Other short titles |
|
---|---|
Long title | An Act to modernize the Toxic Substances Control Act, and for other purposes. |
Nicknames | Chemical Safety Improvement Act of 2016 |
Enacted by | the 114th United States Congress |
Effective | December 18, 2016 |
Citations | |
Public law | 114-182 |
Statutes at Large | 130 Stat. 448 |
Legislative history | |
|
The Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act is a law passed by the 114th United States Congress and signed into law by US President Barack Obama in 2016. Administered by the United States Environmental Protection Agency, which regulates the introduction of new or already existing chemicals, the Act amends and updates the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) that went into force in 1976.
Senators David Vitter and Frank Lautenberg introduced a TSCA reform bill as S. 1009 [1] on May 22, 2013, co-sponsored by a number of other senators at the United States House Energy Subcommittee on Environment and Economy. [2] After Senator Lautenberg died, Senator Tom Udall sponsored Senate bill 697 in 2015, to amend and re-authorize TSCA, called the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act. [3] [4] The House then passed H.R.2576, the TSCA Modernization Act of 2015, and was referred to the Senate. [5]
Congress passed a reconciled version of the reform bill with bipartisan support in June 2016. On Wednesday, June 22, 2016, President Barack Obama signed the bill into law. [6] Lawmakers and industry groups were largely supportive of the new law, while environmental advocates offered more mixed reactions. [7]
TSCA as reformed by the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act | TSCA pre-reform |
---|---|
Mandatory duty on EPA to evaluate existing chemicals with clear and enforceable deadlines | No duty to review, no deadlines for action |
Chemicals assessed against a risk-based safety standard | Risk-benefit balancing standard |
Unreasonable risks identified in the risk evaluation must be eliminated | Significant risks might not be addressed due to cost/benefit balancing and no mandate to act |
Expanded authority to more quickly require development of chemical information when needed | Testing on existing chemicals required lengthy rulemaking |
Frank Raleigh Lautenberg was an American businessman and Democratic Party politician who served as United States Senator from New Jersey from 1982 to 2001, and again from 2003 until his death in 2013. He was originally from Paterson, New Jersey.
David Bruce Vitter is an American politician, attorney, and lobbyist who served as a United States Senator from Louisiana from 2005 to 2017. A member of the Republican Party, Vitter served in the Louisiana House of Representatives from 1992 to 1999 and in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1999 to 2005.
Thomas Stewart Udall is an American diplomat, lawyer, and politician serving as the United States Ambassador to New Zealand and Samoa since 2021. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as a United States senator from New Mexico from 2009 to 2021. Udall also served as the U.S. representative for New Mexico's 3rd congressional district from 1999 to 2009 and New Mexico Attorney General from 1991 to 1999. Born in Tucson, Arizona to the Udall family, he is the son of former U.S. Representative and Secretary of the Interior Stewart Udall and the nephew of former U.S. Representative Mo Udall. His cousin is Mark Udall, who concurrently served alongside him in the Senate representing the neighboring state of Colorado.
The Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) is a United States law, passed by the 94th United States Congress in 1976 and administered by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), that regulates chemicals not regulated by other U.S. federal statutes, including chemicals already in commerce and the introduction of new chemicals. When the TSCA was put into place, all existing chemicals were considered to be safe for use and subsequently grandfathered in. Its three main objectives are to assess and regulate new commercial chemicals before they enter the market, to regulate chemicals already existing in 1976 that posed an "unreasonable risk of injury to health or the environment", as for example PCBs, lead, mercury and radon, and to regulate these chemicals' distribution and use.
The 111th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government from January 3, 2009, until January 3, 2011. It began during the last weeks of the George W. Bush administration, with the remainder spanning the first two years of Barack Obama's presidency. It was composed of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The apportionment of seats in the House was based on the 2000 U.S. census.
The 113th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, from January 3, 2013, to January 3, 2015, during the fifth and sixth years of Barack Obama's presidency. It was composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives based on the results of the 2012 Senate elections and the 2012 House elections. The seats in the House were apportioned based on the 2010 United States census. It first met in Washington, D.C., on January 3, 2013, and it ended on January 3, 2015. Senators elected to regular terms in 2008 were in the last two years of those terms during this Congress.
The 114th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States of America federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C., from January 3, 2015, to January 3, 2017, during the final two years of Barack Obama's presidency. The seats in the House were apportioned based on the 2010 United States census.
In United States politics, the Freedom of Choice Act was a bill which sought to codify into law for women a "fundamental right to choose to bear a child; terminate a pregnancy prior to fetal viability; or terminate a pregnancy after viability when necessary to protect her life or her health". It sought to prohibit a federal, state, or local governmental entity from denying or interfering with a woman's right to exercise such choices; or discriminating against the exercise of those rights in the regulation or provision of benefits, facilities, services, or information. Provides that such prohibition shall apply retroactively. It also authorizes an individual aggrieved by a violation of this Act to obtain appropriate relief, including relief against a governmental entity, in a civil action".
The regulation of chemicals is the legislative intent of a variety of national laws or international initiatives such as agreements, strategies or conventions. These international initiatives define the policy of further regulations to be implemented locally as well as exposure or emission limits. Often, regulatory agencies oversee the enforcement of these laws.
The Almanac of American Politics (2008) rated Barack Obama's overall social policies in 2006 as more conservative than 21% of the Senate, and more liberal than 77% of the Senate.
Wall Street reforms are reforms or regulations of the financial industry in the United States.
Galaxolide is a synthetic musk with a clean sweet musky floral woody odor used in fragrances. It is one of the musk components that perfume and cologne manufacturers use to add a musk odor to their products. Galaxolide was first synthesized in 1965, and used in the late 1960s in some fabric softeners and detergents. High concentrations were also incorporated in fine fragrances.
The Continuing Appropriations Act, 2014 is a law used to resolve both the United States federal government shutdown of 2013 and the United States debt-ceiling crisis of 2013. After the Republican-led House of Representatives could not agree on an originating resolution to end the government crisis, as had been agreed, the Democratic-led Senate used bill H.R. 2775 to resolve the impasse and to satisfy the Origination Clause requirement of Article One of the United States Constitution, which requires that revenue bills must originate in the House of Representatives. Traditionally, appropriation bills also originate in the House of Representatives.
The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2014 is a United States federal law which specifies the budget and expenditures of the United States Department of Defense (DOD) for Fiscal Year 2014. The law authorizes the DOD to spend $607 billion in Fiscal Year 2014.
The Improving Trauma Care Act of 2014 is a bill that would amend the Public Health Service Act, with respect to trauma care and research programs, to include in the definition of "trauma" an injury resulting from extrinsic agents other than mechanical force, including those that are thermal, electrical, chemical, or radioactive.
The death of Janey Ensminger led to the creation of H.R.1742, known as the Janey Ensminger Act, an act of the 112th United States Congress which established a presumption of service connection for illnesses associated with contaminants in the water supply at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune between the years 1957 and 1987 and which provided healthcare to family members of veterans who lived at Camp Lejeune while the water was contaminated. Ensminger was one among thousands of victims of the Camp Lejeune water contamination scandal, which is believed to be one of the largest water contamination incidents in United States history.
The 21st Century Cures Act is a United States law enacted by the 114th United States Congress in December 2016 and then signed into law on December 13, 2016. It authorized $6.3 billion in funding, mostly for the National Institutes of Health. The act was supported especially by large pharmaceutical manufacturers and was opposed especially by some consumer organizations.
The Aviation Innovation, Reform, and Reauthorization (AIRR) Act was a bill introduced on February 3, 2016, in the 114th Congress (2015-2016) by Congressman Bill Shuster (R-PA) and Frank LoBiondo (R-NJ). Among other things, the bill would have privatized the American air traffic control (ATC) system. The bill would also have reauthorized the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) through 2019.
The Ensuring Patient Access and Effective Drug Enforcement Act of 2016 is a United States federal statute enacted by the 114th United States Congress and signed into law by President Barack Obama on April 19, 2016. It modified the Controlled Substances Act, which requires the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to identify "imminent danger to the public health and safety" before suspending the registration of a manufacturer, distributor, or dispenser for controlled substances privileges.