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President’s Message: Celebrating Progress and Pushing Forward

President’s Message: Celebrating Progress and Pushing Forward

With the end of the 89th Texas Legislature upon us, the Texas Chemistry Council has been a strong advocate for the business of chemistry, fully engaged at the Capitol and working with lawmakers to ensure our state remains a global leader for our industry. In all my years of experience, I’ve never seen a session quite like this one—traditional political ideologies have morphed, flipped, and defied conventional wisdom.

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Capitol Chemistry with Mia - Final Day of the 89th Session

Capitol Chemistry with Mia - Final Day of the 89th Session

With the last day of the 89th Legislature on June 2nd, the halls of the Capitol have been buzzing with last-minute negotiations, late-night debates, and unpredictable floor actions. More happens in the final days of session than in the past four months combined.

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Logan’s Legal & Regulatory Corner

Logan’s Legal & Regulatory Corner

We have crossed over the first 100 days of the new EPA administration. The key themes so far have been committing agency resources to its core missions and reevaluating the priorities from the last administration.

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White House MAHA Report Says Plastics May Play Role in Chronic Disease

White House MAHA Report Says Plastics May Play Role in Chronic Disease

A new White House report from President Donald Trump's Make America Healthy Again commission names microplastics and chemicals in plastics like phthalates as potential contributors to chronic health problems in U.S. children.

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American Chemistry Council v. Bonta: A Decision in Support of Trade and Professional Associations’ First Amendment Rights

American Chemistry Council v. Bonta: A Decision in Support of Trade and Professional Associations’ First Amendment Rights

Does the First Amendment protect associations’ communications with their members when petitioning government agencies? Without yet providing a definitive response to that question, the May 1 decision by Judge Amit P. Mehta in American Chemistry Council v. Bonta holds out the possibility that such communications will be protected from discovery. The decision delivers several critical lessons every membership-based organization should internalize.

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What the EPA’s Partial Rollback of the ‘Forever Chemical’ Drinking Water Rule Means

What the EPA’s Partial Rollback of the ‘Forever Chemical’ Drinking Water Rule Means

The Environmental Protection Agency announced plans to weaken limits on some harmful “forever chemicals” in drinking water roughly a year after the Biden administration finalized the first-ever national standards.

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States Are Banning Forever Chemicals. Industry Is Fighting Back

States Are Banning Forever Chemicals. Industry Is Fighting Back

As health and environmental concerns about forever chemicals mount nationally, New Mexico joins a small but growing number of states that are moving to limit—and, in some cases, ban—PFAS in consumer products. New Mexico is now the third state to pass a PFAS ban through the legislature. Ten other states have bans or limits on added PFAS in certain consumer products, including cookware, carpet, apparel, and cosmetics.

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Texas Bill Seeking to Keep Toxic “Forever Chemicals” Off Farmland Misses Key Deadline

Texas Bill Seeking to Keep Toxic “Forever Chemicals” Off Farmland Misses Key Deadline

A bill aimed at limiting the spread of toxic chemicals on Texas farmland has hit a political wall — missing a key deadline that decreases its likelihood of passage this session. House Bill 1674, introduced by Rep. Helen Kerwin, R-Cleburne, aims to regulate the use of fertilizers made from treated sewage, also known as biosolids, by requiring regular testing for PFAS — a group of long-lasting, harmful chemicals often called “forever chemicals.”

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Killeen approves ‘Foreign Trade Zone’ designation for local chem plant; chopping off tax revenue

Killeen approves ‘Foreign Trade Zone’ designation for local chem plant; chopping off tax revenue

Dongjin Semichem Texas, a chemical manufacturer, is in the process of seeking a Foreign Trade Zone designation. That designation would allow the company’s Killeen location to be treated as though it is outside the United States customs territory for duty and customs entry purposes. That would allow the company to avoid or delay paying some taxes and fees along with letting it streamline some processes and procedures.

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Renewable Energy Is Booming in Texas. Republicans Want to Change That.

Renewable Energy Is Booming in Texas. Republicans Want to Change That.

Conservative states with a hands-off approach to development, such as Texas and Oklahoma, have become wind and solar energy dynamos in recent years. But a simultaneous push by Republicans in Washington and in Sun Belt state capitals to cut off tax incentives and tighten permitting regulations threatens to snuff out the red-state renewable energy boom.

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CenterPoint Energy A Part of New Battery Energy Storage System to Support Houston's Power Grid

CenterPoint Energy A Part of New Battery Energy Storage System to Support Houston's Power Grid

CenterPoint Energy along with Irby Construction Company and SMT Energy have begun work on a new Battery Energy Storage System in Houston.

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Goodyear to Sell Chemical Business for $650M

Goodyear to Sell Chemical Business for $650M

Goodyear will sell its chemical business to private equity firm Gemspring Capital for approximately $650 million, continuing a sweeping transformation effort aimed at refocusing the Akron-based company and boosting shareholder value.

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ExxonMobil Gets One Step Closer for New $10 Billion Gulf Coast Facility

ExxonMobil Gets One Step Closer for New $10 Billion Gulf Coast Facility

Plans for ExxonMobil's $10 billion Gulf Coast plastics plant progressed this week when the Calhoun County Independent School District board unanimously voted to begin tax break negotiations with the company.

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NRC Reviewing Nuclear SMR Permit to Power Dow Chemical Manufacturing on Gulf Coast

NRC Reviewing Nuclear SMR Permit to Power Dow Chemical Manufacturing on Gulf Coast

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has accepted and will review a construction permit application for building an X-energy 320-MW small modular reactor nuclear plant to power Dow Chemical’s 4,200-acre manufacturing complex on the Texas Gulf Coast.

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