EPA has sent its Risk Management Plan revision to the White House Office of Management and Budget for review, calling for a security increase at high-risk chemical facilities. Among other things, this proposal would require independent third-party audits; root cause investigations for incidents and near misses; analysis of safer chemicals and technologies; and more coordination and data sharing with local responders. Although supposedly a compromise, the proposal has drawn many critics—with one side arguing that it does not sufficiently address risks, and the other side claiming that it will be unnecessarily burdensome to employers and will actually increase security risks by making sensitive information to the public.

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