Blogs

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has been around for more than 150 years, stressing the importance of American agriculture to a bountiful food production system since Abraham Lincoln first signed it into being in 1862. Lincoln himself, in fact, in his 1864 final annual message to Congress, christened USDA “the people’s Department,” just before commending it “to the continued attention and fostering care of Congress.” From industrialization to the mechanization of farming,...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) provided on update on June 18, 2025, on the status of the December 2024 Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) risk management rule for trichloroethylene (TCE). According to EPA, it is postponing until August 19, 2025, certain requirements already postponed in March 2025. EPA notes that these requirements relate only to the TSCA Section 6(g) exemptions in the final TCE rule. According to EPA, “[t]his will ensure that the timing of EPA’s...

The Clean Air Act (CAA) requires the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to determine the applicable volume requirements for the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) for years after those specified in the statute. On June 17, 2025, EPA proposed the applicable volumes and percentage standards for 2026 and 2027 for cellulosic biofuel, biomass-based diesel (BBD), advanced biofuel, and total renewable fuel. 90 Fed. Reg. 25784. EPA notes that the proposed rule also includes a number of regulatory...

On June 16, 2025, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the release of the draft charge questions for discussion at the upcoming Science Advisory Committee on Chemicals (SACC) meeting to review all documents released thus far on the risk evaluations of five phthalates. SACC will review the draft risk evaluations for dibutyl phthalate (DBP), di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP), and dicyclohexyl phthalate (DCHP), as well as cross-cutting documents related to DBP, DEHP, DCHP, butyl...

As reported in our May 13, 2025, blog item, on March 24, 2025, PPG Industries, Inc. (PPG) submitted a petition seeking an amendment to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) December 2024 final risk management rule for trichloroethylene (TCE). PPG requested an amendment to the exemption for the industrial and commercial use of TCE as a processing aid for specialty polymeric microporous sheet materials manufacturing that would allow PPG to meet an interim existing chemical exposure...

The Washington Department of Ecology (WDOE) issued a proposed rule on June 4, 2025, that would regulate per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in certain consumer products. Beginning January 1, 2027, the proposed rule would prohibit the intentional use of PFAS in: Apparel and accessories; Automotive washes; and Cleaning products. The proposed rule states that WDOE would presume the detection of total fluorine indicates the intentional addition of PFAS. Manufacturers would be able to rebut...

Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C®) is pleased to present “Loper Bright: Has the Demise of Chevron Deference Mattered?,” a complimentary webinar reviewing changes to Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) determinations in light of Loper Bright. The U.S. Supreme Court’s June 2024 decision in Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo offered a new response to a long-standing question under administrative law: if an agency and a reviewing court’s interpretations of a federal statute...

On June 5, 2025, the Joint Economic Committee (JEC) of the U.S. Congress convened a hearing titled “Barriers to Supply Chain Modernization and Factor Productivity Enhancements.” Throughout the hearing, members and witnesses alike underscored the role of “regulatory friction” -- especially in the form of fragmented and unpredictable requirements -- as a key factor slowing investment in domestic manufacturing and threatening supply chain resilience. While the U.S. Environmental Protection...

On May 22, 2025, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced the release of a new federal report, Making Our Children Healthy Again (MAHA Assessment) issued by the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) Commission. The MAHA Commission was established by Executive Order (EO) 14212 to: (a) study the scope of the childhood chronic disease crisis and any potential contributing causes, including the American diet, absorption of toxic material, medical treatments, lifestyle,...

On May 27, 2025, the American Chemistry Council (ACC) petitioned the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under Section 21 of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) to reconsider the final risk management rule for trichloroethylene (TCE). ACC requests that EPA reconsider and amend two provisions of the rule: Revise the byproduct exclusion in 40 C.F.R. Section 751.301(c) by removing the “site-limited” restriction that requires byproduct TCE to be reused as a “part of the same overall...

Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C®), the Environmental Law Institute (ELI), and the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health are pleased to present “TSCA Reform -- Nine Years Later” on June 25, 2025, from 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. (EDT). This complimentary virtual conference marks the ninth Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Annual Conference. As with our previous TSCA events, a stellar faculty of speakers from government, non-governmental organizations,...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a final rule on June 9, 2025, that extends the reporting deadlines for a rule under Section 8(d) of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) requiring manufacturers (including importers) of 16 chemicals to report data from unpublished health and safety studies to EPA. 90 Fed. Reg. 24228. EPA notes that these health and safety studies “will help inform EPA’s prioritization, risk evaluation, and risk management of chemicals under TSCA. ”...

The European Commission (EC) began a call for evidence on May 14, 2025, for an impact assessment of the European Biotech Act. The EC states that the overall objective is to improve the size and competitiveness of the biotechnology sector in the European Union (EU) while maintaining high safety standards. The new European Biotech Act will aim to ensure that the EU makes the most of the biotechnology revolution for the benefit of society, the environment, and the economy, while making it easier to...

On March 20, 2025, House Republicans passed the “Big Beautiful Bill” (BBB) as part of H.R. 1, a sweeping legislative package that includes dramatic rollbacks of many of the clean energy tax credits established under the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). While the bill has little chance of advancing in the Senate in its current form, its proposed cuts offer a window into shifting political priorities and could have significant implications for the U.S. clean energy manufacturing sector. Subtitle...

President Trump’s fiscal year (FY) 2026 budget request for the Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) states that the President’s budget proposes to eliminate funding for CSB as part of the Trump Administration’s plans “to move the Nation towards fiscal responsibility and to redefine the proper role of the Federal Government.” The President’s budget request proposes $0 for CSB in FY 2026 with the expectation that CSB begin closing down during FY 2025. CSB’s emergency...

On June 3, 2025, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) began a public comment period on a draft plant pest risk assessment (PPRA) and draft environmental assessment (EA) regarding a petition from Bayer U.S.-Crop Science seeking a determination of nonregulated status for maize (corn) event MON 95379 that was developed “using genetic engineering to produce two insecticidal proteins to protect against feeding damage caused by target lepidopteran...

On June 5, 2025, the House Science and Technology Subcommittees on Energy and on Research and Technology will hold a joint hearing on “Pursuing the Golden Age of Innovation: Strategic Priorities in Biotechnology.” The Subcommittees will hear from the following witnesses: Dr. Drew Endy, Hoover Institution Science and Senior Fellow, Martin Family Fellow in Undergraduate Education for Bioengineering, Stanford University; Ms. Deborah Gracio, Associate Lab Director, National Security Directorate,...

On May 27, 2025, the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) issued a request for information (RFI) to gather information to identify and assess critical applications for DOD and the defense industrial base (DIB) that necessitate the use of existing chemicals undergoing the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Section 6 risk evaluation process. The RFI states that it will help the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Energy, Installations, and...

In response to President Trump’s February 13, 2025, Executive Order (EO) 14212, “Establishing The President’s Make America Healthy Again Commission,” the White House issued part of what is being called “The MAHA Report” (with MAHA an acronym for Make America Healthy Again), entitled “Make Our Children Healthy Again: Assessment” (the Assessment) on May 22, 2025. Section One of the Assessment, “The Shift to Ultra-Processed Foods,” includes the Commission’s thoughts on the...

On May 30, 2025, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO) announced that it “removed barriers to domestic bioenergy production by updating its 45ZCF-GREET modeling tool to account for new feedstocks and methods of production, including ethanol from corn wet-milling and natural gas from coal-mine methane.” According to BETO, these measures will allow a wider range of farmers and companies to do business in the alternative fuels market. BETO notes that the U.S....