"About a dozen retailers have pledged to stop selling paint removal products that can kill their customers, but formal restrictions promised by a federal agency have yet to materialize.

The US Environmental Protection Agency said in May it would “shortly” finish its proposed rule about certain widely available paint strippers—those containing a chemical called methylene chloride—and send it to the White House office that must sign off before a new regulation is enacted.

Now, seven months later, the EPA won’t say when it anticipates taking that step or if it is still contemplating a ban on retail sales. The agency would only say it is “currently evaluating the proposal…to determine the appropriate regulation.”"

Methylene chloride fumes can lead to asphyxiation or trigger heart attacks."

Jamie Smith Hopkins reports for Mother Jones December 14, 2018.   [2]