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As the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee reviews legislation to amend the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), the American Cleaning Institute (ACI) reiterated its call for targeted changes to the bill to address bottlenecks in the review process.

“We appreciate the Senate’s targeted approach to TSCA revisions,” says Blake Nanney, ACI Director of Government Affairs. “Addressing these pressing challenges will help our members and other manufacturers continue to innovate and stay competitive in a global marketplace.”

Nanney highlighted three specific areas where practical changes in the proposed legislation could streamline new chemistry review under the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA):

1) Tiered New Chemical Review Process
This procedure would prioritize a top-tier approval process that aligns with Safer Choice criteria. By adopting this review process alongside the Safer Choice program, industry members would be incentivized to innovate safer and more sustainable chemistries. Moreover, the New Chemicals Program would instill predictability, timeliness, and process discipline 

2) Clarification of Terminology
The phrases “conditions of use” and “unreasonable risk” explicitly exclude hypothetical uses, misuse, or activities already prohibited under other federal laws for new chemical reviews. Clarification reinforces a science-based, exposure-driven risk standard that ACI strongly supports.

3) Improved New Chemical Program
The legislation can be refined for efficiency and certainty by allowing independent, accredited third-party reviewers to assess submission completeness before EPA staff devote resources for a full Pre-Manufacturer Notice (PMN) review. This would enable expedited review for market entry of new PMN submissions and improved stewardship of EPA resources. 

Overall, these recommendations could improve and address longstanding concerns about New Chemical PMN delays, which have caused a bottleneck on chemical innovation, as well as the general lack of regulatory certainty.