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On March 4, 2026, the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works (EPW) will hold a hearing on a discussion draft of S.__, the Toxic Substances Control Act Fee Reauthorization and Improvement Act of 2026. Witnesses will include: Richard E. Engler, Ph.D., Director of Chemistry, Bergeson & Campbell, P.C.; David Isaacs, Vice President, Government Affairs, Semiconductor Industry Association; and Michal Freedhoff, Ph.D., Senior Policy Advisor, Holland & Knight. As reported in our January...

On July 30, 2025, President Trump sent to the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works (EPW) the nomination of Mr. Douglas Troutman to be Assistant Administrator for the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention (OCSPP) at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). This position is the senior political position responsible for the regulation of pesticides and industrial chemicals under the authority of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) and...

On December 5, 2024, the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Subcommittee on Chemical Safety, Waste Management, Environmental Justice, and Regulatory Oversight held a hearing on “Examining the Public Health Impacts of PFAS Exposures.” The Subcommittee heard from the following witnesses (written testimony is not available at this time): Laurel Schaider, Ph.D., Senior Scientist, Environmental Chemistry and Engineering, Silent Spring Institute; Sue Fenton, Ph.D., Director of the Center...

The Subcommittee on Chemical Safety, Waste Management, Environmental Justice, and Regulatory Oversight of the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works will hold a hearing on December 5, 2024, titled “Examining the Public Health Impacts of PFAS Exposures.” The Subcommittee will hear from the following witnesses: Laurel Schaider, Ph.D., Senior Scientist, Environmental Chemistry and Engineering, Silent Spring Institute; Sue Fenton, Ph.D., Director of the Center for Human Health and...

As reported in our September 24, 2024, blog item, the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works (EPW) was scheduled to hold a hearing on September 26 titled “Examining the Public Health Impacts of [Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS)] Exposures.” The hearing was postponed on September 25, 2024, when the Senate adjourned until November after enactment of H.R. 9747, the Continuing Appropriations and Extensions Act, 2025, also known as the Continuing Resolution (CR) to fund the...

On April 8, 2014, the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works (EPW) held a hearing to consider the following three nominees for EPA posts: Janet McCabe, nominated for EPA Assistant Administrator for the Office of Air and Radiation (OAR); Ann Dunkin, nominated for EPA Assistant Administrator for the Office of Environmental Information; and Manny Ehrlich, nominated to be a member of the Chemical Safety Board. Consideration of the nomination of McCabe to become Assistant Administrator...

The January 9, 2014, chemical spill in which 7,500 gallons of a coal processing chemical, 4-methylcyclohexane methanol, stored in an above-ground tank owned by Freedom Industries leaked into the Elk River upstream from the local water utility's intake pipe serving Charleston, West Virginia, has prompted new calls for chemical safety and security legislation. For instance, concerns have been expressed about the adequacy of information regarding chemical safety and health risks, an issue that...

On December 19, 2013, President Obama announced his intent to nominate Janet McCabe to lead the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Office of Air and Radiation. She has been serving as Acting Assistant Administrator of the Air and Radiation Office since July when Gina McCarthy left to become EPA Administrator. McCabe is generally well-liked and respected, and she is expected to be confirmed without much opposition. McCabe is expected to face tough questions during her nomination...