Maine Toxic Chemicals in Children's Products Law
In April of 2008, Maine passed the Toxic Chemicals in Children’s Products law. The law was amended in June 2011. The law pertains only to consumer products, with a focus on products intended for, made for, or marketed for use by children under 12 years of age. The law was enacted to protect the health, safety, and welfare of Maine citizens, and to reduce exposure of children and other vulnerable populations to chemicals of high concern. The law requires Maine’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to classify chemicals into three tiers: chemicals of concern (COCs), chemicals of high concern (CHCs), and Priority Chemicals. The law requires businesses selling covered consumer products (children’s products) in the State of Maine to “report” the presence of Priority Chemicals in their products to the Maine DEP.
As of June 10, 2014, Maine now requires manufacturers to report the use of cadmium, arsenic, and mercury in certain children’s product categories to the Maine Department of Environmental Protection. The three chemicals have been designated as priority chemicals. Manufacturers have until November 28, 2014 to submit new reports to the Maine DEP.
AAFA on the Issue
Although AAFA opposes unnecessarily burdensome regulations, AAFA looks forward to continued cooperation with the Maine Department of Environmental Protection in educating its members and helping them to comply with the regulations. AAFA released a primer on how to understand and comply with the reporting requirement of the law.
AAFA Primer on the Maine Toxic Chemicals in Children's Products Law
Feb 04, 2014
AAFA joined several other associations in submitting comments to the Maine Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) January 31 on the regulation of formaldehyde in children's products. View >
Jun 04, 2013
As an additional Industry Resource, AAFA has published, and posted online, an updated version of the Voluntary Product Environmental Profile (VPEP) form. View >