United States Government Publishing Office publisher pbl distributor dst United States Government Accountability Office author aut Government Organization text government publication eng GAOREPORTS Legislative Agency Publications gao legislative 2010-08-12 U.S. Government Printing Office 2007-08-17 monographic deposited born digital 56 p. GA 1.13:GAO-07-825 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-GAO-07-825 P0b002ee180388d07 f:d07825 DGPO 2010-08-12 2011-03-23 GAOREPORTS-GAO-07-825 machine generated eng fdlp REPORT GAOREPORTS-GAO-07-825 GAO-07-825 Chemical industry Chemical regulation Comparative analysis Data collection Environmental law Environmental monitoring Hazardous substances Health hazards Information disclosure Product evaluation Reporting requirements Risk assessment Toxic substances Other Written Product A74707 Chemicals play an important role in everyday life. However, some chemicals are highly toxic and need to be regulated. In 1976, the Congress passed the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) to authorize the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to control chemicals that pose an unreasonable risk to human health or the environment, but some have questioned whether TSCA provides EPA with enough tools to protect against chemical risks. Like the United States, the European Union (EU) has laws governing the production and use of chemicals. The EU has recently revised its chemical control policy through legislation known as Registration, Evaluation and Authorization of Chemicals (REACH) in order to better identify and mitigate risks from chemicals. GAO was asked to review the approaches used under TSCA and REACH for (1) requiring chemical companies to develop information on chemicals' effects, (2) controlling risks from chemicals, and (3) making information on chemicals available to the public. To review these issues, GAO analyzed applicable U.S. and EU laws and regulations and interviewed U.S. and EU officials, industry representatives, and environmental advocacy organizations. GAO is making no recommendations. https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-GAO-07-825/html/GAOREPORTS-GAO-07-825.htm https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-GAO-07-825/pdf/GAOREPORTS-GAO-07-825.pdf GAO-07-825 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-GAO-07-825 Other Written Product GAO-07-825; Chemical Regulation: Comparison of U.S. and Recently Enacted European Union Approaches to Protect against the Risks of Toxic Chemicals; Chemical industry Chemical regulation Comparative analysis Data collection Environmental law Environmental monitoring Hazardous substances Health hazards Information disclosure Product evaluation Reporting requirements Risk assessment Toxic substances Volume 90 Page 2003 90 Stat. 2003