Blogs

Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C®) is pleased to announce the release by American Bar Association (ABA) Publishing of Chemical Product Law and Supply Chain Stewardship: A Guide to New TSCA, edited by B&C Managing Partner Lynn L. Bergeson and authored by Ms. Bergeson and members of B&C’s highly experienced Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) practice group. This invaluable guide provides a road map to navigate efficiently the transformational changes in chemical product law,...

On February 26, 2027, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Office of Inspector General (OIG) published a report entitled Independent Audit of the EPA’s Fiscal Years 2022 and 2021 (Restated) Toxic Substances Control Act Service Fee Fund Financial Statements. Under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), as amended by the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act, EPA is required to prepare and OIG to audit the accompanying financial statements of the...

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) announced on February 27, 2025, that it will begin to accept petitions for nonregulated status according to APHIS biotechnology regulations at 7 C.F.R. Part 340 (2019) on March 3, 2025. APHIS notes that its biotechnology regulations enable developers to petition for a determination that an “article” is not regulated. The petition process applies only to plants that meet the regulatory definition...

On February 25, 2025, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) issued a report entitled High-Risk Series: Heightened Attention Could Save Billions More and Improve Government Efficiency and Effectiveness, “highlight[ing] 38 areas across the federal government that are seriously vulnerable to waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement or that are in need of transformation.” The category “Seizing Opportunities to Better Protect Public Health and Reduce Risk” lists high-risk areas...

Much has been written about the Congressional Review Act (CRA), which Congress can use to repeal qualifying federal agency actions. The CRA was enacted as part of the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996 (SBREFA). According to the Congressional Research Service (CRS), through 2024 the CRA was used to repeal 20 rules, including 16 during President Trump’s first term. The CRA was also used successfully one time in the 107th Congress (2001-2002) under...

On February 21, 2025, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) extended the comment deadline for the January 17, 2025, proposed rule to clarify the timeframe for when companies must first notify a customer that one of its mixtures or trade name products contains a per- or polyfluoroalkyl substance (PFAS) listed on the Toxics Release Inventory (TRI). 90 Fed. Reg. 10043. As reported in our January 22, 2025, blog item, the Biden EPA proposed the rule...

It was reported this weekend that all federal employees received an e-mail from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) telling employees to report “five bullets about what you did last week.” The e-mail also states that failure to do so would be interpreted to mean that the employee is offering their resignation. This is reported as part of the drive to shake up or reform, review, or rebuke the federal workforce. Whatever one speculates about...

March 14, 2025, looms as an important deadline in the middle of President Trump’s first 100 days in office, a milestone often used to evaluate the effectiveness of a new President. March 14 is the day that the American Relief Act, 2025 (Public Law 118-158), which provides temporary funding for the federal government, expires. The law was enacted during the 118th Congress and signed into law by President Biden. At the time, some questioned whether...

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has published the Developments in Delegations on the Safety of Manufactured Nanomaterials and Advanced Materials between July 2023 and June 2024 — Tour de Table (Tour de Table). Below are highlights on international developments from the Tour de Table:...

The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) announced on February 11, 2025, that community and environmental groups submitted a petition under Section 21 of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to prohibit the use of hydrogen fluoride in domestic oil refining “to eliminate the extreme and unreasonable risks this use presents to public health and the environment.” Brought by NRDC, Clean Air Council (CAC), and Communities for a Better...

As reported in our September 30, 2024, blog item, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California ruled in September 2024 that the plaintiffs established by a preponderance of the evidence that the levels of fluoride typical in drinking water in the United States pose an unreasonable risk of injury to the health of the public. Food & Water Watch v. EPA (No. 3:17-cv-02162-EMC). On January 17, 2025, the Biden U.S. Environmental Protection...

Among the less-noticed, less-reported implications of “firing” federal employees for whatever reason (or no reason) is the process under current law and regulations that applies to reducing or eliminating programs and positions within the U.S. government. Known as a reduction in force (RIF), these procedures are arcane, complicated, and could have many unintended impacts even if imposed to attain targeted reductions in specific parts or programs of the federal workforce. The Executive Order...

President Trump, on January 31, 2025, issued Executive Order 14192, “Unleashing Prosperity Through Deregulation.” This has been referred to as President Trump’s “ten-to-one deregulation initiative” that he spoke about when he was campaigning. If this initiative seems familiar, it may be because you remember Executive Order 13771, “Reducing Regulation and Controlling Regulatory Costs,” issued on February 3, 2017, by President Trump in his first term. That Executive Order called for...

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has published the Developments in Delegations on the Safety of Manufactured Nanomaterials and Advanced Materials between July 2023 and June 2024 — Tour de Table (Tour de Table). The Tour de Table lists U.S. developments on the human health and environmental safety of nanomaterials. Risk assessment decisions, including the type of nanomaterials assessed, testing recommended, and outcomes of the assessment include: The Tour de...

On February 5, 2025, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) delayed until March 21, 2025, the effective date of a January 2025 rule adding nine per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) to the list of chemicals subject to toxic chemical release reporting under the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) and the Pollution Prevention Act (PPA). 90 Fed. Reg. 9010. As reported in our January 13, 2025, blog item, the January rule updates the regulations...

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin on February 4, 2025, announced the “Powering the Great American Comeback Initiative” (PGAC Initiative). It consists of five pillars and is intended to serve as a roadmap to guide EPA’s actions under Administrator Zeldin. The five pillars are:  Administrator Zeldin explained Pillar 3 by stating, “Any business that wants to invest in America should be able to do so without having to face years-long, uncertain, and...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on January 21, 2025, the availability of a final document entitled “Biofuels and the Environment: Third Triennial Report to Congress” (Third Report). 90 Fed. Reg. 7135. The document was prepared by EPA’s Offices of Research and Development (ORD) and Air and Radiation (OAR), in consultation with the U.S. Departments of Agriculture (USDA) and Energy (DOE). The Third Report builds on the first and second triennial reports, released in...

On January 17, 2025, the Biden U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) issued an interim final rule with a request for comment that establishes technical guidelines for quantifying, reporting, and verifying the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions associated with agricultural production of biofuel feedstock commodity crops grown in the United States in the context of environmental service markets. 90 Fed. Reg. 5497. The rule establishes guidelines for the reporting and verification of practices and...

The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) has posted a January 2025 report to the legislature regarding recommendations for products containing lead, cadmium, and perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). During the previous legislative session, the legislature directed MPCA to support a report by January 31, 2025, with legislative recommendations related to the following chemicals and products: The MPCA report recommends that the legislature grant an exemption until 2032 for the...

The House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology will hold a hearing on February 5, 2025, on “The State of U.S. Science and Technology: Ensuring U.S. Global Leadership.” According to the Hearing Charter, the purpose of the hearing is “to assess the current condition of the United States’s science and technology enterprise and its vital role in the global innovation race.” By examining public and private investments in the United States, the Committee will also...