The chemical 1,4-dioxane has become a hot topic for EPA and state regulators. New York recently adopted a law banning more than trace amounts of the chemical in cosmetics, personal care products, and cleaning products....more
A centerpiece of EPA’s PFAS Action Plan, issued in February 2019, is finalizing a 2015 proposed rule under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) that would amend two significant new use rules (SNURs) on some 500...more
EPA has taken another step toward implementing its PFAS Action Plan by publishing an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPR) on December 4, 2019, 84 Fed. Reg. 66369. The ANPR solicits comments on whether per- and...more
Nearly three years after adopting extensive amendments to its rules on accidental release prevention under the Clean Air Act, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) adopted a final rule rescinding nearly all of the...more
EPA announced a new policy that the agency will stop sending out notices of deficiency to companies that submit Confidential Business Information (CBI) under the Toxics Substances Control Act (TSCA) without substantiation. 84...more
Until today, EPA had not adopted a final risk management rule under section 6 of the Toxic Substances Control Act in 30 years. That drought has ended, now that EPA has published a final rule restricting consumer use of...more
EPA has taken another step in implementing the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). It has announced the first set of 20 candidate chemicals for possible designation as high-priority substances and the first (possibly only)...more
EPA’s review of premanufacture notices (PMNs) for new chemical substances under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) has continued to suffer from significant delays. These delays in the PMN review process have been...more
EPA faces many TSCA statutory and regulatory deadlines for actions in 2019 and 2020. It has also announced plans to take numerous actions not subject to such a deadline. Industry should anticipate upcoming developments and be...more
Every four years, domestic manufacturers and importers of chemicals must report to the Environmental Protection Agency under the Chemical Data Reporting rule (CDR). The next reports are due in 2020, with 2019 as the principal...more
Does your company plan to submit a premanufacture notice (PMN) under section 5 of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)? Has it done so recently? If so, you need to know the answers to ten key questions: -
1. What are...more
June 1, 2018 will be the initial compliance date for most companies in the composite wood product industry that are subject to EPA’s Formaldehyde Emission Standards for Composite Wood Products (the Standards). On April 4,...more
The composite wood product industry may face an earlier compliance deadline under EPA’s Formaldehyde Emission Standards for Composite Wood Products (Standards) than the deadline currently set by EPA. On February 16, 2018, a...more
Some 20 months have passed since the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act (LCSA) was signed into law, making wide and significant changes to the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). During that time,...more
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) must propose an update of its lead-based paint and dust hazard standards by March 27, 2018, according to a court order. The current standards were promulgated in 2001, and have never...more
EPA has extended the December 26, 2017 deadline for comments on its proposed rule on reporting obligations relating to mercury, mercury compounds, and mercury-added products until January 11, 2018. The proposed rule was...more
Since 1994, EPA has regulated hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), which are potent greenhouse gases, through several programs under Title VI of the Clean Air Act (CAA) governing stratospheric ozone protection. In a recent decision,...more
Persistent, bioaccumulative, and toxic chemicals (PBTs) receive expedited attention under the amended Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently released background documents for...more
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released the Working Guidance on EPA’s Section 8(a) Information Gathering Rule on Nanomaterials in Commerce (Guidance) on August 14, 2017. EPA developed the final Guidance based on a...more
Virtually all manufacturers and importers of chemicals for the past 11 years are now subject to a new TSCA reporting requirement known informally as the TSCA Inventory Reset. Reports are due by February 7, 2018. All...more
Under the amended TSCA, prioritization – EPA’s process for selecting which chemical substances to evaluate for possible regulation – is the gatekeeper. EPA has just adopted a final rule describing its process for selecting...more
Virtually all manufacturers and importers of chemicals for the past 11 years are now subject to a new TSCA reporting requirement known informally as the TSCA Inventory Reset. Reports will be due six months after the final...more
Under the 2016 TSCA amendments, risk evaluation is the critical step toward EPA banning or restricting chemicals, or else determining that they will not be regulated. As required by those amendments, EPA has promulgated a...more
Protection for confidential business information (CBI) could be at risk under one provision of the amended Toxic Substance Control Act (TSCA) now under consideration by EPA.
TSCA’s little-noticed section 14(g)(4) requires...more
On June 14, 2017, EPA published a final rule in the Federal Register delaying the effective date of its Risk Management Program (RMP) rule amendment package for twenty months, until February 19, 2019. EPA’s decision was...more