficiency of Endangered Species Act (ESA) considerations with antimicrobial pesticides: EPA released proposed guidance to registrants on activities to improve the efficiency of ESA considerations for new active ingredient and new use registrations and registration review for antimicrobial pesticides. This guidance, when finalized, fulfills requirements outlined in the Pesticide Registration Improvement Act of 2022 (PRIA 5) and furthers goals outlined in EPA’s 2022 ESA Workplan to protect listed species from exposure to pesticides. Additional information can be found in our Pesticide News Story.
• Published new resources on bilingual pesticide labeling: The new resources include guidance on implementation timelines of bilingual labeling requirements for various types of pesticide products based on their toxicity, as well as frequently asked questions and answers related to these requirements. Read EPA's announcement.
• Updated the Spanish Translation Guide for Pesticide Labeling: Based on stakeholder feedback, EPA updated the guide for the translation of key sections of pesticide labeling from English to Spanish. Read EPA's announcement.
• Updated Annual Pesticide Registration Maintenance Fee Materials: EPA updated its annual pesticide registration maintenance fees webpage and fee tables. See Updated Annual Pesticide Registration Maintenance Fees for 2025 for more information.
• Requested Input on Health Care Provider Training Program for Farmworkers: EPA published a request for information soliciting public comment on the design of a new program to train health care providers on the prevention, recognition, treatment, and reporting of pesticide illness.
• Requested Input on Pesticide Safety Education Program for Farmworkers: EPA published a request for information soliciting public comment on the design of a new National Farmworker Training and Education Program on pesticide safety under PRIA set-aside (G).
• Published Notices of Funding Opportunity (NFO): The NFOs for new cooperative agreements were published under PRIA 5 set-asides (G) Farmworker training and education grants, and (H) Health care provider training.
• Awarded noncompetitive cooperative agreements: EPA awarded the agreements under set-aside (K) Technical Assistance, to provide support to applicants and potential applicants. 

PRIA 5 Accomplishments in 2025:

• Requested public comments on a new, streamlined approach to track the adoption of bilingual pesticide labeling: EPA requested public comment on a proposed streamlined approach to allow product information and PRIA 5 compliance information to be in a single location and allow for more efficient transmission, analysis, and publication of data. Read EPA’s announcement. 
• Updated bilingual labeling Q&A: EPA updated its bilingual labeling Q&A to include additional questions and answers on topics relating to enforcement, supplemental distributor labels, QR codes and websites already on the label, how to handle subsequent label changes, and many more.   
• Awarded two new cooperative agreements: EPA awarded the agreements under PRIA 5 set-asides (G) Farmworker training and education grants, and (H) Health care provider training.
• Continued funding for existing cooperative agreements: EPA continued funding under set-asides (I) Partnership grants, (J) Pesticide safety education programs, and (K) Technical assistance to grantees.
• Released OPP-Wide Training Gap Analysis Report: EPA released a report from a third-party contractor that conducted a comprehensive review of existing training materials, internal staff feedback, process mapping, and external stakeholder input to identify key challenges and opportunities for strengthening OPP’s training infrastructure. Read the report.
• Released PRIA Process Assessment Final Report: EPA released a report from a third-party contractor aimed at evaluating and improving key pesticide registration functions. Read the report.