Attorney General Bonta Joins Multistate Coalition to Defend EPA’s Chemical Accident Safety Rule

OAKLAND – California Attorney General Rob Bonta today, as part of a multistate coalition, filed a motion to intervene to defend the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) chemical accident safety rule adopted in 2024. The rule requires facilities, such as refineries and chemical manufacturing plants, to take steps to prevent chemical accidents, which includes requiring hazardous facilities to implement prevention plans, safety planning for employees, increase community transparency, and prepare for extreme weather risks. The rule protects communities, especially environmental justice communities, that are exposed to chemical accidents due to these facilities’ close proximity. Currently, the rule is being challenged by a coalition of 14 states, led by Oklahoma; separate challenges have also been filed by industry groups including the National Association of Chemical Distributors and the American Chemistry Council. Just this month, The Trump Administration has announced its intent to reconsider this rule as a part of its broader agenda to dismantle environmental and public health safeguards.

“Chemical disasters pose serious risks, including long-term health effects and devastating economic consequences. Without stringent safety protocols, proper emergency response planning, and corporate accountability, communities will remain vulnerable to preventable catastrophes,” said Attorney General Bonta.  “That’s why I, alongside attorneys general nationwide, are filing this motion. Any attempt to rollback this rule would not only curtail the environmental and economic benefits but could also have irreversible impacts on lives that are preventable.” 

Chemical accidents, including explosions, and releases of hazardous chemicals are an inevitable part of the operation of large, complex facilities using highly hazardous materials. The worst cases include large explosions and large releases of toxic gases or liquids, causing multiple injuries or deaths. Since 2001, there have been at least five chemical accidents in California large enough to require investigations by the United States Chemical Safety Board. Smaller accidents are even more prevalent. These chemical plants and refineries are disproportionately located in some of the most disadvantaged communities in the state. 

In 1986, responding to a series of serious chemical accidents in the 1970s and 1980s, California created a risk management and prevention program, now called the California Accidental Release Prevention (CalARP) Program. Similar to the federal Risk Management Plan Rule, CalARP requires regulated entities to adopt a program, explaining how the facility will identify and mitigate the chemical accident risks specific to the facility. The facility must adhere to robust safety measures, including accident prevention and public transparency goals, and implement protections to mitigate potential consequences of chemical accidents. Facilities that are covered by both the federal and state programs must comply with the requirements of each. 

Attorney General Bonta joins the attorneys general of Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, District of Columbia, and Harris County, Texas, in filing the motion.

A copy of the motion is available here.