Governor Hochul Signs Legislation to Protect New Yorkers From Harmful Flame Retardant Chemicals in Consumer Products

Governor Kathy Hochul has announced the signing of legislation S.4630-B/A.5418-B which will prohibit the sale of furnishings, mattresses, and electronic shows made up of sure harmful flame retardant substances that have been linked to noticeably elevated challenges of neurological personal injury, hormone disruption, and cancer.

“Significantly too numerous family products contain harmful chemical substances that place our children and to start with responders at danger for critical illness,” Governor Hochul said. “The home furnishings, mattresses, and electronics we acquire should really be safe and sound and with this laws signed, we can now make sure that when these objects are sold in New York, they will be cost-free of harmful materials.”

This invoice will regulate chemical compounds in upholstered household furniture, mattresses, and digital enclosures. It can help to define conditions like halogenated chemical, organophosphorus chemical, and organonitrogen chemical. It prohibits the sale of any furnishings that include discovered flame retardant substances. It also set up a fine of up to $2,500 for each working day for recurring offenses.

Flame Retardants are a course of chemical substances included to furniture, electronics, and building materials supposed to enable protect against fires. However, many flame retardants are associated with adverse wellbeing effects in animals and people, which include unfavorable impacts on the immune program, infertility, most cancers, and adverse outcomes on fetal and boy or girl advancement. Children are really vulnerable to publicity to hazardous chemicals contained in flame retardants. Flame retardant chemical substances are also difficult to break down, indicating they can remain persistent in the ecosystem or a home for years. By employing a restriction on the sale of certain merchandise containing identifiably dangerous flame retardant chemicals, will be certain New Yorkers, and their young children, are not exposed to hazardous contaminants. Moreover, these harmful substances have limited benefit, if any, in preventing or suppressing fires, as other states that have enacted laws have not seasoned more fires or new basic safety concerns linked with the removing of all those chemicals from merchandise.

Senator Todd Kaminsky said, “Nothing is more vital than defending the overall health of our young children and firefighters from most cancers-triggering substances. By banning these harmful substances from day to day merchandise in our properties, these kinds of as household furniture and mattresses, we will be getting a main move in trying to keep our communities risk-free. I was very pleased to direct the combat to set our households and initially responders’ lives ahead of corporations’ profits — and that is specifically what this legislation will do. Thank you to Governor Hochul for signing this measure.”

Assemblymember Steve Englebright said, “This new legislation will enable protect to start with responders from unnecessary exposure to dangerous chemicals. Smoke inhalation is the range just one result in of fire-associated fatalities. However, flame retardants deliver toxic chemical substances these types of as hydrogen cyanide that can bring about damage when inhaled. This is specifically risky to firefighters. On top of that, the existence of flame retardants in mattresses, household furniture and the casings of electronic tools endanger our people as these chemical compounds leach out of products and turn into portion of home dust. We breathe in these chemical substances and our youngsters ingest them actively playing on the flooring. The chemical compounds cause adverse wellbeing consequences including cancer, infertility, and hurt to our immune units. I wish to thank Governor Hochul for doing work closely with me to develop this daily life conserving new regulation.”