The Coalition for Chemical Innovations (CCI) Offers Four Principles To Guide Congress’s Efforts to Modernize TSCA

CCI stands ready to assist Congress in finding solutions that do not compromise the integrity of the important health and environmental protections under TSCA.

WASHINGTON, DC, UNITED STATES, February 9, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- The Coalition for Chemical Innovations (CCI) applauds the House Committee on Energy and Commerce for its continued efforts to address key issues in the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) related implementation efforts. Delays in EPA’s review process for new chemicals have unnecessarily strained supply chains and domestic manufacturing, and inhibited the American ingenuity that keeps our economy strong and our communities safer. The Committee’s release of a draft bill to update TSCA and the legislative hearing on January 22, 2026, were welcome first steps toward finding a resolution.

CCI fully recognizes that the 2016 TSCA amendments were driven by a spirit of bipartisan compromise and a shared desire to strengthen and modernize the federal framework for reviewing and regulating chemicals in United States commerce. We share those same goals today. Unfortunately, the promise of clear, predictable, and science-based regulatory decisions has not yet materialized. Persistent delays in reviews of new chemical submissions, in particular, have resulted in the TSCA program becoming a significant impediment to the innovation of safer, greener, and cleaner chemistries for use in the United States.

These problems are fixable, and CCI stands ready to assist Congress in finding solutions that do not compromise the integrity of the important health and environmental protections afforded under TSCA. CCI offers the following principles to help guide Congress’s ongoing deliberations:

> Sustained and Adequate EPA Resources -- EPA must be provided with sustained and adequate levels of funding to implement the law effectively, including a reauthorization of TSCA fee collection authority and baseline minimum appropriations commensurate with EPA’s significant responsibilities under TSCA.

> Adherence to Deadlines -- Clear statutory deadlines for EPA to complete required actions were a key feature of the 2016 TSCA amendments. Yet EPA continues to miss new chemical deadlines, with little practical recourse for submitters. What TSCA requires to be completed in 90 days now takes months or years, forcing many companies to offshore operations rather than face unpredictable EPA review timeframes. The lack of timely review perpetuates use of older, often more risky, existing chemicals in the United States, further undermining TSCA’s aim to improve health and environmental protections. For years now, EPA has undertaken efforts to streamline processes and improve the pace of new chemical reviews. While laudable, these efforts are inadequate. Review times remain protracted, sometimes spanning years. Congress should direct EPA to revise and publish the program’s policies, procedures, guidance, and related statutory interpretations with the express goal of ensuring timely reviews that adhere to established deadlines.

> Defined Scope of New Chemical Reviews -- Perhaps more than any other issue, EPA’s interpretation and application of the statutory phrase “conditions of use” have led to inconsistent and confusing approaches as to which uses, exposure pathways, and other circumstances that EPA must or may consider within the scope of chemical assessments. The vast majority of new chemicals now get restricted based on hypothetical exposure scenarios, some of which are extremely unlikely to ever occur. Congress should clarify the intended scope of EPA’s new chemical reviews, empower EPA to protect against potentially problematic exposures, and ensure EPA’s premanufacture notification review process and the associated regulatory outcomes are tailored to address real-world risks, rather than theoretical.

> Clear Statutory Terms and Requirements -- Ambiguities in the law’s terms and requirements have invited years of discussion and disagreement, including at EPA, and shifting approaches that confuse the public and regulated stakeholders, stymie innovation, unnecessarily consume taxpayer resources, and ultimately slow progress toward actions that can improve protections against chemical risks. Clarity in key statutory terms is needed.

The Coalition for Chemical Innovations (CCI) is a group of diverse stakeholders within the chemical industry, including chemical manufacturers, processors, distributors, and users. CCI’s mission is to educate decision makers, including Congress, EPA, other federal agencies, and related stakeholders on the true costs of these policies and to outline common-sense policy changes to prevent the further stifling of chemical innovation by EPA’s implementation of TSCA Section 5.

For more information, visit the CCI website: https://chemicalinnovations.org/. For more information about CCI, contact CCI Manager Julianne Ogden at (202) 833-6581 or jogden@bc-cm.com.

Julianne Ogden
Coalition for Chemical Innovations
+1 202-833-6581
jogden@bc-cm.com

Legal Disclaimer:

EIN Presswire provides this news content "as is" without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the author above.