INFLUENCE GAME: CHEMICAL TRADE TRIES TO SHAPE REGS

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FILE - In this Jan. 13, 2014 file photo, workers, left, inspect an area outside a retaining wall around storage tanks where a chemical leaked into the Elk River at Freedom Industries storage facility in Charleston, W.Va. The powerful chemical industry is putting its lobbying muscle behind legislation that would establish standards for chemicals used in products from household goods to cellphones and plastic water bottles _ but also make it tougher for states to regulate them. (AP Photo/Steve Helber, File)

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The powerful chemical industry is putting its lobbying muscle behind legislation that would establish standards for chemicals used in products from household goods to cellphones and plastic water bottles - but also make it tougher for states to enact their own regulations.

Many states already have acted on their own - and that's what's gotten the industry's attention.

"Rather than be picked apart on a state-by-state basis, with different regulations, we needed to have a coherent and cohesive federal system," said Anne Kolton, spokeswoman for the American Chemistry Council.

The group, which represents such chemical powerhouses as Dow, DuPont, BASF Corp. and 3M, spent nearly $6 million on lobbying in the first half of the year, the most recent reporting period.