On July 30, 2024, the U.S. EPA Office of Inspector General issued a fraud alert to bring attention to an increasing number of companies reporting that they have received fraudulent EPA Notice of Violation letters demanding...more
On July 2, 2024, OSHA released the long-awaited Heat Injury and Illness Prevention in Outdoor and Indoor Work Settings proposed rule. If finalized, the rule would require millions of employers to take steps to protect their...more
On February 8, 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published two proposed rules in the Federal Register that would expand the EPA’s authority to address certain per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) under...more
2/13/2024
/ CERCLA ,
Contamination ,
Environmental Liability ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Hazardous Waste ,
PFAS ,
Proposed Rules ,
Public Health ,
RCRA ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Superfund ,
Toxic Exposure
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released an advance notice of proposed rulemaking with a focus on modifying the treatment and handling of “empty” containers and drums under the Resource Conservation and...more
On July 20, 2023, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) published a notice of proposed rulemaking to clarify the personal protective equipment (PPE) standard for the construction industry....more
7/20/2023
/ Comment Period ,
Construction Project ,
Construction Workers ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Responsibilities ,
Health and Safety ,
New Guidance ,
OSHA ,
Personal Protective Equipment ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Workplace Hazards ,
Workplace Safety
The EPA intends to increase its review of voluntary self-disclosures of violations submitted electronically under EPA’s Audit Policy. The EPA Office of Inspector General (OIG) recently issued a report detailing the results of...more
The U.S. EPA unveiled a new notification service this week called ECHO Notify. This new tool will allow the public to receive weekly e-mails notifying them of EPA- and state-led environmental enforcement actions and...more
OSHA has partially reopened the rulemaking record and scheduled an informal public hearing to seek comments on several topics relating to the development of a final standard to protect healthcare and healthcare support...more
3/23/2022
/ Comment Period ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Facilities ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Occupational Exposure ,
OSHA ,
Public Comment ,
Public Hearing ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Workplace Safety
As covered in my previous post, the ASTM International (ASTM) released a revised standard for conducting Phase I Environmental Site Assessments (Phase I ESAs) – ASTM E1527-21. While the E1527-21 standard has been available...more
On March 8, 2022, OSHA released an enforcement memorandum detailing a new initiative involving a short-term increase in highly focused inspections directed at hospitals and skilled nursing care facilities that treat or handle...more
Throughout the first year of the Biden-Harris Administration, Environmental Justice (EJ) has been a focus of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. As I wrote about in November 2021, since January 2021 EPA has released...more
Effective January 26, 2022, OSHA withdrew its enforcement of its COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS), which would have required many employers to mandate vaccination or regular testing for employees. As we have...more
1/26/2022
/ Biden Administration ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Lack of Authority ,
National Federation of Independent Business v Department of Labor and OSHA ,
OSHA ,
SCOTUS ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
As we have previously reported, the implementation status of OSHA’s Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) regarding COVID-19 vaccination or testing seems to change weekly. Last week, the United States Supreme Court reinstated...more
1/17/2022
/ Biden Administration ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Lack of Authority ,
National Federation of Independent Business v Department of Labor and OSHA ,
OSHA ,
SCOTUS ,
Stays ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
We take a break from our regularly scheduled “2022 outlook” programming to bring you breaking news on the seesaw that is the enforcement of OSHA’s Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) regarding COVID-19 vaccination or testing....more
1/17/2022
/ Biden Administration ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Lack of Authority ,
Manufacturers ,
National Federation of Independent Business v Department of Labor and OSHA ,
OSHA ,
SCOTUS ,
Stays ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
On December 21, 2021, the U.S. Supreme Court took its first step into the fray over federal vaccine mandates. As we have previously posted, legal challenges to the Biden administration’s various vaccine mandates have been...more
12/23/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Manufacturers ,
Motion to Dissolve ,
Multidistrict Litigation ,
OSHA ,
Petition for Writ of Certiorari ,
SCOTUS ,
Stays ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
On Friday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit lifted a stay of OSHA’s Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) on COVID-19 vaccination and testing for employers with 100 or more employees. As we previously posted, the...more
12/20/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Motion to Dissolve ,
Multidistrict Litigation ,
OSHA ,
Petition for Writ of Certiorari ,
SCOTUS ,
Stays ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
On November 1, the American Society for Testing and Material’s (ASTM) released a revised standard for conducting Phase I Environmental Site Assessments (Phase I ESAs). ...more
Thank you to Jonathan Schaefer for his contributions to this post. Jon focuses his practice on environmental compliance counseling, occupational health and safety, permitting, site remediation, and litigation related to...more
11/11/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Emergency Management Plans ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Manufacturing Employers ,
New Rules ,
OSHA ,
Public Health Emergency ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
On November 2, 2021, the U.S. EPA announced revisions to its mercury inventory reporting rule under TSCA. The revisions eliminate an exemption for companies that import pre-assembled products containing a mercury-added...more
Under the Biden-Harris administration, the U.S. EPA has made advancing Environmental Justice (EJ) a leading priority. At times it has felt like EPA releases an EJ-related announcement, policy, or guidance every day. While...more
11/2/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Climate Change ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Enforcement Guidance ,
Environmental Justice ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Natural Gas ,
OECA ,
Pipelines ,
Title VI ,
Toxic Exposure
On October 26, 2021, the U.S. EPA announced it will initiate two rulemakings that will take significant steps to address PFAS contamination across the country. The first rulemaking will designate four of the so-called...more
10/28/2021
/ CERCLA ,
Contamination ,
Discharge of Pollutants ,
Drinking Water ,
Enforcement Guidance ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Hazardous Substances ,
PFAS ,
Public Health ,
RCRA ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Toxic Chemicals ,
Toxic Exposure
On October 18, 2021, EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan announced the PFAS Strategic Roadmap: EPA’s Commitments to Action 2021-2024 (Roadmap). The Roadmap is intended to be a comprehensive approach to confronting PFAS...more
10/21/2021
/ CERCLA ,
Contamination ,
Discharge of Pollutants ,
Drinking Water ,
Enforcement Guidance ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Hazardous Substances ,
NPDES ,
PFAS ,
Public Health ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Toxic Chemicals ,
Toxic Exposure ,
Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)
On October 1, 2021, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released its new Draft Strategic Plan for 2022 through 2026 (Strategic Plan). EPA is required to develop the Strategic Plan to communicate EPA’s priorities...more
10/18/2021
/ Air Quality Standards ,
Biden Administration ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Environmental Justice ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Hazardous Waste ,
Pollution Control ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Strategic Planning ,
Supervisory Guidance ,
Toxic Chemicals ,
Water Quality
As previously discussed in a post on the Manufacturing Law Blog, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is increasing scrutiny of how thoroughly companies evaluate and disclose Environmental, Social, and Corporate...more
September 2, 2021, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in collaboration with the Department of Defense (DOD), released the first EPA-validated laboratory analytical method to test for per- and polyfluoroalkyl...more
9/3/2021
/ Contamination ,
Department of Defense (DOD) ,
Drinking Water ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Environmental Testing ,
Groundwater ,
Hazardous Substances ,
PFAS ,
Public Health ,
Soil ,
Toxic Chemicals ,
Toxic Exposure ,
Wastewater