Regulatory Services White Papers

TSCA Reform –Requirements for the First 6 Months

With the enactment of the Frank R Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act (HR 2576), many in industry are still unclear as to what will change in the TSCA regulations. Many of the requirements of the act fall heavily on the EPA, which already has a heavy workload. Congress put into place certain deadlines, however, that the entire chemical industry should be aware of: For more information about these deadlines, download the full technical article (PDF).

Read more about these requirements:

• Propose and Finalize a Rule for Confidential Business Information
• Propose and Finalize a Rule for fees
• Propose and Finalize a Rule for Inventory Reset
• Propose and Finalize a Rule for Prioritization by June 22, 2017
• Propose and Finalize Risk Evaluation process by June 22, 2017
• Establish the Science Advisory Committee on Chemicals (SACC)

California Adopts Changes to Proposition 65: What You Need to Know

Early in September, California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) issued a final rule, amending the existing Proposition 65 legislation. The amended legislation imposes new requirements on the warning label contents and methods of transmission. The new requirements take effect on August 30, 2018, but businesses can comply with either the existing law or the new provisions in the interim. For a summary of the amendments, download the full technical article (PDF).

Congress Passes TSCA Reform

It has been reported in Chemical Watch on June 8th that a Senate voice vote late Tuesday June 7th passed the compromise TSCA Reform bill. This bill, which was agreed upon in late May and passed by the House in a landslide victory, has finally gained Congressional approval. The Frank R Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act (HR 2576) comes after months of negotiations and setbacks which strove to reconcile measures passed by each chamber last year. The bill now needs only to be signed by the president to become law. This seems assured after the White House’s endorsement of the bill earlier this year. For more information, download the full technical article (PDF).

The EPA CDR - What Is It and Does It Affect You?

What is CDR?

The Environmental Protection Agency's 2016 Chemical Data Reporting (CDR) rule, under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), requires manufacturers of chemicals listed specifically on the TSCA inventory to provide EPA with information on the production and use of chemicals in commerce in large quantities. Under the CDR rule, EPA collects basic exposure-related information on the types, quantities and uses of chemical substances produced domestically and imported into the United States. Reporting is carried out through a standardized Form U report submitted electronically through CDX, the Agency's electronic reporting site. For more information and to find out if the CDR rule affects you, download the full technical article (PDF).

Challenges of OSHA HazCom 2012

Significant Changes to SDS/Label Standards will Require Substantial Action Ahead of Regulatory Deadline

On March 26, 2012, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) revised the 1983 Hazard Communication Standard (HCS) to align with the United Nations’ Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS) system. OSHA’s adoption of GHS substantially changes the amount and type of information required to be placed on chemical labels and Safety Data Sheets (formerly Material Safety Data Sheets). All Safety Data Sheets and labels must be updated to meet the HazCom 2012 standard by June 2015. The GHS system utilizes a comprehensive methodology to identify and “classify” hazardous materials into general classes and categories. This system of classification is harmonized throughout the world and is designed to allow a more clear and concise transmission of hazard information to the end users.

However, the process of classifying materials under HazCom 2012 is considerably more complicated than the previous system in place under HCS 1983. This paper will highlight some of the key differences between the 1983 standard and HazCom 2012, with particular emphasis on the potential difficulties businesses may experience when authoring SDSs and product labels. Download full white paper (PDF).

Implementing Regulatory Supply Chain Management

Implementing a regulatory supply chain management program can be a significant undertaking. This session - originally presented at the Stewardship 2016 conference by Assistant General Manager of Pace Regulatory Services, Angela Wutz - looks at a case study of how to implement a regulatory supply chain data management program and includes an overview of the framework of the program, set up, initial data collection, and on-going management. Click to download the full slideshow (PDF).