Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976 - Criticisms of The TSCA

Criticisms of The TSCA

The EPA's use of the TSCA to regulate dangerous chemicals is seen as a failure by many, including the EPA's Office of the Inspector General, who called the bill "inconsistent and presents a minimal presence." in a report dated February 17, 2010. The agency also criticized the process by which the EPA handles new TSCA cases in the same report, claiming it is "predisposed to protect industry information rather than to provide public access to health and safety studies." The report further acknowledges that trade secrets are preventing effective testing. Sometimes the EPA does not even know what chemical the TSCA application refers to, and cannot report any problems because "health and safety data are of limited value if the chemical the data pertain to is unknown." Other groups concerned with the bill's lack of efficacy include the Physicians for Social Responsibility, the U.S. Public Interest Research Group, the Environmental Defense Fund, and the Lung Cancer Alliance, representing more than 11 million people nationwide. These diverse groups, under the umbrella of the National Resources Defense Council plan to lobby Congress to revamp and rewrite the TSCA and allow the EPA to completely phase out and/or ban the most dangerous chemicals on the TSCA list. The group is also calling for greater oversight and reporting of health hazards of chemicals contained in everyday products. Many businesses would also like to see a stronger bill to replace the TSCA, due to the more than 40 different state government regulations on toxic chemicals. In addition, businesses would like a standard that can be applied uniformly, rather than having to report many different sets of requirements to the individual states where the companies do business.

For additional information on TSCA, see NTIS.