The Vermont Statutes Online

Title 18: Health

Chapter 038A: Chemicals of High Concern to Children

• § 1771. Policy

  It is the policy of the State of Vermont:

  (1) to protect public health and the environment by reducing exposure of its citizens and vulnerable populations, such as children, to toxic chemicals, particularly when safer alternatives exist; and

  (2) that the State attempt, when possible, to regulate toxic chemicals in a manner that is consistent with regulation of toxic chemicals in other states. (Added 2013, No. 188 (Adj. Sess.), § 2, eff. June 10, 2014.)

• § 1772. Definitions

  As used in this chapter:

  (1) “Aircraft” shall have the same meaning as in 5 V.S.A. § 202.

  (2) “Chemical” means a substance with a distinct molecular composition or a group of structurally related substances and includes the breakdown products of the substance or substances that form through decomposition, degradation, or metabolism. “Chemical” shall not mean crystalline silica in any form, as derived from ordinary sand or as present as a naturally occurring component of any other mineral raw material, including granite, gravel, limestone, marble, slate, soapstone, and talc.

  (3) “Chemical of high concern to children” means a chemical listed under section 1773 or designated by the Department as a chemical of high concern by rule under section 1776 of this title.

  (4) “Child” or “children” means an individual or individuals under 12 years of age.

  (5) “Children’s cosmetics” means cosmetics that are made for, marketed for use by, or marketed to children. “Children’s cosmetics” includes cosmetics that meet any of the following conditions:

  (A) are represented in its packaging, display, or advertising as appropriate for use by children;

  (B) are sold in conjunction with, attached to, or packaged together with other products that are packaged, displayed, or advertised as appropriate for use by children; or

  (C) are sold in any of the following:

  (i) a retail store, catalogue, or online website, in which a person exclusively offers for sale consumer products that are packaged, displayed, or advertised as appropriate for use by children; or

  (ii) a discrete portion of a retail store, catalogue, or online website, in which a person offers for sale products that are packaged, displayed, or advertised as appropriate for use by children.

  (6) “Children’s jewelry” means jewelry that is made for, marketed for use by, or marketed to children and shall include jewelry that meets any of the following conditions:

  (A) is represented in its packaging, display, or advertising as appropriate for use by children;

  (B) is sold in conjunction with, attached to, or packaged together with other products that are packaged, displayed, or advertised as appropriate for use by children;

  (C) is sized for children and not intended for use by adults; or

  (D) is sold in any of the following:

  (i) a vending machine;

  (ii) a retail store, catalogue, or online website, in which a person exclusively offers for sale products that are packaged, displayed, or advertised as appropriate for use by children; or

  (iii) a discrete portion of a retail store, catalogue, or online website, in which a person offers for sale products that are packaged, displayed, or advertised as appropriate for use by children.

  (7)(A) “Children’s product” means any consumer product, marketed for use by, marketed to, sold, offered for sale, or distributed to children in the State of Vermont, including:

  (i) toys;

  (ii) children’s cosmetics;

  (iii) children’s jewelry;

  (iv) a product designed or intended by the manufacturer to help a child with sucking or teething; to facilitate sleep, relaxation, or the feeding of a child; or to be worn as clothing by children; or

  (v) child car seats.

  (B) “Children’s product” shall not mean or include the following:

  (i) batteries;

  (ii) snow sporting equipment, including skis, poles, boots, snowboards, sleds, and bindings;

  (iii) inaccessible components of a consumer product that during reasonably foreseeable use and abuse of the consumer product would not come into direct contact with a child’s skin or mouth; and

  (iv) used consumer products that are sold in second-hand product markets.

  (8) “Consumer product” means any product that is regularly used or purchased to be used for personal, family, or household purposes. “Consumer product” shall not mean:

  (A) a product primarily used or purchased for industrial or business use that does not enter the consumer product market or is not otherwise sold at retail;

  (B) a food or beverage or an additive to a food or beverage;

  (C) a tobacco product;

  (D) a pesticide regulated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency;

  (E) a drug, or biologic regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), or the packaging of a drug, or biologic that is regulated by the FDA, including over-the-counter drugs, prescription drugs, dietary supplements, medical devices, or products that are both a cosmetic and a drug regulated by the FDA;

  (F) ammunition or components thereof, firearms, air rifles, hunting or fishing equipment or components thereof;

  (G) an aircraft, motor vehicle, wheelchair, or vessel;

  (H) consumer electronic products, including personal computers, audio and video equipment, calculators, wireless telephones, game consoles, and hand-held devices incorporating a video screen used to access interactive software intended for leisure and entertainment and their associated peripherals;

  (I) interactive software, intended for leisure and entertainment, such as computer games, and their storage media, such as compact discs; or

  (J) the packaging in which a product is sold, offered for sale, or distributed.

  (9) “Contaminant” means a trace amount of a chemical or chemicals that is incidental to manufacturing and serves no intended function in the children’s product or component of the children’s product, including an unintended by-product of chemical reactions during the manufacture of the children’s product, a trace impurity in feed-stock, an incompletely reacted chemical mixture, and a degradation product.

  (10) “Cosmetics” means articles intended to be rubbed, poured, sprinkled, or sprayed on, introduced into, or otherwise applied to the human body or any part thereof for cleansing, beautifying, promoting attractiveness, or altering appearance, and articles intended for use as a component of such an article. “Cosmetics” shall not mean soap, dietary supplements, or food and drugs approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

  (11) “Intentionally added” means the addition of a chemical in a product that serves an intended function in the product component.

  (12) “Manufacturer” means:

  (A) any person who manufactures a children’s product or whose name is affixed to a children’s product or its packaging or advertising, and the children’s product is sold or offered for sale in Vermont; or

  (B) any person who sells a children’s product to a retailer in Vermont when the person who manufactures the children’s product or whose name is affixed to the children’s product or its packaging or advertising does not have a presence in the United States other than the sale or offer for sale of the manufacturer’s products.

  (13) “Motor vehicle” means all vehicles propelled or drawn by power other than muscular power, including snowmobiles, motorcycles, all-terrain vehicles, farm tractors, vehicles running only upon stationary rails or tracks, motorized highway building equipment, road-making appliances, or tracked vehicles or electric personal assistive mobility devices.

  (14) “Persistent bioaccumulative toxic” means a chemical or chemical group that, based on credible scientific information, meets each of the following criteria:

  (A) the chemical can persist in the environment as demonstrated by the fact that:

  (i) the half-life of the chemical in water is greater than or equal to 60 days;

  (ii) the half-life of the chemical in soil is greater than or equal to 60 days; or

  (iii) the half-life of the chemical in sediments is greater than or equal to 60 days; and

  (B) the chemical has a high potential to bioaccumulate based on credible scientific information that the bioconcentration factor or bioaccumulation factor in aquatic species for the chemical is greater than 1,000 or, in the absence of such data, that the log-octanol water partition coefficient (log Kow) is greater than five; and

  (C) the chemical has the potential to be toxic to children as demonstrated by the fact that:

  (i) the chemical or chemical group is a carcinogen, a developmental or reproductive toxicant, or a neurotoxicant;

  (ii) the chemical or chemical group has a reference dose or equivalent toxicity measure that is less than 0.003 mg/kg/day; or

  (iii) the chemical or chemical group has a chronic no observed effect concentration (NOEC) or equivalent toxicity measure that is less than 0.1 mg/L or an acute NOEC or equivalent toxicity measure that is less than 1.0 mg/L.

  (15) “Practical quantification limit (PQL)” means the lowest concentration that can be reliably measured within specified limits of precision, accuracy, representativeness, completeness, and comparability during routine laboratory operating conditions.

  (16) “Toy” means a consumer product designed or intended by the manufacturer to be used by a child at play.

  (17) “Vessel” means every description of watercraft used or capable of being used as a means of transportation on water. (Added 2013, No. 188 (Adj. Sess.), § 2, eff. June 10, 2014; amended 2015, No. 158 (Adj. Sess.), § 81, eff. June 2, 2016.)

• § 1773. Chemicals of high concern to children

  (a) List of chemicals of high concern to children. The following chemicals are designated as chemicals of high concern to children for the purposes of the requirements of this chapter:

  (1) Formaldehyde.

  (2) Aniline.

  (3) N-Nitrosodimethylamine.

  (4) Benzene.

  (5) Vinyl chloride.

  (6) Acetaldehyde.

  (7) Methylene chloride.

  (8) Carbon disulfide.

  (9) Methyl ethyl ketone.

  (10) 1,1,2,2-Tetrachloroethane.

  (11) Tetrabromobisphenol A.

  (12) Bisphenol A.

  (13) Diethyl phthalate.

  (14) Dibutyl phthalate.

  (15) Di-n-hexyl phthalate.

  (16) Phthalic anhydride.

  (17) Butyl benzyl phthalate (BBP).

  (18) N-Nitrosodiphenylamine.

  (19) Hexachlorobutadiene.

  (20) Propyl paraben.

  (21) Butyl paraben.

  (22) 2-Aminotoluene.

  (23) 2,4-Diaminotoluene.

  (24) Methyl paraben.

  (25) p-Hydroxybenzoic acid.

  (26) Ethylbenzene.

  (27) Styrene.

  (28) 4-Nonylphenol; 4-NP and its isomer mixtures, including CAS 84852-15-3 and CAS 25154-52-3.

  (29) para-Chloroaniline.

  (30) Acrylonitrile.

  (31) Ethylene glycol.

  (32) Toluene.

  (33) Phenol.

  (34) 2-Methoxyethanol.

  (35) Ethylene glycol monoethyl ester.

  (36) Tris(2-chloroethyl) phosphate.

  (37) Di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate.

  (38) Di-n-octyl phthalate (DnOP).

  (39) Hexachlorobenzene.

  (40) 3,3′-Dimethylbenzidine and dyes metabolized to 3,3′-Dimethylbenzidine.

  (41) Ethyl paraben.

  (42) 1,4-Dioxane.

  (43) Perchloroethylene.

  (44) Benzophenone-2 (Bp-2); 2,2′,4,4′-Tetrahydroxybenzophenone.

  (45) 4-tert-Octylphenol; 4(1,1,3,3-Tetramethylbutyl) phenol.

  (46) Estragole.

  (47) 2-Ethylhexanoic acid.

  (48) Octamethylcyclotetrasiloxane.

  (49) Benzene, Pentachloro.

  (50) C.I. Solvent yellow 14.

  (51) N-Methylpyrrolidone.

  (52) 2,2′,3,3′,4,4′,5,5′,6,6′-Decabromodiphenyl ether; BDE-209.

  (53) Perfluorooctanyl sulphonic acid and its salts; PFOS.

  (54) Phenol, 4-octyl.

  (55) 2-Ethyl-hexyl-4-methoxycinnamate.

  (56) Mercury and mercury compounds, including methyl mercury (22967-92-6).

  (57) Molybdenum and molybdenum compounds.

  (58) Antimony and Antimony compounds.

  (59) Arsenic and Arsenic compounds, including arsenic trioxide (1327-53-3) and dimethyl arsenic (75-60-5).

  (60) Cadmium and cadmium compounds.

  (61) Cobalt and cobalt compounds.

  (62) Tris(1,3-dichloro-2-propyl)phosphate.

  (63) Butylated hydroxyanisole; BHA.

  (64) Hexabromocyclododecane.

  (65) Diisodecyl phthalate (DIDP).

  (66) Diisononyl phthalate (DINP).

  (67) PFHxS (perfluorohexane sulfonic acid).

  (68) PFHpA (perfluoroheptanoic acid).

  (69) PFNA (perfluorononanoic acid).

  (70) Any other chemical designated by the Commissioner as a chemical of high concern to children by rule under section 1776 of this title.

  (b) Commissioner’s review of list of chemicals. Beginning on July 1, 2017, and biennially thereafter, the Commissioner of Health shall review the list of chemicals of high concern to children to determine if additional chemicals should be added to the list under subsection 1776(b) of this title. In reviewing the list of chemicals of high concern to children, the Commissioner of Health may consider designations made by other states, the federal government, other countries, or other governmental agencies.

  (c) Publication of list. The Commissioner shall post the list of chemicals of high concern to children on the Department of Health website by chemical name and Chemical Abstracts Service number.

  (d) Addition or removal from list. Under 3 V.S.A. § 806, any person may request that the Commissioner add or remove a chemical from the list of chemicals of high concern to children.

  (e) PQL value. A PQL value established under this chapter for individual chemicals shall depend on the analytical method used for each chemical. The PQL value shall be based on scientifically defensible, standard analytical methods as advised by guidance published by the Department. (Added 2013, No. 188 (Adj. Sess.), § 2, eff. June 10, 2014; amended 2021, No. 36, § 5, eff. July 1, 2022.)

• § 1774. Chemicals of High Concern to Children Working Group

  (a) Creation. The Chemicals of High Concern to Children Working Group (Working Group) is created within the Department of Health for the purpose of providing the Commissioner of Health advice and recommendations regarding implementation of the requirements of this chapter.

  (b) Membership.

  (1) The Working Group shall be composed of the following members who, except for ex officio members, shall be appointed by the Governor after consultation with the Commissioner of Health:

  (A) the Commissioner of Health or designee, who shall be the Chair of the Working Group;

  (B) the Commissioner of Environmental Conservation or designee;

  (C) the State Toxicologist or designee;

  (D) a representative of a public interest group in the State with experience in advocating for the regulation of toxic substances;

  (E) a representative of an organization within the State with expertise in issues related to the health of children or pregnant women;

  (F) one representative of businesses in the State that use chemicals in a manufacturing or production process or use chemicals that are used in a children’s product manufactured in the State;

  (G) a scientist with expertise regarding the toxicity of chemicals; and

  (H) a representative of the children’s products industry with expertise in existing State and national policies impacting children’s products.

  (2)(A) In addition to the members of the Working Group appointed under subdivision (1) of this subsection, the Governor may appoint up to three additional adjunct members.

  (B) An adjunct member appointed under this subdivision (2) shall have expertise or knowledge of the chemical or children’s product under review or shall have expertise or knowledge in the potential health effects of the chemical at issue.

  (C) Adjunct members appointed under this subdivision (2) shall have the same authority and powers as a member of the Working Group appointed under subdivision (1) of this subsection (b).

  (3) The members of the Working Group appointed under subdivision (1) of this subsection shall serve staggered three-year terms. The Governor may remove members of the Working Group who fail to attend three consecutive meetings and may appoint replacements. The Governor may reappoint members to serve more than one term.

  (c) Powers and duties. The Working Group shall:

  (1) review proposed chemicals for listing as a chemical of high concern to children under section 1773 of this title; and

  (2) recommend to the Commissioner of Health whether rules should be adopted under section 1776 of this title to regulate the sale or distribution of a children’s product containing a chemical of high concern to children.

  (d) Commissioner of Health recommendation; assistance.

  (1) Beginning on July 1, 2017, and biennially thereafter, the Commissioner of Health shall recommend at least two chemicals of high concern to children in children’s products for review by the Working Group. The Commissioner’s recommendations shall be based on the degree of human health risks, exposure pathways, and impact on sensitive populations presented by a chemical of high concern to children.

  (2) The Working Group shall have the administrative, technical, and legal assistance of the Department of Health and the Agency of Natural Resources.

  (e) Meetings.

  (1) The Chair of the Working Group may convene the Working Group at any time, but no less frequently than at least twice a year.

  (2) A majority of the members of the Working Group, including adjunct members when appointed, shall constitute a quorum, and all action shall be taken upon a majority vote of the members present and voting.

  (f) Reimbursement. Members of the Working Group, including adjunct members, whose participation is not supported through their employment or association shall receive per diem compensation pursuant to 32 V.S.A. § 1010 and reimbursement of travel expenses. A per diem authorized by this section shall be paid from the budget of the Department of Health. (Added 2013, No. 188 (Adj. Sess.), § 2, eff. June 10, 2014; amended 2019, No. 75, § 3.)

• § 1775. Disclosure of information on chemicals of high concern

  (a) Notice of chemical of high concern to children. A manufacturer of a children’s product or a trade association representing a manufacturer of children’s products shall submit to the Department the notice described in subsection (b) of this section for each chemical of high concern to children in a children’s product if a chemical of high concern to children is:

  (1) intentionally added to a children’s product at a level above the PQL produced by the manufacturer; or

  (2) present in a children’s product produced by the manufacturer as a contaminant at a concentration of 100 parts per million or greater.

  (b) Format for notice. The Commissioner shall specify the format for submission of the notice required by subsection (a) of this section, provided that the required format shall be generally consistent with the format for submission of notice in other states with requirements substantially similar to the requirements of this section. Any notice submitted under subsection (a) shall contain the following information:

  (1) the name of the chemical used or produced and its chemical abstracts service registry number;

  (2) a description of the product or product component containing the chemical, including the brand name, the product model, and the universal product code if the product has such a code;

  (3) the amount of the chemical contained in each unit of the product or product component, reported by weight or parts per million as authorized by the Commissioner;

  (4) the name and address of the manufacturer of the children’s product and the name, address, and telephone number of a contact person for the manufacturer;

  (5) any other information the manufacturer deems relevant to the appropriate use of the product; and

  (6) any other information required by the Commissioner under rules adopted pursuant to 3 V.S.A. chapter 25.

  (c) Reciprocal data-sharing. In order for the Department to obtain the information required in the notice described in subsection (b) of this section, the Department may enter into reciprocal data-sharing agreements with other states in which a manufacturer of children’s products is also required to disclose information related to chemicals of high concern to children in children’s products. The Department shall not disclose trade secret information, confidential business information, or other information designated as confidential by law under a reciprocal data-sharing agreement.

  (d) Waiver of format. Upon application of a manufacturer on a form provided by the Department, the Commissioner may waive the requirement under subsection (b) of this section that a manufacturer provide notice in a format specified by the Commissioner. The waiver may be granted, provided that:

  (1) the manufacturer submitted the information required in a notice under this section to:

  (A) a state with which the Department has entered a reciprocal data-sharing agreement; or

  (B) a trade association, the Interstate Chemicals Clearinghouse, a federal governmental agency, or other independent third party;

  (2) the information required to be reported in a notice under this section is provided to the Department in an alternate format, including reference to information publicly available in other states or by independent third parties; and

  (3) the information required to be reported in a notice under this section is available on or accessible from the Department of Health website.

  (e) Chemical control program. A manufacturer shall be exempt from the requirements of notice under this section for any chemical of high concern to children that is present in a children’s product or component of a children’s product only as a contaminant if, during manufacture of the children’s product, the manufacturer was implementing a manufacturing control program and exercised due diligence to minimize the presence of the contaminant in the children’s product.

  (f) Notice of removal of chemical. A manufacturer who submitted the notice required by subsection (a) of this section may at any time submit to the Department notice that a chemical of high concern to children has been removed from the manufacturer’s children’s product or that the manufacturer no longer sells, offers for sale, or distributes in the State the children’s product containing the chemical of high concern to children. Upon verification of a manufacturer’s notice under this subsection, the Commissioner shall promptly remove from the Department website any reference to the relevant children’s product of the manufacturer.

  (g) Certificate of compliance. A manufacturer required to submit notice under this section to the Commissioner may rely on a certificate of compliance from suppliers for determining reporting obligations. A certificate of compliance provided by a supplier under this subsection shall be solely for the purpose of compliance with the requirements of this chapter.

  (h) Products for sale out of State. A manufacturer shall not be required to submit notice under this section for a children’s product manufactured, stored in, or transported through Vermont solely for use or sale outside the State of Vermont.

  (i) Publication of information; disclaimer. The Commissioner shall post on the Department of Health website information submitted under this section by a manufacturer. When the Commissioner posts on the Department of Health website information submitted under this section by a manufacturer, the Commissioner shall provide the following notice:

  “The reports on this website are based on data provided to the Department. The presence of a chemical in a children’s product does not necessarily mean that the product is harmful to human health or that there is any violation of existing safety standards or laws. The reporting triggers are not health-based values.”

  (j) Fee. A manufacturer shall pay a fee of $200.00 for each notice required under subsection (a) of this section. If, under subsection (d) of this section, the Commissioner waives the required format for reporting, the fee shall not be waived. Fees collected under this subsection shall be deposited in the Chemicals of High Concern Fund for the purposes of that Fund.

  (k) Application of section. The requirements of this section shall apply unless a manufacturer is exempt or unless notice according to the requirements of this section is specifically preempted by federal law. In the event of conflict between the requirements of this section and federal law, federal law shall control.

  (l) Submission of notice; dates. Unless the Commissioner adopts by rule a phased-in reporting requirement under section 1776 of this title, a manufacturer shall submit the notice required under subsection (a) of this section on or before August 31, 2020 and annually thereafter. (Added 2013, No. 188 (Adj. Sess.), § 2, eff. June 10, 2014; amended 2015, No. 154 (Adj. Sess.), § 11, eff. June 1, 2016; 2019, No. 75, § 4.)

• § 1776. Rulemaking; additional chemicals of concern to children; prohibition of sale

  (a) Rulemaking authority. The Commissioner shall, after consultation with the Secretary of Natural Resources, adopt rules as necessary for the purposes of implementing, administering, or enforcing the requirements of this chapter.

  (b) Additional chemicals of concern to children. The Commissioner may by rule add additional chemicals to the list of chemicals of high concern to children, provided that the Commissioner of Health, on the basis of credible, scientific evidence, including peer-reviewed studies, has determined that a chemical proposed for addition to the list meets both of the following criteria in subdivisions (1) and (2) of this subsection:

  (1) The Commissioner of Health has determined that an authoritative governmental entity or accredited research university has demonstrated that the chemical:

  (A) harms the normal development of a fetus or child or causes other developmental toxicity;

  (B) causes cancer, genetic damage, or reproductive harm;

  (C) disrupts the endocrine system;

  (D) damages the nervous system, immune system, or organs or causes other systemic toxicity; or

  (E) is a persistent bioaccumulative toxic.

  (2) The chemical has been found through:

  (A) biomonitoring to be present in human blood, umbilical cord blood, breast milk, urine, or other bodily tissues or fluids;

  (B) sampling and analysis to be present in household dust, indoor air, drinking water, or elsewhere in the home environment; or

  (C) monitoring to be present in fish, wildlife, or the natural environment.

  (c) Removal of chemical from list. The Commissioner may by rule remove a chemical from the list of chemicals of high concern to children established under section 1773 of this title or rules adopted under this section if the Commissioner determines that the chemical no longer meets both of the criteria of subdivisions (b)(1) and (2) of this section.

  (d) Rule to regulate sale or distribution.

  (1) The Commissioner, after consultation with the Chemicals of High Concern to Children Working Group, may adopt a rule to regulate the sale or distribution of a children’s product containing a chemical of high concern to children upon a determination that:

  (A) children may be exposed to a chemical of high concern to children in the children’s product; and

  (B) there is a possibility that, due to the degree of exposure or frequency of exposure of a child to a chemical of high concern to children in a children’s product, exposure could cause or contribute to one or more of the adverse health impacts listed under subdivision (b)(1) of this section.

  (2) In determining whether children may be exposed to a chemical of high concern in a children’s product, the Commissioner shall review available, credible information regarding:

  (A) the market presence of the children’s product in the State;

  (B) the type or occurrence of exposures to the relevant chemical of high concern to children in the children’s product;

  (C) the household and workplace presence of the children’s product; or

  (D) the potential and likelihood of exposure of children to the chemical of high concern to children in the children’s product.

  (3) A rule adopted under this section may:

  (A) prohibit the children’s product containing the chemical of high concern to children from sale, offer for sale, or distribution in the State; or

  (B) require that the children’s product containing the chemical of high concern to children be labeled prior to sale, offer for sale, or distribution in the State.

  (4) In any rule adopted under this subsection, the Commissioner shall adopt reasonable time frames for manufacturers, distributors, and retailers to comply with the requirements of the rules. No prohibition on sale or manufacture of a children’s product in the State shall take effect sooner than two years after the adoption of a rule adopted under this section unless the Commissioner determines that an earlier effective date is required to protect human health and the new effective date is established by rule.

  (5) The Chemicals of High Concern to Children Working Group may, at its discretion, submit to the House Committees on Natural Resources, Fish, and Wildlife and on Human Services and the Senate Committees on Natural Resources and Energy and on Health and Welfare the recommendations or information from a consultation provided to the Commissioner under subdivision (1) of this subsection.

  (e) Exemption for chemical management strategy. In adopting a rule under this section, the Commissioner may exempt from regulation a children’s product containing a chemical of high concern to children if the manufacturer of the children’s product is implementing a comprehensive chemical management strategy designed to eliminate harmful substances or chemicals from the manufacturing process.

  (f) Additional rules.

  (1) The Commissioner of Health shall adopt by rule the process and procedure to be required when the Commissioner of Health adopts a rule under subsection (b), (c), or (d) of this section. The rule shall provide:

  (A) all relevant criteria for evaluation of the chemical;

  (B) criteria by which a chemical, due to its presence in the environment or risk of harm, shall be prioritized for addition or removal from the list of chemicals of high concern to children or for regulation under subsection (d) of this section;

  (C) time frames for labeling or phasing out sale or distribution;

  (D) requirements for when and how a manufacturer of a children’s product that contains a chemical of high concern to children provides the notice required under subsection 1775(a) of this title when the manufacturer intends to introduce the children’s product for sale between the required dates for reporting; and

  (E) other information or process determined as necessary by the Commissioner for implementation of this chapter.

  (2) The Commissioner may, by rule, authorize a manufacturer to report ranges of the amount of a chemical in a children’s product, rather than the exact amount, provided that if there are multiple chemical values for a given component in a particular product category, the manufacturer shall use the largest value for reporting.

  (3) Notwithstanding the required reporting dates under section 1774 of this title, the Commissioner may adopt by rule phased-in reporting requirements for chemicals of high concern to children in children’s products based on the size of the manufacturer, aggregate sales of children’s products, or the exposure profile of the chemical of high concern to children in the children’s product.

  (g) Additional public participation. In addition to the public participation requirements of 3 V.S.A. chapter 25 and prior to submitting a rule authorized under this section to the Secretary of State under 3 V.S.A. § 838, the Commissioner shall make reasonable efforts to consult with interested parties within the State regarding any proposed prohibition of a chemical of high concern to children. The Commissioner may satisfy the consultation requirement of this section through the use of one or more workshops, focused work groups, dockets, meetings, or other forms of communication. (Added 2013, No. 188 (Adj. Sess.), § 2, eff. June 10, 2014; amended 2019, No. 75, § 5, eff. June 19, 2019.)

• § 1777. Chemicals of High Concern to Children Fund

  (a) The Chemicals of High Concern to Children Fund is established in the State Treasury, separate and distinct from the General Fund, to be administered by the Commissioner of Health. Interest earned by the Fund shall be credited to the Fund. Monies in the Fund shall be made available to the Department of Health and the Agency of Natural Resources to pay costs incurred in administration of the requirements of this chapter.

  (b) The Chemicals of High Concern to Children Fund shall consist of:

  (1) fees and charges collected under section 1775 of this chapter;

  (2) private gifts, bequests, grants, or donations made to the State from any public or private source for the purposes for which the Fund was established; and

  (3) such sums as may be appropriated by the General Assembly. (Added 2013, No. 188 (Adj. Sess.), § 2, eff. June 10, 2014.)

• § 1778. Confidentiality

  Information submitted to or acquired by the Department or the Chemicals of High Concern to Children Working Group under this chapter may be subject to public inspection or copying or may be published on the Department website, provided that trade secret information and confidential business information shall be exempt from public inspection and copying under 1 V.S.A. § 317(c)(9), and information otherwise designated confidential by law shall be exempt from public inspection and copying under 1 V.S.A. § 317(c)(1). It shall be the burden of the manufacturer to assert that information submitted under this chapter is a trade secret, confidential business information, or is otherwise designated confidential by law. When a manufacturer asserts under this section that the specific identity of a chemical of high concern to children in a children’s product is a trade secret, the Commissioner shall, in place of the specific chemical identity, post on the Department’s website the generic class or category of the chemical in the children’s product and the potential health effect of the specific chemical of high concern to children. (Added 2013, No. 188 (Adj. Sess.), § 2, eff. June 10, 2014.)

• § 1779. Violations; enforcement

  A violation of this chapter shall be considered a violation of the Consumer Protection Act in 9 V.S.A. chapter 63. The Attorney General has the same authority to make rules, conduct civil investigations, enter into assurances of discontinuance, and bring civil actions under 9 V.S.A. chapter 63, subchapter 1. Private parties shall not have a private right of action under this chapter. (Added 2013, No. 188 (Adj. Sess.), § 2, eff. June 10, 2014.)