What does this law do?
Substitute Senate Bill 5135, also known as the Pollution Prevention for Healthy People and Puget Sound Act, creates a new way to keep harmful chemicals out of the environment. We are naming the program that implements the law “Safer Products for Washington.” The new 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 Ecology and the Washington State Department of Health to:
- Designate priority chemicals.
- Identify products that contain these chemicals.
- Decide whether or not 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.
How can I participate?
We welcome your participation. For information on this process, and to be kept informed about opportunities for review and input, sign up for our email list. You can find agendas, documents, and other materials related to the scientific, technical, and regulatory process on the Safer Products for Washington webpage.