At first glance, Frank R. Lautenberg (D-NJ) did not have as much impact on the oil and gas industry as other US senators before he died on June 3. A closer look, however, reveals that his ongoing interest in chemical safety left its mark on refining and petrochemicals.
That impact could continue. Lautenberg and David Vitter (R-La.), the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee's ranking minority member who frequently criticizes federal government overreach, jointly introduced legislation on May 22 designed to update and improve the federal Toxic Substances Control Act.
They said their "Chemical Safety Improvement Act of 2013" would require safety evaluations for all chemicals, give the US Environmental Protection Agency authority to impose protections from unsafe chemicals, and establish priorities for EPA chemical reviews, and screen new chemicals for safety.
It also would let EPA secure necessary health and safety information from chemical manufacturers (while directing it to rely first on existing information to avoid duplicative testing), and provide clear paths for safely bringing new chemicals to market while protecting trade secrets and intellectual.
The bill also would require EPA to evaluate a chemical's risks to children and woman when considering its safety (a requirement missing from the current TSCA), and give state and local governments a say for the first time in developing federal chemical safety regulations, including a waiver process for letting their own requirements to remain in effect when necessary, the senators said.
The American Fuel & Petrochemicals Manufacturers Association's top official commended Lautenberg and Vitter for their bipartisan approach to improving chemical safety.
"At this time, we are reviewing the details of the legislation and look forward to continue working with the bipartisan group to ensure that the modernized TSCA is tiered, targeted, and risk-based," AFPM Pres. Charles T. Drevna said on May 22.
Passage prospects
Senate support for the bill grew. By May 30, it had 10 more Democrats and 8 more Republicans as cosponsors. If history is any guide, its passage as a final legislative memorial to Lautenberg is likely.
Possibly more significant may be his role in helping create the US Chemical Safety Board, which received its initial funding in 1995 following a chemical explosion in Lodi, NJ, which fatally injured five workers.
"The accident happened only a few miles from the Paterson neighborhoods where Sen. Lautenberg was born in 1924 and grew up," CSB Chairman Rafael Moure-Eraso said on June 3. "He is widely considered to be the father of this agency."
Lautenberg believed communities where chemicals are used should be safe places. CSB's ongoing efforts could be as important a memorial as his TSCA reform bill.
