Newsletter | OEHHA Issues Notice of Comment on Amending California 65 Short Warning Labels

On April 5, 2022, the California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) issued a notice to launch a second 15-day review of the proposed revision of the California 65 Short Warning Label Notice published on December 17, 2021, starting from April 2022. Begins on April 5 and ends on April 20, 2022. All written comments must be submitted to OEHHA by April 20, 2022, either electronically, by mail, or delivered in person.

The proposed revisions are primarily based on the relevant comments received during the last proposed revision review.

Compared with the last proposed revision, the proposed revision is updated as follows:

1. Removed label size and package shape restrictions using short warnings, the modification means short warnings can be used on product labels of any size, regardless of package size and shape.

2. The requirement that the font size must be the same as the maximum font size for providing consumer information has been removed, and a reference to section 25601(c) of the regulation has been added to clarify that the existing requirement “makes warnings The individual sees, reads and understands".

3. For minor adjustments to the wording of the warning content, see the red part of the content to be revised below.

4. Extend the proposed effective date from one year to two years.

An example of the content of the current short warning label in California 65 is as follows

For common consumer products, an example of the content of the proposed revised short warning label is as follows:

California 65 Control Background

California 65 is the California Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986. Effective Date: November 1986.

Regulatory Requirements: No Reference to Water Pollution: No person shall knowingly discharge or release substances known to California that are carcinogenic or reproductively toxic into water sources or onto land or land that may contaminate water sources in the course of their operations. Warning requirements:

Any business (businesses with no more than 9 people are exempt) must warn people before they "know and intentionally" expose them to a list substance.

Controlled Substances: The California 65 Controlled List was first published in 1987 and is updated at least once a year. So far, the list has included nearly 1,000 substances. And California Bill 65 does not set limits for listed substances in certain types of products. Since the concentration of the substance is not the only factor that determines whether there is an exposure risk, the limit is not enough to determine whether a warning needs to be provided.

Enterprise response: Enterprises should focus on the substances involved and new substances in past judgments and settlements. Among them, the main substances involved in electrical and electronic products include lead, cadmium, o-benzene, and bisphenol A. During 2021, the list of 65 hazardous substances in California will be updated frequently. It will be updated 4 times in March and December 2021, including 8 substances. The new substances are the substances that relevant law enforcement officials focus on, and the follow-up will also be a high risk of litigation. The 8 substances have a wide range of uses and involve many products, so they have a significant impact on related products exported to the United States. The details of the substances are as follows.

Reminder

Since California Bill 65 does not require the limit of harmful substances in products, companies need to always pay attention to previous lawsuits or settlement agreements of similar products, and refer to the limits in the agreement to supply these high-risk chemical substances. Chain investigation; detection can be carried out when necessary to reduce the risk of product violations. Our company has a professional technical team, which can provide customers with California 65 testing and certification services. If you want to know more about the requirements of California 65 or have products that need to apply for California 65 testing and certification, please feel free to contact us, our engineers Will serve you as soon as possible!