July 29, 2025

EPA Releases Memorandum Providing Additional Context on Occupational Exposure Data for DEHP

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on July 28, 2025, the release of a memorandum with additional context on occupational exposure data for di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP). According to EPA, the memorandum provides clarifying information on the draft DEHP risk assessment by providing a calculation of the number of workers and occupational non-users (ONU) exposed to DEHP for each Occupational Exposure Scenario (OES) identified in the draft risk evaluation. EPA states that...
July 24, 2025

DOD Publishes 2025 Update on Critical PFAS Uses, Recommends Risk-Based Approach to Defining PFAS

The U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) has published a July 2025 report entitled Update on Critical Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substance Uses. House Report 118-121, which accompanied the 2024 DOD appropriations bill (H.R. 4365), requested the Secretary of Defense “to submit a report to the congressional defense committees to coordinate with relevant agencies, industries, and academia to research alternatives to defense critical uses of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).” The report...
July 23, 2025

Minnesota Extends January 1, 2026, PFAS Reporting Deadline to July 1, 2026

The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) announced on July 23, 2025, that it will extend the January 1, 2026, deadline for reporting products containing intentionally added per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) to July 1, 2026. MPCA states that it is using its existing statutory authority to move the reporting due date. MPCA notes that with the extension to July 1, 2026, manufacturers will have had three full years since the enactment of Amara’s Law to prepare to report on PFAS in...
July 22, 2025

EPA Adds 18 Chemicals to Safer Chemical Ingredients List

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on July 21, 2025, that it is adding 18 chemicals to the Safer Chemical Ingredients List (SCIL), “supporting Administrator Zeldin’s commitment to transparency, innovation and safer chemistry.” The SCIL is a list of chemicals that EPA’s Safer Choice program has evaluated and determined meet Safer Choice criteria. EPA notes that the Safer Choice program “certifies cleaning and other products with ingredients that have met the...
July 18, 2025

FDA Extends Comment Period on Method for Ranking Chemicals in Food for Post-Market Assessments

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced on July 14, 2025, that it is extending the public comment period on its proposed method for ranking chemicals in the food supply by 30 days, to August 18, 2025. As reported in our July 8, 2025, blog item, FDA proposes to use Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) to determine a score for each chemical based on evaluating the information about a chemical against a pre-determined set of criteria. FDA notes that this method is similar in...
July 15, 2025

Community and Environmental NGOs File Suit After EPA Denies TSCA Section 21 Petition Concerning Prohibition of Hydrogen Fluoride in Domestic Oil Manufacturing 

As reported in our May 14, 2025, blog item, on May 12, 2025, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) denied a petition filed under Section 21 of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) seeking to prohibit the use of hydrogen fluoride in domestic oil refining through a TSCA Section 6(a) rulemaking. The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) announced on July 9, 2025, that after EPA denied their petition, community and environmental non-governmental organizations (NGO) filed suit in the...
July 11, 2025

EPA Withdraws Proposed SNURs for 18 Chemicals Made from Plastic Waste-Based Feedstocks 

On July 9, 2025, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) withdrew proposed significant new use rules (SNUR) under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) for 18 chemical substances that were the subject of premanufacture notices (PMN) and a subsequent TSCA Order. 90 Fed. Reg. 30216. EPA states that it is withdrawing the proposed SNURs because it withdrew the 2022 TSCA Order that was the basis of the rules on December 18, 2024. As reported in our April 17, 2023, blog item, in April 2023,...
July 10, 2025

EPA Withdraws Motion to Hold Asbestos Case in Abeyance, Will Explore Using Guidance to Clarify Workplace Protection Requirements 

As reported in our June 28, 2025, blog item, on June 16, 2025, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) filed a motion with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit requesting that litigation over its 2024 final risk management rule regulating chrysotile asbestos under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) be held in abeyance for an additional six months. Texas Chemistry Council, et al. v. EPA, No. 24-60193. According to the filing, EPA intended to initiate a new...
July 9, 2025

EPA Extends Postponement of Effective Date of Certain Provisions of TCE Risk Management Rule 

On June 23, 2025, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) extended the postponement of the effective date of certain regulatory provisions of its December 17, 2024, final risk management rule for trichloroethylene (TCE) until August 19, 2025. 90 Fed. Reg. 26453. As reported in our April 15, 2025, blog item, 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...
July 8, 2025

FDA Begins Public Comment Period on Method for Ranking Chemicals in Food for Post-Market Assessments 

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced on June 18, 2025, the release of its proposed method for ranking chemicals in the food supply. According to the document, the systematic post-market assessment of food chemicals consists of the following steps: signal detection, triage, prioritization, scoping, scientific assessment (safety, risk, and/or hazard), risk management review, and risk management action. FDA states that it will publish a full description of the process later in 2025...