Udall Statement on TSCA Reform Developments

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Tom Udall issued the following statement on the progress that has been made by U.S. Senate and House members negotiating the agreement to finally overhaul the badly broken Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976 (TSCA). This morning, Udall participated in a bipartisan press conference on the ongoing work to finalize the chemical safety reform bill.

"We are steps away from finalizing a critically important agreement to overhaul a law that has been broken from the very beginning. I'm confident that we will soon move forward on reform that finally protects children and communities from dangerous chemicals. There still is work to do to get the best agreement possible, and we're going to keep talking and working. But this landmark reform is a major improvement over current law, and it will do what TSCA should have done in the first place: ensure there is a cop on the beat keeping our communities safe. It will protect the most vulnerable, ensure the EPA is testing all new chemicals and has the authority to take action if chemicals are unsafe, and provide the EPA with resources - contributed by industry - to do its job. Several members of the House and Senate have played a key role in getting us to this point, many of them were at today's press conference. I also want to thank the EPA for providing technical assistance throughout the process. Thanks to collaboration, cooperation and patience - and the advocacy by millions of Americans who have worked for chemical safety reform - I'm confident that this bill will pass both houses of Congress with wide support, and the president will sign it into law."

The new law will:

-Require the EPA to protect the most vulnerable people: children, the elderly, pregnant women, and chemical workers.

-Give the EPA new authority to order testing and ensure chemicals are safe, with a focus on the most risky chemicals.

-Ensure the EPA reviews new chemicals before they go on the market.

-Provide the EPA with resources to do its job and require that industry do its share to support the program - providing $25 million a year.

-Set mandatory, enforceable deadlines for the EPA to act.

-Allow all states multiple ways to act on chemicals, including unfettered authority on chemicals where the EPA is not acting, and options for state co-enforcement and waivers from federal preemption where the EPA has acted to restrict a chemical.