WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) today introduced the No Industrial Restrictions In Secret (No IRIS) Act to prevent the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from using data from the Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS) to make rules that punish America’s chemical manufacturing industry. 

“For four years, the Biden administration weaponized the EPA’s IRIS program against America’s chemical industry. My bill would prevent this kind of abuse from happening again and safeguard American businesses from government overreach,” said Kennedy.

The No IRIS Act would prohibit the federal government from using the IRIS to inform its rulemakings unless Congress explicitly authorizes the program.

Rep. Glenn Grothman (R-Wis.) is leading the companion legislation in the House of Representatives.

“Unelected bureaucrats have often disrupted the work of Wisconsin's chemical manufacturers and inhibited the success of the industry through the abuse of the EPA’s IRIS program. Instead of grounding regulatory decisions in sound science, IRIS has demonstrated a poor track record by issuing assessments that conflict with the industry’s best available scientific expertise and methodologies. The No IRIS Act will protect American jobs, promote innovation, and hold the EPA accountable for acting against the best interest of the industry and our economy,” said Grothman.

"American success relies on American chemistry. Computer chips, national defense, modern healthcare, housing, infrastructure, agriculture, and energy are all made possible by America’s chemical industry. Unfortunately, the EPA’s IRIS program puts many critical chemistries in jeopardy. The IRIS program has a troubling history of being out of step with the best available science and methods, lacking transparency, and being unresponsive to peer review and stakeholder recommendations. It’s time for Congress and EPA to take action and put sound science at the forefront of regulatory decision-making, and we applaud Senator Kennedy and Congressman Grothman for their leadership on this important issue,” said Chris Jahn, President and CEO of the American Chemistry Council.

Background: 

• The EPA established the IRIS program in 1985 to gather data on how chemicals impact human health. The EPA designed the system to spot health hazards—not make policy.

• The IRIS program is not currently authorized in statute. As a result, unelected bureaucrats have abused the system to hurt chemical makers in Louisiana and across the country with virtually zero Congressional oversight.

• President Joe Biden’s EPA used unscientific methods in the IRIS to justify rules that hurt businesses and cost Americans their jobs. 

• As of 2023, Louisiana was the second-largest chemical-producing state in the country, with its chemical industry paying $3.49 billion in wages.

The full bill text is available here.