1. Occupational Safety & Health Standards Board

Trichloroethylene

  • GENERAL INDUSTRY SAFETY ORDERS,
    Section 5155
Status
Public hearing: Dec. 17, 2026
45-day comment period: Oct. 30, 2026 - Dec. 17, 2026
15-day Notice comment period:
2nd 15-day Notice comment period:
Filed with Secretary of State:
Effective date:

Rulemaking Documents

  1. American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH) (2025). TLV Chemical Substances Introduction. https://www.acgih.org/science/tlv-bei-guidelines/tlv-chemical-substances-introduction/.
  2. California Air Resources Board (April 2020). Annual Statewide Toxics Summary: Trichloroethylene. https://www.arb.ca.gov/adam/toxics/statepages/tcestate.html.
  3. California Bureau of Automotive Repair (BAR). https://www.bar.ca.gov/
  4. California Code of Regulations, Title 27, Environmental Protection. § 25721. Level of Exposure to Chemicals Causing Cancer. Updated through 3/11/22. https://govt.westlaw.com/calregs/Document/IBBC153FD512211EC828B000D3A7C4BC3?viewType=FullText&originationContext=documenttoc&transitionType=CategoryPageItem&contextData=(sc.Default)
  5. California Department of Tax and Fee Administration (CDTFA). California City & County Sales & Use Tax Rates (effective October 1 to December 31, 2023. https://www.cdtfa.ca.gov/taxes-and-fees/Archive-Rates-10-1-2022-12-31-2022.pdf.
  6. California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC). Managing Hazardous Waste. https://dtsc.ca.gov/generators/.
  7. California Employment Development Department (EDD) (2024). Size of Business Data for California (Quarterly). Payroll and Number of Businesses by Size of Business – Classified by Industry (Table 2A) – 2024, Qtr. 2. Total businesses at line 10, column D. (Total All Industries) in Table 2A are 1,867,597. https://labormarketinfo.edd.ca.gov/LMID/Size-Data-for-CA-Quarterly.html.
  8. California EPA, Air Resources Board (March 10, 2000). Staff Report: Initial Statement of Reasons for the Proposed Airborne Toxic Control Measure for Emissions of Chlorinated Toxic Air Contaminants from Automotive Maintenance and Repair Activities. See p. VI-7 Trichloroethylene. https://ww2.arb.ca.gov/sites/default/files/barcu/regact/amr/amr-isor.pdf
  9. California EPA, California Environmental Reporting System (CERS). Statistics. https://cersapps.calepa.ca.gov/public/statistics.
  10. California EPA, Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) (Dec 2007). Occupational Health Hazard Risk Assessment Project for California: Identification of Chemicals of Concern, Possible Risk Assessment Methods, and Examples of Health Protective Occupational Air Concentrations. https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CCDPHP/DEODC/OHB/HESIS/CDPH%20Document%20Library/risksummary.pdf.
  11. Cal/EPA, Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) (March 16, 2012) (Date listed at https://oehha.ca.gov/proposition-65/chemicals/trichloroethylene). Initial Statement of Reasons Title 27, California Code of Regulations Proposed Amendment to Section 25705(B), Specific Regulatory Levels Posing No Significant Risk: Trichloroethylene Safe Drinking Water And Toxic Enforcement Act Of 1986 Proposition 65 https://oehha.ca.gov/media/031612ISOR_TCE.pdf.
  12. Cal/EPA, Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) (2022). Chemicals Considered or Listed Under Proposition 65. Trichloroethylene. https://oehha.ca.gov/proposition-65/chemicals/trichloroethylene.
  13. Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development (March 21, 2022). Manufacturing. https://business.ca.gov/industries/manufacturing/.
  14. Health Effects Advisory Committee (HEAC) (March 24, 2010). Meeting of the Health Expert Advisory Committee (HEAC) for Permissible Exposure Limits for Airborne Contaminants in the Workplace. See links to “Trichloroethylene” and to “Minutes.” https://www.dir.ca.gov/dosh/doshreg/5155Meetings_2009.htm.
  15. California Department of Public Health, Hazard Evaluation System and Information Service (HESIS) (March 11, 2009). Will Forest. Trichloroethylene. Briefing for the DOSH Health Effects Advisory Committee. https://www.dir.ca.gov/dosh/doshreg/5155Meetings_2009.htm. See Oct 6, 2010 HEAC meeting, link for “Trichloroethylene.”
  16. California Department of Public Health, Hazard Evaluation System and Information Service (HESIS) (July 14, 2015). Review of recent toxicological literature and authoritative body determinations for the six chemical PELs recommended by HEAC in 2010: Updated information on Trichloroethylene, submitted to Cal/OSHA by Kashyap Thakore, CDPH/HESIS, July 14, 2015. PDF available as a Document Relied Upon.
  17. California Code of Regulations, Title 8, §5155. Trichloroethylene. https://www.dir.ca.gov/dosh/doshreg/5155Meetings_2009.htm.
  18. International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) (2014). Trichloroethylene, Tetrachloroethylene, and Some Other Chlorinated Agents. Volume 106. https://publications.iarc.who.int/Book-And-Report-Series/Iarc-Monographs-On-The-Identification-Of-Carcinogenic-Hazards-To-Humans/Trichloroethylene-Tetrachloroethylene-And-Some-Other-Chlorinated-Agents-2014.
  19. International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) (Dec 10, 2019). IARC Monographs on the Identification of Carcinogenic Hazards to Humans: Questions and Answers. https://monographs.iarc.who.int/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/QA_ENG.pdf.
  20. Karami S, Lan Q, Rothman N, et al (2012). Occupational trichloroethylene exposure and kidney cancer risk: a meta-analysis. Occup Environ Med. 2012;69:858–867. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23000822/.
  21. Lipworth L, Sonderman JS, Mumma MT, et al (2011). Cancer mortality among aircraft manufacturing workers: an extended follow-up. J Occup Environ Med. 2011;53:992–1007. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21866047.
  22. National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute (July 2021). Financial Burden of Cancer Care. https://progressreport.cancer.gov/after/economic_burden.
  23. National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute. Cancer State Facts: Kidney and Renal Pelvis Cancers, Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma, and Liver Cancer. https://seer.cancer.gov/statfacts/html/kidrp.html.
  24. Raaschou-Nielsen O, Hansen J, McLaughlin JK, et al (2003). Cancer risk among workers at Danish companies using trichloroethylene: a cohort study. Am J Epidemiol. 2003;158:1182–92. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/14652303/.
  25. Safety Culture (August 2024). A Comprehensive Guide to Local Exhaust Ventilation. FAQs about Local Exhaust Ventilation. https://safetyculture.com/topics/local-exhaust-ventilation/#faqs-about-local-exhaust-ventilation.
  26. U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) (Sept 2007). Pocket Guide to Chemical Hazards https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/npg/default.html.
  27. U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). Appendix C - Supplementary Exposure Limits. Trichloroethylene. https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/npg/nengapdxc.html.
  28. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, U.S. CDC, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) (June 2019). Toxicological Profile for Trichloroethylene. https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/toxprofiles/tp19.pdf.
  29. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, U.S. CDC, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) (Dec 10, 2013). Trichloroethylene Toxicity. Neurological Effects, Acute Exposure. https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/csem/trichloroethylene/physiological_effects.html.
  30. U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). (August 5, 1993). Permissible Exposure Limits: Annotated Tables. https://www.osha.gov/annotated-pels.
  31. U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). Sampling and Analytical Methods, Method 1001 (May 1999). Tetrachloroethylene, Trichloroethylene. https://www.osha.gov/sites/default/files/methods/osha-1001.pdf.
  32. U.S. Department of Labor, OSHA (August 5, 1993). Memorandum on Compliance and Enforcement Activities Affected by the PELs Decision. https://www.osha.gov/laws-regs/standardinterpretations/1993-08-05.
  33. U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health Administration (Oct 6, 1995). Letters of Interpretation. From Joe Dear, Assistant Secretary of Labor, to Mark Nicas, American Industrial Hygiene Association. https://www.osha.gov/laws-regs/standardinterpretations/1995-10-06-3#:~:text=%22TWA%20is%20the%20employee's%20average,risk%20of%20adverse%20health%20effects.
  34. U.S. EPA (Sept 2011) Toxicological Review of Trichloroethylene (CAS No. 79-01-6) In Support of Summary Information on the Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS). https://cfpub.epa.gov/ncea/iris/iris_documents/documents/toxreviews/0199tr/0199tr.pdf.
  35. U.S. EPA. Case Studies on Safer Alternatives for Solvent Degreasing Applications. Trichloroethylene. https://www.epa.gov/p2/case-studies-safer-alternatives-solvent-degreasing-applications.
  36. U.S. EPA (November 2020). Risk Evaluation for Trichloroethylene. https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2020-11/documents/1._risk_evaluation_for_trichloroethylene_tce_casrn_79-01-6.pdf.
  37. U.S. EPA. Final Risk Evaluation for Trichloroethylene https://www.epa.gov/assessing-and-managing-chemicals-under-tsca/final-risk-evaluation-trichloroethylene#documents.
  38. U.S. EPA. Pollution Prevention. Case Studies on Safer Alternatives for Solvent Degreasing Applications. https://www.epa.gov/p2/case-studies-safer-alternatives-solvent-degreasing-applications.

* Please contact OSHSB@dir.ca.gov to request a copy of the Advisory Committee handwritten attendance sheets.

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October 2026