State Launches Household Cleaning Product Information Disclosure Program

June 12th, 2018

Last Thursday, the State Department of Environmental Conservation announced the launch of the state’s new disclosure program for chemicals in household cleaning products. According to DEC, New York is the first state in the nation to require manufacturers to disclose chemical ingredients in cleaning products.

The Household Cleansing Product Information Disclosure Program requires manufacturers to disclose the name and unique chemical number of all intentionally added ingredients, including fragrances; all byproducts, such as 1,4 Dioxane, including those present in trace quantities that appear on state, national or international lists of identified chemicals of concern; and any impurity due to environmental contamination present in trace quantities that appear on such lists and are present above levels found in well-regulated public water systems located in the United States.

Additional disclosures required by the program include a prominent statement regarding the nature and extent of information being withheld as confidential business information; the listing of ingredients in order of predominance by weight; a clear method of indicating that a chemical has been identified as a chemical of concern; the provision of a toll-free number to answer consumer requests for more information; and the posting of studies the manufacturer has conducted on the health and environmental effects of any of its products and ingredients.