“More than 100 proposals related to chemical regulation are pending in 23 US state legislatures. They include some carried over from 2017 and at least 20 that have been introduced since the start of the year.

Proposals to restrict exposure to PFAS chemicals and flame retardants are the most popular types of chemical legislation under consideration, according to an analysis by the NGO network Safer States and reporting by Chemical Watch…

Proposed bans on some flame retardants, or the whole class of chemicals, have been introduced in 14 states: Alaska, Iowa, Indiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, Minnesota, North Carolina, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Tennessee, Virginia, Washington and West Virginia…

As predicted by state policy experts, legislation regarding perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and related chemicals is also popular.

Measures regulating their use in food packaging is pending in California, New Jersey, New York state, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington state. Measures that would limit allowable levels of the chemicals in drinking water have been introduced in Michigan, North Carolina, New Hampshire, New York state, Pennsylvania, Vermont and Washington state.

Related legislation that would bar the sale of firefighting foam containing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances has begun moving in Washington’s legislature, winning passage in the Senate on 10 February.

Measures requiring disclosure of chemicals in one or more categories of consumer products are pending in Alaska, California, Maryland, Massachusetts, North Carolina, New York state and Rhode Island. The most commonly targeted area is cosmetics.”

Read the full article by Julie Miller.