USA: Planned modifications to warning labels of California’s Proposition 65

 

The proposal seeks to alter the safe harbor warning methods of California’s Proposition 65, specifically focusing on revisions related to short-form warnings.

On October 27, 2023, California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) reintroduced a proposal aimed at modifying the safe harbor warning methods mandated by the state’s Proposition 65, also known as the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986. This reintroduction follows the initial proposal in 2021, which underwent two revisions before being abandoned in 2022 due to regulatory time limits.

The primary goal of the current proposal, similar to its predecessors, is to restrict the use of short-form Proposition 65 warnings. Presently, companies can employ short-form warnings without specifying the chemical triggering the warning. OEHHA contends that short-form warnings were originally intended for small products with limited label space, leading to their widespread use. The proposed amendment mandates businesses to specify at least one chemical triggering the warning. According to the draft, companies would have a two-year transition period to comply with the new short-form warning requirements. Notably, the current version does not impose restrictions on short-form warnings based on specific product sizes. Table 1 summarizes the proposed short-form warning content based on different exposure routes.

Key highlights of other proposed changes include:

• Introducing two additional signal word options, ‘CA WARNING’ or ‘CALIFORNIA WARNING,’ to allow businesses to explicitly indicate that the warning is issued in accordance with California law. These options supplement the existing ‘WARNING’ and are applicable to both regular and short-form warnings.
• Eliminating the requirement for short-form warning labels to be no smaller than the largest type size used for other consumer information on the product. However, the stipulation that the type size be at least 6-point remains unchanged.
• Clarifying that short-form warning labels can be used on food products.
• Mandating that for online or catalog purchases, warning labels must be included on or with the product, in addition to displaying the warning at the point of purchase.

OEHHA has scheduled a public hearing for December 13, 2023, and is open to receiving comments until December 20, 2023.

To find out more chemical compliance and California Proposition 65, please contact the Product Compliance Institute directly.