Elaine Lan Chao is an American businesswoman and former government official who served as United States secretary of labor in the administration of George W. Bush from 2001 to 2009 and as United States Secretary of Transportation in the administration of Donald Trump from 2017 to 2021. A member of the Republican Party,Chao was the first Asian American woman to serve in a presidential cabinet. She resigned as transportation secretary after the January 6 United States Capitol attack.
The Federal Election Commission (FEC) is an independent agency of the United States government that enforces U.S. campaign finance laws and oversees U.S. federal elections. Created in 1974 through amendments to the Federal Election Campaign Act,the commission describes its duties as "to disclose campaign finance information,to enforce the provisions of the law such as the limits and prohibitions on contributions,and to oversee the public funding of Presidential elections." It is led by six commissioners who are nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate.
A safety data sheet (SDS),material safety data sheet (MSDS),or product safety data sheet (PSDS) is a document that lists information relating to occupational safety and health for the use of various substances and products. SDSs are a widely used type of fact sheet used to catalogue information on chemical species including chemical compounds and chemical mixtures. SDS information may include instructions for the safe use and potential hazards associated with a particular material or product,along with spill-handling procedures. The older MSDS formats could vary from source to source within a country depending on national requirements;however,the newer SDS format is internationally standardized.
The Board of Governors of the United States Postal Service is the governing body of the United States Postal Service (USPS). The board oversees the activities of the Postal Service,while the postmaster general actively manages its day-to-day operations.
Lisa Ann Murkowski is an American attorney and politician serving as the senior United States senator from Alaska,having held the seat since 2002. She is the first woman to represent Alaska in the Senate and the Senate's second-most senior Republican woman,after Susan Collins of Maine. She became dean of Alaska's congressional delegation upon Representative Don Young's death.
A chemical accident is the unintentional release of one or more hazardous chemicals,which could harm human health and the environment. Such events include fires,explosions,and release of toxic materials that may cause people illness,injury,or disability. Chemical accidents can be caused for example by natural disasters,human error,or deliberate acts for personal gain. Chemical accidents are generally understood to be industrial-scale ones,often with important offsite consequences. Unintended exposure to chemicals that occur at smaller work sites,as well as in private premises during everyday activities are usually not referred to as chemical accidents.
The Texas City refinery explosion occurred on March 23,2005,when a flammable hydrocarbon vapor cloud ignited and violently exploded at the isomerization process unit of the BP oil refinery in Texas City,Texas,killing 15 workers,injuring 180 others and severely damaging the refinery. All the fatalities were contractors working out of temporary buildings located close to the unit to support turnaround activities. Property loss was $200 million. When including settlements,costs of repairs,deferred production,and fines,the explosion is the world's costliest refinery accident.
Ghent is a census-designated place in Raleigh County,West Virginia,United States. As of the 2010 census,its population was 457.
Ladda Tammy Duckworth is an American politician and retired Army National Guard lieutenant colonel serving as the junior United States senator from Illinois since 2017. A member of the Democratic Party,she represented Illinois's 8th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 2013 to 2017.
The U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (USCSB),generally referred to as the Chemical Safety Board (CSB),is an independent U.S. federal agency charged with investigating industrial chemical accidents. Headquartered in Washington,D.C.,the agency's board members are appointed by the president and confirmed by the United States Senate. The CSB conducts root cause investigations of chemical accidents at fixed industrial facilities.
The West Pharmaceutical Plant explosion was an industrial disaster that occurred on January 29,2003,at the West Pharmaceutical Plant in Kinston,North Carolina,United States. Six people were killed and thirty-six people were injured when a large explosion ripped through the facility. Two firefighters were injured in the subsequent blaze. The disaster occurred twelve years and 170 miles (270 km) from the 1991 Hamlet chicken processing plant fire,North Carolina's second-worst industrial disaster.
Katherine Marlea Clark is an American lawyer and politician who has served as House Minority Whip since 2023 and the U.S. representative for Massachusetts's 5th congressional district since 2013. She previously served as Assistant Speaker from 2021 to 2023 and Vice Chair of the House Democratic Caucus from 2019 to 2021. Clark was a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives from 2008 to 2011 and the Massachusetts Senate from 2011 to 2013.
Catherine Janet Kissee Sandoval is a former commissioner of the California Public Utilities Commission. Sandoval is a professor at Santa Clara University School of Law. As of February 2023,she has served as a member of the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board. In 1984,she was the first Latina Rhodes scholar.
Kelly Dawn Craft is an American businesswoman,politician,and former diplomat who served as the 30th United States Ambassador to the United Nations from 2019 to 2021 under President Donald Trump. She was confirmed as the US ambassador to the United Nations by the US Senate by a vote of 56–34,and was officially sworn in September 2019.
Michael L. Dourson is an American toxicologist and Director of Science at the nonprofit organization,Toxicology Excellence for Risk Assessment. He was formerly a senior advisor to the Administrator of EPA,and prior to that,a professor at the Risk Science Center at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine. Prior to joining the University of Cincinnati,he was founder and president of the nonprofit Toxicology Excellence for Risk Assessment. Earlier in his career,he was employed by the Environmental Protection Agency Environmental Criteria and Assessment Office,among other assignments.
Vanessa Lorraine Allen Sutherland is a corporate lawyer and former chairperson of the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB).
On September 26,2020,President Donald Trump announced the nomination of Amy Coney Barrett to the position of Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States to fill in the vacancy left by the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg. At the time of her nomination,Barrett was a Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit in Chicago,Illinois. The Senate received word from the president on September 29.
Jennifer L. Homendy is an American government official serving as the chair of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) since 2021. She has a long history in transportation safety,having worked in legislative advocacy for labor organizations like the AFL–CIO and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters before joining the NTSB in 2018. Appointed by President Donald Trump and later nominated as chair by President Joe Biden,Homendy has been a key figure in advancing transportation safety standards.
Stephen Alan Owens is an American attorney and politician. Originally from Memphis,Tennessee,he served as chief counsel and state director for U.S. Senator Al Gore before moving to the Phoenix,Arizona area during Gore's unsuccessful presidential run in 1988. He was a fundraiser for the Clinton-Gore campaign in 1992,and,from 1993 to 1995,was chair of the Arizona Democratic Party. He was the Democratic nominee for Arizona's 6th congressional district in 1996 and 1998,losing both times to incumbent J. D. Hayworth.
