Atlantic Legal Foundation: D.C. Circuit’s Exploratory Data Ruling Is A Win For Transparency — A recent D.C. Circuit decision confirms that federal government scientists must make their underlying research data available to peer reviewers and anyone else who is interested. This means published work can no longer be shielded from professional, industry, or public criticism by invoking a “deliberative process privilege.”
The Baltimore Sun: Maryland to Resume Use of Pesticide After EPA Testing Doesn’t Detect PFAS — The Maryland Department of Agriculture temporarily halted use of the pesticide Permanone 30-30 in the state this year “out of an abundance of caution” after an outside lab found elevated levels of PFAS. Testing by EPA scientists, however, returned a different result.
Insurance Journal: In Case of Child’s Cancer, Bayer Wins First Roundup Jury Verdict — Bayer AG won its first trial over claims its Roundup weedkiller causes cancer after a California jury found that the herbicide was not a substantial cause of a child’s rare form of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Bayer said in a statement the verdict was consistent with decades of science and research showing the safety of glyphosate.
The Hill: Newsom Signs Laws Banning ‘Forever Chemicals’ in Children’s Products, Food Packaging — One of the laws prohibits the use of PFAS in children’s products, such as car seats and cribs, beginning on July 1, 2023. The second PFAS-related law bans intentionally added PFAS from food packaging and requires cookware manufacturers to disclose the presence of PFAS and other chemicals on products and labels online—beginning on January 1, 2023.
Endpoint News: Ex-FDA Officials Ask SCOTUS to Take Up J&J Talc Case — The former officials argue that notice-and-comment rulemaking, which the FDA officials say is rarely used, subverts and upends the FDA’s system and authority over labeling. The ex-officials further reiterated that the FDA lacks time and resources to run every decision through notice-and-comment rulemaking.