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Proposition 65 is a California law that requires businesses to provide warnings before people are exposed to chemicals on the state’s Proposition 65 list. Chemicals are listed for cancer or reproductive harm (i.e., harm to a developing embryo or fetus or harm to your ability to have a healthy baby).

Proposition 65 applies to companies and people doing business in California. This includes the sale of products to people in the state over the Internet and through catalogs.

You may see warnings on consumer products, or in places that are owned or operated by businesses in California, such as parking garages or hotels. Individuals may also receive a Proposition 65 warning for an exposure to a listed chemical through air or water.

Businesses do not have to warn if the listed chemicals do not pose a significant risk to individuals.

Proposition 65 also prohibits the discharge of listed chemicals into drinking water.

OEHHA maintains the Proposition 65 list of chemicals through a variety of mechanisms, including gathering and analyzing scientific data for a panel of state-appointed scientific experts who meet to determine if and why specific chemicals should be placed on the Proposition 65 list.

OEHHA provides guidance to businesses and consumers. For example, OEHHA develops regulations to help businesses provide clear and reasonable warnings for listed chemicals. OEHHA also develops fact sheets that explain why certain chemicals are listed, how they are used, and how individuals can reduce their exposure to these chemicals from products and places.

OEHHA does not test consumer products for exposures to listed chemicals.

A Proposition 65 warning does not mean that a product violates safety or health standards. Californians who make a general practice of minimizing their exposures to toxic chemicals may want to use the warnings as one way to guide their purchasing decisions. Whether you decide to purchase, use, or consume an item that has a Proposition 65 warning is at your individual discretion.

No. The law does not ban the use of listed chemicals in products, nor does it prohibit the sale or shipment of products containing chemicals on the Proposition 65 list into California.

Proposition 65 is a right-to-know law. Its goal is to help Californians make informed choices about the products they buy and the places they visit.

One important benefit of the law is that many businesses choose to reformulate their products to reduce or remove exposure to Proposition 65 listed chemicals to avoid having to provide Proposition 65 warnings. In the long term, these reformulations help make products and places safer for Californians.

For example, a study published in Environmental Health Perspectives evaluated the impact of Proposition 65 on population-level exposures to chemicals. The researchers determined that certain chemical concentrations in the US population generally declined over time, and that Californians generally had lower levels of chemicals in their bodies than the rest of the US population.

• Contact the manufacturer to ask about the chemical exposure that prompted the warning.
• Ask the manufacturer for suggestions on how to minimize your exposure to Proposition 65 listed chemicals in the business’ product.
• If a warning is posted in a certain location, such as an apartment building, contact the property manager or landlord to ask about the chemical(s) that prompted the warning.

Businesses are responsible for determining if their products cause exposure to a listed chemical(s) at a level that requires a warning. Businesses are also responsible for the content and placement of the warnings they provide. Businesses do not provide OEHHA with information about their products.

Individuals outside California often see Proposition 65 warnings on products. This is because businesses operating at a national or international scale usually create the same packaging for their products regardless of where they may be sold. Consequently, a product sold in Arizona or Canada, for example, may carry a Proposition 65 warning originally intended for Californians.

Individuals outside California can still benefit from these warnings by using them to make informed decisions about their purchases that can help them reduce their exposure to chemicals on the Proposition 65 list.

• Read the Proposition 65 “Big Picture” fact sheet to understand why toxic chemicals may be used or found in products, how you might be exposed to them, and what you can do to protect yourself and your loved ones if you see a warning.
• Check out OEHHA’s approximately 75 fact sheets on specific chemicals and places. Learn why certain chemicals are listed and used, and how you can reduce your exposure to them.
• Some of our most popular fact sheets include: Apartments and Residential Rental Properties, Foods, Furniture Products, and Household Appliances.

Businesses are required to provide a clear and reasonable warning when their product(s) expose individuals in California to a significant amount of a chemical(s) on the Proposition 65 list.

Businesses must determine whether their products will expose people to a listed chemical(s) and if the exposure is at a high enough level to require a warning. To ascertain this, businesses usually draw on knowledge of their own business operations, supply chains, and the chemicals used to make their products. A business may choose to perform testing or conduct an exposure assessment to help determine whether a warning is needed. However, a business is not required to do so.

If a product contains a listed chemical but a person using the product would not actually be exposed to that chemical, no warning is required.

If a product contains a listed chemical but the exposure is at or below the safe harbor level established for that chemical, no warning is required.

If a product contains a chemical for which no safe harbor level has been established, the business selling the product must provide a warning, unless the business can show that the exposure level does not pose a significant risk of cancer or reproductive harm to consumers as outlined in California Health and Safety Code Section 25249.10.

If you are a retail seller and you receive a notice for a consumer product, the retailer seller has five business days after receiving the notice to correct the alleged violation by providing a Proposition 65 warning on the product or by discontinuing sale of that product (27 CCR § 25600.2).

If a business receives a notice for any of the four circumstances outlined below, the business has 14 days after receiving the notice to correct the alleged violation and has 30 days after receiving the notice to pay the civil penalty (California Health and Safety Code Section 25249.7(k)).

1. An exposure to alcoholic beverages consumed on the premises.
2. An exposure to a chemical in a food or beverage prepared and sold for immediate consumption on or off the premises.
3. An exposure to tobacco smoke when nonemployees are allowed to smoke on the premises.
4. An exposure to engine exhaust for your business’ indoor parking garage for noncommercial vehicles.

For all businesses, please refer to the information in the notice as well as the Office of the Attorney General and its Frequently Asked Questions webpage for additional information on what to do when you receive a notice. OEHHA cannot provide you with legal advice, so you may wish to consult an attorney.

• Review the resources on OEHHA’s business homepage.
• Read the safe harbor warning regulations to learn when and how to provide a clear and reasonable warning that can offer protection against potential enforcement action.
• Review the Proposition 65 sample warnings, provided in English and other languages, and download the Proposition 65 warning symbol.
• Subscribe to OEHHA’s Proposition 65 email list to receive program updates, such as news about regulatory changes to the safe harbor warning language.