EPA’s highest ranking chemicals official signaled plans to reconsider most of the toxics control rules finalized under the Biden administration, after many of them were spared in the Trump administration’s first deregulatory blitz.
“To meet our statutory obligations and to make sure that we’re following the law, we’re going to have to take another look at pretty much all the actions that were finalized by the last administration,” said Nancy Beck, principal deputy assistant administrator in the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention, during an American Home Furnishings Alliance conference Wednesday afternoon.
Beck’s sweeping comments aren’t entirely surprising but offer some assurance for chemical manufacturers questioning their need to comply with the Toxic Substances Control Act rules in legal limbo.
The Trump administration has already announced plans to revamp the risk evaluation framework rule — the foundational process that guides how EPA evaluates dangerous chemicals under TSCA. That framework underpins all of the Biden-era chemical regulations now under review. The Trump administration’s revised version is currently pending review from the Office of Management and Budget.
