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  SAVE THE DATE NEW TSCA AT FIVE Virtual Conference June 30, 2021   This June marks the fifth anniversary of the enactment of the game-changing Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act (Lautenberg) that amended the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). With a new Administration and the relentless pace of regulatory developments related to Lautenberg implementation, there are many issues to consider and problems to solve. The Environmental Law Institute (ELI),...

By Lynn L. Bergeson EPA announced on March 29, 2021, that it is evaluating its policies, guidance, templates, and regulations under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) new chemicals program to ensure they “adhere to statutory requirements,” the Biden-Harris Administration’s executive orders, and other directives. EPA identified several instances where its approach for making determinations and managing risks associated with new chemicals can, according to EPA, more...

By Lynn L. Bergeson  EPA published on February 8, 2021, a periodic update of the TSCA confidential business information (CBI) review statistics. TSCA Section 14(g)(1) requires that EPA, within 90 days of receipt of a CBI claim: Review and make determinations on CBI claims for chemical identity after the chemical substance has been offered for commercial distribution; and   Review and make determinations on a representative subset of at least 25 percent of other CBI claims...

By Lynn L. Bergeson and Ligia Duarte Botelho, M.A. EPA announced that it is extending the public comment period on proposed updates to the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Fees Rule to give stakeholders more time to review and comment. The current comment period was set to close on February 25, 2021. Comments are now due on March 27, 2021. Information on the proposed updates is available in the Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C®) December 30, 2020, memorandum,...

By Richard E. Engler, Ph.D. In the 21st century, we take as given a continuous stream of new and better products. From electronics to building materials to transportation solutions, the flow of new and better products and applications seems unending. New chemical substances play a fundamental role in creating those products and making existing products better. If the pipeline of new chemicals were closed off, the flow of new products and applications would slow to...

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) has published the latest edition of the Developments in Delegations on the Safety of Manufactured Nanomaterials — Tour de Table.  The Tour de Table compiles information provided by delegations on the occasion of the 20th meeting of the OECD Working Party on Manufactured Nanomaterials (WPMN) in September 2020.  Below are highlights from the Tour de Table: Between November 2018 and August 2020, EPA...

By  Lynn L. Bergeson  On January 11, 2021, EPA published a proposed rule that would amend the 2018 Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) fees rule. 86 Fed. Reg. 1890. Under TSCA, EPA collects fees from chemical manufacturers and processors to help fund implementation and to ensure that public health and the environment continue to be protected. TSCA requires EPA to review its fees every three years and, after consulting with parties potentially subject to the fees,...

By  Lynn L. Bergeson  EPA announced on January 5, 2021, that it is reopening the reporting period under the TSCA Inventory notification active-inactive rule where companies identified chemicals that were manufactured, imported, or processed in the United States during the ten-year time period ending on June 21, 2016. As reported in our June 26, 2017, memorandum, “EPA Issues Final TSCA Framework Rules,” the final TSCA Inventory notification (active-inactive) rule established...

By  Lynn L. Bergeson  On December 21, 2020, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released a pre-publication notice of proposed updates to the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Fees Rule. Specifically, the proposed updates to the original 2018 TSCA Fees Rule include: Narrowing the scope of the rule by exempting importers of articles containing a chemical substance, companies that produce a chemical as a byproduct or manufacture or import as an impurity, companies that...

We are pleased to announce that the American Bar Association (ABA) Section of Environment, Energy, and Resources published an article written by Lynn L. Bergeson and Eve C. Gartner entitled “The essentials of TSCA practice” in the November/December 2020 issue of Trends. According to the authors, legal practitioners should be aware of the commercial, legal, and reputational implications of TSCA as amended by the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act in...