Food / Product Safety
SB 1019: Governor Signs Toxic Furniture Right-to-know Bill
Californians can breathe easier since a new, non-toxic flammability test for upholstered furniture took effect January 1, 2014. However, the new regulation does not ban the use of dangerous halogenated chemicals as fire retardants, and the chemical industry is trying to persuade manufacturers to continue loading them into furniture sold in California. Senate Bill 1019 (Leno) would give consumers the right to know whether the furniture they buy is loaded with harmful chemicals. Read More ›
Public Safety, Worker Protection Bills Advance to Governor’s Desk
In a victory for public safety over private profitability, Senate Bill 1019 passed the state Assembly and Senate with strong bipartisan consent on August 27 and 28. Known as the Consumers’ Right to Know: Flame Retardants in Furniture bill, the measure – introduced by Senator Mark Leno, (D-San Francisco) — requires upholstered furniture manufacturers to disclose to consumers the use or absence of flame retardant chemicals on furniture labels. … The tide turned against the political power of the chemical industry’s continued use of toxic fire retardants in furniture over the past couple of years, said Richard Holober, executive director of the nonprofit Consumer Federation of California. Read More ›
SB 962: Governor Signs Smartphone Kill Switch Legislation
An Assembly floor vote is expected Aug. 7. “The companies that make 97 percent of smartphones sold in the U.S. have removed their opposition to the bill, yet [CTIA-The Wireless Association] remains opposed,” Max Szabo of the District Attorney’s Office told The San Francisco Examiner. “It raises the question of whether these insurance giants are hiding behind this lobbying group in an attempt to protect the profits they’re reaping at the expense of public safety.” Read More ›
Consumer group calls for FDA action on generic Nexium
Contact: Richard Holober / Brian Taylor [CFC press release:] The nonprofit advocacy organization Consumer Federation of California (CFC) is calling on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to save American consumers three billion dollars a year by ending a bottleneck that is keeping affordable, generic versions … Read More ›
SB 1188: Manufacturers Not Liable For Selling Junk?
Courts have let business off the hook for hazy TV screens, overheating computers, malfunctioning washing machines, and more. Senate Bill 1188 holds corporations accountable – but it faces fierce industry opposition. Read More ›
Burned: How the chemical industry is endangering lives with toxic flame retardants
by Gary Cohn, Capital and Main
SB 1019 has national implications for consumers, manufacturers and retailers, and is fiercely opposed by the American Home Furnishings Alliance, the North American Home Furnishings Association and the Polyurethane Foam Association. Beyond these and other industry groups, it is being fought by the National Federation of Independent Businesses and the California Chamber of Commerce. Read More ›
SB 686: Drive to stop sale of recalled cars runs out of gas
A scandalous and possibly unprecedented year for automobile recalls wasn’t enough to persuade the Assembly Business Professions and Consumer Protection Committee to maintain SB 686’s safety drive; the measure went down to defeat June 17. “This Legislature just wasn’t up to standing up to the car dealers,” said Rosemary Shahan, president of Consumers for Auto Reliability and Safety, the organization that sponsored the bill. She vowed to continue to press the issue.
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When ‘Liking’ a Brand Online Voids the Right to Sue
by Stephanie Strom, New York Times
The change in legal terms, which occurred shortly after a judge refused to dismiss a case brought against the company by consumers in California, made General Mills one of the first, if not the first, major food companies to seek to impose what legal experts call “forced arbitration” on consumers. Read More ›
State senator wants consumers to know what fire retardants they are taking home
by Samantha Weigel, San Mateo Daily Journal
Scrutiny over the widespread use of flame retardant chemicals led California to update its flammability standards last year, and now Senator Mark Leno wants to provide consumers with the ability to make well-informed decisions over what they bring into their homes. Read More ›
Market Gets Heat for Old “Sell By” Dates
by Hetty Chang, Keith Esparros, Phil Dreschler, NBC Los Angeles
Consumer advocacy groups have joined the United Food and Commercial Workers to release findings of an investigation, which alleges a popular supermarket chain sold expired products — including baby food, meat and diary products. At a news conference Tuesday, groups including the East LA Community Corporation and … Read More ›
An insider questions so-called science behind toxic flame retardants
by Dan Morain, Sacramento Bee
Grant Gillham is a special kind of consultant, the sort chemical company executives would hire to kill legislation that seeks to ban the profitable but toxic substances they produce. Now, after a devastating 2012 newspaper series and a reversal by California authorities, his work is unraveling. Read More ›
Warning on chemicals in children’s furniture
by Stephanie M. Lee, San Francisco Chronicle
Children may enjoy plopping down in foam-filled chairs just their size, but a report released by several advocacy groups says those chairs may contain flame retardants that could be harmful. Read More ›
This may be the first ticket for wearing Google Glass while driving
by Chris Morran, Consumerist
California law prohibits drivers from operating a vehicle when some sort of video screen is showing “entertainment or business applications” that are in the front seat area or otherwise visible to the driver. And at least one police officer in San Diego thinks this law applies to Google Glass. Read More ›