Prop 65: Is Your Product Compliant?

Posted March 20, 2023

By: Sarah D’Mello, Senior Product Safety Specialist

What is Prop 65?

Proposition 65 (Prop 65), officially the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986, is a California law that requires businesses to provide warnings to individuals about exposure to chemicals that cause cancer, birth defects or other reproductive harm. These chemicals can be in food, cosmetics, cleaning products or are released into the environment. California published a list of chemicals known to cause these harms. The list has grown to include approximately 900 chemicals.

What are the requirements under Prop 65?

For products containing a Prop 65 chemical, businesses are required to provide a “clear and reasonable” warning before knowingly and intentionally exposing anyone to a listed chemical. There are different ways to display the warning such as listing a statement on the product label or posting signs at the workplace.

Exemptions

Businesses with less than 10 employees and government agencies are exempt from the Prop 65 warning requirements and prohibition on discharges into drinking water sources. Businesses are also exempt from the warning requirement and discharge prohibition if the exposure levels are low enough that they do not create a significant risk of cancer or are significantly below levels observed to cause birth defects or other reproductive harm.

Penalties

The California Attorney General’s Office enforces Proposition 65. Penalties for violating Prop 65 by failing to provide notices can be as high as $2,500 per violation per day.

Unsure if your products contain Prop 65 chemicals? Dell Tech can assist with identifying these chemicals in your product and provide you with the correct labelling.

For More Information, Contact Kim Samela in Client Services:

kim@delltech.com

519-858-5021

Sources:

OEHHA. About Proposition 65. https://oehha.ca.gov/proposition-65/about-proposition-65.

OEHHA. Businesses and Proposition 65. https://oehha.ca.gov/proposition-65/businesses-and-proposition-65#:~:text=Are%20any%20businesses%20exempt%20from,discharges%20into%20drinking%20water%20sources.