On October 9, 2025, the EPA published a notice in the Federal Register requesting comment on the agency’s reconsideration of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) risk management rule for carbon tetrachloride (CTC). This rulemaking affects many industries which rely on CTC, including chemical manufacturing, waste management services, metal manufacturing, and petrochemical manufacturing.
The final rule to be reconsidered was published in the Federal Register on December 18, 2024 (“CTC Final Rule”). Several interested parties petitioned for review of the CTC Final Rule, and, after consolidation in the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, EPA announced its decision to reconsider the CTC Final Rule in September 2025.
The CTC Final Rule would implement TSCA’s requirement that EPA address any unreasonable risk of injury identified in a TSCA risk evaluation and apply requirements so that the chemical no longer presents unreasonable risk. As a result, the CTC Final Rule as written would implement workplace safety requirements, prohibit certain manufacture and use of CTC, and establish recordkeeping and notification requirements for the chemical; all of these provisions are subject to comment during the reconsideration process.
While EPA will receive comments on any aspect of the CTC Final Rule, it has specifically requested comment on the appropriate exposure limit for CTC. In full, EPA is looking at:
The Existing Chemical Exposure Limit (ECEL) of 0.03 parts per million (ppm) as an 8-hour time weighted average (TWA) promulgated in the CTC final rule as part of the Workplace Chemical Protection Program (WCPP), including feasibility of exposure monitoring and whether the use of a different exposure limit would be more appropriate to inform risk management.
Affected industry members should be sure to submit comments on this issue, and any other issue relevant to the CTC Final Rule and their industry, to ensure EPA considers important information that may affect the rulemaking process. Comments must be received by November 10, 2025.
90 Fed. Reg. 48203 (Oct. 9, 2025)
