Status at a glance
- EPA Part 1: final rule effective May 28, 2024; consolidated Fifth Circuit review remained undecided at the last verification.
- EPA Part 2: final risk evaluation published; the statutory proposal deadline was missed; the current Unified Agenda projects a February 2027 NPRM and March 2028 final rule.
- OSHA shipyard standard: proposed revisions include 29 CFR 1915.1001; the rulemaking record was open through October 9, 2026.
- Congress: S.5235 is distinct from the earlier H.R.5373/S.2811 companion bills; none had advanced beyond referral.
How to read this record
This page reports procedural status. A final agency rule, a proposed rule, a petition for review, a complaint, and an introduced bill are different legal events. A docket entry establishes that a filing or proceeding exists; it does not establish that a party has won. A proposal is not a final rule. Nothing here proves installation, workplace exposure, disease, individual causation, or liability at any shipyard.
Master chronology
March 28, 2024 — EPA Part 1
EPA published a final TSCA rule addressing six conditions of use of chrysotile asbestos. The rule stated an effective date of May 28, 2024. EPA published a technical correction on April 25, 2024. 89 FR 21970; 89 FR 31655.
April–June 2024 — Fifth Circuit review begins
Industry petitioners sought review in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. The proceedings were consolidated under Texas Chemistry Council v. EPA, No. 24-60193, with related matters including Nos. 24-60281 and 24-60333. CourtListener docket 68457472.
December 3, 2024 — EPA Part 2 evaluation
EPA published its supplemental evaluation of legacy uses, associated disposals, additional asbestos fiber types, and asbestos-containing talc. The agency concluded that asbestos under the evaluated conditions poses unreasonable risk to human health. 89 FR 95777.
June 26, 2025 — international ship-recycling context
The IMO’s Hong Kong Convention for safe and environmentally sound ship recycling entered into force. It addresses hazardous materials aboard ships, including asbestos. Its direct domestic legal effect on U.S. shipyards is not stated here because U.S. ratification status was not confirmed in this review. IMO announcement.
July 1, 2025 — OSHA proposes asbestos-standard revisions
OSHA proposed revisions to its asbestos standards, including 29 CFR 1915.1001 for shipyard employment. The proposal is a rulemaking record, not a final standard. An August 2025 notice extended the original comment period, and later proceedings added an informal hearing and further reopenings. 90 FR 28295.
September 16, 2025 — 2025 congressional bills
H.R.5373 and S.2811, both titled the Alan Reinstein Ban Asbestos Now Act of 2025, were introduced and referred to committee. Congress.gov identifies them as identical bills. Neither had recorded action beyond referral as of the last verification. H.R.5373; S.2811.
December 3, 2025 — statutory proposal deadline passes
The statutory deadline to propose a risk-management rule following the Part 2 evaluation passed without an NPRM. EPA’s current Unified Agenda continues to display the statutory date while separately listing later planning targets.
April 21, 2026 — ADAO citizen suit
The Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization filed ADAO v. Zeldin, No. 1:26-cv-01350, seeking to compel EPA action on the missed Part 2 proposal deadline. The case remained pending, with no merits ruling, at the last verification. CourtListener docket 73218918.
June–September 2026 — EPA information request
EPA opened an information-gathering docket for legacy uses and associated disposals on June 23. A later memorandum extended that comment period through September 23, 2026. The request seeks information; it does not commit EPA to specific regulatory text or a final date. Docket EPA-HQ-OPPT-2025-0036.
June 1, 2026 — Fifth Circuit argument
The Fifth Circuit heard argument focused on whether the petitioners had established Article III standing. The public docket showed no opinion or judgment and no entry after June 22–23, 2026, when last checked on September 5.
July–October 2026 — OSHA record reopened
OSHA reopened the record through August 21 after consulting its construction-safety advisory committee. A third reopening, posted August 26 in docket OSHA-2025-0024, extended the operative window through October 9, 2026. 91 FR 46033; Docket OSHA-2025-0024.
August 4, 2026 — S.5235 introduced
S.5235, the Alan Reinstein Ban Asbestos Now Act of 2026, was introduced by Senator Jeff Merkley with Senator John Curtis as cosponsor and referred to the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works. Its text names eight fiber types, but introduction and referral do not make it law. S.5235.
February 2027 and March 2028 — current planning targets
EPA’s current 2026 Unified Agenda entry for RIN 2070-AL21 projects a February 2027 NPRM and a March 2028 final rule. Those planning targets supersede the prior edition’s November 2026 and February 2028 targets. They do not erase the statutory deadlines of December 3, 2025 and December 3, 2026. Unified Agenda, pubId 202510.
Track-by-track reading
EPA Part 1 and the Fifth Circuit
Part 1 is directed at specified ongoing uses of chrysotile asbestos; it is not a comprehensive prohibition on every asbestos fiber or every legacy use. The rule is also not unchallenged. Until the Fifth Circuit enters a disposition, the docket supports only the statement that review is pending—not a prediction about who will prevail.
EPA Part 2 and the missed schedule
Part 2 addresses legacy uses and disposals, additional asbestos fiber types beyond chrysotile, and asbestos-containing talc. EPA’s current planning calendar projects a February 2027 proposal and March 2028 final rule. Those dates supersede November 2026 and February 2028, and they do not corroborate the separate June 2027 date reported in secondary summaries.
OSHA’s shipyard standard
OSHA’s proceeding is separate from EPA’s TSCA work. The July 2025 proposal expressly includes the shipyard-employment asbestos standard at 29 CFR 1915.1001. Until OSHA publishes a final rule, it should be described as proposed revisions under review.
Congressional proposals
The 2025 House and Senate companion bills are distinct from S.5235, the 2026 Senate proposal. S.5235 names chrysotile, crocidolite, amosite, anthophyllite, tremolite, actinolite, richterite, and winchite, reaching beyond the chrysotile-only scope of EPA’s Part 1 rule. Its procedural status nevertheless remains introduced.
International context
The Hong Kong Convention is relevant to ship recycling and hazardous-material inventories. This page does not state that it directly governs U.S. domestic shipyard activity; U.S. ratification status remains unconfirmed.
Maintenance and re-verification
This page is a dated snapshot, not a live docket service. Re-verify after September 23, 2026 for the EPA information request; after October 9, 2026 for the OSHA record; immediately upon a Fifth Circuit disposition; after any material action in ADAO v. Zeldin or on S.5235, H.R.5373, or S.2811; and when the next Unified Agenda edition appears. A future update should preserve superseded dates as history rather than silently replacing them.