"The Trump EPA flouted transparency requirements and proper protocol when it changed a rule pertaining to “forever chemicals,” according to findings out today from the agency’s watchdog.
In a report released this morning, the Office of Inspector General soundly panned EPA’s actions around a rule dealing with long-chain PFAS, chemicals that have drawn global concern due to their confirmed and possible health effects. EPA “did not follow docketing procedures,” OIG said, and failed to inform the public about changes to a rule governing notable new chemical uses.
“EPA did not meet transparency expectations and risked compromising the public’s trust in the rulemaking process,” OIG said.
The rule in question is a Significant New Use Rule, or SNUR. That chemical-specific rule exists under the Toxic Substances Control Act to ensure that EPA is notified when a named chemical is manufactured or processed for a new purpose. In June 2020, former President Donald Trump’s administration signed off on a SNUR for certain per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances regarding their use in surface coatings.
But between that June signoff and the rule’s July publication in the Federal Register, EPA quietly made changes to the rule."
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