Trump Administration Proposes Overhaul of Biden-Era TSCA Risk Evaluation Framework

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On September 23, 2025, EPA published a proposed rule that would roll back key provisions of the agency’s May 2024 risk evaluation framework rule, which sets out the procedures EPA uses to assess the risks of existing chemicals under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA).

According to EPA, the proposal is intended to “effectuate the best reading of the statute and ensure that the procedural framework rule does not impede the timely completion of risk evaluations or impair the effective and efficient protection of health and the environment.”

The rollback is a priority for the Trump administration, which first announced its intent to reconsider the rulemaking in March.  The 2024 rule—itself a revision of a rule issued during the first Trump administration—has been criticized by industry groups such as the American Chemistry Council and targeted for revision by the Heritage Foundation’s “Project 2025” initiative.

What Changes is EPA Proposing?

If finalized, the rule would:

  • Grant EPA discretion to narrow the scope of risk evaluations by excluding conditions of use and exposure pathways from its assessments.
  • Require that separate risk determinations be made for each of a chemical’s conditions of use, instead of a single risk determination for the chemical as a whole.
  • Remove language prohibiting EPA from assuming worker protections through PPE usage.
  • Eliminate “overburdened communities” from the list of “potentially exposed or susceptible subpopulations” that must be considered in evaluations.
  • Provide EPA with greater flexibility to revise or supplement scope or risk evaluation documents without restarting the prioritization process.
  • Scale back information collection requirements for manufacturers requesting a risk evaluation.
Stakeholder Responses

The proposal has drawn criticism from environmental groups, who warn that the changes—particularly EPA’s ability to exclude conditions of use and exposure pathways—will jeopardize public health.

“Rather than looking at the full picture of a chemical’s toxic risk, EPA wants to downplay the links these chemicals have to cancer and chronic disease and give the chemical industry a handout at the expense of our health and safety,” an Environmental Defense Fund official said in a statement.

“The chemicals in the pipeline for review under TSCA have been prioritized specifically because of the risks they pose to our health, and rewriting this process to lowball risks will only rig the rules to benefit the chemical industry,” she continued.

The American Chemistry Council, on the other hand, applauded the move.  “This proposed approach demonstrates EPA’s commitment to refining its processes in a way that is both protective and practical,” an official said in a press release.  “The proposal reflects meaningful progress toward a more science-driven regulatory framework for conducting TSCA risk evaluations.”

Comments on the proposed rule are due November 7, 2025.  More on the 2024 rule can be found here.