Safer Products for Washington
Our Safer Products for Washington program works with the Department of Health to implement the Toxic Pollution Law (Chapter 70A.350 RCW). This law:
- Reduces the use of toxic chemicals in consumer products by restricting or eliminating those chemicals when safer alternatives are available.
- Creates a pathway to keep harmful chemicals out of the environment.
What does this law do?
The law authorizes us to regulate classes of chemicals in consumer products. It also identifies the first five priority chemical classes.
The law established a process for us to:
- Designate priority chemicals.
- Identify consumer products that contain these chemicals.
- Decide whether to regulate those chemical-product combinations by requiring reporting or chemical restrictions.
- Adopt rules to implement those regulatory actions.
Chemical restrictions require that safer alternatives are feasible and available. Each of these steps involve stakeholder consultation and legislative reporting.
Rulemaking
On May 31, 2023, we adopted Chapter 173-337 WAC – Safer Products Restrictions and Reporting. Under the new rule, manufacturers of consumer products are required to restrict or report:
- PFAS in aftermarket stain- and water-resistance treatments, carpets and rugs, and leather and textile furnishings.
- Ortho-phthalates in vinyl flooring and in personal care product fragrances.
- Organohalogen flame retardants in electric and electronic products.
- Flame retardants (as defined in RCW 70A.350.010) in recreational polyurethane foam.
- Phenolic compounds in laundry detergent, food and drink can linings, and thermal paper.
The adopted rule goes into effect on July 1, 2023. Some manufacturers, distributors, and retailers must comply with restrictions on some consumer products starting on Jan. 1, 2025. Reporting parties must submit the first notification by Jan. 31, 2025.
Stay informed
Stay informed about opportunities for review and input:
- Visit our Safer Products for Washington rulemaking page for rulemaking updates.
- Sign up for our email list.
- Visit our Safer Products for Washington stakeholder page to find agendas, documents, and other materials.
Story map about safer products
Check out our story map about making consumer products safer. A "story map" is an online application that combines text with graphics, maps, and other multimedia to share information. Below are a few images of the story map.
Safer Products for Washington: We're considering restrictions that you can help shape. Help us make products you use safer from harmful chemicals.
Some products we buy contain harmful chemicals, which make their way into our homes. There, they escape into household air and dust. Toxic chemicals can reach the environment when we use or dispose the products.
In some laundry detergents, chemicals that help soap spread can harm fish when they escape into the environment. In some care and beauty products, chemicals that preserve scents can impair reproduction and development.
See the rest of this story map online.
Frequently asked questions
Related links
- Safer Products for Washington documents and meeting notes
- Safer Products for Washington information resources
- Learn how to improve your home health and protect the environment
- Substitute Senate Bill 5135 - Pollution Prevention for Healthy People and Puget Sound Act
- Washington's toxics in products laws
Contact information
Safer Products for Washington
SaferProductsWA@ecy.wa.gov