Attorney General Bonta Urges Congress to Block Dismantling of EPA’s Office of Research and Development Integrated Risk Information System Program

OAKLAND – California Attorney General Rob Bonta today joined a coalition of 14 attorneys general in sending a letter to Congress, urging members to oppose two Congressional bills (H.R. 1415 and S. 623, collectively, the No IRIS Act) that would prohibit the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from relying on scientific assessments from the Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS) program, which are critical to protect against exposure to harmful toxic chemicals. The coalition also urges Congress to oppose the Trump Administration’s plan to dismantle the EPA Office of Research and Development (ORD), which is the research arm of the EPA that provides the scientific basis for EPA’s work.

“Undermining EPA’s independent science arm and the IRIS program jeopardizes vital research and health protections for Americans across this country,” said Attorney General Bonta. “The environmental challenges we are facing demand action rooted in continued research and facts. That’s why my fellow attorneys general and I are urging Congress to swiftly oppose the No IRIS Act and the proposed destruction of ORD." 

ORD and IRIS provide integral scientific and technical resources to states that help them protect residents from environmental pollutants that can cause significant health risks. States, including California, rely on tools, information, and data from ORD and IRIS, and these actions would significantly hamper the ability of both the EPA and the states to protect our residents from environmental harm. For example, California’s Department of Toxic Substances Control uses data from IRIS assessments in determining cleanup standards for hazardous waste sites.

In the letter, the attorneys general explain IRIS assessments are the result of unbiased scientific review that determines at what level the many chemicals that enter the environment through industry and other sources are harmful to human health. The assessments are used by EPA to set regulatory levels for toxic contaminants and for permitting, cleanups, and emergency responses. Without knowing the level at which these chemicals can cause a risk to human health, such as cancer and birth defects, it would be difficult for EPA to adequately protect the public from exposure, which will jeopardize the health and safety of the entire country. 

The attorneys general also highlight the importance of ORD and its critical scientific research that is used for a wide range of purposes, including protecting drinking water sources from natural disasters and terrorist attacks, studying air pollution caused by wildfire smoke, and researching PFAS and other emerging contaminants. The reported plan to dissolve ORD and fire more than 1,000 scientists would have immediate consequences and make it difficult for EPA to meet its statutory requirements to use the best available science to inform its work.  

Attorney General Bonta joins the attorneys general from Arizona, Colorado, the District of Columbia, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Vermont, Washington and Wisconsin in sending this letter.

A copy of the letter can be found here.