Press Releases

Congressman Glenn Grothman (R-WI) introduced the No Industrial Restrictions in Secret Act (No IRIS Act) to reduce undue red tape imposed by the Biden Administration through the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS). This bill is supported by the American Chemistry Council as well as Hexion Specialty Chemicals, who has a manufacturing plant in Sheboygan. It is companion legislation to Senator John Kennedy’s (R-LA) bill in the U.S. Senate.

The No IRIS Act is in the interest of protecting American safety, jobs, and ensuring chemical risk assessments conducted by EPA are driven by the best available science, rather than by political and ideological agendas.

“Unelected bureaucrats in the Biden Administration have disrupted the work of Wisconsin's chemical manufacturers and inhibited upon the success of the industry through the abuse of the EPA’s IRIS program,” said Grothman. “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.”

“We applaud Congressman Grothman for leading this critical effort to protect America’s ability to compete and innovate,” said Chris Jahn, President and CEO of the American Chemistry Council. “Computer chips, 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. As a result, the IRIS program – which has never been authorized by Congress – produces assessments that defy common sense. We thank Congressman Grothman and Senator Kennedy for their work to promote sound science in the regulatory process, and we urge Congress to act now and pass this needed legislation.”

Background Information

The EPA established the IRIS program in 1985 to gather data on how chemicals impact human health, however, it was never authorized by Congress.  

Under President Biden’s EPA, IRIS has relied on flawed scientific data, disregarded relevant information, and dismissed public input. Despite the program’s inherent flaws, it creates chemical threshold assessment that have had devastating consequences for private industries.

There needs to be a change in the way EPA conducts its business around scientific integrity and accountability in the way in which the federal government conducts chemical risk evaluations.

The No IRIS Act will prevent the EPA from using IRIS assessments as their primary source to draft its rulemakings.

In November 2023, Grothman’s amendment to restrict funding for IRIS was included in the House-passed Interior Appropriations bill.

Click here for the full text of the No IRIS Act.

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U.S. Rep. Glenn Grothman (R-Glenbeulah) is serving his fifth term representing Wisconsin’s 6th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives.