Wed Aug 29th, On Environmental Law, by Bick Law LLP
The upcoming deadline to comply with newly revised California Proposition 65, otherwise known as the, “Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986,” is August 30th. Proposition 65 (California Health and Safety Code, section 25249.6 et seq.) requires that persons doing business in California must provide a “clear and reasonable warning,” to individuals before exposing them to chemicals known to the state of California to cause cancer, birth defects or other reproductive harm. A list of these 900 chemicals is found on the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment website here: https://oehha.ca.gov/proposition-65/proposition-65-list. The amount of a particular substance necessary for it to be considered harmful is also found on the OEHHA website. Californians have seen these warnings before. Warnings on products manufactured on or after August 30th,, however, must comply with a stricter, more comprehensive set of criteria. These new requirements pertain to the transmission of a warning, meaning how it is stamped, printed or otherwise made clear to consumers, as well as its content. It is important to note that the responsibility to comply with these requirements, found in Article 6, Sub article 2 (Safe Harbor Methods and Content) belongs to the seller of the product and not the manufacturer. The revision is meant to provide more practical information to consumers. Warnings must now specify the names of harmful substances in a product along with their potential effects on the human body. Before this revision, non-specific warnings were sufficient. A new standardized symbol is also necessary, so be on the lookout for a, “black exclamation point in a yellow equilateral triangle with a bold black outline,” on your next cup of coffee.
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