Safer Products for Washington

Cycles 1.5 and 2 are underway

We are currently working on the following Safer Products for Washington cycles:

Cycle 1.5, phases 3 and 4: We've started rulemaking for Cycle 1.5. By June 1, 2024, we’ll publish a report to regulate PFAS in certain products — check out our draft 1.5 report.
Cycle 2, phase 1: We're identifying priority chemicals and starting to think about products.

Click the link to go to our Safer Products for Washington story map to learn about the law and how it impacts you. — Learn more about this law. Click the image to see our Safer Products for Washington story map.

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.
Authorizes us to regulate chemicals in consumer products in 5-year cycles.

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How does this law work?

The law establishes an ongoing process for us to identify and regulate priority chemicals in 5-year cycles. Each cycle consists of the following four phases:

Four phases of Safer Products for Washington implementation and their corresponding deadlines. — Four-phase implementation process for Safer Products for Washington.

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.

What cycle are we in?

There are two active Safer Products for Washington cycles — cycle 1.5 and cycle 2.

Cycle 1.5

In 2022, the Washington State Legislature asked us to create regulatory recommendations for some products that contain PFAS. In cycle 1.5, we’re looking at firefighting PPE (personal protective equipment) and other products from our 2021 PFAS chemical action plan (CAP), like apparel and gear, cleaning products, and motor vehicle washes and waxes.

We’ll submit our regulatory determinations report to the Legislature and then we’ll fully transition to rulemaking. A final rule will be in place by Dec. 2025.

Cycle 2

We’ll continue working on chemical classes and specific products from cycle 1.5 that require more research and look at 6PPD in motorized vehicle tires. We’ll submit a report to the Legislature that lists the chemicals and chemical classes we plan to focus on for cycle 2.

What rules have been adopted?

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 July 1, 2023. Some manufacturers, distributors, and retailers must comply with restrictions on some consumer products starting Jan. 1, 2025. Reporting parties must submit the first notification by Jan. 31, 2025.

Frequently asked questions

In our priority products report, we evaluated a number of products, including many not included on the list we proposed. This product list does not address every single source of exposure to the chemical classes listed in the law. Instead, we focused on finding significant contributions that give us the best opportunity to reduce exposures to toxic chemicals from consumer products.

We may address additional sources of exposure to these priority chemicals from other products in future cycles of Safer Products for Washington, and we welcome your suggestions for products to consider. The five-year cycle that Safer Products for Washington follows is outlined in the diagram above.

We welcome feedback from stakeholders, both during formal public comment periods and outside of them, such as via email or in-person meetings.

Information about how you use and interact with the products on our list is always useful to us. It helps us understand how the use of products varies across individuals and communities. While your use of the product might seem obvious, it could be a use we haven’t considered.

Suggestions for additional chemical classes or consumer products to evaluate are also helpful.

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We offer free language services about our programs and services for people whose primary language is not English. We can provide written information in your preferred language and interpreters in person or over the telephone.

Contact our Language Access team: civilrights@ecy.wa.gov

Contact information

Safer Products for Washington
SaferProductsWA@ecy.wa.gov

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