The Environmental Protection Agency on Monday delayed major Obama administration chemical safety regulations by nearly two years.

"We are seeking additional time to review the program, so that we can fully evaluate the public comments raised by multiple petitioners and consider other issues that may benefit from additional public input," said EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt.

The new effective date for the rule will be Feb. 19, 2019. The Obama administration had finalized the rule in December.

The changes to the chemical safety rules were implemented after a 2013 explosion at an ammonia nitrate chemical facility north of Waco, Texas. The explosion killed 15 people, injured nearly 200, and decimated 150 buildings. In 2016, federal investigators said the fire that caused the explosion was deliberately set.

The additional 20 months will allow the agency to evaluate the amendments made to EPA's Risk Management Program to "conduct a reconsideration proceeding and to consider other issues that may benefit from additional comment."

The delay came just days after Pruitt delayed implementation for a major Obama-era rule for smog-forming ozone emissions by one year.