 Your life could get a lot more dangerous. Methane, in some of the water wells, the cause, frack it. Asbestos kills nearly 3,000 Americans. 48 million people getting sick. Heavy metals are showing up in some baby foods. Republican appointees on the Supreme Court seem poised to strip away basic safety standards for our workplaces, our food, and our air and water. Congress gives federal agencies the authority to enact regulations that protect us in our daily lives. Congress defines the goals, but leaves it up to the health and safety experts in these agencies to craft and enforce regulations. Now, I know regulations don't sound very exciting, but they are how our government keeps us safe. Remember when lots of romaine lettuce was recalled because it was causing e-coli outbreaks? That was the Food and Drug Administration protecting us from getting sick. Working in a warehouse? The Occupational Safety and Health Administration sets standards so you don't breathe in dangerous chemicals like asbestos. Enjoying the fresh air on a clear sunny day? Well, thank the Environmental Protection Agency for limiting the amount of pollution that can go into the air. These agencies save lives. Since OSHA was established a half century ago, its workplace safety regulations have saved more than 618,000 workers' lives. Republicans have been trying to gut these agencies for decades. Please raise your right hand. Now, with the Supreme Court's right-wing majority solidly in place, they have their best chance yet. In January 2022, the Supreme Court blocked OSHA's vaccine or testing mandate from going into effect, which was estimated to prevent a quarter-million hospitalizations. The court claimed that COVID isn't an occupational hazard because people can become infected outside work and that allowing OSHA to regulate in this manner would, quote, significantly expand its authority without clear congressional authorization. This is absurd on its face. Section 2 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 clearly spells out OSHA's authority to enact and enforce regulations that protect workers from illness, injury, and death in the workplace. Congress doesn't need to list every specific workplace hazard before OSHA can protect workers. What this ruling tells us is that the Republican appointees on the Supreme Court are intent on gutting the power of agencies to issue regulations. The court will also hear a case regarding the EPA's authority to enforce the Clean Water Act. If the court undermines the EPA's authority, it will put our environment and our health at risk. Remember when the Cuyahoga River caught on fire because it was brimming with oil, acid, and factory chemicals? That's what we may be returning to. And what's next? Will they gut the Federal Trade Commission and put us all at risk of being defrauded? Target the Securities and Exchange Commission and deregulate the financial sector, sparking another financial crisis? Beware. If Republican appointees on the Supreme Court succeed in gutting regulatory agencies, we all lose. This agenda is anti-worker, anti-consumer, and anti-environment. The only thing it's good for is corporate profits.