Feb 18, 2016

Consumer Safety Proposition 65 Regulatory Update

On Jan. 25, 2016, California's Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) released a final regulation introducing a New Section 2 into the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986 (Prop 65) regulations.  The new section 2 gives OEHHA the authority to develop a website to provide information regarding chemical exposure from Prop 65 listed chemicals to the public.  The regulations require OEHHA to populate the website with information on how consumers can be exposed to chemicals, information on how to reduce exposures to chemicals, links to other regulatory bodies, and any other public information OEHHA determines is relevant.

The regulations also give OEHHA the authority to mandate that chemical manufacturers, selling products containing Prop 65 chemicals, provide information to be posted on the website.  OEHHA can request a variety of exposure related information, including:  location of the chemical, the chemical concentration, and an estimated level of exposure. The regulations do not require manufacturers to conduct testing and manufacturers are only required to provide information that is reasonably available.  Importantly, the website regulations are not required under Section 6 – Clear and Reasonable Warnings and therefore are cannot be enforced under the civil penalty provisions of Prop 65.

Prop 65 prohibits a person in the course of doing business from knowingly or intentionally exposing any individual to a chemical known to the state of California to cause cancer or reproductive toxicity without first giving "clear and reasonable" warning to the individual.
For more information about the website regulation, visit OEHHA's website: http://oehha.ca.gov/prop65/CRNR_notices/WarningWeb/pdf/LeadAgencyWebsiteFinalRegText012516.pdf

Source: http://www.paint.org/proposition-65-regulatory-update/
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