WASHINGTON – A bipartisan bill introduced by Sens. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) and Susan Collins (R-Maine) would give the Food and Drug Administration the power to ensure that the chemicals used in cosmetics and other everyday personal care products are safe.
“Thanks to the leadership of Sens. Feinstein and Collins, we’re closer than ever to real cosmetics reforms,” said Scott Faber, the Environmental Working Group’s senior vice president for government affairs.
The Personal Care Products Safety Act will require the FDA to review cosmetic chemicals of concern and give the agency new oversight powers to know when products pose dangers to consumers and to stop the production and order recalls of dangerous products.
“Most consumers would be shocked to learn that cosmetics companies can put just about any chemical in cosmetics and personal care products, no matter how dangerous,” Faber said. “It’s been 83 years since Congress last passed a cosmetics law. The bipartisan Personal Care Products Safety Act will finally provide the Food and Drug Administration with the tools the agency needs to protect consumers from dangerous chemicals in these everyday products.”
House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone (D-N.J.) and Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.) introduced cosmetics reform bills during the last session of Congress.
The new version of the bill introduced today by Feinstein and Collins will expand labeling requirements for fragrance allergens and prohibit companies from intentionally adding the toxic “forever chemicals” known as PFAS to cosmetics.
“It defies common sense that cosmetics companies can add PFAS – which have been linked to cancer and harm to the reproductive and immune systems – to their products,” Faber said. “The presence of toxic forever chemicals in cosmetics shows just how broken our cosmetics laws are.”
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The Environmental Working Group is a nonprofit, non-partisan organization that empowers people to live healthier lives in a healthier environment. Through research, advocacy and unique education tools, EWG drives consumer choice and civic action.
