TSCAblog®

Under a November 20, 2023, final order of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Environmental Appeals Board (EAB), Ultium Cells LLC (Ultium) and General Motors Company (GM) have entered into a consent agreement with EPA concerning alleged violations of Section 5(a)(1) of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). According to the consent agreement, the respondents voluntarily disclosed to EPA that three chemical substances were manufactured (imported) “a number of times between...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Office of Inspector General (OIG) issued on November 15, 2023, its report on EPA’s fiscal year (FY) 2024 top management challenges. OIG states that the report “summarizes what the inspector general considers to be ‘the most serious management and performance challenges facing the agency’” for FY 2024 and briefly assesses EPA’s progress in addressing those challenges. According to OIG, the management challenges include “Safeguarding...

Elissa Reaves, Ph.D., who is currently Director of the Pesticide Re-Evaluation Division in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP), will become the new Director of the Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics (OPPT), replacing Denise Keehner. Keehner left her position as Assistant Secretary of the Maryland Department of the Environment to return to EPA in April 2022 as OPPT Director. Keehner previously worked in a variety of EPA offices, including...

The U.S. Tire Manufacturers Association (USTMA) announced on November 14, 2023, that it will partner with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) on a research project “to assess and refine methods of evaluating potential alternatives to [N-(1,3-Dimethylbutyl)-N′-phenyl-p-phenylenediamine (6PPD)] for use in tires.” As reported in our November 3, 2023, blog item, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has granted a petition filed under Section 21 of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)...

The Biden Administration announced on November 9, 2023, that the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) issued final revisions to Circular A-4, the government-wide guidance on regulatory analysis. Issued in 2003, Circular A-4 has been updated to help agencies more accurately estimate the impacts of their regulations and, according to the press release, “thereby enable them to craft better regulations which, in turn, means lower costs for consumers; cleaner food, air, and water;...

On November 9, 2023, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) invited nominations of scientific experts from a diverse range of disciplines to be considered for appointment to the Science Advisory Committee on Chemicals (SACC), established pursuant to the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). 88 Fed. Reg. 77308. EPA states that it anticipates appointing new SACC members by mid-2024 due to expiring membership terms. Any interested person or organization may nominate qualified individuals to...

On November 2, 2023, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that it granted a petition filed under Section 21 of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) to address the use of the chemical N-(1,3-Dimethylbutyl)-N′-phenyl-p-phenylenediamine (6PPD) in tires. As reported in our August 9, 2023, blog item, on August 1, 2023, Earthjustice filed a citizen petition asking EPA to establish regulations prohibiting the manufacturing, processing, use, and distribution of 6PPD for and in...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will hold a webinar on November 14, 2023, on its proposal to ban trichloroethylene (TCE). In October 2023, EPA released its proposed risk management rule under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) for TCE. The rule would ban the manufacture (including import), processing, and distribution in commerce of TCE for all uses. If issued in final, most uses of TCE would be prohibited within one year, including TCE manufactured...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on October 20, 2023, the release of a final rule that is intended to improve reporting on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) to the Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) by eliminating an exemption that allowed facilities to avoid reporting information on PFAS when those chemicals were used in small concentrations. The final rule will add PFAS subject to reporting under the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) and...

On October 16, 2023, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the availability of reporting instructions for entities required to report on their use of asbestos under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). EPA’s July 25, 2023, final rule requires manufacturers (including importers) or processors of asbestos between 2019 and 2022 with annual sales above $500,000 (combined with their parent company) in any of those years to report exposure-related information, including...