[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 216 (Thursday, November 9, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 77308-77309]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-24749]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OPPT-2023-0521; FRL-11522-01-OCSPP]


Science Advisory Committee on Chemicals; Request for Nominations

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) invites the public 
to nominate scientific experts from a diverse range of disciplines to 
be considered for appointment to the Science Advisory Committee on 
Chemicals (SACC), established pursuant to the Toxic Substances Control 
Act (TSCA). EPA anticipates appointing new SACC members by mid-2024 due 
to expiring membership terms. Sources in addition to this Federal 
Register Notice will be utilized to solicit nominations and identify 
candidates. Any interested person or organization may nominate 
qualified individuals to be considered prospective candidates for the 
committee by following the instructions provided in this document. 
Individuals may also self-nominate.

DATES: Nominations of candidates to be considered for appointment to 
the SACC must be received on or before December 11, 2023.

ADDRESSES: Submit your nominations identified by the docket 
identification (ID) number EPA-HQ-OPPT-2023-0521, to the Designated 
Federal Officer (DFO) listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. Do 
not electronically submit (e.g., via email) any information you 
consider to be Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other 
information whose disclosure is restricted by statute.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tamue L. Gibson, MS, Designated 
Federal Officer (DFO) and Executive Secretary, telephone number: (202) 
564-7642; email address: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. General Information

A. Does this action apply to me?

    This action is directed to the public in general. This action may, 
however, be of interest to those involved in the manufacture, 
processing, distribution, disposal, and/or those interested in the 
assessment of risks involving chemical substances and mixtures. Since 
other entities may also be interested, the Agency has not attempted to 
describe all the specific entities that may be affected by this action.
    If you have any questions regarding the applicability of this 
action to a particular entity, consult the DFO listed under FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT.

B. What should I consider as I prepare my nominations for EPA?

    1. Submitting CBI. Do not submit CBI information to EPA through

[[Page 77309]]

regulations.gov or email. If your nomination contains any information 
that you consider to be CBI or otherwise protected, please contact the 
DFO listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT to obtain special 
instructions before submitting your nomination. Information properly 
marked as CBI will not be disclosed except in accordance with the 
procedures set forth in 40 CFR part 2.
    2. Request for nominations. As part of a broader process for 
developing a pool of candidates for membership on the SACC, the EPA 
Peer Review and Ethics Branch (PREB) staff solicits the public and 
stakeholder communities for nominations of prospective candidates. Any 
interested person or organization may nominate qualified individuals to 
be considered as prospective candidates. Individuals also may self-
nominate.

II. Background

    The SACC is a federal advisory committee, established in December 
2016 pursuant to TSCA section 2625(o), and chartered under the Federal 
Advisory Committee Act (FACA), 5 U.S.C. 1001-1014. EPA established the 
SACC to provide independent advice and recommendations to the EPA 
Administrator on the scientific basis for risk assessments, 
methodologies, and approaches relating to implementation of TSCA. The 
SACC members serve as Special Government Employees (SGEs) or Regular 
Government Employees (RGEs). The SACC expects to meet approximately 4 
to 6 times per year, or as needed and approved by the DFO.
    Currently, there are 18 SACC members, with eight membership terms 
that will expire over the next year. The expiring membership terms are 
eligible for reappointments. Therefore, up to eight new appointments or 
a mix of reappointments and new appointments are possible by mid-2024.

III. Nominations

    In accordance with Executive Order 14035 (June 25, 2021), EPA 
values and welcomes opportunities to increase diversity, equity, 
inclusion, and accessibility on its federal advisory committees. In an 
effort to obtain nominations of diverse candidates, EPA encourages 
nominations of women and men of all racial and ethnic groups that draw 
from the full diversity of the Nation. Any interested person or 
organization may nominate qualified persons to be considered for 
appointment to this advisory committee. Individuals also may self-
nominate. Nominations may be submitted in electronic format in 
accordance with the instructions under ADDRESSES.
    Nominations should include candidates who have demonstrated high 
levels of competence, knowledge, and expertise in scientific/technical 
fields relevant to chemical safety and risk assessment. In particular, 
the nominees should include representation of the following 
disciplines, including, but not limited to: Human health and ecological 
risk assessment, biostatistics, epidemiology, pediatrics, 
physiologically-based pharmacokinetics (PBPK), toxicology and pathology 
(including neurotoxicology, developmental/reproductive toxicology, 
environmental toxicology, computational toxicology and carcinogenesis), 
cancer hazard and risk assessment, aggregate exposure, exposure 
assessment, bioinformatics/statistics, inhalation exposure, inhalation 
toxicology, occupational exposure/industrial hygiene, and the 
relationship of chemical exposures to women, children, and other 
potentially exposed or susceptible subpopulations.
    Nominations should include the following information: Current 
business contact information for the nominee (including the nominee's 
name, organization, current business address, email address, and 
daytime telephone number); the disciplinary and specific areas of 
expertise of the nominee; and any additional information indicating 
current position, educational background; research activities; and 
recent service on other federal advisory committees and national or 
international professional organizations. Persons having questions 
about the nomination process should contact the DFO listed under FOR 
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
    The DFO will acknowledge receipt of nominations. The names and 
biographical sketches of all interested and available nominees 
identified by respondents to this Federal Register notice, other 
sources for nominations, and any additional candidates identified by 
EPA Staff, will be posted in a List of Candidates in the docket at 
https://www.regulations.gov and will be available through the SACC 
website at https://www.epa.gov/tsca-peer-review. The availability of 
the list also will be announced through the Office of Chemical Safety 
and Pollution Prevention (OCSPP)'s listservs. You may subscribe to 
these listservs at the following website: https://public.govdelivery.com/accounts/USAEPAOPPT/subscriber/new?topic_id=USAEPAOPPT_101. Public comments on the List of Candidates 
will be requested to provide relevant information or other 
documentation on nominees that the EPA should consider in evaluating 
candidates. The final list of selected candidates to the SACC (names, 
professional affiliations) will be posted on the SACC website and 
announced through the OCSPP's listservs.

IV. Selection Criteria

    In addition to scientific expertise, in selecting members, EPA will 
consider the breadth and balance of different perspectives and the 
collective experience needed to address EPA's prospective charges to 
the SACC, including the following:
     Background and experiences that would contribute to the 
diversity of scientific viewpoints on the committee, including 
professional experiences in government, labor, public health, public 
interest, animal protection, industry, and other groups, as the EPA 
Administrator determines to be advisable (e.g., geographical location, 
social and cultural backgrounds, and professional affiliations).
     Skills and experience working on committees and advisory 
panels including demonstrated ability to work constructively and 
effectively in a committee setting.
     Information on financial conflicts of interest or the 
appearance of a loss of impartiality. Prospective candidates will be 
asked to submit confidential financial information which shall fully 
disclose, among other financial interests, the candidate's employment, 
stocks, and bonds, and where applicable, sources of research support. 
EPA will evaluate the candidate's financial disclosure forms to assess 
the possibility of financial conflicts of interest, appearance of a 
loss of impartially, or any prior involvement with the development of 
documents likely to be under consideration by the SACC (including 
previous scientific peer reviews) before the candidate is considered 
further.
     Willingness to commit adequate time for the thorough 
review of materials provided to the committee.
     Availability to participate in committee meetings.
    Authority: 15 U.S.C. 2625 et seq.; 5 U.S.C. 1001-1014.

    Dated: November 3, 2023.
Michal Freedhoff,
Assistant Administrator, Office of Chemicals Safety and Pollution 
Prevention.
[FR Doc. 2023-24749 Filed 11-8-23; 8:45 am]
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