NAMM Joins Over 120 Organizations Opposing Proposed Prop. 65 Amendments

On March 26, NAMM sent a letter in support of the comments filed by the California Chamber of Commerce on behalf of its members and over 120 national and regional organizations and businesses, stating that the current proposal to amend prop. 65 should be withdrawn pending further study and consultation with affected parties.

Specifically, NAMM believes that the proposed changes in the short form “safe harbor” disclosures will impose an undue burden on NAMM’s members who wish to utilize its protections from the increasing number of private plaintiff lawsuits and demands without providing a corresponding benefit to California consumers.

Many musical instruments and accessories do not have “labels” per se but are often sold with minimal packaging or may be accompanied by hang tags displayed at the point of sale.  Any amendments should provide a more expansive definition of what constitutes a “label” for disclosure purposes.

The proposed five-square-inch limitation on label size is arbitrary and could easily lead to plaintiffs’ suits based solely on non-compliant label size.  Any limitation on label size should be larger and easier to compute, e.g., an even number of square inches.

Elimination of the short form “safe harbor” from catalogs and internet websites will result in confusing disclosures, increase costs, and reduce available space for other consumer-facing information including product specifications, uses, warranty and care.

And, finally, a requirement to disclose at least one OEHHA listed substance on the short-form label will impose significant testing and research costs on distributors who import foreign-made musical instruments (of which there are thousands to choose from in the U.S.) and manufacturers who outsource components or parts to U.S. or offshore sources. 

The public comment period for this regulatory action closed on March 29, 2021. NAMM will continue to carefully monitor this important issue and will post updates here.