US EPA for the fourth time issued an administrative postponement of the effective date of the December 17, 2024, final risk management rule for trichloroethylene (TCE Rule). It serves yet another example of a rule finalized during the final months of 2024 that the new administration promised to reconsider or eliminate.
TCE is a common organic compound used in industrial, commercial, and residential settings for its degreasing properties. The TCE Rule was issued after US EPA found that the compound presented an "unreasonable risk of injury to the health or environment" under Section 6 of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) - a powerful yet not often used provision of the law that regulates the manufacturing, importing, and processing of chemical substances. Once such a determination is made, the law instructs US EPA to issue rules limiting or restricting uses of the substance to effectively manage the identified risks. The TCE Rule effectively banned all uses of TCE over an extended timeline with worker protection and other requirements for certain industries during the interim period prior to the ban’s effective date.
US EPA's action on November 14, 2025, is the latest in a protracted line of both court challenges and stay orders and US EPA postponement actions. Legal challenges to the rule are ongoing in the Third Circuit and US EPA's intention to reconsider and revise the rule remain. At this point it is unclear how things will shake out exactly other than the likely scenario that the TCE Rule, as initially finalized, will not go into effect without court and/or US EPA revisions.
If you manufacture, import, or use TCE in your process and would like to know more about the status and potential future of the rule, please reach out to Jake Bartlett or David Edelstein.