(Southern Tier, NY) – On Tuesday, Senator Lea Webb joined advocates to rally in support of the full passage of the Beauty Justice Act (S.2057B/A.2054B). Webb’s bill passed in the New York State Senate with strong bipartisan support on April 21st, leaving three weeks for the Assembly to act on this common-sense bill, which would remove toxic ingredients in everyday personal-care and consumer products. 

The Beauty Justice Act is an important step forward toward protecting public health, worker safety, and the environment from toxic chemicals. The Senate passed the bill with strong bipartisan support. 

“New Yorkers should not have to worry that the products they use on their bodies and in their homes contain toxic chemicals linked to cancer, infertility, asthma, and other harmful outcomes,” said Environmental Conservation Committee Chair, Assemblymember Glick. “I am heartened that so many of my colleagues have joined me in cosponsoring the Beauty Justice act and the ban of PFAS in consumer products bill but the time has come for the House to act. The Assembly must now do its job and pass these bills before the rapidly approaching end of session.” 

Companies intentionally use toxic ingredients that can cause or contribute to cancers, reproductive harm, respiratory illness, and more in the products consumers use on our bodies and in our homes every day. When these toxic products are washed down the drain, they end up in our environment, polluting our groundwater and farmland. 

“The United States lags behind other countries in regulating toxic chemicals in cosmetics. New York must assert itself as a leader and step up to protect our residents. I’m proud to sponsor the Beauty Justice Act, which bans toxic ingredients from personal care products like soap or shampoo,” said Senator Lea Webb. “These ingredients, including lead, mercury, formaldehyde, PFAS, parabens, and asbestos, are harmful to both our physical and our environmental health. Currently, companies are not required to disclose the full list of ingredients in personal care products. People can’t protect themselves from what they can’t see. This bill is a long-overdue step towards protecting our health and advancing environmental justice efforts in New York.”

The Beauty Justice Act will ban companies from using toxic chemicals, including formaldehyde, parabens, phthalates, PFAS, lead, mercury, and more, from personal care products. These chemicals cause irreversible damage like infertility, asthma, and cancer. Because of racist beauty standards and strategic marketing, Black women and femme-identifying people of color have an even higher amount of harm from toxic chemicals in their personal care products.

“The time when companies and their CEOs intentionally poison our bodies and our environment must come to an end. The Senate has done their part to ‘turn off the tap’ on toxic chemicals in our personal care and consumer products, and it’s time for the Assembly to do the same,” said Sophia Longsworth, Toxics Policy Director at Clean+Healthy and co-leader of the JustGreen Partnership. “Speaker Heastie can’t let another session pass without giving the Assembly the opportunity to vote on these bills. He must give our elected officials the chance to show their constituents that they value people over corporate profits. By not calling these bipartisan supported bills for a vote, he's making it loud and clear that New Yorker’s health does not matter.” 

This bill has passed the Senate for the past two years and is currently in the Assembly Ways & Means Committee. 

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