EPA Delays Legacy Asbestos Rule Again, Seeks Industry Data
Asbestos Exposure & Bans
Written by Travis Rodgers | Edited by Amy Edel
The Environmental Protection Agency pushed back its timeline for a major asbestos rule again. On June 23, 2026, the agency reopened a request for information on old asbestos-containing materials and how companies dispose of them. The EPA says it needs this data to finalize a risk management rule under the Toxic Substances Control Act, the country’s main law governing chemical safety. The federal agency now plans to propose that rule by June 3, 2027, more than 1 year after its original December 2025 deadline passed.
The latest delay drew immediate criticism from the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization, which called the extra wait “unacceptable.” The advocacy group argues the EPA already had 1 year after completing its legacy asbestos risk evaluation to begin the rulemaking process. The delay also comes after ADAO sued the EPA and Administrator Lee Zeldin over the agency’s failure to meet that deadline
The EPA says it needs more information about how people encounter asbestos during renovation, demolition and maintenance work before finalizing the rule. Advocates argue the agency has already identified unreasonable risk from legacy asbestos left in buildings and products and should move forward with protections instead of seeking more time.
What the EPA Wants to Know
The EPA calls this rule “Asbestos Part 2.” It covers several types of asbestos and asbestos-containing talc. The agency finished its risk evaluation for these materials in December 2024 and found they pose an unreasonable risk when disturbed. That finding triggered a legal requirement for the EPA to create a risk management rule.
The EPA wants information from people who encounter legacy asbestos during renovation, demolition and repair work. These activities can disturb asbestos-containing materials and release fibers into the air, creating the exposure scenarios the agency wants to better understand.
Data EPA Is Requesting
- Activities that disturb asbestos-containing materials, including jobs that self-employed workers perform
- Air-sampling methods and laboratory capabilities that detect asbestos fibers
- Legacy product uses, such as older construction materials that still contain asbestos
The EPA says these details will improve its economic and exposure analysis. Officials want to know who faces exposure, how often exposure happens and what conditions make it worse. That information will also shape the cost-benefit review behind any final rule.
Companies, contractors and workers can submit comments through the rulemaking docket on Regulations.gov. The comment period closes Aug. 24, 2026.
How We Got Here: Delays and Legal Battles
Federal asbestos regulation has faced decades of legal challenges and delays. The EPA tried to ban most asbestos-containing products in 1989, but the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals overturned that rule in 1991. That decision limited the EPA’s ability to regulate existing chemicals under TSCA for decades and prompted Congress to overhaul the law in 2016.
In 2024, the EPA finished “Part 1” of its updated asbestos risk work with a final rule banning most ongoing uses of chrysotile asbestos, the most common asbestos fiber type. The Texas Chemistry Council and other industry groups challenged the rule in the Fifth Circuit, arguing the EPA overstepped its authority.
ADAO and public health groups also challenged the rule, arguing for stronger protections rather than a full repeal. The Trump administration has also said it plans to reconsider the ban, creating additional uncertainty around asbestos regulation.
The EPA completed “Part 2” of its risk evaluation in December 2024 and found unreasonable risk from legacy asbestos left in buildings and products. That finding started a legal clock, giving EPA until December 2025 to propose a risk management rule. The agency missed that deadline, so ADAO sued the EPA and Administrator Lee Zeldin in federal court in Washington, D.C., over the delay.
This latest notice asks for still more time, pushing the proposed rule to June 2027. That request comes roughly a year and a half after the EPA’s original deadline passed.
Health Risks Behind the Delay
ADAO didn’t hold back its criticism. The organization’s President and CEO Linda Reinstein said the 2024 risk evaluation obligated the EPA to move to risk management within 1 year, and the agency didn’t meet that mark. She called the latest delay “unacceptable.”
According to the World Health Organization, more than 30,000 people die globally from mesothelioma every year. About 2,500 die from mesothelioma each year in the United States. Asbestos is the primary cause of mesothelioma. Exposure can also lead to many other asbestos-related diseases including lung cancer, ovarian cancer, laryngeal cancer and asbestosis.
Anyone who worked around asbestos-containing materials years ago can develop an asbestos-related disease decades later. Mesothelioma’s latency period is 20 to 60 years, so many people don’t connect current health problems to past exposure. People with a history of asbestos exposure can talk with a health care provider about their risk and whether mesothelioma screening or other monitoring options may be appropriate for them.
