All Knowledge & Insights By Date

On December 7, 2021, the House Science, Space, and Technology Subcommittees on Environment and on Research and Technology held a joint hearing entitled “Forever Chemicals: Research and Development for Addressing the PFAS Problem.” Four witnesses spoke before the subcommittees on their respective knowledge of the current state of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and where each felt future actions should be focused: Dr. Elsie Sunderland, Gordon McKay Professor of...

The House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Environment and Climate Change held a hearing on October 27, 2021, on “TSCA and Public Health: Fulfilling the Promise of the Lautenberg Act.” The October 25, 2021, briefing memorandum notes that the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act (the Lautenberg Act) comprehensively amended the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), “including key reforms to increase [the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA)]...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on October 21, 2021, that it is proposing to extend further the compliance dates related to articles containing phenol, isopropylated phosphate (3:1) (PIP (3:1)) to ensure supply chains for key consumer and commercial goods are not disrupted. As reported in our September 3, 2021, memorandum that addresses a September 17, 2021, final rule, EPA provided a short-term extension of certain compliance dates for PIP (3:1)...

On October 20, 2021, the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works held a hearing on “Evaluating the Federal Response to the Persistence and Impacts of PFAS Chemicals on our Environment.” The sole witness called before the Committee was the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Assistant Administrator for the Office of Water, Radhika Fox. The focus of the hearing was to address the recently released EPA Strategic Roadmap for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS)....

On October 18, 2021, the Biden Administration announced a multi-agency plan to address per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contamination nationwide. According to the White House, agencies, including the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Department of Defense (DOD), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), will take actions to...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on September 3, 2021, that it intends to initiate a new rulemaking and anticipates proposing new rules for five persistent, bioaccumulative, and toxic (PBT) chemicals that are the subject of final risk management rules under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). Additionally, and importantly, EPA is extending the compliance dates for the prohibitions on processing and distribution and the associated recordkeeping requirements of one of...

On August 31, 2021, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the availability of the final scope documents for the manufacturer-requested risk evaluations (MRRE) of di-isodecyl phthalate (DIDP) and diisononyl phthalate (DINP). 86 Fed. Reg. 48695; 86 Fed. Reg. 48693. The scope documents include the conditions of use, hazards, exposures, and the potentially exposed or susceptible subpopulations that EPA plans to consider in conducting the risk...

In a July 30, 2021, filing in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) states that it cannot “meaningfully commence” risk management rulemaking for 1,4-dioxane until it nears completion of its reconsideration of the final risk evaluation. EPA released the final risk evaluation for 1,4-dioxane on January 8, 2021, in the final weeks of the Trump Administration. On June 30, 2021, the Biden-Harris EPA announced several policy...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) convened a public webinar on July 27, 2021, to engage with stakeholders on the development of a proposed rule under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) to implement a tiered data collection strategy intended to inform EPA’s prioritization, risk evaluation, and risk management activities for chemical substances or mixtures. According to the July 14, 2021, Federal Register notice announcing the webinar, EPA currently...

On June 30, 2021, Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C®), the Environmental Law Institute (ELI), and the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health presented “TSCA Reform - Five Years Later.” This virtual conference marked the fifth Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Annual Conference, reflecting on the accomplishments and challenges since the implementation of the 2016 Lautenberg Amendments and where TSCA stands today. Speakers covered a variety of topics,...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published a final rule on June 29, 2021, that requires manufacturers (including importers) of 50 specified chemical substances to report certain lists and copies of unpublished health and safety studies to EPA. 86 Fed. Reg. 34147. EPA is issuing the final rule pursuant to Section 8(d) of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) and the TSCA Health and Safety Data Reporting rule codified at 40 C.F.R. Part 716. The chemical substances subject to...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on June 10, 2021, three actions intended to protect communities from per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). The actions include proposing a rule designed to obtain comprehensive data on more than 1,000 PFAS manufactured in the United States, withdrawing guidance that EPA believes weakened its July 2020 significant new use rule (SNUR) restricting certain long-chain PFAS, and publishing a final rule that incorporates three...

On March 1, 2021, the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) received for review under Executive Order 12866 (Regulatory Planning and Review) from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) a proposed rule entitled “Reporting and Recordkeeping for Perfluoroalkyl or Polyfluoroalkyl Substances Under Section 8(a)(7) of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)” (Proposed Rule). This action is required under Section 7351 of the National Defense...

On May 12, 2021, the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works held a hearing on several Department of the Interior and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) nominees, including Michal Freedhoff, Ph.D., to be Assistant Administrator for the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention (OCSPP). In her opening statement, Dr. Freedhoff stated that during her time working for the legislative branch, she believes that she “earned a reputation for being fair,...

On February 8, 2021, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) received a petition seeking a rule reversing EPA’s 1991 Bevill regulatory determination excluding phosphogypsum and process wastewater from phosphoric acid production (process wastewater) from hazardous waste regulation under Subtitle C of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). The petition also urges EPA to promulgate regulations under RCRA Subtitle C governing the safe treatment, storage, and disposal...

On March 10, 2021, the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations held a hearing on “The Path Forward: Restoring the Vital Mission of EPA.” According to the March 7, 2021, memorandum from Representative Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ), Chair of the Committee, to the Subcommittee, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) current responsibilities include reviewing national air pollution standards and overseeing or carrying out cleanups at most of the...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on January 15, 2021, that it has issued test orders under Section 4 of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) to obtain additional data on nine of the next 20 chemicals undergoing risk evaluation. EPA states that after reviewing the available data on these chemicals, it needs additional data and is using its TSCA test order authority to require companies to develop and submit information on environmental hazard and inhalation...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on January 14, 2021, the release of the final risk evaluation for C.I. Pigment Violet 29 (PV29) under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), meeting a “major chemical safety milestone.” In the risk evaluation, EPA reviewed 14 conditions of use for PV29, including as an intermediate for other perylene pigments, as well as a component of paints, coatings, industrial carpeting, and plastic and rubber products used...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on January 12, 2021, that it signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) “that advances collaboration and communication on EPA’s review of new chemicals under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA).” The goal of the MOU is to improve the combined efforts of the agencies to protect workers who may be exposed to a new chemical substance by providing guidelines for...

On January 8, 2021, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released the final risk evaluation for 1,4-dioxane. 86 Fed. Reg. 1495. The final risk evaluation identifies unreasonable risk to workers for 13 out of 24 conditions of use. EPA states that it found no unreasonable risk to the general population and the environment. EPA notes that it also published a supplemental analysis to the draft risk evaluation that evaluated eight additional conditions of use for 1,4-dioxane...