Transparency through an Agency Website? Maybe Not.
The Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment’s (OEEHA) new website could create more confusion for the public at the expense of those doing business in California.
California regulators are at it again. In the name of providing transparency for consumers, the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEEHA) may be on the brink of creating more confusion for the public―at the expense of those doing business in the state. The mischief maker in this case is OEEHA’s recently finalized regulation under Prop 65 that will authorize the development and maintenance of a website to provide information regarding exposures to listed Prop 65 chemicals in consumer products sold in California. The website will reportedly explain which Prop 65-listed chemicals are included in certain types of products and methods of common exposure.
So how will the OEEHA get that information? Any way it can. In its Final Statement of Reasons (FSOR) published with the final rule, the agency concludes that most of the information published on the website will be obtained from “authoritative agencies.” But then it goes on to say that “manufacturers and other interested parties may submit information directly to OEEHA to be considered for publication.” It also notes that the website will include an agency disclaimer regarding the accuracy of information provided by third parties. That’s not much comfort for a company whose product ends up wrongfully mischaracterized on a state of California-maintained website that will most likely be considered gospel by consumers.