Businesses Need the Reform of the Toxic Substances Control Act

Safe Chemicals Act of 2011 introduced in Senate

ASBC press release in support of the Bill

Businesses: Sign below to support TSCA reform

Investors: Sign the letter featured in the Washington Post

Leading companies from electronics manufacturers to health care providers are highly motivated to identify and use safer alternatives to toxic chemicals. Today's business leaders are concerned about the health and business impacts that could arise if the products they use or sell contain toxic chemicals, as well as the toxic chemical exposures that may occur as a result of their supply chains.

Yet, by themselves, downstream users of chemicals can only make but a small dent in a huge problem.  Due to a lack of data, businesses are often unable to identify the chemicals in their products, what hazards they may pose and whether safer alternatives are on the market.  The result is a serious market barrier to the development and use of safer chemicals and products.

The main federal law that is supposed to ensure the safety of chemicals has not changed in 34 years. The 1976 Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)—intended to give the United States (U.S.) Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) the power to identify and regulate dangerous chemicals—simply does not work.

There is a strong business case for comprehensive TSCA reform:

  • Levelling the playing field, by requiring existing chemicals to meet the same testing requirements as new chemicals.
  • Expanding markets for safer and greener products.
  • Creating a more predictable regulatory system.
  • Reducing the costs and risks, especially product liability (for example, asbestos), associated with managing toxic chemicals in products across supply chains.
  • Lowering expenses from chemically induced employee illness and enhancing productivity from improved employee health.
  • Identifying the presence of chemicals of high concern in products.
  • Increasing consumer confidence and trust among employees, communities, and investors, leading to a more positive business environment.
  • Improving transparency and communication throughout the supply chain, leading to increased confidence for downstream users and reduced risks from supply chain interruptions.
  • Creating a more competitive, innovative, and economically sustainable chemical industry in the U.S.

For more information, see:

Your business voice is needed for TSCA reform.  Please add your signature to the letter below to show your support for this important policy change.

Printable Letter You Can Mail or Fax to Your Legislators

Bookmark and Share

Dear Legislator,

We strongly support legislation that fundamentally reforms the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). Comprehensive TSCA reform is good for business. It will increase consumer confidence, expand markets, create new jobs, and make U.S. businesses more competitive in the global marketplace. Designing new chemicals to be inherently safer from the outset reduces the costs of regulation, hazardous waste storage and disposal, worker protection, and future liabilities. As business owners, executives, professionals and investors we urge you to support a TSCA reform bill that provides the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) with the authority to:
• Require chemical manufacturers to develop and submit hazard, use and exposure data on chemicals in commerce, and allow EPA to make such data readily available to the public.
• Take immediate action to reduce the use of persistent, bioaccumulative and toxic (PBT) chemicals and other chemicals of very high concern.
• Clearly identify chemicals of high and low concern to human and environmental health based on robust information.
• Require greater disclosure of chemicals of high concern in products.
• Promote safer alternatives.

Revisions to TSCA will need to prevent abuse of Confidential Business Information (CBI) protection provisions, while still retaining protection of CBI for legitimate business needs. In addition, TSCA reform should strive as much as possible to harmonize compliance criteria and processes with similar existing regulatory frameworks that have proven to be successful in minimizing adverse impact to human health and the environment while promoting innovation of safer alternatives. Together, these elements of comprehensive TSCA reform will create an effective and trusted regulatory system that enhances the value of products across supply chains and supports a healthy economy.

Sincerely,
The undersigned …….
This petition is no longer active.