The Trump administration’s fiscal year 2026 (FY26) proposed budget defunds the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) and directs the CSB to use its emergency funds to shut down operations by the end of 2025.
The CSB is tasked with investigating incidents and hazards resulting from the production, processing, and handling of chemical substances that can cause death, serious injury, or substantial environmental or property damage. The agency doesn’t have any enforcement authority.
Several industry, environmental, and public health groups have protested closing the Agency, notes Wisconsin Public Radio (WPR).
“If the CSB had been better funded 10 or 15 years ago, they might have been better able to educate the refinery in Superior about how to prevent the explosion that ended up happening in 2018,” said Superior, Wisconsin, Mayor Jim Paine, according to WPR. “Had that explosion been prevented, not only would people not have been hurt, but the refinery could have saved millions and millions of dollars in that rebuild. These agencies are good for industry.”
“The board has about 50 staff members and a budget of roughly $14.4 million,” WPR continues. “In the last five years, nearly 500 serious chemical incidents have occurred in 43 states. In a June 24 letter, more than two dozen Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives urged Trump to reverse his calls to close the agency.”
While companies aren’t required to use the board’s recommendations, most do. According to the CSB website, “87 percent of its 1,019 recommendations are closed, meaning industry has typically addressed necessary changes,” WPR says.
In shuttering the CSB, chemical incident investigations will primarily fall to the EPA and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). Those agencies, like most agencies within the federal government, are dealing with budget and staff cuts, meaning they already have fewer resources to complete their current responsibilities.
For employers, closing the CSB will reduce overlapping oversight and lessen the risk of high-profile negative publicity that often accompanies CSB involvement, notes law firm Fisher & Phillips LLP.
Employer Action Items
“Even with reduced federal oversight, employers in high-risk industries shouldn’t lower their guard,” Fisher & Phillips advises. “Here are steps to consider:
- Review internal investigation protocols: Ensure your organization can conduct swift and effective internal investigations after chemical incidents, especially if external agency involvement becomes more limited.
- Reinforce safety training and reporting systems: Without CSB investigations spotlighting systemic failures, it’s critical to maintain strong internal reporting and hazard identification mechanisms.
- Stay informed through alternative safety channels: Follow recommendations from industry groups, safety associations, and professional organizations (e.g., AIChE, ACC) to stay current on best practices and compliance suggestions.
- Monitor regulatory and litigation trends: Stay updated on any evolving OSHA or EPA guidance and prepare for the possibility of private litigation filling enforcement gaps.
- Document proactive safety efforts: With a potentially less visible federal watchdog, documenting your company’s proactive safety measures can help mitigate risk and demonstrate due diligence.”
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