Sarah Carty


Fingers Crossed that the Senate TSCA Reform Bill Could Pass This Year

Sarah Carty

The authors of the TSCA reform bill (S 697) are confident that it will hit the Senate floor this year and could be on the president’s desk by the end of the year. The House overwhelmingly approved its own TSCA bill in June of this year. However, in the Senate there has been an absence […]


Revised Draft Bill in U.S. House Builds on Momentum to Reform TSCA

Sarah Carty

The U.S. House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on the Environment and Economy released an updated draft of “The TSCA Modernization Act of 2015,” on May 13, 2015. This draft intends to reform and modernize the decades-old Toxic Substance Control Act. The TSCA Modernization discussion draft states that “the goal is to provide the public with […]


EPA Proposes One-Time Reporting Requirements for Nanoscale Materials

Sarah Carty

The EPA proposes one-time reporting and recordkeeping requirements on nanoscale materials in the marketplace. The agency is proposing to use Toxic Substance Control Act (TSCA) to collect the existing exposure and health and safety information on chemicals currently in the marketplace when manufactured or proceed as nanoscale materials. This proposal will require one-time reporting from […]


TSCA Can You Keep Up?

Sarah Carty

The 113th Congress failed to enact legislation that would reform the Toxic Substance Control Act (TSCA) which has not been updated since its enactment in 1976. It is predicted that states will continue these efforts to regulate or even ban chemical substances labeled as “risky”, “of concern” or “high priority.” Some state legislatures have already […]


New Year, New OSHA Recordkeeping and Reporting Rules

Sarah Carty

Federal OSHA has made two significant changes in their revision of the recordkeeping rule. 1.)    OSHA has updated the list of industries that are exempt from the requirement to keep OSHA injury and illness records. The previous list was based on the Standard Industrial Classification System (SIC) codes. The new list of industries that are […]


OSHA’s Top 10 Most Cited Violations for 2014

Sarah Carty

There have been significant changes in OSHA programs this year. The changes to hazard  communication (GHS) is being enforced as well as new fall protection requirements. OSHA enforcement has put an emphasis on temporary worker safety  and new recordkeeping and reporting rules have been released. An article from  Safety + Health magazine poses a great […]


Safely “Deck the Halls”

Sarah Carty

It’s Holiday decorating time once again. It is estimated this year Americans will spend six billion dollars on Christmas decorations alone according to the Nation Retail Federation.  If you have decorated or are planning to decorate for the holidays this year, please take a moment to review some of these Holiday Decoration Safety tips published […]


Electronic Submittal of TSCA Information

Sarah Carty

EPA announced on Wednesday, March 19th, that notifications of substantial risk under section 8(e) of the Toxic Substance Control Act (TSCA) and voluntary for your information (FYI) submissions can be filed electronically. TSCA section 8(e) states ‘‘Any person who manufactures, processes, or distributes in commerce a chemical substance or mixture and who obtains information which reasonably supports […]


EPA Issues a Significant New Use Rule under TSCA for Five Chemicals

Sarah Carty

A final rule was issued in the Federal Register on February 4, 2014, that will allow the EPA under the Toxic Substance Control Act (TSCA) to monitor the use of five chemicals generally referred to as “complex strontium aluminate, rare earth doped.” This rule will require any person who intends to manufacture, import or process […]


OSHA Publishes Plans for 2014

Sarah Carty

There are several dates in 2014 that were mentioned in the OSHA portion of the US Department of Labor’s Fall 2013 Regulatory Agenda, that employers should take notice of: January 27, 2014- Cutoff date to comment on the proposed rule aimed at cutting in half occupational exposure levels to silica dust.  OSHA’s public hearings on […]