Basic Chemical Manufacturers NAICS 3251

May 20, 2025 - Trump’s Deregulatory Agenda

• The second Trump administration's first 100 days in office have ushered in a new era of chemical regulation, characterized by a strong emphasis on deregulation and a leaner federal infrastructure, The National Law Review (NLR) reports. Central to Trump’s aggressive deregulatory agenda is a January executive order requiring “that for each new regulation issued, at least 10 prior regulations be identified for elimination.” In March, the EPA announced it will reconsider the regulation governing the review of chemicals already in commerce, a plan that may result in changes to foundational assumptions in the risk assessment methods used under the Biden administration, according to the NLR. Supporters of Trump’s deregulatory efforts argue they foster economic growth and innovation, while critics cite potential risks to the environment and public health. As stakeholders in the EPA’S regulatory process, chemical manufacturers must monitor and adapt to these major changes.
• If realized, early predictions for a dynamic 2025 Atlantic hurricane season could spell trouble for the petrochemical industry and the basic chemical manufacturers that rely on it for feedstocks, according to AccuWeather. In May, AccuWeather meteorologists predicted 13 to 18 storms, of which 7 to 10 will be hurricanes. Water temperatures in the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean are already well above historical averages, and will stay warm throughout most of the year, priming storms for explosive development. With facilities concentrated along the Gulf Coast in Texas and Louisiana, basic chemical manufacturers are especially vulnerable to tropical storms and hurricanes, which can disrupt operations. Hurricane experts at Colorado State University are predicting a 70% storm chance and 44% hurricane chance this year for Texas, and 74% storm chance and 46% hurricane chance for Louisiana.

• Chemical manufacturers and refiners could see the permitting process for new chemicals accelerate under action taken by the EPA to repeal a Biden-era amendment to the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), Chemical Processing reports. As part of the Trump administration’s sweeping deregulation efforts, the EPA under its new administrator Lee Zeldin has announced plans to reconsider the regulation governing the review of chemicals already in commerce. Also, an amendment to the TSCA, which placed stricter requirements on the new chemicals review process, has come under fire by the industry and republican lawmakers who say places unnecessary burdens on chemical manufacturers and refiners by slowing the permitting process and inhibiting the availability of chemicals. The EPA’s action to streamline chemical reviews came just days after the agency issued new guidance directing that any spending exceeding $50,000 requires approval from the Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency.
• Dragged down by the weak industrial and construction sectors – major consumers of basic chemicals – in 2024, the American Chemistry Council (ACC) is predicting a better year for chemicals in 2025. The trade group estimates that US chemical output, excluding pharmaceuticals, declined by 0.4% in 2024, but expects growth to resume at a 1.9% rate this year. That’s compared to a predicted 0.4% decline in output last year, on the heels of a 0.2% decline in 2023. “The industrial sector, which of course is where chemicals play, remains pretty stagnant,” the ACC’s chief economist, Martha Moore, said in December. An exception has been the electronic materials sector, where business is booming because of construction of data centers and semiconductor fabrication plants. The ACC forecasts that sales of chemicals used in electronics will grow 8% this year. While the council expects lower interest rates to spur more spending in major chemical-consuming sectors, tariffs remain a wildcard.