Senator Patty Murray of Washington has introduced legislation that would essentially ban asbestos in the United States by 2005. The bill, S 2641, would revisit the EPA attempt back in 1989 to ban the substance, according to the American Industrial Hygiene Association.
EPA's attempt was overturned by a Court of Appeals in 1991. While new uses of asbestos were banned, existing ones were not. This legislation would ban all future uses of asbestos.