Intelligent, insightful conversation about the legal and business issues surrounding industrial, pesticidal, and specialty chemicals and products

October 1, 2026

TSCA Reform, Ten Years Later — Panel 5: Change Beyond Fee Reauthorization?

The bipartisan 2016 Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act (Lautenberg) Amendments enacted extensive changes to the 1976 Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) that many hoped would set the law on a new course, address its widely recognized challenges, and accelerate U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) actions to address public health threats. Since then, four administrations have put their mark on implementation of the amended law. The past ten years have seemed like a...
September 25, 2026

TSCA Reform, Ten Years Later — Panel 4: Where Are We?

The bipartisan 2016 Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act (Lautenberg) Amendments enacted extensive changes to the 1976 Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) that many hoped would set the law on a new course, address its widely recognized challenges, and accelerate U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) actions to address public health threats. Since then, four administrations have put their mark on implementation of the amended law. The past ten years have seemed like a...
September 17, 2026

TSCA Reform, Ten Years Later — Keynote Address: Ten Years of Progress Under the Lautenberg Act: What We Intended and What Has Been Achieved

The bipartisan 2016 Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act (Lautenberg) Amendments enacted extensive changes to the 1976 Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) that many hoped would set the law on a new course, address its widely recognized challenges, and accelerate U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) actions to address public health threats. Since then, four administrations have put their mark on implementation of the amended law. The past ten years have seemed like a...
September 10, 2026

Why Oregon’s EPR Law Could Set the Rules for Every State — A Conversation with Karen R. Harned

This week, I had the pleasure of speaking with Karen R. Harned, Director of Litigation and Legal Policy for the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors (NAW), to discuss the hot off the press decision in National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors v. Feldon, the federal challenge to Oregon’s Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) law. We discuss NAW’s mission, the role of NAW’s Legal Policy Center, which Karen, as Director of Litigation and Legal Policy, leads, the reasons...
September 4, 2026

TSCA Reform, Ten Years Later — Panel 3: New Chemical Review

The bipartisan 2016 Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act (Lautenberg) Amendments enacted extensive changes to the 1976 Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) that many hoped would set the law on a new course, address its widely recognized challenges, and accelerate U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) actions to address public health threats. Since then, four administrations have put their mark on implementation of the amended law. The past ten years have seemed like a...
August 27, 2026

TSCA Reform, Ten Years Later — Panel 2: Risk Management

The bipartisan 2016 Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act (Lautenberg) Amendments enacted extensive changes to the 1976 Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) that many hoped would set the law on a new course, address its widely recognized challenges, and accelerate U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) actions to address public health threats. Since then, four administrations have put their mark on implementation of the amended law. The past ten years have seemed like a...
August 20, 2026

TSCA Reform, Ten Years Later — Panel 1: Risk Evaluation

The bipartisan 2016 Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act (Lautenberg) Amendments enacted extensive changes to the 1976 Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) that many hoped would set the law on a new course, address its widely recognized challenges, and accelerate U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) actions to address public health threats. Since then, four administrations have put their mark on implementation of the amended law. The past ten years have seemed like a...
August 13, 2026

New PFAS Deadlines Are Closing Fast in Minnesota and New Mexico — A Conversation with Carla N. Hutton

This week, I had the pleasure of speaking with my colleague, Carla N. Hutton, Senior Regulatory Analyst for B&C, to discuss recent developments in state PFAS regulation. Carla and I visited a few months ago, but there have been so many recent developments, we thought we needed to visit again to ensure our listeners are well informed. We discuss what is new with PFAS reporting and labeling under the New Mexico PFAS Protection Act. New guidance is welcome, as there has been a lack of...
August 5, 2026

From EPA to Industry: Lessons Learned That Revolutionize Food and Chemical Safety — A Conversation with Susanna W. Blair, Ph.D.

This week, I had the pleasure of speaking with Dr. Susanna W. Blair, Senior Director of Regulatory and Technical Affairs for the Consumer Brands Association (CBA), which represents the interests of the consumer-packaged goods (CPG) community. Having left the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) after a distinguished career as a senior scientist and policy expert, Dr. Blair is putting her science policy chops to good use at CBA. We discuss CBA’s mission, its focus on food and...
July 16, 2026

The Surprising Science Shift That Changed His Career — A Conversation with Richard J. Fehir, Ph.D.

This week, I had the pleasure of speaking with my new colleague, Richard J. Fehir, Ph.D., Senior Chemist/Regulatory Scientist, at B&C and its consulting affiliate, The Acta Group (Acta®), to discuss his career at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and how he is now deploying his considerable scientific chops at B&C and Acta. Rick is a bit unusual, as he has worked for both EPA’s Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics (OPPT) and Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP),...