Budget Proposal Would Eliminate CSB, Begin Closure This Fiscal Year
President Trump’s budget request for fiscal year 2026 seeks to eliminate funding for the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board, an agency that investigates major chemical accidents and makes recommendations for improving the safety of the chemical industry, workers, and communities. Supplemental materials to the president’s budget request (PDF) describe the proposed elimination of CSB’s funding as “part of the Administration’s plans to move the Nation towards fiscal responsibility and to redefine the proper role of the Federal Government.” A budget document (PDF) published by CSB explains that the expectation is that the agency will begin closing down during the current fiscal year. According to the budget document, the agency “duplicates substantial capabilities” in EPA and OSHA.
“CSB generates unprompted studies of the chemical industry and recommends policies that they have no authority to create or enforce,” the document states. “This function should reside within agencies that have authorities to issue regulations in accordance with applicable legal standards.”
CSB was authorized by the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 and became operational in 1998. According to CSB’s website, Congress designed the agency to be both nonregulatory and independent so that it could focus on improving the safety of workers, industry, and the public. A Senate legislative history document (PDF) explains that one reason CSB should be independent in its duties is that agencies with both rulemaking and investigative functions are not likely to “be quick to acknowledge that existing requirements were insufficient to prevent an accident.”
“In fact, the investigations conducted by agencies with dual responsibilities tend to focus on violations of existing rules as the cause of the accident almost to the exclusion of other contributing factors for which no enforcement or compliance actions can be taken,” the legislative history says.
A video published by CSB last month focuses on the agency’s role in improving chemical industry safety. Since its creation, CSB has investigated nearly 180 chemical incidents that resulted in more than 200 fatalities, more than 1,300 serious injuries, and billions of dollars in damage to chemical facilities, nearby homes and businesses, and the environment, an agency news release states. CSB’s current annual budget is $14.4 million, and it employs fewer than 50 people.
“If the CSB’s many safety lessons have prevented at least one catastrophic chemical incident, the money saved by protecting lives, preventing serious injuries and damage to facilities, safeguarding surrounding communities, and avoiding costly litigation and legal settlements far exceeds the CSB’s modest annual budget,” CSB Chairperson Steve Owens says in the video. “The CSB more than pays for itself in costs saved by preventing serious chemical incidents.”
More information about CSB’s work can be found in the agency’s news release. Details about the proposed budget are available from CSB (PDF) and the White House.