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CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION
93
Introduced by Assembly Member Sharp-Collins
February 20, 2025
An act to add Article 3 (commencing with Section 109015) to Chapter 15 of Part 3 of Division 104 of the Health and Safety Code, relating to product safety.
Vote: majority Appropriation: no Fiscal committee: yes Local program: no
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST
Existing law prohibits a person from distributing, selling, or offering for sale in the state any plant-based food packaging that contains regulated perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances or PFAS, as defined.
This bill would prohibit, on and after January 1, 2028, the manufacture, distribution, sale, or offering for sale in the state of food packaging that contains intentionally added bisphenols or ortho-phthalates, as defined. The bill would require, subject to an appropriation, the Department of Toxic Substances Control to adopt regulations to establish a threshold in food packaging for bisphenols or ortho-phthalates that are not intentionally added, as specified. The bill would also prohibit, no sooner than a year after the adoption of those regulations, the manufacture, distribution, sale, or offering for sale in the state of food packaging that contains bisphenols or ortho-phthalates at or above that threshold. The bill would require a manufacturer of food packaging that is manufactured, distributed, sold, or offered for sale in the state that contains bisphenols or ortho-phthalates that are not intentionally added to maintain specified information. The bill would authorize the department and the Attorney General to enforce these provisions and would subject a person to an administrative or civil penalty not to exceed $5,000 for the first violation and not to exceed $10,000 for each subsequent violation, as specified. The bill would, upon appropriation by the Legislature, authorize funds in the Toxic Substances Control Account to be used by the department to implement these provisions.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1.
Article 3 (commencing with Section 109015) is added to Chapter 15 of Part 3 of Division 104 of the Health and Safety Code, to read:
Article 3. Safer Food Packaging Act of 2026
109015.
(a) This article shall be known, and may be cited, as the “Safer Food Packaging Act of 2026.”
(b) For purposes of this article, the following definitions apply:
(1) “Bisphenol” has the same meaning as provided in Section 108942.
(2) “Food packaging” means a nondurable package, packaging component, or food service ware that is intended to contain, serve, store, handle, protect, or market food, foodstuffs, or beverages. “Food packaging” includes food or beverage containers, take-out food containers, unit product boxes, liners, wrappers, serving vessels, eating utensils, straws, food boxes, and disposable plates, bowls, or trays. “Food packaging” does not include a durable food contact container that is all of the following:
(A) Designed for repeated use in commercial food preparation or storage.
(B) Subject to Section 177.1580 of Title 21 of the Code of Federal Regulations related to polycarbonate resins.
(C) Not provided to the end customer.
(3) “Intentionally added bisphenols or ortho-phthalates” means any bisphenol or ortho-phthalate that a manufacturer has added to a product and that has a functional or technical effect in the product, including if the bisphenol or ortho-phthalate is a component of an
intentionally added chemical or is the intentional breakdown product of an added chemical that where the component or breakdown product also has a functional or technical effect in the product. “Intentionally added bisphenols or ortho-phthalates” does not include any intermediate that does not have a functional or technical effect in the product.
(4) “Ortho-phthalates” has the same meaning as provided in Section 109051.
(c) In recognition that the presence and continued use of bisphenols and ortho-phthalates in food packaging may pose a risk to public health, sensitive populations, and the environment, the Legislature encourages voluntary public disclosure of scientific studies regarding chemicals in commerce, including, but not limited to, chemical analyses, migration studies, toxicological studies, biological assays, and safety and risk assessments to promote public transparency, engage the scientific community, and advance the development of safer chemistries in food packaging.
(d) (1) (A) On and after January 1, 2028, a person shall not manufacture, distribute, sell, or offer for sale in the state any food packaging that contains intentionally added bisphenols or ortho-phthalates.
(B) Subparagraph (A) does not apply to tetramethyl bisphenol F (TMBPF, CAS 5384-21-4).
(C) The prohibition in subparagraph (A) shall not apply until January 1, 2037, to the exterior surface of rigid metal packaging where the primary material is metal, including, but not limited to, cans, lids, and closures, that do not come in contact with food.
(2) (A) Subject to an appropriation by the Legislature for purposes of this subparagraph, the department shall establish in regulation a threshold for bisphenols and ortho-phthalates in food packaging that are not intentionally(B) In addition to the prohibition in paragraph (1), no sooner than one year after the department’s adoption of regulations pursuant to subparagraph (A), a person shall not manufacture, distribute, sell, or offer for sale in the state any food packaging that contains bisphenols or ortho-phthalates at or above the threshold that the department establishes pursuant to subparagraph (A).
(e) (1) A manufacturer of food packaging that is manufactured, distributed, sold, or offered for sale in the state that contains bisphenols or ortho-phthalates that are not intentionally added shall maintain the following information:
(A) The information described in subparagraphs (A) to (C), inclusive, of paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) of Section 25253.7.
(B) The information described in Section 170.101 of Title 21 of the Code of Federal Regulations that is relevant to the food packaging, including any toxicological and migration studies.
(2) A manufacturer of food packaging that maintains both of the following shall be considered to be in compliance with the requirement described in paragraph (1) and shall be absolved of liability for violating paragraph (1):
(A) A statement in writing that the manufacturer does not have access to the information described in paragraph (1), in whole or in part, and that it has attempted to, but cannot, obtain that information from one or more suppliers, chemical manufacturers, or other entities.
(B) The identity and contact information of the suppliers, chemical manufacturers, or other entities described in subparagraph (A).
(3) A manufacturer of food packaging shall make the information described in this subdivision available to the department upon request.
(4) This subdivision does not limit or restrict the ability of the department to request additional information.
(f) In providing data or information in response to a request from the department in relation to the implementation of this section, a product manufacturer, chemical manufacturer, or supplier may raise trade secret claims in the manner specified in Section 25257.
(g) (1) The department may, by regulation, establish standards for use of bisphenols or ortho-phthalates in food packaging that are more protective of public health, sensitive populations, or the environment than the standards established pursuant to subdivision (d).
(2) Notwithstanding subdivision (d), if the department determines that tetramethyl bisphenol F (TMBPF, CAS 5384-21-4) poses a significant risk to human health, then the department may, by regulation, establish a threshold for tetramethyl bisphenol F (TMBPF, CAS 5384-21-4) in food packaging or limit or prohibit the distribution, sale, or offering for sale in the state any food packaging that contains tetramethyl bisphenol F (TMBPF, CAS 5384-21-4).(h) Notwithstanding subdivision (d), if the department adopts a regulatory response, as described in Section 25253, regarding the use of any form of bisphenol or ortho-phthalate, in a product that is prohibited by this section and the department has posted a notice on its internet website that it has adopted the regulatory response, then this section shall not apply to that product.
(i) Notwithstanding subdivisions (b) and (c) of Section 25257.1, this section shall not be construed to prohibit or restrict the authority of the department to prioritize or take action on a product containing any form of bisphenol or ortho-phthalate, in order to limit exposure to or reduce the level of hazard posed by any form of bisphenol or ortho-phthalate.
(j) (1) The department or the Attorney General may enforce this article.
(2) A person in violation of this article shall be liable for an administrative or civil penalty not to exceed five thousand dollars ($5,000) for the first violation and not to exceed ten thousand dollars ($10,000) for each subsequent violation.
(3) Penalties may be assessed for each violation or, for continuing violations, for each day that a violation continues.
(4) A prevailing party shall be entitled to an award of reasonable attorney’s fees and costs.
(5) This subdivision does not impair or impede any other rights, causes of action, claims, or defenses available under any other law. The remedies provided in this subdivision are cumulative with any other remedies available under any other law.
(k) The department may adopt regulations to implement, enforce, interpret, or make specific this article.
(l) Upon appropriation by the Legislature, funds in the Toxic Substances Control Account, established pursuant to Section 25173.6, may be used by the department to implement this article.