Frank Lautenberg

But, of course, Mr. Elwell, you have to look at what might be a doomsday projection and say, 'OK. What do we do if we don't close that gap?'

Are you aware of whether or not Customs is providing adequate staffing at Newark?

And I'm proud that Chairman Durbin and 20 other Senators have cosponsored the bill.

Mr. Schaefer, UL research suggests that flame-retardant chemicals in foam furniture do not provide significant benefits.

Parents in this country expect their child to be safe when sleeping on a baby mattress, feeding from a bottle, playing on the furniture.

Americans deserve to know that the chemicals used in everyday consumer products are safe.

Could we protect the health of the firefighters by reforming our Federal chemical laws to reduce toxic substances in the homes?

And that's why Senator Snowe and I recently sent a bipartisan letter to EPA, signed by 24 of our Senate colleagues, including Chairman Durbin, urging the agency to take action on a class of flame retardants.

I wrote a law called 'Right to Know', which became the law.

EPA would like to do more to protect the public from the risks of flame retardants, but it is limited, again, by its current authority.

at this moment in time, corruption of America is taking place, but it is not in front of our eyes. The American people have a right to know who is responsible. It is being corrupted by secret money from secret donors. Every day they spend…

Giving EPA the authority to get health and safety data for existing chemicals is critically important for our ability to demonstrate the chemicals are safe.

This reinforces why there is broad agreement that TSCA must be reformed to protect American families from dangerous chemicals.

According to the Chicago Tribune, 'a typical American baby is born with the highest recorded concentration of flame retardants among infants in the world.'

What happened on 9/11, New Jersey lost 700 of its citizens in that calamitous occasion.

The Chicago Tribune exposed how the chemical industry has used dirty tricks and junk science to drive a public misinformation campaign.

When you talk about the number of deaths, Chief, that occur every day in the country as a result of fires, we've got to wake up to the alarm.

Mr. Chairman, I want to say thanks for bringing this subcommittee hearing up, because there's so much going on.

In many countries around the world, chemicals are required to be tested, but not in the United States.

They've been accused of bankrolling so-called experts to invent stories that spout the company line, all in the service of protecting their profits.

The Government Accountability Office has placed that law, TSCA, on its list of high-risk areas of the law.

Today, thank goodness, we're examining a prime example of why our system for regulating chemicals needs to be updated.

The fact is, some states, like New Jersey, have strong regulations in place to ensure the safety and integrity of horseracing.

We just have to give them more firepower.

The reality is that there is no safe level of lead for the body.