SOCMA: Society of Chemical Manufacturers and Affiliates

SOCMA Talks TSCA with Senator Sherrod Brown's Staff
Policy Breakfast to Focus on TSCA Reform

SOCMA met with Senator Sherrod Brown’s (D-OH) legislative director earlier this week to discuss concerns regarding Senator Frank Lautenberg’s Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) reform bill, S. 847, the Safe Chemicals Act of 2011. Senator Joe Lieberman (I-CT) recently signed on as a cosponsor to the bill, bringing the total number of cosponsors to 26, with 24 Democrats and two Independents. Senator Lautenberg has yet to add a Republican cosponsor to his bill, and it remains doubtful he will be able to do so before the end of this Congressional session in December.

During the meeting, SOCMA provided background on our member presence in Ohio and our membership as a whole. SOCMA discussed the bipartisan meetings among Senator David Vitter’s and Senator Lautenberg’s staff, which were derailed by the partisan markup of Senator Lautenberg’s bill in the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee this July. SOCMA noted that should the Safe Chemicals Act become law, it would kill jobs, and it would not make U.S. citizens safer. Senator Brown's staffer indicated that his boss was highly unlikely to cosponsor the Safe Chemicals Act this Congress.

With the Senate on recess from the end of this week until the November elections, and only returning for a short lame duck session to deal with the "fiscal cliff," it looks unlikely that Senator Lautenberg’s Safe Chemicals Act will reach the Senate floor this Congress. However, SOCMA is still working to make sure that other members of the Senate do not cosponsor the bill, as it could set a precedent for them to do so again in the new session of Congress next year. Please use SOCMA CONNECT’s online email tools to urge your Senators to oppose Lautenberg’s TSCA reform bill.

Given all the recent action on TSCA reform, SOCMA CONNECT is partnering with the American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers Association (AFPM) to host a policy breakfast meeting on TSCA reform with Congressional staff and chemical industry representatives on October 19 in Washington, DC. Please contact Johanna Morsberger at (202) 721-4186 if you would like to attend.

For more information about the meeting with Senator Brown, please contact Dan Newton at (202) 721-4158.