GOVERNMENT
EPA Budget Increase Highest For Regulatory Agencies In reversal of earlier trend, Administration gives EPA 8% rise in fiscal 1985; FDA, OSHA, other agencies get smaller or no spending hikes For the past few years, the Environmental Protection Agency has served as a first-class example of the Reagan Administration's war on unnecessary and burdensome federal regulation—each new budget proposal contained ever lower funding levels. That trend has now been reversed. Although not all that big, the turnaround is the biggest news in the Administration's generally tightfisted new budget proposals for regulatory agencies. The fiscal 1985 budget proposal contains $1.2 billion in operating funds for EPA, a rise of 8% but still 5% less than the agency spent in fiscal 1981. The abatement, control, and compliance budget, which provides the means for assuring that the country's environmental laws are being complied with, would, however, be up less than 1% to $396.0 million, more than 10% below 1981 levels. f Under the proposed budget, spending for the Superfund program will be up 56% to $640 million, with funding for enforcement up 65% to $48.9 million. The agency's overall enforcement budget will be up 27% to $152 million. Also included in the request are increases of 59% to $16.2 million for the pesticide registration program and 28% to $13.7 million for review of existing chemicals under the Toxic Substances Control Act. The budget also contains $1.5 million to enable the agency to initiate a program for regulating
commercial uses of genetically engineered materials under TSCA. Like EPA, the Justice Department is stepping up its enforcement of environmental laws. It is requesting an increase of 13% to $22.6 million for its land and natural resources division. That amount, the department says, will enable it to increase its litigation activities under Superfund 50%. Other regulatory agencies that in one way or another interact with the chemical community aren't faring so well as EPA. For example, the Food & Drug Administration's budget is slated for a mere 2% rise to $397.6 million, an amount that will allow it to maintain its current level of activities. FDA says that in 1985 it will focus on three priority concerns: bringing safe and effective products to market more rapidly; encouraging voluntary compliance and cooperative industry and government efforts to assist in carrying out agency responsibilities; and keeping FDA's scientific capabilities up to date. The Occupational Safety & Health Administration's budget also will rise just 2%—to $217.7 billion. The tight budget means that the agency will conduct the same number of inspections in 1985 as it plans this year, 70,500; support the same number of state program inspections, 95,960; and visit the same number of workplaces for consultation, 25,600. OSHA plans to issue eight health and 10 safety standards in 1984. Those numbers will drop to six and seven, respectively, in 1985. Government support for the Patent & Trademark Office, however, would rise 11% to $101.6 million. That a m o u n t would be supplemented by $98.7 million in fees collected for processing patent and trademark applications and dissemi-
EPA's budget would rise 8% . . . 1985 a
$ Millions
Management Air Water quality Hazardous waste Toxic substances Drinking water Pesticides Interdisciplinary Energy Radiation TOTAL
1984 a
1983 b
$ 250.8 $ 240.1 224.8 214.5 216.2 206.0 128.7 120.1 68.4 68.8 78.7 75.5 53.7 57.3 46.1 34.7 30.4 25.2 12.3 10.3 $1114.1 $1048.5
$ 287.8 228.8 217.7 143.3 79.6 79.3 63.2 48.9 48.5 12.1 $1209.2
Note: Figures include R&D funding
. . . FDA's only 2% . . . $ Millions
1985&
Drugs Foods Devices, radiological products Program management National Center for Toxicological Research TOTAL
$141.3 109.3 67.0 58.4 21.6
$397.6
1984 a
1983 b
$138.6 $130.5 108.2 103.3 65.8 58.8 54.8 21.5
49.4 19.6
$388.9 $361.6
. . . as would OSHA's $ Millions
1985*
1984 a
1983 b
Enforcement $137.9 $136.3 $130.3 82.4 Federal 81.7 80.1 55.5 54.6 50.2 State 37.7 37.6 37.0 Compliance assistance 16.8 Safety and health statistics 13.0 11.1 13.7 13.5 14.1 Technical support 6.2 Safety and health standards 6.1 6.1 Administration 5.4 6.0 6.7 TOTAL $217.7 $212.5 $205.3 a Estimate, b Actual. Note: Obligations.
nating information. PTO says it expects to receive 107,000 patent applications in 1985, the same number as this year, and that total pendency is expected to drop from 25.3 months in 1984 to 24 months in 1985. February 20, 1984 C&EN
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Federal Alert— new regulations This listing highlights regulations published in the Federal Register from Dec. 12,1983, to Jan. 27,1984. Page numbers refer to those issues. PROPOSED Environmental Protection Agency—Limits emissions of volatile organics from synthetic organic distillation equipment; comments by March 13 (Dec. 30, 1983, page 57538). Announces required industry toxicity testing for glycidol and derivatives; comments by Feb. 28 (Dec. 30, 1983, page 57562). Proposes toxicity testing programs by manufacturers for propylene oxide, hydroquinone, and quinone; comments by March 5 (Jan. 4, pages 430, 438, 456). Sets up toxicity testing program for producers of 1,2-dichloropropane; comments by March 6 (Jan. 6, page 899). Requires manufacturers to do environmental effects testing on mono-, di-, and trichlorinated benzenes; comments by March 13 (Jan. 13, page 1760). Gives advance notice of intent to regulate environmental release of 2-methoxy- and 2-ethoxyethanol and their acetates; comments by March 26 (Jan. 24, page 2921). FINAL Energy Department—Issues new rules governing price competition for sale of oil from strategic petroleum reserve in case of oil supply cutoff; effective Jan. 20 (Dec. 21, 1983, page 56538). Environmental Protection Agency*—Establishes procedures for carrying out restrictions imposed on imports of hazardous chemicals; effective Dec. 13,1983 (Dec. 13, 1983, page 55462). Occupational Safety & Health Administration—Revises record-keeping and reporting requirements for federal employee health and safety programs; effective Jan. 25 (Jan. 25, page 3077). NOTICES Environmental Protection Agency—Begins 180-day review of and seeks information on health and safety of workers exposed to 1,3-butadiene for possible regulatory action, acting in concert with OSHA; comments by March 5 (Jan. 5, pages 844, 845). Declares intent to cancel registration of all pesticide products containing dibromochioropropane; comments by March 12 (Jan. 12, page 1556). Minerals Management Service—Releases draft environmental impact statement on leasing underwater tracts for mining minerals on the Gorda Ridge, off the northern California coast; comments by Feb. 29 (Jan. 5, page 667).
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February 20, 1984 C&EN
Government Funding for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, on the other hand, would drop 2% to $468.7 million. That budget request does allow for some increases. For example, the budget for inspection and enforcement would rise 12% to $92.2 million and that for materials, safety, and safeguards 13% to $45.5 million. Some of the smaller regulatory agencies are barely holding their heads above water. Funding for the Consumer Product Safety Commission is scheduled to hold steady in 1985 at $35.3 million; the total number of employees will drop by one to 557. In fiscal 1981, for comparison,
the agency had a budget of more than $42 million and 889 employees. Funding for the Council on Environmental Quality, which was set up to review federal government programs having an impact on the environment, would be cut almost in half, from $1.3 million in 1984 to $700,000 in 1985. However, funding for another small office—the Office of Science & Technology Policy— would be up 10% to $2.2 million. Funding for the Office of Management & Budget, which usually manages to find ways to cut the programs other agencies want, will be up again, 8% to $40 million. Janice Long, Washington
Hydrocarbon wastes to be regulated as a group "One regulation, rather than 25 individual regulations, will cover the wastes of 25 major commercial products," says Lee M. Thomas, assistant Environmental Protection Agency administrator for solid waste and emergency response. He is explaining a precedent-setting action taken by EPA to list and then regulate specific hazardous wastes as a group rather than individually. The group in this case consists of wastes resulting from the production of 25 chlorinated aliphatic (C1-C5) hydrocarbons by free radical catalyzed processes. In effect, some 37 different toxic compounds, including carbon tetrachloride, vinyl chloride, and benzene, are being regulated under the Resource Conservation & Recovery Act by controlling such manufactured products as dry cleaning liquids and degreasing solvents. It is a unique approach to regulation because it is the first time EPA has regulated using a chemical mechanistic approach. The toxic and sometimes carcinogenic wastes are generated when petroleum products are chlorinated during their conversion to solvents and polymers. EPA estimates that the manufacturers of the 25 major commercial products covered by the rule annually produce about 180,000 metric tons of chlorinated hydrocarbon-tainted wastes. Each of the 25 different waste streams contains one or more of the 37 tox-
Ruling covers 25 products Carbon tetrachloride 1-Chlorobutane (n-butyl chloride) Chloroethane (ethyl chloride) Chloroform (trichloromethane) 2-Chloro-1,3-butadiene (chloroprene) Chloromethane (methyl chloride) 2-Chloro-2-methylpropane (ferf-butyl chloride) 3-Chloro-2-methylpropene (methallyl chloride) 3-Chloropropene (allyl chloride) Dichlorobutadiene Dichlorobutenes 1,4-Dichlorobutyne 1,2-Dichloroethane (ethylene dichloride) Dichloromethane (methylene dichloride) 1,2-Dichloropropane 1,3-Dichloropropene Hexachlorocyclopentadiene Tetrachloroethylene(perchloroethylene) 1,1,1 -Trichloroethane 1,1,2-Trichloroethane Trichloroethylene (1,1,2-trichloroethene) 1,2,3-Trichloropropane 1,2,3-Trichloropropene Vinyl chloride (chloroethene) Vinylidene chloride (1,1-dichloroethene)
ic compounds in high concentrations. This interim final regulation, published in the Feb. 10 issue of the Federal Register, becomes final in six months. It follows by four years EPA's previous action that regulated individual waste streams that in the aggregate amounted to 1.5 million metric tons of chlorinated hydrocarbon-contaminated wastes. •
