U.S. Senate Passes Bill Setting Tough Formaldehyde Limits on Wood Products

(Lexology – Gary Long, Greg Fowler and Simon Castley, Shook Hardy & Bacon LLP)

The U.S. Senate has approved a bill (S. 1660) establishing stringent emission standards for formaldehyde in new domestic composite wood products and foreign imports. The Formaldehyde Standards for Composite Wood Act, sponsored by Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), would amend the Toxic Substances Control Act to set a formaldehyde emission standard of approximately 0.09 parts per million on all composite wood products sold in the United States beginning January 1, 2013.

“Collectively, these would be the toughest standards in the world,” the senators said in press statements. Secondhand products and antiques would be exempt under the legislation. Read more here.