The US Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has been required to mandate a Federal furniture flammability standard by adopting the Californian standard – Technical Bulletin 117-2013.

The American Home Furnishings Alliance (AHFA) has been pushing for the adoption of this revised flammability standard for over five years. The adoption covers both performance standards and test methods for residential furniture.

TB 117-2013 covers upholstered furniture. It uses a small-scale mock-up test to evaluate components, including cover materials. The test is based on ASTM E1353, which is based on UFAC (a voluntary standard adopted by the industry forty years ago). It is designed to address fires caused by a smoldering ignition source.

The CPSC began evaluating the feasibility, benefits and costs of adopting TB 117-2013 as far back as 2016. In September 2016, it announced it would look at alternatives but since then no alternative approaches have been proposed.

When the US Congress passed an Omnibus Spending bill, signed by the US President on December 28, 2020, it contained, among other things, the following bill:

“TITLE XXI, COVID–19 Regulatory Relief and Work from Home Safety Act”

This Act requires the US CPSC to adopt TB 117-2013 as the mandatory national furniture flammability standard. The act also mandates a labeling requirement for each item of upholstered furniture. A permanent label located on the product shall bear the statement “Complies with the U.S. CPSC requirements for upholstered furniture flammability”. This declaration shall be considered a certification that the product complies with the standard.

SGS Furniture Services

SGS helps you deliver well-designed, functional, durable and safe products to your customers. We have the furniture industry, regulatory and technical expertise to check your products’ compliance against relevant standards and/or your own specifications. Learn more about SGS’s Furniture Services.

SGS SafeGuardS keep you up to date with the latest news and developments in the consumer goods industry. Read the full Federal Furniture Flammability Congress Mandates CPSC Adoption of California Standard SafeGuardS. 

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For further information contact:

Sanjeev Gandhi

SGS Consumer and Retail

Deputy Vice President

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Website: www.sgs.com/hardlines

LinkedIn: sgs-consumer-goods-&-retail

About SGS

SGS is the world’s leading inspection, verification, testing and certification company. SGS is recognized as the global benchmark for quality and integrity. With more than 89,000 employees, SGS operates a network of over 2,600 offices and laboratories around the world.​

The Californian Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) has proposed amendments to the short form of the ‘clear and reasonable’ warning required by Proposition 65 (Prop 65), known as a ‘Prop 65 Warning’.

The proposed amendment to Article 6, ‘Clear and Reasonable Warnings’, was issued on January 8, 2021. Article 6 was originally adopted by the OEHHA in August 2016, and it became effective in August 2018. It adopted safe harbor warning methods and content, including provisions for a short form version.

The proposed changes will clarify the guidance concerning the provision of safe harbor warnings and will align the short form warning with the original stated intent – i.e., a short form Prop 65 Warning should only be used where, due to limited label space on the consumer product, a full-length warning is not possible.

The proposal will also clarify the use of short form warnings for exposures to listed chemicals from food.

Prop 65, or the ‘Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986’, is a unique piece of legislation passed in November 1986. It requires the state to maintain a list of chemicals (Prop 65 List) known to cause cancer, birth defects and/or reproductive harm. Unless exempted, businesses operating in California must provide ‘a clear and reasonable warning’ (Prop 65 Warning) before knowingly and intentionally exposing anyone to a substance on the Prop 65 List, which now contains around 900 chemicals. Companies have twelve months to comply with this requirement once a substance is included in the Prop 65 List.

Stakeholders have until March 8, 2021 to comment on the proposal.

SGS Prop 65 Services

With a global network of laboratories, SGS can offer comprehensive testing, product assessment and consultancy services related to California Proposition 65. SGS can assist your risk management strategy in consumer goods, such as DIYs, electrical and electronics, hardgoods products, juvenile products, and textile & toy products. Learn more about SGS’s Prop 65 Services. 

SGS SafeGuardS keep you up to date with the latest news and developments in the consumer goods industry. Read the full New Proposed Amendments to Proposition 65 Short-form Warning Labels SafeGuardS. 

Subscribe here to receive SGS SafeGuardS direct to your inbox.

For further information contact:

Louann Spirito

Consumer and Retail — Softlines

US & Canada Softlines Business Head

Tel: +1 973 461 7919

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Website: www.sgs.com/cgnr  

LinkedIn: sgs-consumer-goods-&-retail

About SGS

SGS is the world’s leading inspection, verification, testing and certification company. SGS is recognized as the global benchmark for quality and integrity. With more than 89,000 employees, SGS operates a network of over 2,600 offices and laboratories around the world.​

SGS is reminding businesses operating in California about Proposition 65 (Prop 65) settlement agreements for shovels, tote bags, and wheelchairs with vinyl components.

Settle agreements exist between two parties and are not legally binding on businesses not named within the settlement. However, it is advisable for companies operating in California to use them as a guide to avoid future legal problems.

The settlement agreements for these three consumer products cover lead and certain phthalates:

• Di-n-butyl phthalate (DBP)
• Di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP)
• Diisononyl phthalate (DINP)

The agreements were:

• Shovels:
  1. DEHP – no more than 1000 ppm
  2. DBP – no more than 100 ppm
  3. Lead – no more than 100 ppm
• Tote bags:
  1. DEHP – no more than 1000 ppm
  2. DBP – no more than 100 ppm
  3. Lead – no more than 100 ppm
• Wheelchairs with vinyl components:
  1. DEHP and DINP – less than 0.1%
  2. Lead – no more than 90 ppm
  3. Lead (releasable) – no more than 1.0 μg (NIOSH 9100)

In all three agreements, a ‘clear and reasonable’ warning, known as a ‘Prop 65 Warning’, can also be used as an alternative.

Prop 65, or the ‘Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986’, is a unique piece of legislation passed in November 1986. It requires the state to maintain a list of chemicals (Prop 65 List) known to cause cancer, birth defects and/or reproductive harm. Unless exempted, businesses operating in California must provide Prop 65 Warning before knowingly and intentionally exposing anyone to a substance on the Prop 65 List, which now contains around 900 chemicals. Companies have twelve months to comply with this requirement once a substance is included in the Prop 65 List.

SGS Prop 65 Services

With a global network of laboratories, SGS can offer comprehensive testing, product assessment and consultancy services related to California Proposition 65. SGS can assist your risk management strategy in consumer goods, such as DIYs, electrical and electronics, hardgoods products, juvenile products, and textile & toy products. Learn more about SGS’s Prop 65 Services.

SGS SafeGuardS keep you up to date with the latest news and developments in the consumer goods industry. Read the full California Proposition 65: Reformulation of Lead and Phthalates in Consumer Products SafeGuardS.

Subscribe here to receive SGS SafeGuardS direct to your inbox.

For further information contact:

Hing Wo Tsang

Global Information and Innovation Manager

Tel:(+852) 2774 7420

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Website: www.sgs.com/cgnr

LinkedIn: sgs-consumer-goods-&-retail

About SGS

SGS is the world’s leading inspection, verification, testing and certification company. SGS is recognized as the global benchmark for quality and integrity. With more than 89,000 employees, SGS operates a network of over 2,600 offices and laboratories around the world.

The US state of Massachusetts has introduced restrictions on eleven flame retardants (FRs) in five categories of consumer product.

Signed into law by the governor on January 1, 2021, the law regulates the following FRs:

1. 2-Ethylhexyl-2,3,4,5-tetrabromobenzoate (TBB)
2. Antimony trioxide           
3. Bis(2-ethylhexyl)-3,4,5,6-tetrabromophthalate (TBPH)
4. Hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD)
5. Octabromodiphenyl ether (Octa-BDE)
6. Pentabromodiphenyl ether (Penta-BDE)
7. Short Chain Chlorinated Paraffins (SCCP)
8. Tetrabromobisphenol A (TBBPA)
9. Tris(2-chloroethyl) phosphate (TCEP)
10. Tris(1-chloro-2-propyl) phosphate (TCPP)
11. Tris(1,3-dichloro-2-propyl) phosphate (TDCPP)

‘An Act to protect children, families, and firefighters from harmful flame retardants’ adds a new Section 28 to Chapter 21A of the General Laws. It restricts FRs to no more than 1,000 ppm in any component of the following product categories:

1. Bedding – any bedding material, including sleeping bags and other stuffed items for reclining or sleeping
2. Carpeting – any fabric floor covering, including carpet padding
3. Children’s product – a consumer product for use by children aged 12 years or younger
4. Residential upholstered furniture – seating or other upholstered products for indoor or outdoor use in or at a home or other dwelling intended for residential occupancy
5. Window treatment – blinds, curtain materials or shades

Exempt products include:

• Motor vehicles, watercraft, aircraft, all-terrain vehicles and off-highway motorcycles
• Second-hand products

The new law comes into effect on December 31, 2021, although products manufactured before this date are also exempt.

The Act requires manufacturers (including importers or distributors) to notify retailers and others who sell these FR-containing products of the passage of this new law by July 1, 2021.

Stakeholders should be aware that Massachusetts has joined a long list of US jurisdictions regulating FRs in consumer products, including Anchorage (Alaska), California, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, San Francisco, Vermont, Washington and Washington DC. The scope in each jurisdiction is different and, additionally, Maine, Oregon, Vermont and Washington also require the disclosure of information on hazardous chemicals, including FRs, in children’s products

SGS Chemical Testing

SGS offers a comprehensive range of testing services to help manufacturers and suppliers ensure their products are safe and comply with national and international regulations concerning harmful chemicals. Learn more about SGS Chemical Testing Services. 

SGS SafeGuardS keep you up to date with the latest news and developments in the consumer goods industry. Read the full US State of Massachusetts Restricts Flame Retardants in Consumer Goods SafeGuardS. 

Subscribe here to receive SGS SafeGuardS direct to your inbox.

For further information contact:

Hingwo Tsang

Global Information and Innovation Manager

Tel: (+852) 2774 7420

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Website: www.sgs.com/cgnr

LinkedIn: sgs-consumer-goods-&-retail

About SGS

SGS is the world’s leading inspection, verification, testing and certification company. SGS is recognized as the global benchmark for quality and integrity. With more than 89,000 employees, SGS operates a network of over 2,600 offices and laboratories around the world.​