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January 6, 2023

The Acta Group Releases 2023 Forecast for U.S. Federal and International Chemical Regulatory Policy

The ACTA Group

Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C®) and its global consulting affiliate The Acta Group (Acta®) and consortia management affiliate B&C® Consortia Management, L.L.C. (BCCM) are pleased to offer you our Forecast 2023, our seasoned team’s collective take on what to expect regarding global industrial, agricultural, and biocidal chemical initiatives in the New Year. We have worked hard to offer our best-informed judgment on the trends and key developments we expect to see in 2023.

Here at home, most would agree the Biden Administration has made bold and consequential policy shifts in chemical management over the past two years. There is little agreement, however, on the wisdom or success of those initiatives. At a political level, the Republicans’ narrow control of the U.S. House of Representatives will almost certainly invite a greater degree of oversight of U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) actions, particularly with respect to implementation of the 2016 amendments of the Toxic Substances Control Act. As discussed in the pages that follow, concepts core to the Act, including “reasonably foreseen,” “to the extent necessary,” “systematic review,” and “best available science,” continue to evolve and not always in predictable, coherent, and consistent ways. Similar policy shifts are seen in the agricultural and biocidal area, with perhaps less dramatic effect. How the 2024 general election will influence EPA’s policy choices is unclear. In that the election cycle has already begun, we caution all to buckle up and prepare for what we expect will be an eventful, fascinating year.

Internationally, the European Union’s (EU) bold commitment to net-zero global warming emissions by 2050 continues to advance and set the tone and standard for governance programs globally. The EU’s Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability and innovative embrace of the principles underlying circularity offer promising approaches to achieving fundamental change without compromising chemical innovation. Watch for more progress in 2023 as the EU and United Kingdom continue to manage the fallout from Brexit and the evolution of chemical governance programs globally pick up steam in a brave new post-pandemic world.

We offer you our very best wishes for good health, happiness, and success in the New Year.

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