TSCAblog®

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...

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 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. ”...

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 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...

On May 15, 2025, the Center for Environmental Accountability (CEA) filed a petition under Section 21 of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) requesting that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reconsider the 2024 final rule regarding procedures for chemical risk evaluation under TSCA and initiate a rulemaking to amend certain provisions in 40 C.F.R. Part 702, subpart B. According to CEA, the current process “has led to overly conservative risk conclusions and, in turn,...

As reported in our May 4, 2025, blog item, on May 2, 2025, a coalition of chemical companies petitioned the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for an amendment of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Section 8(a)(7) rule requiring reporting for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). The petitioners ask that EPA revise the reporting rule to exclude imported articles, research and development (R&D) materials, impurities, byproducts, non-isolated intermediates, and PFAS...

On May 20, 2025, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released a proposed rule that would extend certain compliance dates in the final risk management rule for methylene chloride under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) “to ensure long-term compliance with the rule’s requirements.” The proposed rule would extend the Workplace Chemical Protection Program (WCPP) compliance dates for non-federal laboratories by an additional 18 months to align with the dates allowed for federal...

On May 15, 2025, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced the launch of “a stronger, more systematic review process for food chemicals already on the market -- especially those that concern consumers most.” Over the coming months, FDA will roll out the following key actions: A modernized, evidence-based prioritization scheme for reviewing existing chemicals. According to FDA, it will soon release a draft for public comment; A final, systematic post-market review process shaped...

On May 5, 2025, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Environmental Appeals Board (EAB) issued a consent agreement and final order between EPA and Cytonix, LLC (Cytonix). According to the consent agreement, in 2022, EPA inspectors discovered Cytonix’s potential noncompliance with requirements under Section 5 of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) for a manufactured chemical substance consisting of short-chain polyfluorinated materials (Chemical A) that was developed as a...

As reported in our February 14, 2025, blog item, on February 11, 2025, 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.” On May 12, 2025, EPA denied the petition, stating that the request to initiate a...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently updated its website to include two petitions submitted under Section 21 of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) that seek reconsideration of exemption provisions of EPA’s final risk management rule for trichloroethylene (TCE). On March 24, 2025, PPG Industries, Inc. (PPG) submitted a petition seeking an amendment to the December 2024 final rule’s exemption for the industrial and commercial use of TCE as a processing aid for specialty...

On April 24, 2025, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) filed an unopposed motion in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit for voluntary dismissal of its appeal of an October 2024 decision finding that eBay is immune from liability under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act. USA v. eBay, No. 24-3104. As reported in our September 28, 2023, memorandum, in September 2023, DOJ, on behalf of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), filed a complaint in the U.S. District...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on April 30, 2025, that it is requesting public comments on candidates who are interested and available to serve as ad hoc reviewers assisting its Science Advisory Committee on Chemicals (SACC) in the peer review of the Agency’s data, methods, models, and approaches for the draft Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) risk evaluations of dibutyl phthalate (DBP), di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP), and dicyclohexyl phthalate (DCHP). According...

The Maine Department of Environmental Protection (MDEP) updated its web page on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in products on May 2, 2025. The updated page includes links to the April 2025 final rule on products containing PFAS, instructions for submitting a currently unavoidable use (CUU) proposal, and frequently asked questions (FAQ). The FAQs address several questions related to CUU determinations, including: Does my product sold in Maine qualify for a CUU determination? How and...

As reported in our March 31, 2025, blog item, on March 21, 2025, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit heard oral argument in a case challenging the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) May 3, 2024, final rule amending the procedural framework rule for conducting risk evaluations under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). United Steel, Paper and Forestry, Rubber, Manufacturing, Energy, Allied Industrial and Service Workers International Union (USW) v. EPA,...

On May 2, 2025, a coalition of chemical companies petitioned the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for an amendment of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Section 8(a)(7) rule requiring reporting for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). Filed under TSCA Section 21 and the February 19, 2025, Executive Order on Ensuring Lawful Governance and Implement the President’s “Department of Government Efficiency” Deregulatory Initiative, the petition states that EPA’s October...

This June marks the ninth anniversary of the enactment of the game-changing Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act (Lautenberg) that amended the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). With a new Trump Administration and the relentless pace of regulatory developments related to Lautenberg implementation, there are many issues to consider and problems to solve. Save the date to join Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C®), the Environmental Law Institute (ELI), and...

Register now to join Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C®) affiliate The Acta Group (Acta®) and EPPA for “PFAS Updates: What’s Happening in the U.S. and EU,” a complimentary webinar offering expert updates on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) regulatory developments. These substances are attracting global legal, regulatory, commercial, and litigation attention as no other “emerging contaminant” has. While the U.S. Administration is new, PFAS regulation continues at a...

On April 17, 2025, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) extended the comment period on 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. 90 Fed. Reg. 16128. According to EPA, the draft risk assessment “reflects the agency’s latest scientific understanding of the potential risks to human health and the environment posed by the...

On April 25, 2025, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the availability of new resources intended to help companies with the requirements described in EPA’s December 2024 final rule governing the review of new chemicals under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). According to EPA, the new materials “provide companies with clear instructions on how to include required data elements in the current system used for new chemical submissions while the agency works to update...

On April 2 and April 3, 2025, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced that petitions have been filed to add the following chemicals to the list of taxable substances: Polyisobutylene (90 Fed. Reg. 14521): Petition filed by TPC Group, Inc., an exporter of polyisobutylene; Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (90 Fed. Reg. 14687): Petition filed by Trinseo LLC, an importer and exporter of acrylonitrile butadiene styrene; Acrylonitrile-butadiene rubber (90 Fed. Reg. 14684): Petition filed by...

On April 2, 2025, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that it is postponing the effectiveness of certain provisions of its December 17, 2024, final risk management rule for trichloroethylene (TCE) until June 20, 2025. 90 Fed. Reg. 14415. After EPA issued the final rule in December 2024, it received multiple petitions for an administrative stay of the effective date. EPA denied the requests, and the companies submitted renewed petitions to stay the effective date of the rule,...

On April 11, 2025, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) published a request for information to solicit ideas for deregulation. 90 Fed. Reg. 15481. OMB seeks proposals to rescind or replace regulations “that stifle American businesses and American ingenuity,” including regulations “that are unnecessary, unlawful, unduly burdensome, or unsound.” According to the notice, “comments should address the background of the rule and the reasons for the proposed rescission, with particular...

As reported in our April 1, 2025, blog item, the Maine Board of Environmental Protection (MBEP) was scheduled to consider the Maine Department of Environmental Protection’s (MDEP) December 2024 proposed rule regarding products containing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) during its April 7, 2025, meeting. As reported in our December 31, 2024, memorandum, on December 20, 2024, MDEP published a proposed rule that would establish criteria for currently unavoidable uses (CUU) of...

On March 24, 2025, NSF announced the release of NSF Certification Guideline 537: PFAS-Free Products for Nonfood Compounds and Food Equipment Materials (NSF 537). The press release states that to be certified, nonfood compound products “must first be registered under NSF’s Nonfood Compounds Guidelines or certified by NSF to ISO 21469, Safety of Machinery, Lubricants with Incidental Product Contact-Hygiene Requirements.” According to the press release, food equipment materials “must be...

The Maine Board of Environmental Protection (MBEP) will consider the Maine Department of Environmental Protection’s (MDEP) December 2024 proposed rule regarding products containing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) during its April 7, 2025, meeting. As reported in our December 31, 2024, memorandum, on December 20, 2024, MDEP published a proposed rule that would establish criteria for currently unavoidable uses (CUU) of intentionally added PFAS in products and implement sales...

On March 21, 2025, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit heard oral argument in a case challenging the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) May 3, 2024, final rule amending the procedural framework rule for conducting risk evaluations under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). United Steel, Paper and Forestry, Rubber, Manufacturing, Energy, Allied Industrial and Service Workers International Union (USW) v. EPA, Consolidated Case No. 24-1151. If you have a...

On March 24, 2025, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) provided an update on the effective date of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) final risk management rule for trichloroethylene (TCE). As reported in our January 13, 2025, memorandum, on December 17, 2024, EPA issued a final rule prohibiting all uses of TCE, most of which would be prohibited within one year, including TCE manufacture and processing for most commercial and all consumer products. As reported in our January 30,...

On March 14, 2025, Amazon filed suit against the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland, challenging CPSC’s July 29, 2024, and January 16, 2025, orders determining that Amazon is “a ‘distributor’ of certain products that are defective or fail to meet federal consumer product safety standards, and therefore bears legal responsibility for their recall.” According to CPSC’s January 17, 2025, announcement, “[m]ore than 400,000...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on March 11, 2025, the rescheduled meeting dates of the Science Advisory Committee on Chemicals (SACC) that had been previously scheduled for February 2025 to consider and review the draft risk evaluation for 1,3-butadiene. 90 Fed. Reg. 11737. The rescheduled preparatory meeting for the SACC to consider the scope and clarity of the revised draft charge questions for the peer review will now be held on March 25, 2025, and the rescheduled...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on March 7, 2025, that it is extending the comment period on the draft risk evaluation for dicyclohexyl phthalate (DCHP) under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). EPA released the risk evaluation for DCHP on January 7, 2025, with a comment period that closed March 10, 2025. EPA states that it will soon publish a Federal Register notice extending the public comment period for an additional 60 days. Upon publication of the Federal...

On March 5, 2025, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) extended the comment period on the draft scope of the risk evaluation to be conducted under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) for vinyl chloride. 90 Fed. Reg. 11315. As reported in our January 28, 2025, memorandum, under TSCA, the scope documents must include the conditions of use (COU), hazards, exposures, and the potentially exposed or susceptible subpopulations (PESS) that EPA expects to consider in conducting its risk...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on March 6, 2025, that it plans to issue a rule “soon” to extend the reporting deadline 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. The rule applies to manufacturers in the North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS) codes for chemical manufacturing (NAICS code 325) and...

On March 4, 2025, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that it is reopening the comment period for the January 2025 proposed rule to address the unreasonable risk of injury to human health presented by Color Index (C.I.) Pigment Violet 29 (PV29) under its conditions of use (COU) as documented in EPA’s January 2021 risk evaluation and September 2022 revised risk determination. 90 Fed. Reg. 11142. Comments are due April 29, 2025. As reported in our January 27, 2025,...

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 TSCA...

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...

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 in response to questions from industry...

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 Agency (EPA) filed a notice of appeal...

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 to identify nine...

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 use of intentionally added PFAS in electronic or other internal components of...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on January 31, 2025, that it is extending the public comment period on the draft risk evaluation for 1,3-butadiene under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). 90 Fed. Reg. 8798. Comments that were due February 3, 2025, are now due March 5, 2025. EPA states in its announcement that to give the peer reviewers on the Science Advisory Committee on Chemicals (SACC) time to review any additional comments received, it is in the process of...

On January 28, 2025, the U.S. Environmental Protection Act (EPA) issued a final rule delaying the effective date of four rules, including the December 17, 2024, final risk management rule for trichloroethylene (TCE) issued under Section 6(a) of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), until March 21, 2025. 90 Fed. Reg. 8254. EPA states that it is delaying the effective dates of the rules in response to President Trump’s January 20, 2025, memorandum entitled “Regulatory Freeze Pending...