S. 5235 — Alan Reinstein Ban Asbestos Now Act of 2026

This section prohibits the manufacture, processing, use, or distribution in commerce of commercial asbestos (defined to include chrysotile, crocidolite, amosite, anthophyllite, tremolite, actinolite, richterite, and winchite) or any mixture or article containing it, effective on the date of enactment of the Alan Reinstein Ban Asbestos Now Act of 2026. It exempts asbestos present only as an impurity and preserves separate regulatory definitions and requirements under other statutes, including cosmetics regulation. It authorizes chlor-alkali facilities operating on the date of enactment to continue using commercial asbestos diaphragms until May 25, 2032 (extendable to May 25, 2036 for qualifying multi-facility operators that convert at least one facility by May 28, 2029), subject to interim exposure controls. It subjects commercial asbestos sheet gaskets to the phase-out schedule in 40 CFR part 751 subpart F. It authorizes the President to grant a one-time national security exemption.