Historic TSCA Reform Signed into Law by President Obama

Earlier this month, the U.S. Congress passed the bipartisan reform legislation modernizing the nation’s decades-old chemical management law, the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). The new legislation is a long awaited sweeping overhaul of the nation's chemical safety regulations to meet the needs of the 21st century.

At the signing ceremony in Washington, D.C., President Obama said, “The Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act will make it easier for the EPA to review chemicals that are already on the market, as well as the new chemicals our scientists and businesses design.”

Following the enactment of TSCA reform legislation, Cal Dooley, the President and CEO of the American Chemistry Council issued the following statement:

"The Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act is a historic bipartisan achievement at a time when such achievements are increasingly rare. It is the first major environmental law passed since 1990. Under it, chemical evaluation and regulation will meet new 21st century standards, which will improve the lives of American families, support American manufacturing and bolster U.S. economic growth.

"Reforming TSCA has been ACC’s top priority since 2008. For the past three years, ACC and our coalition partners, the American Alliance for Innovation (AAI), have worked together to support bipartisan efforts to modernize TSCA in a way that ensures smart, effective chemical regulation. We applaud President Obama for signing this legislation into law, and we are incredibly grateful for the tireless work and unwavering commitment from Senators Inhofe, Vitter, Udall and Markey and Congressmen Shimkus and Pallone to bipartisan TSCA reform."

The new law gives more authority and power to the U.S. EPA, which can now order tests on the new substances that come on the market, as well as the thousands of chemicals that are already in use to better protect the American public. The EPA’s regulatory decisions will also be made available to the public.

Related links

• Source: American Chemistry Council, Press Release 22 June 2016
• Washington Examiner: “GOP-led Congress achieves historic regulatory reform of broken environmental law“
• Environment and Energy Publishing: “Obama signs TSCA reform into law”