OMB Watch recently submitted comments to the Environmental Protection Agency concerning its Stakeholder Dialogue Phase II white paper that focuses on burden reduction options for the Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) program. OMB Watch strongly opposes the options proposed in EPA’s White Paper. While the proposals might reduce the reporting burden, they do so by sacrificing either the amount or the accuracy of data collected under TRI. Additionally, EPA does not even establish that burden reduction is an important need for reporting facilities. The TRI program, a flagship reporting program for EPA, is simply too important to weaken for unjustified burden reduction. The TRI program, which tracks releases and transfers of toxic chemicals from manufacturing facilities, has demonstrated the usefulness of environmental data to the public and the power of information in producing significant reductions in toxic waste over the years. To read all of OMB Watch’s comments on the TRI burden reduction options click here.