EPA Calls for Comments on Candidates for Peer Review of Formaldehyde
Released February 29, 2024
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is calling for public comments on candidates under consideration to review components of the Agency’s risk evaluation of formaldehyde that will be used to inform risk management decisions under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). If selected, these candidates will serve as ad hoc peer reviewers assisting EPA’s Science Advisory Committee on Chemicals (SACC) with their review.
The SACC peer review will take place during a four-day public meeting in May 2024. The Agency is specifically seeking the SACC’s feedback on EPA’s data analyses and methodologies relevant to human health and ecological hazard. These include (but are not limited to) the value that will be used to evaluate dermal exposures, chronic inhalation exposures, and exposure analyses that have not been previously peer reviewed.
Biographies for all candidates are available via docket EPA-HQ-OPPT-2023-0613 and through the SACC website. Comments should be submitted to docket EPA-HQ-OPPT-2023-0613 on regulations.gov. Comments are due March 14, 2024. When providing comments, do not submit any information you consider to be confidential business information or other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Members of the public should also be aware that personal contact information, if included in any written comments, may be posted on the internet.
This call for comments follows the Agency’s December 2023 call for nominations of prospective candidates. During the nomination and selection process, peer reviewer candidates are asked to submit confidential financial information. This confidential financial information must fully disclose, among other financial interests, the candidate's employment, stocks and bonds, and where applicable, sources of research support. EPA evaluates the candidates' financial disclosure forms to assess whether there are financial conflicts of interest, appearance of a loss of impartiality, or any prior involvement with the development of the documents under consideration (including previous scientific peer review) before the candidates are considered further.
For more information, please contact the Designated Federal Official, Tamue Gibson (gibson.tamue@epa.gov).