Advertise on podcast: All Things Chemical

The bipartisan 2016 Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act (Lautenberg) Amendments enacted extensive changes to the 1976 Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) that many hoped would set the law on a new course, address its widely recognized challenges, and accelerate U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) actions to address public health threats. Since then, four administrations have put their mark on implementation of the amended law. The past ten years have seemed like a roller coaster of competing legal interpretations of some of the Lautenberg Amendments' most significant provisions, scientific debate and analyses, rulemakings, delays in meeting TSCA deadlines, and major milestones. To celebrate Lautenberg's ten-year anniversary, the Environmental Law Institute, the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health, and B&C convened an all-day conference: TSCA Reform -- Ten Years Later. The podcast you are about to hear is the panel discussion on whether -- and, if so, how -- TSCA should be amended. TSCA's fee authorization lapses in about ten weeks and the need for congressional action has invited animated debate over whether broader legislative action is warranted. Discussion drafts outlining legislative reforms are circulating, and stakeholders are sharply divided over whether legislative intervention is needed at all, let alone on how best to modify TSCA yet again. This panel explored these issues. ALL MATERIALS IN THIS PODCAST ARE PROVIDED SOLELY FOR INFORMATIONAL  AND ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES. THE MATERIALS ARE NOT INTENDED TO CONSTITUTE LEGAL ADVICE OR THE PROVISION OF LEGAL SERVICES. ALL LEGAL QUESTIONS SHOULD BE ANSWERED DIRECTLY BY A LICENSED ATTORNEY PRACTICING IN THE APPLICABLE AREA OF LAW. ©2026 Bergeson & Campbell, P.C.  All Rights Reserved

The bipartisan 2016 Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act (Lautenberg) Amendments enacted extensive changes to the 1976 Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) that many hoped would set the law on a new course, address its widely recognized challenges, and accelerate U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) actions to address public health threats. Since then, four administrations have put their mark on implementation of the amended law. The past ten years have seemed like a roller coaster of competing legal interpretations of some of the Lautenberg Amendments' most significant provisions, scientific debate and analyses, rulemakings, delays in meeting TSCA deadlines, and major milestones. To celebrate Lautenberg's ten-year anniversary, the Environmental Law Institute, the George Washington Milken Institute School of Public Health, and B&C convened an all-day conference: TSCA Reform -- Ten Years Later. The podcast you are about to hear is the panel discussion on ten years of Lautenberg: where are we? Unsurprisingly, views vary widely on whether we are on the right track in achieving Congress's goals, whether amending TSCA was successful, whether EPA's efforts over the past decade are achieving the law's public health goals, and whether, as we look back ten years, we need to reimagine our core approach to chemical regulation or stay the course. This discussion includes diverse stakeholders steeped in TSCA debating these questions. ALL MATERIALS IN THIS PODCAST ARE PROVIDED SOLELY FOR INFORMATIONAL  AND ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES. THE MATERIALS ARE NOT INTENDED TO CONSTITUTE LEGAL ADVICE OR THE PROVISION OF LEGAL SERVICES. ALL LEGAL QUESTIONS SHOULD BE ANSWERED DIRECTLY BY A LICENSED ATTORNEY PRACTICING IN THE APPLICABLE AREA OF LAW. ©2026 Bergeson & Campbell, P.C.  All Rights Reserved

The bipartisan 2016 Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act (Lautenberg) Amendments enacted extensive changes to the 1976 Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) that many hoped would set the law on a new course, address its widely recognized challenges, and accelerate U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) actions to address public health threats. Since then, four administrations have put their mark on implementation of the amended law. The past ten years have seemed like a roller coaster of competing legal interpretations of some of the Lautenberg Amendments' most significant provisions, scientific debate and analyses, rulemakings, delays in meeting TSCA deadlines, and major milestones. To celebrate Lautenberg's ten-year anniversary, the Environmental Law Institute, the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health, and B&C convened an all-day conference: TSCA Reform -- Ten Years Later. The podcast you are about to hear is the keynote address from the conference. It features Dr. Lynn R. Goldman, former Assistant Administrator for Toxic Substances at EPA and Dean Emerita at the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health, speaking with former Senator Tom Udall, a key advocate of Lautenberg, and Bonnie Lautenberg, the spouse of former Senator Frank R. Lautenberg. Many credit Lautenberg's passage in no small part to Bonnie's extraordinary advocacy. ALL MATERIALS IN THIS PODCAST ARE PROVIDED SOLELY FOR INFORMATIONAL  AND ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES. THE MATERIALS ARE NOT INTENDED TO CONSTITUTE LEGAL ADVICE OR THE PROVISION OF LEGAL SERVICES. ALL LEGAL QUESTIONS SHOULD BE ANSWERED DIRECTLY BY A LICENSED ATTORNEY PRACTICING IN THE APPLICABLE AREA OF LAW. ©2026 Bergeson & Campbell, P.C.  All Rights Reserved

This week, I had the pleasure of speaking with Karen R. Harned, Director of Litigation and Legal Policy for the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors (NAW), to discuss the hot off the press decision in National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors v. Feldon, the federal challenge to Oregon's Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) law. We discuss NAW's mission, the role of NAW's Legal Policy Center, which Karen, as Director of Litigation and Legal Policy, leads, the reasons NAW sued the state of Oregon, and what Judge Michael H. Simon determined in his ruling of August 27, 2026. ALL MATERIALS IN THIS PODCAST ARE PROVIDED SOLELY FOR INFORMATIONAL  AND ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES. THE MATERIALS ARE NOT INTENDED TO CONSTITUTE LEGAL ADVICE OR THE PROVISION OF LEGAL SERVICES. ALL LEGAL QUESTIONS SHOULD BE ANSWERED DIRECTLY BY A LICENSED ATTORNEY PRACTICING IN THE APPLICABLE AREA OF LAW. ©2026 Bergeson & Campbell, P.C.  All Rights Reserved

The bipartisan 2016 Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act (Lautenberg) Amendments enacted extensive changes to the 1976 Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) that many hoped would set the law on a new course, address its widely recognized challenges, and accelerate U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) actions to address public health threats. Since then, four administrations have put their mark on implementation of the amended law. The past ten years have seemed like a roller coaster of competing legal interpretations of some of the Lautenberg Amendments' most significant provisions, scientific debate and analyses, rulemakings, delays in meeting TSCA deadlines, and major milestones. To celebrate Lautenberg's ten-year anniversary, the Environmental Law Institute, the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health, and B&C convened an all-day conference: TSCA Reform -- Ten Years Later. The podcast you are about to hear is the panel discussion on new chemical review. Questions over EPA's implementation of the Lautenberg Amendments to TSCA Section 5 new chemical review rose quickly and have not abated. Spirited debate continues over how well the program is working, what challenges persist, and what changes may be needed to improve and hasten new chemical review. Environmental advocates have questioned whether the program is doing enough to ensure that new chemicals are safe. This panel discussion explores the reasons underlying the debate over the long-term impacts of decisions on new chemicals, if there is a need to "fix" the program and what that would mean, how "reasonably foreseen" future conditions of use are identified and addressed in the new chemical review process, the impacts of significant new use rules, and the role pre-manufacture review of new chemicals plays in protecting public health and effects on innovation and safer chemicals, among other key issues. ALL MATERIALS IN THIS PODCAST ARE PROVIDED SOLELY FOR INFORMATIONAL  AND ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES. THE MATERIALS ARE NOT INTENDED TO CONSTITUTE LEGAL ADVICE OR THE PROVISION OF LEGAL SERVICES. ALL LEGAL QUESTIONS SHOULD BE ANSWERED DIRECTLY BY A LICENSED ATTORNEY PRACTICING IN THE APPLICABLE AREA OF LAW. ©2026 Bergeson & Campbell, P.C.  All Rights Reserved

The bipartisan 2016 Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act (Lautenberg) Amendments enacted extensive changes to the 1976 Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) that many hoped would set the law on a new course, address its widely recognized challenges, and accelerate U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) actions to address public health threats. Since then, four administrations have put their mark on implementation of the amended law. The past ten years have seemed like a roller coaster of competing legal interpretations of some of the Lautenberg Amendments' most significant provisions, scientific debate and analyses, rulemakings, delays in meeting TSCA deadlines, and major milestones. To celebrate Lautenberg's ten-year anniversary, the Environmental Law Institute, the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health, and B&C convened an all-day conference: TSCA Reform -- Ten Years Later. The podcast you are about to hear is the panel discussion on risk management. This panel focuses on the past, present, and future of risk management under TSCA. With all five final risk management rules in litigation, a debate is underway over whether these rules go too far or not far enough and how much risk reduction we can expect in future rules. The panel also explores what can be learned to date from the pending cases and speculate on how the courts and EPA may reshape future TSCA Section 6 rulemakings. The panel will address recurring policy and legal issues, such as the role of Section 6 in assuring workplace protection and addressing environmental releases from facilities, as well as how EPA can keep pace with TSCA's statutory deadlines for proposed and final rules. ALL MATERIALS IN THIS PODCAST ARE PROVIDED SOLELY FOR INFORMATIONAL  AND ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES. THE MATERIALS ARE NOT INTENDED TO CONSTITUTE LEGAL ADVICE OR THE PROVISION OF LEGAL SERVICES. ALL LEGAL QUESTIONS SHOULD BE ANSWERED DIRECTLY BY A LICENSED ATTORNEY PRACTICING IN THE APPLICABLE AREA OF LAW. ©2026 Bergeson & Campbell, P.C.  All Rights Reserved

The bipartisan 2016 Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act (Lautenberg) Amendments enacted extensive changes to the 1976 Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) that many hoped would set the law on a new course, address its widely recognized challenges, and accelerate U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) actions to address public health threats. Since then, four administrations have put their mark on implementation of the amended law. The past ten years have seemed like a roller coaster of competing legal interpretations of some of the Lautenberg Amendments' most significant provisions, scientific debate and analyses, rulemakings, delays in meeting TSCA deadlines, and major milestones. To celebrate Lautenberg's ten-year anniversary, the Environmental Law Institute, the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health, and B&C convened an all-day conference: TSCA Reform -- Ten Years Later. The podcast you are about to hear is the panel discussion on risk evaluation. This panel discussion focuses on EPA's most recent risk evaluations and how they compare with prior administrations' risk evaluation approaches, recent changes in direction of the controversial formaldehyde risk evaluation, and on EPA's proposed Risk Evaluation Framework Rule and its implications for protecting human health. Now, here is the panel discussion on risk evaluation from TSCA Reform -- Ten Years Later. ALL MATERIALS IN THIS PODCAST ARE PROVIDED SOLELY FOR INFORMATIONAL  AND ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES. THE MATERIALS ARE NOT INTENDED TO CONSTITUTE LEGAL ADVICE OR THE PROVISION OF LEGAL SERVICES. ALL LEGAL QUESTIONS SHOULD BE ANSWERED DIRECTLY BY A LICENSED ATTORNEY PRACTICING IN THE APPLICABLE AREA OF LAW. ©2026 Bergeson & Campbell, P.C.  All Rights Reserved

This week, I had the pleasure of speaking with my colleague, Carla N. Hutton, Senior Regulatory Analyst for B&C, to discuss recent developments in state PFAS regulation. Carla and I visited a few months ago, but there have been so many recent developments, we thought we needed to visit again to ensure our listeners are well informed. We discuss what is new with PFAS reporting and labeling under the New Mexico PFAS Protection Act. New guidance is welcome, as there has been a lack of clarity regarding the scope of the labeling requirement. We discuss the litigation underway in New Mexico challenging the regulations. We also discuss some fast-approaching deadlines pertinent to PFAS reporting in Minnesota that you will want to understand. ALL MATERIALS IN THIS PODCAST ARE PROVIDED SOLELY FOR INFORMATIONAL  AND ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES. THE MATERIALS ARE NOT INTENDED TO CONSTITUTE LEGAL ADVICE OR THE PROVISION OF LEGAL SERVICES. ALL LEGAL QUESTIONS SHOULD BE ANSWERED DIRECTLY BY A LICENSED ATTORNEY PRACTICING IN THE APPLICABLE AREA OF LAW. ©2026 Bergeson & Campbell, P.C.  All Rights Reserved

This week, I had the pleasure of speaking with Dr. Susanna W. Blair, Senior Director of Regulatory and Technical Affairs for the Consumer Brands Association (CBA), which represents the interests of the consumer-packaged goods (CPG) community. Having left the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) after a distinguished career as a senior scientist and policy expert, Dr. Blair is putting her science policy chops to good use at CBA. We discuss CBA's mission, its focus on food and beverage ingredients, how Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) advocacy has impacted CBA, the Association's focus on the Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) framework, among other priority projects CBA is pursuing, and much more. ALL MATERIALS IN THIS PODCAST ARE PROVIDED SOLELY FOR INFORMATIONAL  AND ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES. THE MATERIALS ARE NOT INTENDED TO CONSTITUTE LEGAL ADVICE OR THE PROVISION OF LEGAL SERVICES. ALL LEGAL QUESTIONS SHOULD BE ANSWERED DIRECTLY BY A LICENSED ATTORNEY PRACTICING IN THE APPLICABLE AREA OF LAW. ©2026 Bergeson & Campbell, P.C.  All Rights Reserved

This week, I had the pleasure of speaking with my new colleague, Richard J. Fehir, Ph.D., Senior Chemist/Regulatory Scientist, at B&C and its consulting affiliate, The Acta Group (Acta®), to discuss his career at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and how he is now deploying his considerable scientific chops at B&C and Acta. Rick is a bit unusual, as he has worked for both EPA's Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics (OPPT) and Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP), which is a very opportune combination for our clients! ALL MATERIALS IN THIS PODCAST ARE PROVIDED SOLELY FOR INFORMATIONAL  AND ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES. THE MATERIALS ARE NOT INTENDED TO CONSTITUTE LEGAL ADVICE OR THE PROVISION OF LEGAL SERVICES. ALL LEGAL QUESTIONS SHOULD BE ANSWERED DIRECTLY BY A LICENSED ATTORNEY PRACTICING IN THE APPLICABLE AREA OF LAW. ©2026 Bergeson & Campbell, P.C.  All Rights Reserved

This week, I had the pleasure of speaking with Dr. Richard E. Engler, Director of Chemistry for B&C and The Acta Group (Acta®), our consulting affiliate, and Ryan N. Schmit, Of Counsel with B&C and Senior Regulatory Consultant with Acta, about the ever-tricky topic of confidential business information (CBI) -- what is it, how to protect it, and steps to take to avoid losing it. As listeners may know, the protection afforded certain information claimed CBI begins to sunset today, June 22, 2026, because of changes to the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) signed into law ten years ago today with enactment of the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act. Certain claims need to be substantiated to continue being shielded from public disclosure. Our discussion today focuses on this change in the law, how the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has operationalized the substantiation process, and what TSCA stakeholders need to know to preserve their CBI claims if they wish to extend protection for another ten years. ALL MATERIALS IN THIS PODCAST ARE PROVIDED SOLELY FOR INFORMATIONAL  AND ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES. THE MATERIALS ARE NOT INTENDED TO CONSTITUTE LEGAL ADVICE OR THE PROVISION OF LEGAL SERVICES. ALL LEGAL QUESTIONS SHOULD BE ANSWERED DIRECTLY BY A LICENSED ATTORNEY PRACTICING IN THE APPLICABLE AREA OF LAW. ©2026 Bergeson & Campbell, P.C.  All Rights Reserved

This week, I was pleased to welcome back to the studio Dana S. Lateulere, Regulatory Consultant with B&C and its consulting affiliate, The Acta Group (Acta®), and James V. Aidala, Senior Government Affairs Consultant at B&C and Vice President, Policy and Government Affairs, at Acta, to discuss the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) significant role in combating pathogens like those spreading the highly virulent Ebola virus and Hantavirus. Both Dana and Jim have extensive expertise in how EPA deploys its authority under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) to protect the public's health from these and other deadly pathogens. We discuss how EPA reviews, approves, and regulates products to combat these pathogens, how EPA has modernized its process to meet the demands of the moment, and why the public health products EPA regulates under FIFRA are more essential now than ever. ALL MATERIALS IN THIS PODCAST ARE PROVIDED SOLELY FOR INFORMATIONAL  AND ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES. THE MATERIALS ARE NOT INTENDED TO CONSTITUTE LEGAL ADVICE OR THE PROVISION OF LEGAL SERVICES. ALL LEGAL QUESTIONS SHOULD BE ANSWERED DIRECTLY BY A LICENSED ATTORNEY PRACTICING IN THE APPLICABLE AREA OF LAW. ©2026 Bergeson & Campbell, P.C.  All Rights Reserved

This week, I had the pleasure of speaking with my colleague, Carla N. Hutton, Senior Regulatory Analyst for B&C, to discuss emerging state per- and polyfluoroalkyl (PFAS) restrictions. As many listeners appreciate, dozens of states are considering, and others have enacted, state restrictions on a wide variety of products with the goal of eventually prohibiting the sale of products that contain intentionally added PFAS. Several states have implemented regulatory provisions that require, or will require, reporting the presence of PFAS intentionally added to products, label certain products as to the presence of PFAS in the product as soon as January 2027, and/or prohibit the sale or offering for sale of products containing PFAS by 2032. Monitoring, understanding, and explaining the complex diversity of these state PFAS restrictions is Hutton's superpower. Her encyclopedic knowledge of these restrictions and understanding of subtle but important distinctions among them is impressive. We discuss the most urgent and controversial programs in Minnesota and New Mexico with a view to assist listeners with understanding the key areas of controversy and how best to prepare for some fast-approaching deadlines. ALL MATERIALS IN THIS PODCAST ARE PROVIDED SOLELY FOR INFORMATIONAL  AND ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES. THE MATERIALS ARE NOT INTENDED TO CONSTITUTE LEGAL ADVICE OR THE PROVISION OF LEGAL SERVICES. ALL LEGAL QUESTIONS SHOULD BE ANSWERED DIRECTLY BY A LICENSED ATTORNEY PRACTICING IN THE APPLICABLE AREA OF LAW. ©2026 Bergeson & Campbell, P.C.  All Rights Reserved

This week, I had the pleasure of speaking with Dr. Ahna G. Brutlag, Vice President of Veterinary Services and Senior Veterinary Toxicologist at SafetyCall International, LLC and Pet Poison Helpline®. Impressively, Dr. Brutlag is a Diplomate of the American Board of Veterinary Toxicology (ABVT) as well as a Diplomate of the human counterpart, the American Board of Toxicology (ABT), a distinction shared by fewer than 80 people in North America. Dr. Brutlag is at the forefront of adverse effects monitoring and post-market surveillance and has navigated this complex regulatory landscape for over two decades. We discuss the fascinating intersection of chemicals and pet and animal safety. ALL MATERIALS IN THIS PODCAST ARE PROVIDED SOLELY FOR INFORMATIONAL  AND ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES. THE MATERIALS ARE NOT INTENDED TO CONSTITUTE LEGAL ADVICE OR THE PROVISION OF LEGAL SERVICES. ALL LEGAL QUESTIONS SHOULD BE ANSWERED DIRECTLY BY A LICENSED ATTORNEY PRACTICING IN THE APPLICABLE AREA OF LAW. ©2026 Bergeson & Campbell, P.C.  All Rights Reserved

This week, I had the pleasure of speaking with Molly R. Blessing, Vice President of Sustainability & Product Stewardship for the Household & Commercial Products Association (HCPA). We discuss a few of the fascinating and vexing challenges industry faces today in the complex world of product stewardship. We address the growing pains of conflicting state extended producer responsibility (EPR) laws, the challenges in California of labeling a product as recyclable, and making the case for a robust corporate product stewardship program. ALL MATERIALS IN THIS PODCAST ARE PROVIDED SOLELY FOR INFORMATIONAL  AND ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES. THE MATERIALS ARE NOT INTENDED TO CONSTITUTE LEGAL ADVICE OR THE PROVISION OF LEGAL SERVICES. ALL LEGAL QUESTIONS SHOULD BE ANSWERED DIRECTLY BY A LICENSED ATTORNEY PRACTICING IN THE APPLICABLE AREA OF LAW. ©2026 Bergeson & Campbell, P.C.  All Rights Reserved