James V. Aidala Quoted In Bloomberg BNA Daily Environment Report Article “EPA Must Adjust to New Toxics Law, Former Officials Say”

On June 22, 2016, James V. Aidala, Vice President, Policy and Government Affairs with The Acta Group (Acta^®), was quoted in a Bloomberg BNA Daily Environment Report article on the expected U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) implementation of the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act.

Jim Aidala, former head of the EPA Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics, told Bloomberg BNA the first few months of implementation of the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act will be “chaotic in the happy sense” for the EPA.

“They will need to triage current chemicals in review and write rules to be able to accept industry fees before they can collect them and allocate them for use in hiring and for the program,” said Aidala, who is now a senior consultant at Bergeson & Campbell LLC.

Aidala speculated that each new full-time employee the program hires will cost about $250,000 a year including salary, benefits and training. He estimated the number of new hires could range from 100 to 200, including the personnel to manage the new staff. Aidala said the agency is likely to double the size of the current TSCA program to match the expectations and obligations the new law creates once industry fees can be accepted.

According to a June 22 EPA statement on the new law, “Prior to proposing a [fee collection] rule, EPA will consult with parties subject to the fees, as required by the act. The agency plans to begin this process in the coming weeks.”

Looking back at the last major environmental statute passed by Congress—the 1996 Food Quality Protection Act—Aidala said EPA enforcement and regional officials will want the toxics office to fund new people to police and implement toxic chemical programs.