General Electric Company v. EPA

290 F.3d 377 (D.C. Cir. 2002)

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Nature of the Case

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Facts

The TSCA prohibits the manufacture, processing, distribution, and use of PCBs unless the EPA determines that the activity will not result in an 'unreasonable risk of injury to health or the environment.' The Guidance Document 'provides an overview of risk assessment techniques and guidance for reviewing risk assessment documents submitted under the final PCB disposal rule.' P's primary argument is that the Guidance Document is a legislative rule and therefore should have been promulgated only after public notice and an opportunity for comment. In the alternative, it contends that the Guidance Document is not supported by substantial evidence. (The Court first looked into the issue of ripeness and whether P’s claims satisfy the fitness/hardship standard under Abbott Labs. Where the first prong of the [Abbott Laboratories] ripeness test is met, and Congress has emphatically declared a preference for immediate review ... no purpose is served by proceeding to the second [or hardship] prong. The TSCA requires that any petition for review of a rule be filed within 60 days of the promulgation of the rule. 15 U.S.C. 2618(a)(1)(A). P has demonstrated that the issue is fit for review, and P need not also show that delaying review would work a hardship.)