Toxic Substances: EPA's Chemical Testing Program Has Made Little Progress
RCED-90-112
Published: Apr 25, 1990. Publicly Released: Jun 20, 1990.
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Highlights
Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO evaluated the Interagency Testing Committee's (ITC) and Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) implementation of the chemical testing program under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA).
Recommendations
Matter for Congressional Consideration
| Matter | Status | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| To ensure that the chemical testing program achieves what Congress intended, Congress may wish to require EPA to develop a comprehensive plan setting forth objectives, a strategy, and time frames, and submit the plan to Congress for approval. |
Closed – Implemented
|
Congressional hearings were on the chemical testing program but no further congressional action has been taken or is anticipated. |
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Environmental Protection Agency | The Administrator, EPA, should exercise EPA data-gathering authority on behalf of ITC under Section 8 of TSCA to obtain the data that ITC needs to make recommendations. This can be done in phases so that industry is not overburdened. |
Closed – Implemented
EPA has expressed its intent to use Section 8(a) and 8(d) for most ITC recommended chemicals, but EPA's section 8 exposure data is not complete enough to meet ITC's needs.
|
| Environmental Protection Agency | The Administrator, EPA, should work with ITC to improve its member participation. |
Closed – Implemented
EPA has initiated discussions with ITC member agencies to encourage member participation.
|
| Environmental Protection Agency | The Administrator, EPA, should place a high priority on issuing final test rules by ensuring that adequate staff resources are devoted to completing test rules within a reasonable time, such as the 12- to 18-month time frame GAO recommended in 1984. |
Closed – Implemented
EPA is working on the backlog, but lacks sufficient resources to ensure that test rules are completed with a reasonable time.
|
| Environmental Protection Agency | The Administrator, EPA, should develop overall objectives for the chemical testing program and a strategy for achieving those objectives. The objectives should identify, among other things, the universe of chemicals EPA needs to address and the pace at which it plans to address those chemicals. |
Closed – Implemented
EPA developed a testing strategy for the TSCA Section 4 program. The master testing list will set the testing agenda and priorities for testing for the next 2 years.
|
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