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Delaware, USA, Regulates Flame Retardants in Consumer Goods

SafeGuardSHardgoods, Hardgoods, Toys and Juvenile ProductsAugust 16, 2022

SG 095.22

Delaware has become the latest US jurisdiction to regulate flame retardants in certain consumer goods. The restrictions will become effective on July 1, 2023.

On August 4, 2022, the governor of Delaware signed HB 77 into law to restrict flame retardants (FR) in several categories of consumer product. The new law adds Chapter 25G to Subtitle II Title 6 of the Delaware Code.

According to the definitions in the new law, ‘children’s product’ means products designed for residential use by infants and children under 12 years old, including bassinets, booster seats, changing pads, children’s nap mats, floor play mats, highchair pads, infant bouncers, infant carriers, infant seats, infant swings, infant walkers, mattresses, nursing pads, nursing pillows, playpen side pads, play yards, portable hook-on chairs and strollers.

Highlights of the new law are summarized in Table 1.

HB No. 77 as amended by House Amendment No. 2 ‘An Act to Amend Title 6 of the Delaware Code Relating to the Prohibition of Harmful Flame Retardants’
Flame retardant (FR)
Scope¹
Requirement
Effective date
  • Antimony
  • Chlorinated
  • paraffins (CPs)
  • Deca-BDE
  • HBCD
  • TBB
  • TBBPA
  • TBPH
  • TCEP
  • TCPP
  • TDCPP
  • Children’s products for residential use
  • Upholstered furniture – fabric, barrier or decking materials, covering or cushioning materials
≤ 0.1% each FR and
≤ 0.1% of a mixture containing one or more FR
July 1, 2023
  • Organohalogens (OFR)
  • Mattresses
≤ 0.1% each OFR and
≤ 0.1% of a mixture containing one or more OFR
July 1, 2023

¹The following are exempt:

  • Used upholstered furniture or mattresses
  • Upholstered and reupholstered furniture for public use in public facilities
  • Threads or fibers when used for stitching mattress components together
  • Used children’s products or children’s products that are used in products or components in the following circumstances: a) are not primarily intended for use in the home, such as motor vehicles, watercraft, aircraft, or other vehicles and b) are subject to 49 CFR 571 ‘Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards’
  • Components of an adult mattress other than foam
  • Electronic components of a children’s product, mattress or upholstered furniture, or any associated enclosure or casing for the electronic components

Table 1

Delaware joins a host of jurisdictions across the US in regulating flame retardants in consumer products, including Anchorage (Alaska), California, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Hampshire, New York, Oregon, San Francisco (California), Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington and Washington D.C. It is important to note that the scope of products and types of flame retardant are jurisdiction dependent.

Abbreviations

AbbreviationFlame RetardantCAS
--Antimony7440-36-0
CPsChlorinated paraffins85535-84-8
Deca-BDEDecabromodiphenyl ether1163-19-5
HBCDHexabromocyclododecane25637-99-4
TBB2-Ethylhexyl-2,3,4,5-tetrabromobenzoate183658-27-7
TBBPATetrabromobisphenol A 79-94-7
TBPHBis(2-ethylhexyl) tetrabromophthalate26040-51-7
TCEPTris(2-chloroethyl) phosphate115-96-8
TCPPTris(1-chloro-2-propyl) phosphate13674-84-5
TDCPPTris(1,3-dichloro-2-propyl) phosphate13674-87-8

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