EPA closes Trump-era chemical risk assessment gaps

By Ellie Borst | 04/23/2024 01:35 PM EDT

The rule codifies the Biden administration’s framework for assessing “high priority” chemicals under the Toxic Substances Control Act.

Laboratory glassware.

A new EPA rule lays out a framework for evaluating the risks of some of the most notorious chemicals in production. Science Photo Library via AP

The Biden administration finalized its framework for evaluating the risks of some of the most notorious chemicals in production, solidifying a process — and therefore making it vulnerable to legal challenges — that has been in practice for nearly three years.

The final rule, announced Tuesday, will officially replace Trump-era guidelines tossed by a federal circuit court judge in 2021 over failures in assessing all routes that a substance could threaten workers or nearby communities.

“This rule charts the path for our risk evaluations to ensure we meet the core objective to protect public health under our nation’s premier chemical safety law, which will in turn lead to rules that workers and communities can count on to keep them safe,” Assistant Administrator for the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention Michal Freedhoff said in a news release.

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First laid out in June 2021, the Biden administration’s framework varies from the Trump administration’s in three key ways.

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