New Regulations on Toxic Substances Control Act

Summary 

• Earlier in October 2021, Michal Freedhoff, Head of EPA chemicals program, announced a more stringent policy regarding chemicals in manufactured goods 
• In Jan 2021, EPA regulated 5 persistent bioaccumulative and toxic (PBT) chemicals to remove them from certain articles 
• March 8 of 2021, the EPA extended compliance deadline to March 8, 2022 
• July 2020, EPA required reporting and review of articles containing certain PFAS 
• June 2021, EPA proposed rule to require reporting from importers of articles containing PFAS 

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has suggested they may require companies to know all chemicals contained in finished goods for commercial sale. 

This news may alarm import companies of finished goods (otherwise known as “articles” under the Toxic Substances Control Act), as it could potentially delay shipments if these regulations are put into place. Traditionally, these regulations were not imposed on finished goods as it would cause difficulty for importers. However, Michal Freedhoff, the head of EPA’s chemicals program, announced last week that the EPA does have the authority to regulate chemicals in manufactured goods and that the industry should know what their products are composed of. 

The potential direction of the EPA on this matter has very serious ramifications for companies involved in manufacturing, import, distribution, and the sale of commercial goods. 

EPA Orders 5 PBT Chemicals Removed from Articles – Compliance Deadline Extended 

Earlier this year in January, the EPA took action to regulate 5 persistent bioaccumulative and toxic (PBT) chemicals  to remove them from certain commercial articles. 

On March 8, 2021, the revisited the rules and opened a 60-day public comment period to review on any aspect of the PBT restrictions. 

On September 3, 2021, the EPA announced plans for new rulemaking on the PBT chemicals and extended the compliance date to March 8, 2022 in order to protect supply chains and reduce the hardships caused by the original compliance dates.

How to access the current TSCA inventory

The EPA updated the TSCA inventory, which now contains 41,953 active chemicals in US commerce. This information is available to the public and is updated biannually by the EPA. 

https://www.siliconexpert.com/resources/epa-announces-latest-update-tsca-inventory/ 

What does this information mean for your supply chain? 

Our team collects the latest information on regulations, compliance and even industry-impacting disasters in order to see the potential impact on our customers’ supply chain. Our intelligence software can help you identify potentially impact components, their impact status, and also help you cross-reference direct replacements for the affected products. 

Contact SiliconExpert for a custom analysis!

Note: View our on-demand webinar “Latest Updates on US Regulation for Managing Toxic Substances, TSCA Reform and 5 PBTs Restrictions”.