CA Updates Prop 65 Short-Form Warning Requirements

On December 6, California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) announced the approval of proposed regulations that, among other changes, amend the short-form warning requirement under Proposition 65 (otherwise known as the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986). The most significant change is that, under the newly adopted regulations, short-form warnings will be required to include the name of a listed chemical for each endpoint (i.e., carcinogenicity or reproductive toxicity).

Under the amended regulations, the standard long-form requirements will remain largely unchanged. However, the amended requirements allow the warning to use the words “CA WARNING:” or “CALIFORNIA WARNING:” in place of the word “WARNING:” alone. In addition to the requirement that a listed chemical be included in the warning, the warning must include a link to www.P65Warnings.ca.gov/ unless the warning is for a food item, then the following link must be included, www.P65Warnings.ca.gov/food. The updated regulations explicitly allow short-form warnings to be used on food products in contrast to current regulations that do not allow the short-form warnings to be used on food products.

Other updates to the short-form warning requirements impact products purchased from the Internet and from catalogs.

The new requirements will go into effect on January 1, 2025; however, there is a grace period for on-product warnings on any consumer product manufactured prior to January 1, 2028. In addition, for internet purchases made prior to January 1, 2028, sellers are not required to display the new warning until 60 calendar days after the retailer receives written notice that the product may expose consumers to Proposition 65 listed chemicals.