California passes bill to ban Ingredients in Personal Care Products

California's Governor signed Assembly Bill No. 496 (AB496) on October 8, 2023, making it illegal to manufacture and sell cosmetics containing 26 specific substances in the state. This regulatory measure expands on California's Toxic-Free Cosmetics Act, passed in 2020 which restricted the use of 24 harmful chemicals in cosmetics, including mercury and formaldehyde.

California's Toxic-Free Cosmetics Act forbids a person or business from manufacturing, selling, delivering, holding, or offering for sale in commerce any cosmetic product containing any of several specified intentionally added ingredients, except under certain conditions, beginning January 1, 2025. A list of the prohibited ingredients can be found here and it includes for example:

• Endocrine-disrupting chemicals like Dibutyl phthalate, Diethylhexyl phthalate

• Phenyl diamine salts and parabens

• Polyfluoroalkyl substances like sulphonates, acids, and more

 From January 1, 2027, Assembly Bill No. 496 would broaden this prohibition by including specific prohibited ingredients. A list of the ingredients prohibited under AB496 can be found here and it includes:

• Borates, tetraborates, octaborates, and boric acid salts and esters

• Anthraquinone, and dyes which are found in some hair-coloring products

• Aldehydes and more. 

These chemicals are associated with a higher risk of cancer, genetic flaws, harm to the developing fetus, decreased fertility, severe skin burns, and organ or eye damage. Furthermore, they can cause long-term harm to aquatic organisms. They are no longer allowed in cosmetics and personal care products sold in the European Union but are allowed in personal care products sold in the United States.

A cosmetic product that meets the requirements of Assembly Bill No. 496 may contain trace amounts of an ingredient due to natural or synthetic impurities, resulting from manufacturing processes, storage, or packaging migration, but this does not constitute a violation.