Declarations

“Communities have suffered far too long from exposure to these forever chemicals. … Under this proposed rule, EPA will both help protect communities from PFAS pollution and seek to hold polluters accountable for their actions.”

— Michael Regan, head of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, said regarding the Biden administration’s plan said to designate certain per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), or “forever chemicals,” as hazardous substances under the nation’s Superfund program, in a bid to spark cleanup of countless sites that have been found contaminated by the toxic industrial compounds. PFAS chemicals — widely used to make household products from nonstick cookware to food packaging — have in recent years been found in dangerous concentrations in drinking water, soils and foods across the country.

“Ghost cars are by design unsafe and untraceable, so in addition to finding and towing them, we’re going to stop them from appearing in the first place. Amazon has been a willing partner in the battle for street safety and we thank them for working with us to keep New York City streets safe. We expect all e-commerce platforms and other sellers to follow their lead, comply with the law, and keep these products out of New York.”

— New York City Mayor Eric Adams said of a collaboration with Amazon, which promised to proactively restrict the sale of smokescreen license plate covers and tinted license plate covers to customers with a New York state address. It also will automatically display notices that these products cannot be shipped to New York locations. The arrangement is part of a crackdown on so-called ghost vehicles that use camera blockers to cover license plates.

“Rather than addressing an employee’s concerns about the safety and health of their workplace, the Killeen Daily Herald terminated their reporter who sought to prevent workplace exposure to unknown diseases carried by the insects.”

— Eric S. Harbin, OSHA Regional Administrator in Dallas, said of an investigation that found a Texas newspaper fired a reporter when they complained to management that they believed fleas had infested their workplace, leaving them with bug bites. Following an investigation, the U.S. Department of Labor sued the Killeen Daily Herald for violating federal laws protecting workers who report workplace safety and health issues. OSHA determined that in May and June 2021, the reporter sent messages to company management complaining about the infestation — and the bug bites. After sharing this additional information with management, the reporter was fired.