All Knowledge & Insights By Date

While Election Day was November 5, 2024, the final results of the races for Congress were announced on Tuesday, December 3, 2024. Representative-elect Adam Gray (D-CA) narrowly defeated Representative John Duarte (R-CA), resulting in one of the smallest margins in history (220-215) to begin the 119th Congress on January 3, 2025. That narrow margin will shrink by three seats in several steps beginning January 3, 2025. Former-Representative Matt Gaetz (R-FL) resigned from the 118th Congress 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 to manufacture (defined...

On December 2, 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released, and is seeking public comment on, its proposed guidance for antimicrobial pesticide registrants intended to improve the efficiency of Endangered Species Act (ESA) considerations for new active ingredients, new uses, and registration review actions for antimicrobial pesticides. Comments are due on or before January 1, 2025. EPA states that this guidance, when issued in final, will fulfill the requirements outlined in...

The number of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) on the Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) list is expected to expand greatly. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed on Oct. 8, 2024, to add 16 PFAS and 15 PFAS categories representing more than 100 individual PFAS subject to reporting under the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) and the Pollution Prevention Act (PPA) to comply with the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020 (NDAA). The...

The Congressional Research Service (CRS) posted a November 30, 2024, update to its report entitled “Gene-Edited Plants: Regulation and Issues for Congress.” Gene-edited plants are regulated under the U.S. Coordinated Framework for Regulation of Biotechnology, which coordinates how the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulate biotechnology products to ensure their safety. Over time, the...

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 December 4, 2024, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) announced that it acknowledges the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California’s December 2, 2024, ruling prospectively vacating USDA’s May 2020 final rule for organisms developed using genetic engineering. National Family Farm Coalition, et al. v. Vilsack (No. 3:21-cv-05695-JD). As reported in our May 18, 2020, memorandum, the final Sustainable, Ecological,...

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: Di-isobutyl ketone (89 Fed. Reg. 94879): ALTIVIA Ketones & Additives, LLC, an exporter of di-isobutyl ketone, filed the petition. According to the petition, di-isobutyl ketone is an organic compound that is used in solvents; paints and coatings; automobile refinishing; and pharmaceuticals. Di-isobutyl ketone is made from...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has released the annual pesticide registration maintenance fee materials for fiscal year (FY) 2025. The deadline for payment of EPA’s annual maintenance fee for pesticide registration is January 15, 2025. Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) Section 4(i)(1)(A) requires everyone who holds an active or suspended pesticide registration granted under FIFRA Sections 3 and 24(c) (special local needs) to pay an annual maintenance...

On November 20, 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the release of its draft guidance for public comment to support registration and evaluation of efficacy claims for pre-saturated antimicrobial towelettes on hard non-porous surfaces such as stainless steel, metal, glass, hard plastic, or sealed wood, commonly seen in the market as “disinfecting wipes,” using a recently approved standard test method. The draft guidance is available at EPA-HQ-OPP-2024-0414-0004....