U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced at the end of December 2025 that it will move to regulate dozens of applications of five widely used phthalate chemicals in an effort to address environmental and workplace risks. According to the EPA, the decision is based on final risk evaluations, released on December 31, 2025, for the following chemicals: butyl benzyl phthalate (BBP), dibutyl phthalate (DBP), dicyclohexyl phthalate (DCHP), diethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP), and diisobutyl phthalate (DIBP). EPA reached its conclusions that all five chemicals it reviewed pose unreasonable risks to workers and to the environment. EPA's regulatory focus will target the specific uses that harm workers or threaten the environment.   

"Our gold standard science delivered clear answers that these phthalates pose unreasonable risk to workers in specific industrial settings and to the environment," said Administrator Lee Zeldin. " We'll work directly with stakeholders to develop targeted protections that keep workers safe and protect our environment."

According to a press release from the EPA, "Phthalates have the potential to cause human health abnormalities that EPA is seriously concerned with, including hormone deficiencies and endocrine disruption. It’s also important to note that gold standard science also shows that these health impacts do not occur at all exposure levels. The key factor in determining risk is whether people are exposed to amounts above levels that could cause health problems. Under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) risk evaluation process, EPA focuses specifically on uses regulated under the federal chemical safety law. EPA’s TSCA risk evaluation does not analyze exposures from food, food additives, food packaging, medical devices, cosmetics and other consumer products that are under the purview of the Food and Drug Administration or Consumer Product Safety Commission. For the consumer uses that are part of this TSCA risk evaluation, EPA found no products with exposure levels that are causing unreasonable risk to the general population. In pursuit of gold standard science, dermal modeling was enhanced based on peer review feedback and public comment, especially with the replacement of rodent data with actual human data.

“The agency's cumulative exposure analysis, which examined exposure to multiple phthalates simultaneously, was based on available data for individuals aged four years and older. While no national-scale biomonitoring data exists for children under four, EPA used conservative modeling approaches to specifically assess toy mouthing behaviors in infants (less than one year), as well as two- and three-year-olds, ensuring that even the most vulnerable young children were included and protected in the evaluation.”  

For the next step, the EPA say the agency will  "develop rules to eliminate the identified unreasonable risks to workers and the environment. The agency will conduct extensive consultation with workers, businesses, labor groups, and communities to develop targeted, practical protections that ensure worker safety and environmental protection. Personal protective equipment, engineering controls, and alternative approaches will be carefully evaluated to create effective, implementable solutions that protect those most at risk.”

On its risk evaluation webpage for phalates, the EPA described its “gold standard science,” which the agency used to make its determination: “EPA improved the evaluation based on new scientific data, public comments, and independent peer review. Based on peer review feedback, EPA included a sensitivity analysis to update the characterization of impacts to surface water by evaluating variable flow rates and wastewater treatment removal levels to inform risk determinations. In response to peer review feedback and public comment, EPA refined the dermal modeling approach to use a more realistic exposure scenario and replaced rodent data with human dermal absorption data. Additionally, based on public comment and stakeholder engagement, EPA refined the inhalation assessment for some worker scenarios and incorporated more representative workplace monitoring data. Making these science-based improvements demonstrates EPA's commitment to using the best available data and methodologies. These changes resulted in more accurate and defensible risk assessments.”

In its press release announcing its planned actions, EPA listed the following risk for each chemical:

• BBP: Unreasonable risk to workers (two conditions of use); environmental risks (seven conditions of use). BBP is used in adhesives, sealants, and coatings, as well as floor coverings and plastic and rubber products.
• DBP: Unreasonable risk to workers (five conditions of use); environmental risks (one condition of use). DBP is used in adhesives, sealants, and coatings, as well as floor coverings, furniture, chemiluminescent light sticks, lubricants, fabric, textiles, and leather.
• DCHP: Unreasonable risk to workers (two conditions of use). DCHP is used in adhesives, paint and coatings, plastic and rubber products, and plastic resin manufacturing.  
• DEHP: Unreasonable risk to workers (10 conditions of use); environmental risks (20 conditions of use). DEHP is used in adhesives, paint and coatings, plastic materials and resins, industrial polishes, aerospace products, textiles, leather goods, and lawncare products.  
• DIBP: Unreasonable risk to workers (four conditions of use); environmental risks (seven conditions of use). DIBP is used in adhesives, sealants, paints and coatings, as well as plastic and rubber manufacturing, fabric dyes, treatments for textiles and leather, and printing inks, toners, and colorants.

Learn more by visiting www.epa.gov.