[Washington, D.C.] On January 15, 2026, the House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Brett Guthrie (R-KY) and Environment Subcommittee Chair Gary Palmer (R-AL) released a draft bill that proposes to roll back key provisions of the nation’s chemical safety law—the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). The Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) is the main federal law governing the safety of chemicals like PFAS and asbestos used in products and manufacturing.
The proposal reflects longstanding priorities of the chemical lobby by proposing to roll back reforms Congress enacted with overwhelming bipartisan support in 2016 to better protect people from toxic chemicals.
In response to the proposal, the Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments Executive Director Katie Huffling, DNP, RN, CNM, FAAN issued the following statement:
“Nurses witness firsthand the health impacts and health harms from toxic chemicals like PFAS which can increase risk of certain cancers, alter endocrine responses and impact pregnancy outcomes. Environmental exposures have devastating effects on patients and communities impacting overall quality of life across the nation. We must do more to protect the health of those who experience preventable health issues due to unsafe chemical exposures. Giving industry greater license to put more chemicals on the market without EPA rigorously evaluating their impacts on health and safety would threaten public health and reverse the hard-won safeguards designed to prevent harm before it occurs. Nurses will continue to oppose any and all efforts to weaken environmental health policies designed to protect our communities.”
Since 2016, TSCA has delivered meaningful public health protections, including banning asbestos and dangerous paint strippers containing methylene chloride, phasing out harmful degreasing chemicals containing trichloroethylene and preventing new dangerous chemicals, including some per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), from entering the market. Among its most troubling provisions, the proposal would weaken EPA authority to restrict harmful chemicals, short-cut safety reviews for new chemicals, making it easier for harmful chemicals like PFAS to enter the market without full evaluations and roll back federal actions that reduce exposure to cancer-causing chemicals like methylene chloride and trichloroethylene (TCE).
A House Energy and Commerce Committee, Environment Subcommittee hearing on the bill is scheduled for Thursday, January 22 at 2:00 PM ET.
