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California’s OEHHA Proposed Dermal Safe Harbor Level for BPA and a Temporary Point-of-Sale Warning Message for Canned and Bottled Foods and Beverages

21 March 2016

We previously reported that beginning May 11, 2016, California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) will start requiring warnings for consumer products containing BPA under the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986 (also known as Proposition 65). On March 17, 2016, OEHHA published two notices related to the BPA warning requirements. In the first notice, OEHHA proposes to establish a Proposition 65 Maximum Allowable Dose Level (MADL) or safe harbor level for BPA of 3 micrograms (μg) per day for dermal exposure from solid materials. Comments on the dermal safe harbor level are due on May 16, 2016.

Separately, OEHHA proposes an emergency regulation to allow the temporary use of a standard point-of-sale warning message for BPA exposures from canned and bottled foods and beverages. This would relieve manufacturers of the duty to provide warnings on product packaging for those products that must be labeled by May 11th. While a deadline for comments on the proposed warning message was not provided, under California’s Government Code section 11349.6, interested persons only have five calendar days to submit comments. As such, comments on the point-of-sale warning message are due on March 22, 2016.

This post summarizes the key components of the two notices.

Click here to read more.

Authored by Martin Hahn, Elizabeth Fawell & Xin Tao.