TSCAblog®

On January 22, 2025, at 10:30 a.m. (EST), the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Environment will hold a hearing entitled “A Decade Later: Assessing the Legacy and Impact of the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act.” The Committee’s press release notes that “[t]he domestic production of chemicals is critical to the growth of our economy and vital to the success of American manufacturers.” According to the press release, nearly ten...

On January 7, 2025, Lynn L. Bergeson was interviewed by Christopher Bornmann in Pulling the Threads of the ‘Complicated Patchwork of Federal and State Law’ around PFAS Class Action Lawsuits for the 3E blog. Portions of this article covering the current landscape surrounding PFAS class action lawsuits are shared below by permission. To better understand the current landscape surrounding PFAS class action lawsuits and how companies can protect themselves from litigation, 3E sat down with Lynn...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on January 14, 2025, a draft risk assessment of the potential human health risks associated with the presence of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) in biosolids, also known as sewage sludge. According to EPA, the findings show that there may be human health risks associated with exposure to PFOA or PFOS with all three methods of using or disposing of sewage sludge — land application...

The Cookware Sustainability Alliance (CSA) announced on January 9, 2025, that it has filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota, seeking a preliminary injunction of Minnesota’s ban on the sale of cookware containing intentionally added per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). CSA v. Kessler (No. 0:25-cv-00041). According to CSA, the chemical coating on nonstick cookware contains fluoropolymers, which “are fundamentally different compounds from the chemicals that...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on January 6, 2025, that it is updating 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. 573. Specifically, the final rule updates the regulations to identify nine per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) that must be reported pursuant to the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020...

On January 6, 2025, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the extension of the review period for confidential business information (CBI) claims for specific identities of all active chemical substances listed on the confidential portion of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Inventory submitted to EPA under TSCA. 90 Fed. Reg. 645. As reported in our February 7, 2024, blog item, EPA previously extended the review period by one year, to February 19, 2025....

On December 20, 2024, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit denied the Environmental Defense Fund’s (EDF) petition and granted the American Chemistry Council (ACC) and American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers’ (AFPM) petition for review of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) final rule updating the requirements concerning the assertion and treatment of confidential business information (CBI) claims under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)....

On December 31, 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the availability of and solicited comment on the preliminary lists of manufacturers (including importers) subject to fees for the next five chemicals undergoing risk evaluation under Section 6(b) of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). 89 Fed. Reg. 107099. The five chemicals that have been designated as High-Priority Substances (HPS) for risk evaluation and for which fees will be charged are acetaldehyde (Chemical...

On December 26, 2024, the Center for Environmental Health (CEH) and Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) filed notice in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia that they are appealing the court’s December 11, 2024, decision dismissing their suit to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. As reported in our December 17, 2024, blog item, the court dismissed a suit filed against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency...

Register now to join Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C®) for “What to Expect When You Don’t Know What to Expect in Chemicals Policy and Regulation and on Capitol Hill in 2025,” a complimentary webinar offering our best-informed judgment as to the trends and key developments chemical industry stakeholders can expect in 2025. The return of President-elect Trump for a second term instantly raises important questions: will the Senate defer some of its traditional roles as a...

On December 11, 2024, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia dismissed a suit filed against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) seeking a rule under Section 6 of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) to prohibit the production of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) during Inhance Technologies, LLC’s (Inhance) fluorination process. Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) v. Regan (No. 2024-2194). As reported in our July 30, 2024, blog item, PEER and the...

Mark Hartman, the highly respected Deputy Director for Programs in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics (OPPT), will become Director of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Office of Food Chemical Safety, Dietary Supplements, and Innovation (OFCSDSI) in its newly formed Human Foods Program (HFP). According to FDA’s website, OFCSDSI “uses a risk-based approach to food chemical safety and dietary supplement policy and...

On November 29, 2024, the U.S. Environment Protection Agency (EPA) issued a supplemental notice of proposed rulemaking (SNPRM) that would update the December 2, 2022, proposed significant new use rules (SNUR) for 17 per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) that were the subject of premanufacture notices (PMN) and are also subject to an Order issued by EPA pursuant to the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). 89 Fed. Reg. 94642. The SNURs would require persons who intend...

On November 22, 2024, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia entered two consent decrees establishing deadlines for completing risk evaluations for 20 High-Priority Chemicals and two manufacturer-requested risk evaluations (MRRE). The Community In-Power and Development Association Inc. (CIDA), v. EPA, Case No. 1:23-cv-02715. As reported in our May 10, 2024, memorandum, CIDA, the Learning Disabilities Association of America, Louisiana Environmental Action Network, Sierra Club, and...

On November 29, 2024, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced that petitions have been filed to add the following chemicals to the list of taxable substances: More information on the Superfund excise tax on chemicals is available in our April 4, 2023, memorandum, “IRS Proposes Regulations Regarding Superfund Tax on Chemicals,” our July 13, 2022, memorandum, “Superfund Tax on Chemicals: What You Need to Know to Comply,” and our May 19, 2022, memorandum, “Reinstated Superfund...

The Subcommittee on Chemical Safety, Waste Management, Environmental Justice, and Regulatory Oversight of the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works will hold a hearing on December 5, 2024, titled “Examining the Public Health Impacts of PFAS Exposures.” The Subcommittee will hear from the following witnesses: As reported in our October 9, 2024, blog item, this hearing, which was originally scheduled for September 26, 2024, was postponed September 25, 2024, when Congress...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on November 20, 2024, the launch of the Tackling Emerging Contaminants (TEC) initiative, a new, no-cost technical assistance effort focused on reducing exposure to perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and other emerging contaminants in small or disadvantaged communities. According to EPA, the objective of the TEC Water Technical Assistance (WaterTA) is to support small or disadvantaged communities assess and address...

On November 20, 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced an extension to the comment period for the notice published September 30, 2024, seeking public comment on the manufacture of certain per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), including perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA), and perfluorodecanoic acid (PFDA), during the fluorination of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) and other plastic containers to inform regulations as appropriate under the...

On November 14, 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the release of its third annual progress report, “highlighting the significant achievements the agency has made under its PFAS Strategic Roadmap and the Biden-Harris Administration’s whole-of-government strategy to protect communities from the impacts of forever chemicals.” According to EPA’s press release, progress on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) during the Biden-Harris Administration includes:...

The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) New Approach Methodologies (NAM) Use for Regulatory Application (NURA) program has announced two upcoming webinars in the DyNAMic Discussions series. This webinar series invites speakers to share candid perspectives on how they have overcome barriers to apply NAMs in their fields and discuss how these examples can be used to promote the use of NAMs in other situations. All DyNAMic Discussion webinars have been recorded. Materials,...