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In response to a growing concern about exposure to toxic chemicals, California voters approved an initiative in November 1986 called the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986, better known as Proposition 65. This Act became effective on January 1, 1987 and requires the State of California to publish a list of chemicals known to cause cancer, birth defects, or other reproductive harm at least once per year. Basically the Act has two primary goals:
It accomplishes this by requiring that clear and reasonable warnings be provided to any person exposed to a chemical known to the state to cause cancer, birth defects, or other reproductive harm. Proposition 65 includes the following major components:
Many of the more than 775 chemicals subject to the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act are also hazardous substances or ingredients of products regulated as hazardous substances pursuant to General Industry Safety Orders (which require maintaining airborne workplace exposures at less than specified levels or PELs) and to the Hazard Communication Standard (which requires information and training for workers on chemical hazards). Regulations issued to implement Proposition 65 recognize this overlap and state that warnings given as part of hazard communication compliance are deemed to be in compliance with this Act.
All California businesses with 10 or more employees must comply with Proposition 65’ warning requirements and prohibition on discharges into drinking water sources. Additional exemptions include: