U.S. Legislation Updates: Flame Retardants in Consumer Products

Several bills to regulate flame retardants in specific consumer products have recently been published. The scope of restriction or prohibition is specific to the proposal.

SAFEGUARDS | Consumer ProductsNO. 017/21

Over the years, flame retardants (FRs) have increasingly been regulated due to their toxic effects and negative impacts on the environment.

In the U.S., a host of jurisdictions across the nation have implemented measures to regulate flame retardants in consumer products, including California, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, San Francisco (California), Vermont, Washington and Washington D.C. The restricted or prohibited flame retardants and the scope of regulated products are specific to each of these jurisdictions. Additionally, the states of Maine, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington require disclosure information on some flame retardants in children's products.

Since the beginning of 2021, several bills have been published to restrict flame retardants in a variety of products. These include children's products, residential upholstered furniture, mattresses and electronic enclosures.

It is important to note that the language in a bill may change as it proceeds through the legislature.

Highlights of these bills are summarized in Table 1.

Jurisdiction (Bill)	Scope	Requirement	Proposed Effective Date
Delaware (HB 77)	Residential upholstered furniture Products for children under 12 that are primarily intended for use in homes	≤ 0.1% each of TBB, antimony, TBPH, SCCP, Deca-BDE, HBCD, TBBPA, TDCPP, TCEP and TCPP and ≤ 0.1% of a mixture containing 1 or more of the above FRs	July 1, 2021
	Mattresses Electronic enclosures	≤ 0.1% of an organo-halogenated FR and ≤ 0.1% of a mixture containing 1 or more organo-halogenated FR	July 1, 2021
New York (A3031)	Residential upholstered furniture	Prohibits halogenated FRs and phosphorus-bromine FRs	July 1, 2021
New York (S2178)	Residential upholstered furniture*	Prohibits halogenated FRs and phosphorus-bromine FRs	July 1, 2021
*Certify to meet open flame flammability standard from December 1, 2024

Table 1

Entry	Flame Retardant	Abbreviation	CAS No
1	2-Ethylhexyl-2,3,4,5-tetrabromobenzoate	TBB	183658-27-7
2	Antimony	---	7440-36-0
3	Bis(2-ethylhexyl)-3,4,5,6-tetrabromophthalate	TBPH	26040-51-7
4	Short Chain Chlorinated Paraffins	SCCP	85535-84-8
5	Decabromodiphenyl ether	Deca-BDE	1163-19-5
6	Hexabromocyclododecane	HBCD	25637-99-4
7	Tetrabromobisphenol A	TBBPA	79-94-7
8	Tris(2-chloroethyl) phosphate	TCEP	115-96-8
9	Tris(1-chloro-2-propyl) phosphate	TCPP	13674-84-5
10	Tris(1,3-dichloro-2-propyl) phosphate	TDCPP	13674-87-8

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