Reducing Exposure to Proposition 65-listed Chemicals: A California Success Story

California’s Proposition 65 law benefits all Californians by reducing their exposure to chemicals that are on the Proposition 65 list for cancer, birth defects or other reproductive harm.

Proposition 65 encourages businesses to reformulate their products to remove listed chemicals. In some cases, businesses proactively make these changes. In other cases, the change results from an enforcement action brought under Proposition 65.

Studies published in 2024 and 2025 confirm Proposition 65’s ongoing, positive impact in encouraging businesses to reformulate their products to remove toxic chemicals on the Proposition 65 list. One study found that Proposition 65 “prompted manufacturers to deselect specific toxic chemicals, whether by substituting other chemicals, reducing the concentration of the listed chemical, or redesigning products to obviate the need for the toxic chemical’s function.” This change was most pronounced for the Proposition 65-listed chemicals Bisphenol A, chloroform, toluene, and three phthalates. Another study confirmed these findings in interviews with manufacturers across many business sectors.

A smiling baby holding a bottle of milk

In sectors from electronics to healthcare, our in-depth interviews confirmed that companies frequently reformulate products to remove Proposition 65-listed chemicals or request alternatives from suppliers.

University of California, Berkeley and Silent Spring Institute authors Claudia Polsky, Megan R. Schwarzman and Jennifer L. Ohayon.

The removal of toxic chemicals from consumer products has far-reaching effects. Journalists from the Oakland-based 99% Invisible radio podcast team who investigated Proposition 65’s history and impact found it plays an important role in protecting consumers in the United States. “When companies remove dangerous chemicals to meet Prop[osition] 65 guidelines,” the team concluded, “it’s not just Californians who benefit from that. The same products are made safer for the rest of the country as well. And because the state of California has the 5th biggest economy in the world, producers globally are pushed to do the same.” Indeed, in one study, researchers found that more than half the manufacturers they interviewed who reformulated their products for sale in California also sold the reformulated products in other states.

By encouraging this kind of reformulation, Proposition 65 contributes to a broader reduction in consumer exposure to a number of listed chemicals, often in ways that the average consumer may not easily recognize.

Curious about how Proposition 65 has affected you? Proposition 65 enforcement actions have led to the removal of toxic chemicals from familiar consumer goods, including food and beverages, dietary supplements, personal care products, and children’s products. The law has also spurred significant reductions in air emissions of listed chemicals in California’s neighborhoods.

Learn more about the impact that Proposition 65 has had on many of the items you buy and the places you live, work and play.

Interested in further reading about the impacts that Proposition 65 has had on Californians? Consider reading the following articles, some of which are quoted above:

Campaigns

 
California for All Logo

Gavin Newsom

California Governor
Website
Yana Garcia Photo

Yana Garcia

Secretary for Environmental Protection
Website
Kristina Thayer, Ph.D., Photo

Kristina Thayer, Ph.D.

OEHHA
Website