Legal Blog

Increase in Notices of Prop 65 Violations for Online Web Sales

The amendments to Proposition 65 warning regulations that went into effect on August 30, 2018 include more stringent warning requirements for products requiring warnings sold online via the internet. Since those regulatory amendments became effective, only a few enforcement actions based on violations of the new online and internet warning requirements have been initiated. But in recent weeks, more than 50 Notices of Violation or “Threatened Violation” under Prop 65 have been issued against various companies, mostly wine distributions and online retailers. Private enforcer John Devlin is behind the recent onslaught of Prop 65 notices and currently most of these…

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State Considering New Legislation to Expand Oversight of “Harmful” Cosmetics

Legislation was introduced in February that would increase California’s oversight of chemicals that are deemed “harmful” for use in cosmetics. As amended by the California Assembly in March, Assembly Bill 495 (AB 495) proposes to ban 20 chemicals  from being intentionally added in cosmetics from being sold in California. The state has identified these chemicals as substances known to cause cancer or reproductive harm. The chemicals listed in AB 495 include mercury, lead, phthalates, formaldehyde, triclosan, asbestos, lead, and compounds known as PFAS. According to the state, cosmetic products containing these chemicals as intentionally added ingredients would be deemed “adulterated”…

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California Environmental Contaminant Biomonitoring Program Revises List of Designated Chemicals

The California Environmental Contaminant Biomonitoring Program, also known as Biomonitoring California, has revised its list of designated chemicals. The updated list includes several additions of chemicals recently included by the Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention. The new list formulated by Biomonitoring California covers the following chemicals: A group of heterocyclic amines (which have been designated by the state for listing under Proposition 65); An additional phthalate alternative; Additional flame retardants; Additional volatile organic compounds; 1-Nitropyrene metabolites (designated as a biomarker for diesel exhaust exposure); and Additional chemicals that are already members of covered groups, including brominated and chlorinated organic…

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California Proposes Designation of Nail Products Containing Toluene as a Priority Product

The Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) has recommended listing nail products containing toluene as a priority product under its Safer Consumer Products program. The adoption of this proposal could lead manufacturers to either discontinue use of toluene in nail products in California within the next four years, or initiate an analysis of acceptable alternatives to continue using the product for this application, or demonstrate that there is no feasible acceptable alternative to toluene for this product category. Toluene in nail products has been suspected of posing potential hazards to consumers for some time. Toluene acts a solvent in nail…

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California Air Resources Board to Initiate Rulemaking for Reducing Emissions from Consumer Products

In February 2019, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) announced its intent to initiate rulemaking to further impose reductions in volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions from consumer products. The forum is scheduled to take place on Friday, April 12, 2019. The meeting is being held to convene stakeholders to discuss and plan emission reduction strategies. Some of the proposals to be evaluated at the upcoming forum include considering categories with higher mass and reactivity, exploring methods for developing near-zero VOC formulations, and analyzing exemptions currently in place. CARB has engaged in rulemaking with the goal of lowering emissions and reactivity…

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