Regulations
Nevada OSHA Adopts New, Punitive ”Severe Violators Enforcement Program”
SWLaw.com by Charles P. Keller, Dawn L. Davis, and Tyler V. Thomas Nevada – Federal OSHA has long had a Severe Violators Enforcement Program (“SVEP”), intended to target employers who demonstrate “indifference to their OSH Act obligations by willful, repeated, or failure-to-abate violations.” Until recently, many states maintaining their own OSHA plans, so called “State Plan”…
Read MoreAfter Years of Decline, the Biden Administration Says Environmental Enforcement is on the Upswing
Associated Press by Michael Daly and Matthew Phillips Washington, DC – The Environmental Protection Agency conducted more on-site inspections of polluting industrial sites this year than any time since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the agency said Monday as it seeks to reinvigorate its enforcement program after more than a decade of budget cuts. EPA opened…
Read MoreEnvironmental Justice Defined
Environmental justice (EJ) is the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income with respect to the development, implementation and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations and policies. Learn More
Read MoreDOJ’s Environmental Justice Initiative Comes to Central Illinois
NPR Chicago Chicago, IL – The top federal prosecutor in central Illinois says his office is ready to bolster enforcement as part of a national environmental justice initiative. U.S. Attorney Gregory Harris, whose central Illinois district include Peoria, Bloomington-Normal and Springfield, said the harmful effects of environmental crimes are “too often borne by our underserved communities.” The…
Read MoreWhy the Government Fails to Limit Many Dangerous Chemicals in the Workplace
NPR by Sharon Lerner National – Created in 1970 in response to mounting injuries, illnesses and deaths from workplace hazards, OSHA was supposed to issue regulations based on scientific research conducted by its sibling agency, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. At first, the pair got off to a somewhat promising start, with…
Read MoreMassive Amounts of PFAS Waste Go Unreported to EPA
The Interceptby Sharon Lerner National – US Ecology, a hazardous waste company with dozens of sites around the U.S., received 11,638,732 pounds of waste containing the firefighting foam known as aqueous film-forming foam, or AFFF, at its facility in Beatty, Nevada, in 2020, according to public reports filed under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act.…
Read MoreSupreme Court Restricts EPA’s Authority in Far-Reaching Decision
NPR by Nina Totenberg Washington, DC – U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday dealt a major blow to the Environmental Protection Agency’s power to regulate carbon emissions that cause climate change. The decision by the conservative court majority sets the stage for further limitations on the regulatory power of other agencies as well. By a vote of 6…
Read MoreCongress Considering $700,000 OSHA Penalties
National Law Review Washington, DC A Congressional committee has approved maximum penalties of $700,000 per item for violations of Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) standards. The move would mean more than a fivefold increase of maximum “willful,” “repeated,” and “failure-to-abate” violations from $136,532. Minimum penalty amounts for such infractions would increase from today’s $9,753 to…
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