HCPA Engagement on the RCC
On May 15, Mike Gruber, Executive Vice President, Government Relations & Public Policy, and Nicholas Georges, Senior Vice President, Scientific & International Affairs, participated in a roundtable discussion with Canada’s Treasury Board President Anita Anand and her staff at the Canadian Embassy. In addition to HCPA, several companies, including members Dow and Reckitt, and allied trade associations, including the American Chemistry Council (ACC), Consumer Brands Association (CBA), and U.S. Chamber of Commerce, discussed ideas on minimizing regulatory irritants, breaking down barriers to trade, and supporting innovation across the North American economy.
Ahead of this meeting, Steve Caldeira, President & CEO, signed a letter with Shannon Coombs, President of the Canadian Consumer Specialty Products Association (CCSPA), in support of the RCC and shared recommendations on priority issues where the U.S. and Canada can and should collaborate to reduce regulatory differences, including alignment on workplace chemical regulatory frameworks, especially because the U.S. and Canada are both updating the same version of the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS). The discussion also addressed opportunities to mutually recognize regulatory decisions by appropriate international agencies, such as pesticide registrations.
Following the roundtable discussion, Minister Anand met with Shalanda Young, Director of the Office of Management & Budget (OMB) and her staff to further discuss collaboration through the RCC.
HCPA Submits Letter to Wisconsin DNR in Support of Adding Aerosol Cans to Universal Waste Program
On May 14, HCPA submitted a letter to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) in support of proposed amendments to add aerosol cans to Wisconsin’s universal waste program.
The proposed revision incorporates flexibility for handlers of discarded waste aerosol cans and lessens the regulatory burden on the regulated community. While the amendments are mostly aligned with the 36 states and District of Columbia that have already added aerosol cans to their respective universal waste programs, DNR included language, which HCPA raised concerns with, that could discourage the proper treatment and handling of universal waste.
HCPA Meets with PHMSA on the Definition of an Aerosol
On May 16, Nicholas Georges, Senior Vice President, Scientific & International Affairs, and Andy Franckhauser, Senior Scientist, The Procter & Gamble Company, met with Shane Kelley, Director of Standards and Rulemaking; Don Burger, Chief of the General Approvals and Permits Branch; and Steven Andrews, Acting Chief of the Regulatory Review and Reinvention Branch, from the Department of Transportation (DOT) Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) to discuss HCPA’s petition to align the definition of an aerosol with the UN Model Regulations.
This meeting came about following PHMSA’s attendance at the Mid-Year Meeting and members asking for an update on the status of the petition.
Aligning the definition of an aerosol would reduce the industry’s need for special permits to ship gas-only aerosol products. PHMSA expressed a willingness to move forward with a rulemaking but requested additional information to support the modification, specifically for demonstrating that gas-only aerosol products can be shipped safely and do not pose a risk.
2024 VOC Webinar Series
For more than 35 years, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) has regulated the volatile organic compound (VOC) content of consumer, institutional, and some industrial products. The complex set of limits and related enforcement provisions that CARB has created has been replicated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), 17 state agencies, the District of Columbia, and some international governments.
Each webinar in the series will be 90 minutes, including time for Q&A.
Specifically, this webinar series will:
Part One – July 30
Consumer Product VOC Regulations Overview
Will provide a summary of applicable state and federal Clean Air Act regulations impacting consumer products.
Part Two – August 1
Regulated Consumer Product Categories & Limits
Will provide a summary of key definitions, regulatory limits, exemptions, and enforcement provisions in state and federal regulations.
Part Three – August 13
Determining Formula Compliance
Will provide a summary of how to determine the VOC content of products and how to assess whether products comply with applicable VOC limits.
Part Four – August 15
Photochemical Reactivity, International Obligations, and a Look Ahead
Will provide an overview of maximum incremental reactivity (MIR), a summary of companies’ responsibility when selling internationally, and insights into what compliance could look like in the future.
