- within Wealth Management, Antitrust/Competition Law and Tax topic(s)
- in United States
- with readers working within the Banking & Credit industries
Key Takeaways
Although Governor Newsom vetoed SB 682, California has already enacted multiple PFAS bans and restrictions on packaging, textiles, children's products, and cosmetics, and legislative momentum is expected to continue. PFAS manufacturers should anticipate renewed proposals to limit PFAS in cookware and other consumer products.
California Governor Gavin Newsom rejected legislators' most recent efforts to ban per - and polyfluoroalkyl substances ("PFAS") from certain consumer products. California Senate Bill 682 ("SB 682"), passed by both houses in September, would have mandated a phaseout of "intentionally added PFAS" in a slew of products, including cookware, household cleaners, dental floss, toys, ski wax, and food packaging. The bill defined "intentionally added PFAS" as PFAS that have a functional or technical effect in the product, including when PFAS results from "an added chemical or process, such as PFAS created as a result of fluorination of plastic." The bill would have prohibited sales of most of the covered products starting in 2028, and of nonstick cookware containing polytetrafluoroethylene ("PTFE") and other PFAS beginning in 2030.
On October 13, 2025, Governor Newsom returned the bill to the state senate with a veto message cautioning that the bill's broad coverage would "result in a sizable and rapid shift" in the availability of cookware and other household products. The message encouraged stakeholders to seek ways to "address the prevalence of PFAS" without sacrificing affordability.
The vetoed bill would have added to a growing number of California PFAS regulations and prohibitions. For example, in October 2021, California passed Assembly Bill No. 1200, enacted as Health and Safety Code §§ 10900–14, which prohibits the sale of food packaging that contains PFAS at or above 100 parts per million and requires certain PFAS disclosures for cookware. Other laws, such as Assembly Bill 652, enacted as Health and Safety Code §§ 108945–47, and Assembly Bill 1817, enacted as Health and Safety Code §§ 108970–71, prohibit sales and distribution of PFAS-containing infant and toddler products, including sleep surfaces, carriers, and play areas, and apparel and other textiles, respectively. Starting in January 2025, Assembly Bill No. 2771, enacted as Health and Safety Code §§ 108981–82, prohibited the manufacture and sale in California of cosmetic products containing intentionally added PFAS. California's Proposition 65 regulations also require businesses to provide warnings on products containing certain PFAS, including perfluorooctane sulfonate ("PFOS") and perfluorooctanoic acid ("PFOA").
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