The California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) has released a revised text of the proposed Safer Consumer Products regulations. The revised regulations impact the process for identifying and prioritizing consumer products and their chemicals of concern, how to evaluate alternatives, and imposing regulatory responses. DTSC also revised the regulations last month, which we blogged about here. With the new revisions comes a 15 day comment period which is now open, and all comments must be received by April 25, 2013.

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In its quest to regulate the global supply chain for over 3,000 ingredients in products sold in California, the California Environmental Protection Agency’s Department of Toxic Substances Control is making it very difficult for anyone in that supply chain to understand how they may be affected by the proposed rules and precluding effective public comment. In its latest piecemealing activity, the California government has released a revised initial statement of reasons, or ISOR, for public comment on December 20, 2012 with comments due by January 22, 2013. See notice here. Only three weeks ago on November 30, 2012, it released a set of 10 scientific peer review documents and requested comment by January 4, 2013. See notice here. The revised draft regulations are expected to be released on January 2, 2013 and the public is likely to be required to provide comment in cascading form in another three weeks. This pattern of piecemealing parts of this ambitious regulatory proposal has been ongoing for years, and as we have previously blogged, has a questionable legal foundation (see here). 

This procedural piecemealing effectively denies the public due process of law, and is compounded by the fact the draft regulations released on July 27th (see here) do little more than provide an outline for procedure that the agency intends to follow, while disclosing almost none of the substance of what product manufacturers, importers, and retailers, will have to face – further diluting the ability of impacted parties to meaningfully participate in the process.

Merry Christmas world. California’s gift is coal in our stockings.

Written by Maureen Gorsen, Partner, Alston & Bird LLP | Follow us on Twitter

The California legislature recently approved SB 657 and sent it to Governor Schwarzenegger for his signature. The “California Transparency in Supply Chains Act of 2010” would, “beginning January 1, 2012, require retail sellers and manufacturers doing business in the state to disclose their efforts to eradicate slavery and human trafficking from their direct supply chains for tangible goods offered for sale, as specified.”

The legislation requires companies to post on their websites answers to questions surrounding their supply chain management to help eradicate slavery and human trafficking. The bill would not apply to those companies with less than $100 million in worldwide gross receipts. Companies will need help in determining what the rules are for determining what their gross receipts are.

This bill is sitting on the Governor’s desk, and we should know within the next thirty days if it becomes law or is vetoed. Combined with California’s new green chemistry laws, the burden and responsibility for product sellers in California to know, regulate, monitor and report on their entire global supply chain is increasing, whether it’s a toxic ingredient used, the manufacturing process is used, the types of energy and fuels used or now possibly the labor used.

For more information contact Maureen Gorsen in our Sacrament office, 916-498-3005.