Klobuchar Cosponsors Legislation to Protect Consumers from Harmful Chemicals

Press Release

U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar today cosponsored legislation to protect consumers from harmful chemicals. The Safe Chemicals Act of 2013, introduced by Senator Lautenberg (D-NJ), would require chemicals found in many common household products be proven safe before they can be sold. Current law only requires testing for approximately 200 of the more than 84,000 chemicals in the marketplace, and only requires safety testing after a chemical is found to be dangerous.

"No family should have to worry that the products they are using in their homes are making them sick,"said Klobuchar. "This legislation makes commonsense reforms to make sure that chemicals used in everyday household products are proven safe before they hit the shelves."

The Safe Chemicals Act of 2013 would require chemical manufacturers to demonstrate the safety of all industrial chemicals used in common household products. Under current law the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) can only call for safety testing after there is evidence that a chemical is dangerous.

During her time in the Senate, Klobuchar has been a leader in keeping consumers safe. As a member of the Senate Commerce Committee, Klobuchar worked to pass reforms to protect children from unsafe products, including passing legislation that effectively banned lead in children's toys after a four-year old boy from Minnesota died from swallowing a toy charm made almost entirely of lead.

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