Hoechst seeks review of benzene standard; Environmental Protection Agency regulatory interpretations are being challenged.(Hoechst Celanese Corp.)

Chemical Market Reporter, April, 1998

Environmental Protection Agency regulatory interpretations are being challenged. HOECHST CELANESE Corporation is asking the Supreme Court to clear up the confusion surrounding its liability for failing to observe Environmental Protection Agency's air emissions standard for benzene. In a petition for review filed with the high court late last month, Hoechst also urged the justices to use the case to put an end to the practice of lower federal courts routinely deferring to agency interpretations of their own regulations.

"In sum, deferring to an agency's interpretation of its own ambiguous regulation does not vindicate any constitutional separation of powers principle or give effect to the agency's supposed expertise in a complex technical field," the...

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