Prop 65 Roundup - November 2023

Prop 65 Counsel: What To Know

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California Bans Several FDA-Authorized Food Additives; New York May Soon Follow

ArentFox Schiff Perspective

On October 7, California Governor Gavin Newson signed into law AB-418, the California Food Safety Act, which completely bans, on safety grounds, the use in food of four additives that are considered safe by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The ban becomes effective January 1, 2027.

Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and Announcement of Public Hearing: Amendments to Article 6, Clear and Reasonable Warnings Safe Harbor Methods and Content

Notice is hereby given that the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) proposes to amend Title 27 of the California Code of Regulations, Sections 25601, 25602, 25603, and 25607.2 and adopt new Sections 25607.50, 25607.51, 25607.52, and 25607.53. The proposal intends to make the Proposition 65 short-form warning more informative to consumers, clarify existing safe harbor warning requirements for products sold on the internet and in catalogs, add signal word options for food warnings, clarify that short-form warnings may be used to provide safe harbor warnings for food products, and provide new tailored safe harbor warnings for passenger or off-highway motor vehicle parts and recreational marine vessel parts.

*A future ArentFox Schiff Perspective Alert will discuss this issue in greater detail.

No Significant Risk Level for Antimony Trioxide

The Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) has adopted a No Significant Risk Level (NSRL) of 0.13 micrograms per day for exposures to antimony trioxide by the inhalation route (adopted in Title 27, Cal. Code of Regs., Section 25705(b)). NSRLs provide guidance for determining when a warning is required for exposures to chemicals listed as causing cancer.

Proposition 65 No Significant Risk Levels (NSRLs) and Maximum Allowable Dose Levels (MADLs)

Safe harbor levels, which include No Significant Risk Levels (NSRLs) for cancer-causing chemicals and Maximum Allowable Dose Levels (MADLs) for chemicals causing reproductive toxicity, have been established for many of the chemicals listed under Proposition 65. The link below will lead to the latest update of OEHHA’s list of NSRLs and MADLs, and a further link to the latest additions to the Priority List for development of NSRLs.