New York Assembly passes children's products bill

On 4 May 2016, the “Child Safe Products Act” (AB 5612) passed New York Assembly aimed at regulating substances of concern in children’s products, through reporting requirements, substance bans and retail signage.

The bill defines "children's product" as "a product primarily intended for, made for or marketed for use by children, such as baby products, toys, car seats, school supplies, personal care products, a product designed or intended by the manufacturer to help a child with sucking or teething, to facilitate sleep, relaxation, or the feeding of a child, novelty products, children's jewelry, bedding, furniture, furnishings, and children's apparel.

The bill would:
*require the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) to post lists of priority chemicals and chemicals of high concern on the DEC's website within 180 days;
*allow DEC, in consultation with the Department of Health, to review periodically the chemical lists and identify or remove chemicals by regulation based on scientific evidence;
*require manufacturers of children's products that contains intentionally-added priority chemicals to report to DEC the following information:
*the identification of the product,
*the name of the priority chemical, and
*the intended purpose of the chemicals
*authorize DEC to waive all or part of the reporting requirements for one or more specified uses of a priority chemical;
*require a manufacturer or distributor of a children's product containing a priority chemical to notify retailers of the presence of such priority chemical, and provide information regarding the toxicity of such chemical;
*require the manufacturer to pay a fee of $500 for reported chemical use reports and/or waiver requests;
*prohibit the sale, effective January 2019, of a children's product containing a priority chemical; and,
*authorize DEC to participate in an interstate chemical clearing house.

Ten priority substances are named in the bill:

• tris (1, 3 dichloro-2-propyl) phosphate;
• benzene;
• lead;
• mercury;
• antimony;
• formaldehyde;
• asbestos;
• arsenic;
• cadmium; and
• cobalt.

C&K Testing will continue its focus on regulations and share with you the latest information.