Tier Two & Contingency Reporting

New Facility Users

• Go to E-Plan.
• Click on Companies - If you want to fill out your Tier Two reports using E-Plan's Online Tier Two Submit.
• You will now be on the E-Plan Tier Two Reporting System page.
• Scroll to the bottom where you see Select a Tour.
• Select Create a New Submission
• At the conclusion of the training, go back to the E-Plan Tier Two Reporting System page
• Go back to Select a Tour and select each remaining topic.

You are now ready to begin. Follow the instructions under Create a New Submission for obtaining your ID number and proceed from there.

How to copy data from one year to another:

• Go to E-Plan.
• Select the old year under the first drop down box. Then, select the new year under the second drop down box and click on Continue.
• The data will now be copied and the new year will appear under the list of currently filed years.
• Delete the old data following the steps in How to Delete a Facility Record.

Making data available to emergency responders: Important Step

At the bottom of the Filing page, click Upload Data to E-Plan. This should bring up a list of facilities for that particular year filed by you. Besides each facility, you will find a Check Box and at the right of the facility name you will see a Status indicating whether it has been filed or not. If a facility has not been filed, then select the check box and click on Update. All facilities that show the status as Filed are available to first responders.

Exporting data out of E-Plan into a .t2s file or .zip file:

• Go to E-Plan; select the Filing Year and click Continue.
• At the bottom of the page, click on either Export to Tier Two Zip File or Export to .t2s File to get either a zip file or a .t2s file. Before you click on Export, it is a good idea to click on Validate Record to see if your submission has any errors. If the report shows errors, correct them before you export to a .t2s or .zip file.
• Once you click on Export, a new page is displayed with check boxes beside each facility. Check the boxes for all the facilities you want included in the file.
• Note that once you click on the Export button, the system will ask you whether you want to Save the file or Open the file. Always choose the Save option and save it to your computer.

Deleting last year's record:

• Go to E-Plan and select the Year(s) you want to delete. Click on Continue.
• Click on Delete Facility. Use links to delete Contacts and Chemicals.

Uploading documents (for example: contingency plans or MSDSs):

• Click on Edit Facility beside the facility and click on Documents.
• Click on Browse and choose the file on your computer that you want to upload.
• Fill in a Description for the file (such as Contingency Plan).
• Click to Upload the selected file.

This procedure is for uploading documents for a facility in general. If you want to upload a document under a particular contact or chemical, use the Edit link and the Documents tab.

There is no difference between uploading a document under a Facility or a Chemical or a Contact, at least from a first responder's perspective. When a first responder looks at Facility information on E-Plan, all the documents under Facility, Chemical, and Contact appear as a single menu.

View data in .t2s or .zip file created by E-Plan:

• The .t2s or the .zip file created by E-Plan can only be viewed by the Tier2Submit software developed by the EPA.
• Open Tier2Submit software. From the File menu click on Import / Export, then choose Import Files and select the .t2s or the .zip file stored on your computer.
• The software displays messages indicating whether everything was imported properly.
• Click on the Close button and verify that all the facility information you entered on E-Plan is visible. Pay particular attention to whether the properties of chemicals and their locations have been imported properly.
• If everything looks okay, you can use the .t2s file stored on your computer to make an electronic submission to your state or local reporting agencies. If you find any errors, immediately contact the E-Plan Administrative Team using the Contact Us link on the E-Plan website.

Guidance for 2007 Reporting Year

The Guilford County LEPC, which includes the cities of Greensboro and High Point, has voted to have all reporting support electronic submission of Tier 2 Submit files sent directly to E-Plan. Companies that submit Tier 2 reports directly to E-Plan will not be required to also submit reports to LEPC or the local fire department. This E-Plan submittal fulfills your requirements to submit to LEPC and your local fire department.

To file electronically, go to E-Plan and click on E-Plan – Online Filing (Tier Two) option written in red directly over Welcome. When you complete the requested information, E-Plan will send you a password to access your facility for future updates.

E-Plan also provides for the addition of items such as contingency plans and site maps under the Additional Documents section. You may receive correspondence from your local public safety officials to add documents to that field. Instructions and training will be provided to you should that occur.

Again, if you submit to E-Plan, you do not have to send your Tier forms to the High Point, Greensboro or Guilford County fire departments, nor do you have to send your Tier Two forms to the Guilford County LEPC.

You do, however, have to send information to NC Emergency Management and you are urged to file electronically. Simply export E-Plan information to the EPA Tier Two Submit Program and then send the .t2s to NC Emergency Management. Always request an email receipt.

Also make sure to obtain a NC Division of Emergency Management Guidance Letter. For questions regarding any NC State Emergency Management Submission, call (919) 733-3867.

For questions about any of these processes, contact Marilyn Braun, coordinator of Greensboro Emergency Management, at (336) 373-2951 or by email.

E-Plan contact information:
    Phone: (972) 883-2631
    Fax: (972) 883-4441
    Email
    E-Plan Website (for First Responders)
    E-Plan's Online Tier Two Reporting System Website (for Facility Users)
    Mailing address: The University of Texas at Dallas
                                    E-Plan WT-11
                                    800 W. Campbell Rd.
                                    Richardson, TX 75080-3021

How is E-Plan’s Online Tier Two Reporting System different from EPA’s Tier2 Submit Software?

The E-Plan’s Online Tier II Reporting System is very similar to the Tier2 Submit Software developed by EPA. However, the advantage of E-Plan’s Online Tier II Reporting System is that you do not have to install any software on your machine to submit your data. With no software, there are no software updates required every year. Also, E-Plan’s Online Tier Two Reporting System allows you to retrieve your submission anywhere from any computer with the security of an Access ID and password that is known only to you.

How do I start using E-Plan’s Online Tier Two Reporting System?

You can start a new submission by going to the E-Plan’s Online Tier Two Reporting System site.   

Once at the Welcome to E-Plan’s Online Tier Two Reporting System page, click on the Register Now link to create a new Access ID. You will be prompted to create a password for your submission and provide your name and email address. The Access ID and password will protect your submission against unauthorized access.

How can I import an existing submission from EPA’s Tier2 Submit software into E-Plan’s Online Tier Two Reporting System?

EPA’s Tier2 Submit allows you to export a submission entered through the software into a zip file containing eight .mer files. There are two ways to create this zip file from the EPA’s Tier2 Submit.

1. The easiest way to create a zip file from the EPA’s Tier2 Submit is to use the Export feature under the File menu.
 
2. The second way is to find the location where the EPA’s Tier2 Submit Software is installed on your computer and zip the files in the Export Files folder of the software.

Once the Tier2 Submit’s zip file is created, it can be imported into the E-Plan’s Online Tier Two Reporting System by uploading the file through the web interface. The functionality to perform this operation (i.e. Upload .zip file) is present under the Submission home screen upon logging in to the E-Plan system.

Note: The Tier2 Submit’s zip file will be imported as it is into the E-Plan’s Online Tier Two Reporting System. For example, if the data in the zip file is for year 2005, it will be imported as a year 2005 submission. You will have to convert the data from year 2005 to the filing year using the Copy Data from Previous Year function on the Submission page.

How do I edit facility, contact, and chemical information?

Facility, contact, and chemical information entered into the E-Plan’s Online Tier Two Reporting System database has an Edit link under its respective name. Clicking on the Edit link will display the entered details pre-populated. After making required changes, press the appropriate Save and Continue button to submit the changes.

Note: There is no limit on the number of facilities, contacts, or chemicals you can add.

How can I print a copy of my submission or export a zip file or .t2s file to submit to the state?

You will find the Export to Tier2 Zip, Export to .t2s File, Validate, Print PDF, and Upload Data to E-Plan functions on the Filing Management page. Clicking on the appropriate button will perform the intended operations.

What about the state's specific fields?

When creating a new facility, you are prompted to select the state in which the facility is located. After you chose the applicable state, the next page will display the state required fields. Some states do not require any specific fields and for such states, the State Fields section will show No Applicable State Fields.

What type of values can I enter in the information fields for facility, contact, and chemical information?

For most fields, any string made up of alphanumeric characters (A-Z, a-z, 0-9, special characters such as / and %) is an acceptable value. For example, facility name can be made up of alphanumeric characters and special characters. However, in fields such as quantities, only numeric characters are acceptable. Do not use commas or the percentage sign.

How secure is the submission process?

The submission database, which receives submissions and requests from the Internet, is a secure server that encrypts all data entered by you. The information stored on the server is also secure and has no connections to the Internet. The submission itself is protected against unauthorized access by means of a password created by you and a seven digit Access ID. Do not share your Access ID and password.

If I submit online, are the details of the submission reported directly to the state?

When you submit data on E-Plan, it is not sent electronically to the state.

• Some counties within a state have a tie-up with E-Plan, so you do not have to submit data to the county reporting agency. Contact your county officials to see if they accept E-Plan as a form of electronic filing. Again this process is only for the county; you will still need to submit your data electronically to your state.
• If your state accepts Tier2 Zip file or .t2s file for an electronic submission, then retrieve those files from E-Plan by clicking on Export to Tier2 zip or Export to .t2s file button on the Filing Management screen.

Do I need to pay anything to use the E-Plan’s Online Tier Two Reporting System?

No, you do not have to pay any fees to use the system.

What if I have comments or questions? Who should I contact?

If you need to contact us for help, the best way is to use the Contact Us link on any E-Plan website page. This will take you to a new window where you can enter your contact information and questions, suggestions, or comments. Once you submit your request, an email is sent to the E-Plan Administrative Team, which will review your request and contact you if needed. Your suggestions / comments are greatly appreciated.

What if I forget my Access ID or password?

You can get the Access ID(s) under your account by clicking on the Forgot Access ID link on the E-Plan’s Online Tier Two Reporting System login page. Once you get the Access ID(s) in the email, you can request for the password associated with it by clicking on the Forgot Password link.

Can a zip file made from CAMEO be loaded into E-Plan?

Importing a zip file from CAMEO will be a future enhancements to the E-Plan’s Online Tier Two Reporting System.