Currently, the draft’s definition for ‘apparel’ lists ‘clothing items intended for regular wear or formal occasions’ and ‘outdoor apparel’ and goes onto specify that ‘clothing items intended for regular wear or formal occasions does not include personal protective equipment or clothing items for exclusive use by the United States military’.
Two top US textile and apparel trade bodies have written to the Rhode Island House environment and natural resources committee regarding the exemption for PPE or clothing items for exclusive use by the US military in the H 7356 draft, an act that bans PFAS.
They want a change to avoid confusion for manufacturers, retailers, consumers or the US military.
As a result of this exemption being listed solely under ‘clothing items intended for regular wear or formal occasions’, it raises the question whether outdoor apparel PPE or outdoor apparel clothing items for exclusive use by the US military are in scope of the legislation, the American Apparel and Footwear Association (AAFA) and the National Council of Textile Organisations (NCTO) wrote in the letter.
Several other states, such as California, Colorado, New York and Vermont, have enacted PFAS-apparel laws that exempt personal protective equipment and clothing items for exclusive use by the US military—or used similar language—from the entire scope of the law, the letter noted.
“This change would be in-line with PFAS regulatory statutes adopted by several other states, and we believe it is in the spirit of what the legislation aims to accomplish,” the letter added.
Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)