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On Wednesday, June 18, 2025, the U.S. Supreme Court (SCOTUS) laid down rules to resolve split circuit court opinions, determining which EPA Clean Air Act (CAA) cases should be heard by regional district courts and which must be heard by the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. Before making its determination, SCOTUS heard two cases: The […]
The president’s proposed fiscal year (FY) 2026 budget for the EPA totals $4.16 billion, a 54% decrease from the FY 2025 enacted budget level, according to the FY 2026 EPA Budget in Brief. If enacted, it will represent the smallest budget the Agency has seen in 50 years. The FY 2026 budget supports 12,856 full-time […]
On July 1, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) took significant steps at deregulation by proposing changes to medical evaluation requirements in the respiratory protection standard. It also proposed changes to several toxic and hazardous substances standards to allow different types of respirators, remove provisions that duplicate requirements of the respiratory protection standard, or […]
On July 1, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) took its first steps at deregulation, publishing one final rule and many proposals. The final rule revokes 29 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) §1911.10, the requirement for the assistant secretary of labor for occupational safety and health to consult with the Advisory Committee on Construction […]
On June 25, the Department of Labor (DOL) outlined its policies for referring regulatory enforcement cases to the Department of Justice (DOJ) for criminal prosecution (90 Fed. Reg. 27057). The DOL’s Office of the Solicitor published its policies in response to the May 9 Executive Order “Fighting Overcriminalization in Federal Regulations” (E.O. 14294; 90 Fed. […]
On episode 257 of EHS On Tap, Phil Molè, EHS & Sustainability Expert at VelocityEHS, talks about the current regulatory climate for worker safety.
The North Carolina Department of Labor (NCDOL) announced an increase in starting salaries for workplace safety inspectors on June 2. The new starting salary for fully qualified compliance safety officers was raised to $61,000 annually, an increase of more than 5% for the state’s frontline safety professionals. Compliance safety officers in the NCDOL’s Occupational Safety […]
For years, industry groups have complained about the EPA’s failure to meet its deadlines for the reviews of new chemicals as required by the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). Earlier this month, the Agency announced “it would disperse scientists from its independent research office to other divisions where they … will be tasked with approving […]
The EPA officially reports it lost 733 staffers from January 1 to May 30, 2025, according to an article by The Hill. However, that number is certainly higher, as staffers who opted out when the “fork in the road” buyout offer e-mail was sent are still counted as employees because they still draw a salary. […]
On June 2, the Department of Labor (DOL) announced the launch of an “opinion letter” program across five agencies, providing workers, employers, and others with compliance assistance. The program includes letters of interpretation from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) explaining the agency’s regulatory requirements. The DOL’s Employee Benefits Security Administration, Mine Safety and […]