TSCA New Chemicals Coalition Asks EPA to Suspend Decision to Revoke 1980 Guidelines to Correct the Chemical Identity of a Substance on the TSCA Inventory

As reported in our February 28, 2022, blog item, on February 25, 2022, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that it is revoking the 1980 guidelines and associated procedures for correcting the specific chemical identities of incorrectly described chemical substances submitted to EPA in 1978 using the original reporting form for inclusion on the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Inventory. 87 Fed. Reg. 10781. On March 25, 2022, the TSCA New Chemicals Coalition (NCC) sent a letter to Michal Ilana Freedhoff, Ph.D., Assistant Administrator of EPA’s Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention (OCSPP), regarding its concerns with the “phasing out” of the TSCA Inventory correction process. The NCC states that it believes EPA’s decision-making process “would benefit greatly from stakeholder input and urges EPA to suspend the phaseout set to occur on April 26, 2022, and to reconsider the revocation of the 1980 corrections guidelines set to occur May 31, 2022.” According to the NCC, “[‌b]oth decisions invite significant unintended consequences, and stakeholder comment may well provide information that could persuade EPA to go in a different direction.” The NCC urges EPA to address the issues outlined in its letter by suspending its decisions to revoke the guidelines and “phaseout” of the Inventory correction process and seeking comment on its plans.