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As Introduced
136th
General Assembly
Regular
Session
H. B. No. 272
2025-2026
Representatives Pizzulli, Robb
Blasdel
Cosponsors: Representatives
Demetriou, Gross, Salvo, Jones, Ferguson, Deeter, Newman
To
amend sections 3704.99 and 6109.20 and to enact sections 3704.21,
3715.591, 3745.61, 3745.62, 3745.63, 3745.64, 3745.65
,
3745.66
,
and
3745.67
of the Revised Code
to
prohibit the use of certain food dyes and additives, the release of
substances into the atmosphere for certain purposes, and
intentionally added PFAS in various products, to revise the law
governing fluoride, and to name this act the Protecting Utility and
Resources for Enhanced Living, Improved Food, and Environment Act.
BE
IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:
Section
1.
That
sections 3704.99 and 6109.20 be amended and sections 3704.21,
3715.591, 3745.61, 3745.62, 3745.63, 3745.64, 3745.65
,
3745.66
,
and
3745.67
of the Revised Code be enacted to read as follows:
Sec.
3704.21.
No
person shall purposely inject, release, or disperse, by any means,
chemicals, chemical compounds, substances, or apparatus within the
borders of this state into the atmosphere with the express purpose of
affecting temperature, weather, or the intensity of the sunlight.
Sec.
3704.99.
(A)
Whoever recklessly violates division (A), (B), (C), (D), (E), (F),
(G), or (I) of section 3704.05 or division (B)(5) of section 3704.16
of the Revised Code shall be fined not more than twenty-five thousand
dollars or imprisoned not more than one year, or both, for each
violation. Each day the violation continues after a conviction for a
violation is a separate offense.
(B)
Whoever knowingly violates division (H), (J), or (K) of section
3704.05 of the Revised Code shall be fined not more than ten thousand
dollars for each day of each such violation.
(C)
Whoever violates section 3704.15 of the Revised Code is guilty of a
misdemeanor of the first degree.
(D)
Whoever violates division (B)(2) or knowingly violates division
(C)(1) of section 3704.16 of the Revised Code is guilty of a minor
misdemeanor.
(E)
Whoever violates division (B)(1) or (3) or knowingly violates
division (C)(2) or (3) of section 3704.16 of the Revised Code shall
be fined not less than five hundred nor more than twenty-five hundred
dollars for each day of each violation.
(F)
Whoever recklessly violates division (B)(4) of section 3704.16 of the
Revised Code shall be fined not more than twenty-five thousand
dollars or imprisoned not more than one year, or both, for each
violation. Each day the violation continues after a conviction for a
violation is a separate offense.
(G)
The sentencing court, in addition to the penalty provided in
divisions (D), (E), and (F) of this section, shall order the offender
to restore within thirty days any emission control system that was
tampered with in connection with the violation or to provide proof
that the motor vehicle whose emission control system was tampered
with has been dismantled or destroyed. The court may extend that
deadline for good cause shown. If the offender does not take the
corrective action ordered under this division, each day that the
violation continues is a separate offense. Violation of a court order
entered under this division is punishable as contempt under Chapter
2705. of the Revised Code.
(H)
Whoever violates section 3704.21 of the Revised Code is guilty of a
misdemeanor of the fourth degree and, notwithstanding section 2929.28
of the Revised Code, shall be fined ten thousand dollars for each
violation. Each day of violation constitutes a separate offense.
Sec.
3715.591.
Food
is adulterated within the meaning of this chapter if any of the
following apply:
(A)
It bears or contains any of the following:
(1)
Titanium dioxide;
(2)
Brominated vegetable oil;
(3)
Potassium bromate;
(4)
Propylparaben;
(5)
Azodicarbonamide;
(6)
Butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT);
(7)
Butylated hydroxyanisole.
(B)
It bears or contains any of the following food dyes:
(1)
Red dye 3 or erythrosine;
(2)
Red dye 40;
(3)
Yellow dye 5 or tartrazine;
(4)
Yellow dye 6 or sunset yellow;
(5)
Blue dye 1;
(6)
Blue dye 2 or indigotine or indigo carmine;
(7)
Green dye 3.
Sec.
3745.61.
As
used in sections 3745.61 to 3745.67 of the Revised Code:
(A)
"Carpet or rug" means a fabric marketed or intended for use
as a floor covering.
(B)
"Chemical" means a substance with a distinct molecular
composition or a group of structurally related substances and
includes the substances that form through breakdown, decomposition,
degradation, or metabolism of the substance.
(C)
"Cleaning product" means a finished product used for
general cleaning purposes, including any of the following:
(1)
A polish or floor maintenance product;
(2)
An air care product labeled for the intended use of enhancing or
conditioning the indoor environment by eliminating unpleasant odors
or freshening the air;
(3)
An automotive maintenance product labeled for the intended use of
maintaining the appearance of a motor vehicle.
"Cleaning
product" does not include automotive paint or paint repair
products.
(D)
"Consumer product" means tangible personal property that is
distributed in commerce and normally used for personal, family, or
household use, including product categories that are normally used in
households but designed for or sold to businesses, such as commercial
carpet or floor waxes.
(E)
"Cookware" means durable houseware items intended for
direct food contact and used to prepare, dispense, or store food,
foodstuffs, or beverages;
(F)
"Cosmetic" means a product or product component, other than
soap, intended to be applied to the human body for cleansing,
beautifying, or promoting attractiveness.
(G)
"Currently unavoidable use" means a use of PFAS that the
director of environmental protection has determined by rule to be
essential for health, safety, or the functioning of society, and for
which alternatives are not reasonably available.
(H)
"Fabric treatment" means a substance applied to fabric for
stain, grease, or water resistance, or flame retardance.
(I)
"Feminine hygiene product" means a disposable or reusable
product to collect menstruation and vaginal discharge, including
tampons, pads, sponges, menstruation underwear, discs, applicators,
and menstruation cups.
(J)
"Firefighting foam" means an aqueous film-forming foam
containing an intentionally added PFAS.
(K)
"Food packaging" means a container, unit package,
intermediate package, or shipping container applied to or providing a
means to market, protect, handle, deliver, serve, contain, or store a
food or beverage, including an individually assembled part of a food
package.
(L)
"Intentionally added" means a PFAS deliberately added or
used during the manufacture of a product in which the continued
presence, at any level or concentration, of the PFAS is desired or
expected in the final product or one of the product's components.
(M)
"Juvenile product" means a product designed or marketed for
use by children under twelve years of age, including children's car
seats, clothes, and toys, but does not include an electronic product,
including:
(1)
Personal computers and any associated equipment;
(2)
Audio and video equipment;
(3)
Calculators;
(4)
Wireless phones;
(5)
Gaming consoles;
(6)
Handheld devices incorporating a video screen and any associated
peripheral device such as a mouse, keyboard, power supply unit, or
power cord.
(N)
"Manufacturer" means:
(1)
A person, firm, association, partnership, corporation, organization,
combination, or a joint venture that creates, produces, or assembles
a product or whose brand name is affixed to a product;
(2)
In the case of a product imported into the United States, an importer
or first domestic distributor of the product, provided that the
entity or person that created, produced, or assembled the product or
whose brand name is affixed to the product does not have an office or
employees in the United States.
(O)
"Medical device" means an instrument, apparatus, implement,
machine, implant, in vitro reagent, or other similar or related
device, including any component or accessory, that is a product
regulated as a drug or medical device by the United State food and
drug administration under the "Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic
Act," 21 U.S.C. 301, et seq., and that satisfies any of the
following:
(1)
It is recognized in an official compendium.
(2)
It is intended for use in the diagnosis of disease or other
conditions or in the cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of
disease in a human or animal.
(3)
It is intended to affect the structure or function of the body of a
human or an animal, does not achieve its principal intended purposes
through chemical action within or on the body of a human or animal,
and does not depend on being metabolized for achievement of its
principal intended purpose.
(P)
"Official compendium" means a comprehensive, authoritative
listing of recognized medical devices, including listings published
by a federal regulatory body, that detail specifications standards
and accepted uses of medical devices.
(Q)
"PFAS" has the same meaning as "per- and
polyfluoroalkyl substances or PFAS" in 40 C.F.R. 705.3.
(R)
"Product" means an item created, produced, assembled,
packaged, or otherwise prepared for sale to consumers, including a
product component sold or distributed for personal, residential,
commercial, or industrial use, including for use in making another
product.
(S)
"Sell" and "sale" includes offering for sale,
distributing, or distributing for sale directly or indirectly or
through intermediaries.
(T)
"Ski wax" means a lubricant applied to the bottom of a snow
runner, including a ski or snowboard, to improve grip or glide
properties, and includes associated tuning products.
(U)
"Textile" means an item made in whole or in part from a
natural or synthetic fiber, yarn, or fabric, including leather,
cotton, silk, jute, hemp, wool, viscose, nylon, or polyester.
(V)
"Textile furnishings" means a textile product made in whole
or part from a natural or synthetic fiber, yarn, or fabric that is
used as furniture or a decorative accessory.
(W)
"Upholstered furniture" means furniture that is wholly or
partially stuffed with a filling material.
Sec.
3745.62.
Sections
3745.63 and 3745.64 of the Revised Code do not apply to any of the
following:
(A)
A product for which federal law governs the presence of PFAS in the
product in a manner that preempts state authority.
(B)
Used products offered for sale or resale.
(C)
Medical devices or drugs, and the packaging of the medical devices or
drugs, that are regulated by the United States food and drug
administration, including prosthetic and orthotic devices.
(D)
Cooling, heating, ventilation, air conditioning, or refrigeration
equipment that contains intentionally added PFAS or refrigerants
listed as acceptable, subject to use conditions, or subject to narrow
use limits by the United States environmental protection agency
pursuant to the significant new alternatives policy program, 40
C.F.R. 82, subpart G, provided the equipment is for sale for the
authorized use specified under that program.
(E)
A veterinary product and its packaging intended for use in or on
animals, including diagnostic equipment or test kits, and the
veterinary product's components and any product that is a veterinary
medical device, drug, biologic, or parasiticide, or any product that
is otherwise used in a veterinary medical setting or in veterinary
medical applications that are regulated by or under the jurisdiction
of any of the following:
(1)
The United States food and drug administration;
(2)
The United States department of agriculture pursuant to the federal
"Virus-Serum-Toxin Act," 21 U.S.C. 151, et seq.;
(3)
The United States environmental protection agency pursuant to the
"Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act," 7
U.S.C. 136, et seq., except that any such products approved by the
United States environmental protection agency pursuant to that law
for aerial and land application are not exempt.
(F)
A product developed or manufactured for the purpose of public health
or environmental or water quality testing.
(G)
A motor vehicle or motor vehicle equipment regulated under a federal
motor vehicle safety standard, as defined in 49 U.S.C. 30102, except
that the exemption does not apply to any textile article or
refrigerant that is included in or as a component part of such
products.
(H)
Any other motor vehicle, including an off-highway vehicle or
specialty motor vehicle, such as an all-terrain vehicle, a
side-by-side vehicle, farm equipment, or a personal assistive
mobility device.
(I)
A watercraft, aircraft, lighter-than-air aircraft, or seaplane.
(J)
A semiconductor, including semiconductors incorporated in electric
equipment, and materials used in the manufacture of semiconductors.
(K)
Non-consumer electronic and non-consumer laboratory equipment not
ordinarily used for personal, family, or household purposes.
(L)
A product that contains intentionally added PFAS with uses that are
currently listed as acceptable, acceptable subject to use conditions,
or acceptable subject to narrowed use limits in the United States
environmental protection agency's regulations under the significant
new alternatives policy program, 40 C.F.R. 82, provided that the
product contains PFAS that are being used as substitutes for
ozone-depleting substances under the conditions specified in the
regulations.
(M)
A product used for the generation, distribution, or storage of
electricity.
(N)
Equipment directly used in the manufacture or development of the
products described in divisions (A) to (M) of this section.
(O)
A product for which the director of environmental protection has
adopted a rule providing that the use of the PFAS in that product is
a currently unavoidable use.
(P)
A product that contains fluoropolymers consisting of polymeric
substances for which the backbone of the polymer is either a per- or
polyfluorinated carbon-only backbone or a perfluorinated polyether
backbone that is a solid at standard temperature and pressure.
Sec.
3745.63.
(A)
Beginning January 1, 2027, no manufacturer shall sell the following
products if that product contains an intentionally added PFAS:
(1)
Cookware;
(2)
Food packaging;
(3)
Dental floss;
(4)
Juvenile products;
(5)
Firefighting foam.
(B)
Beginning January 1, 2028, no manufacturer shall sell the following
products if that product contains an intentionally added PFAS:
(1)
Carpets or rugs;
(2)
Cleaning products;
(3)
Cosmetics;
(4)
Fabric treatments;
(5)
Feminine hygiene products;
(6)
Textiles;
(7)
Textile furnishings;
(8)
Ski wax;
(9)
Upholstered furniture.
(C)
Beginning January 1, 2032, no manufacturer shall sell a product
containing an intentionally added PFAS unless the director of
environmental protection has adopted a rule in accordance with
Chapter 119. of the Revised Code providing that the use of PFAS in
that product is a currently unavoidable use.
(D)
Until January 1, 2032, the director may adopt rules in accordance
with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code to prohibit a manufacturer from
selling a consumer product not listed in division (A) or (B) of this
section that contains an intentionally added PFAS. The director shall
adopt such rules upon a finding of fact that prohibiting the sale of
the consumer product is necessary to protect human health or the
environment. In adopting rules under this division, the director
shall do both of the following:
(1)
Establish an effective date for each such prohibition that is not
less than six months after the adoption of the final rule
establishing the prohibition. No such effective date shall be earlier
than January 1, 2027.
(2)
Prioritize prohibitions of consumer products containing intentionally
added PFAS that are most likely to harm humans or contaminate the
environment.
(E)
This section does not apply to a pesticide regulated by or under the
jurisdiction of the "Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and
Rodenticide Act," 7 U.S.C. 136, et seq.
Sec.
3745.64.
(A)
The director of environmental protection shall adopt rules in
accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code that require a
manufacturer to submit the following information to the director for
a product that contains an intentionally added PFAS:
(1)
A brief description of the product, including a universal product
code, stock keeping unit, or other numeric code assigned to the
product;
(2)
The purpose for which the PFAS is used in the product;
(3)
The amount of each PFAS in the product, identified by its chemical
abstracts service registry number and reported as an exact quantity
determined using commercially available analytical methods, or
reported as falling within a range approved for reporting purposes by
the director;
(4)
The name and address of the manufacturer, and the name, address, and
telephone number of a contact person for the manufacturer;
(5)
Any additional information requested by the director, as necessary,
provided that the director shall not require disclosure of records,
reports, or information, or particular parts of records, reports, or
information, that would divulge confidential business records,
methods, or processes that the manufacturer demonstrates is entitled
to protection as a trade secret.
(B)
Not later than January 1, 2027, a manufacturer of a product for sale
in this state that contains an intentionally added PFAS shall submit
to the director of environmental protection the information required
by rules adopted under this section.
(C)
Beginning January 1, 2028, no manufacturer shall sell a product if
testing requested by the director under section 3745.65 of the
Revised Code demonstrates that the product contains an intentionally
added PFAS and that the manufacturer failed to provide the director
the information required by rules adopted under this section.
(D)
Beginning January 1, 2028, no manufacturer shall sell a product that
contains an intentionally added PFAS unless the manufacturer has
submitted to the director the information required by rules adopted
under this section.
(E)
A manufacturer shall submit a revision of the information provided
about a product pursuant this section not later than thirty days
after a significant change to the information that the manufacturer
previously submitted or upon the request of the director.
(F)
Upon written approval from the director, a manufacturer may provide
the information required by this section to the director for a
category, type of product, or product component.
(G)
The director may waive the obligation of a manufacturer to submit all
or part of the information required by rules adopted under this
section if the director determines that substantially equivalent
information is publicly available. The director may grant a waiver to
a manufacturer or a group of manufacturers for multiple products or a
product category.
(H)
The director may extend the deadline for a manufacturer to submit the
information required by this section upon a determination by the
director that circumstances merit an extension of time.
(I)
The director may enter into an agreement with one or more states or
political subdivisions of a state to collect and share information
otherwise required to be submitted by this section. The director may
accept such information as meeting the information submission
requirements of this section.
(J)
Not later than sixty days after receiving the information required by
this section from a manufacturer, the director shall notify the
manufacturer that adequate information has been received or that
additional information is required. A manufacturer shall submit to
the director any additional information requested by the director not
later than thirty days after the request.
Sec.
3745.65.
(A)
If the director of environmental protection has reason to believe
that a product containing intentionally added PFAS is for sale in
this state and the sale of such product is prohibited under section
3745.63 of the Revised Code, the director may direct the manufacturer
of the product to, within thirty days, provide testing results that
demonstrate the amount of each PFAS in the product, if any. The
manufacturer shall identify any PFAS as an exact quantity determined
using commercially available analytical methods or as falling within
a range approved for reporting purposes by the director.
(B)
If testing demonstrates that the product does not contain an
intentionally added PFAS, the manufacturer shall provide the director
with a certificate of compliance attesting that the product does not
contain an intentionally added PFAS. The manufacturer also shall
submit the testing results and any other relevant information
requested by the director.
(C)
If testing demonstrates that the product contains an intentionally
added PFAS, the manufacturer shall do both of the following:
(1)
Provide the director, within thirty days, the information required
for the product pursuant to section 3745.64 of the Revised Code;
(2)
Notify each person that sells the product in this state that the sale
of the product is prohibited and provide the director with a list of
the names and addresses of the persons so notified.
(D)
The director may notify a person that sells a product prohibited
under sections 3745.61 to 3745.66 of the Revised Code that the
product is prohibited in this state.
Sec.
3745.66.
(A)
The director of environmental protection shall adopt rules in
accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code to do all of the
following:
(1)
Exempt from the reporting requirements established under section
3745.64 of the Revised Code any product that contains an
intentionally added PFAS that is exempt under section 3745.62 of the
Revised Code or that has been designated as having a currently
unavoidable use by the director;
(2)
Create a series of ranges for the amount of a PFAS in a product that
contains an intentionally added PFAS for reporting purposes unless
exempt under section 3745.62 of the Revised Code;
(3)
Identify currently unavoidable uses of PFAS that are essential for
health, safety, or the functioning of society and for which
alternatives are not reasonably available;
(4)
Except as otherwise provided in section 3737.52 of the Revised Code,
regarding firefighting foam:
(a)
Require a periodic inventory of firefighting foam quantities stored
or used in this state;
(b)
Require the use of firefighting foam for emergency purposes only;
(c)
Require the cleanup of discarded firefighting foam pursuant to
Chapter 3734. of the Revised Code.
As
used in division (A)(4) of this section, "emergency purposes"
does not include training or the use of firefighting foam in fire
suppression systems.
(B)
The director may do the following:
(1)
Adopt rules in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code to
carry out sections 3745.61 to 3745.67 of the Revised Code, including
the following:
(a)
Requiring the labeling of products in English and Spanish;
(b)
Prohibiting consumer products that contain an intentionally added
PFAS by category or use upon a finding of fact that a prohibition on
the product is necessary to protect human health or the environment;
(c)
Designating that the use of a PFAS in a certain product is a
currently unavoidable use as provided in section 3745.63 of the
Revised Code.
(2)
Determine that a product containing intentionally added PFAS are a
currently unavoidable use based on determinations made by other
states.
(C)
Prior to adopting a rule under division (B)(1)(b) or (c) of this
section regarding a pesticide, fertilizer, agricultural liming
material, or plant or soil amendment that contains an intentionally
added PFAS, the director shall consult with the director of
agriculture.
Sec.
3745.67.
Any
manufacturer that violates sections 3745.61 to 3745.66 of the Revised
Code or a rule adopted or order issued under those sections shall pay
a civil penalty of not more than fifteen thousand dollars for each
violation, to be paid into the state treasury to the credit of the
general revenue fund. Each day that a violation continues constitutes
a separate offense. The attorney general, upon written request by the
director of environmental protection, shall bring an action for such
a penalty against any manufacturer that violates sections 3745.61 to
3745.66 of the Revised Code. Such an action is a civil action,
governed by the Rules of Civil Procedure and other rules of practice
and procedure applicable to civil actions.
Any
civil penalties imposed under this section do not limit a
manufacturer's liability in other causes of action.
Sec.
6109.20.
If
the natural fluoride content of supplied water of a public water
system is less than eight-tenths milligrams per liter of water,
a
public water system may add
fluoride
shall
be added
to
such water to maintain fluoride content of not less than eight-tenths
milligrams per liter of water nor more than one and three-tenths
milligrams per liter of water
beginning:
(A)
On or before January 1, 1971, for a public water system supplying
water to twenty thousand or more persons;
(B)
On or before January 1, 1972, for a public water system supplying
water to five thousand or more persons, but less than twenty thousand
persons
.
Section
2.
That
existing sections 3704.99 and 6109.20 of the Revised Code are hereby
repealed.
Section
3.
This
act shall be known as the Protecting Utility and Resources for
Enhanced Living, Improved Food, and Environment Act.