California Rulemaking to Alter Requirements for Chemical Warnings
Posted on Friday, January 23, 2015
The California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) is proposing to impose new requirements on product manufacturers and various other business entities under Proposition 65—the California law requiring warnings in the presence of certain chemicals. Under Prop 65, a manufacturer, producer, packager, importer or distributor of a product that causes consumers to be exposed to a listed chemical is required to provide a warning to consumers. Currently, a Prop 65 warning must be given prior to the time of anticipated exposure, but under the new rule, the warning must be given prior to sale, imposing new burdens on website and catalog retailers.
The new rule also lists 12 chemicals that a manufacturer would have to identify by name in their Prop 65 warning: acrylamide, arsenic, benzene, cadmium, carbon monoxide, chlorinated tris, formaldehyde, hexavalent chromium, lead, mercury, methylene chloride and phthalates. The OEHHA will hold a public hearing on the proposal March 25, 2015, in Sacramento and is accepting public comment until April 8, 2015.
For more information, visit the OEHHA website.