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Safe cosmetic act of 2012 is alive


Scented

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Read about it below at the link. I have not gone through it enough to comment.

http://personalcaretruth.com/2012/03/h-r-4262-cosmetics-safety-enhancement-act-of-2012/

I went through it but definitely have to go back line by line. What concerns me right now is this statement below and whether its intent is that we must have the expensive testing done to deem our product safe or if the inexpensive testing is sufficient. There is no way much profit (if any) can be made by the very small home based B&B if we have to pay for each product we make to be tested at a cost of about $900.

(1) before introduction or delivery for introduction into interstate commerce of a cosmetic product, establish a file containing scientific evidence pertaining to such product’s safety; and

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I am going to assume that this will be a bigger hassle for distributors and manufacturers and not so much for us who purchase the products. Those are the ones that will have to do the testing. The products I purchase from say TKB should already be tested, therefore I should be "safe". The problem for us would most likely be prices. I haven't read all of it yet so I could be wrong.

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I think this part would apply to all of us as it relates to cosmetics:

(1) IN GENERAL- The Secretary shall by regulation require that any facility engaged in manufacturing, packing, or holding a cosmetic product or a cosmetic formulation be registered annually with the Secretary. To be so registered, any such facility shall pay the registration fee required under section 744.

SEC. 744. FACILITY REGISTRATION FEE.

`(a) In General-

`(1) ASSESSMENT AND COLLECTION- Beginning in fiscal year 2013, the Secretary shall assess and collect an annual fee for the registration of a facility under section 604(a).

`(2) PAYABLE DATE- A fee under this section shall be payable–

`(A) for a facility that was not registered under section 604 for the preceding fiscal year, on the date of registration; and

`(B) for any other facility–

`(i) for fiscal year 2013, not later than the sooner of–

`(I) 90 days after the date of the enactment of this part; or

`(II) the date of re-registration; and

`(ii) for a subsequent fiscal year, on the date of re-registration.

`(B) Fee Amounts-

`(1) IN GENERAL- The registration fee under subsection (a) shall be–

`(A) for fiscal year 2013, $500; and

`(B) for fiscal year 2014 and each subsequent fiscal year, the fee for fiscal year 2013 as adjusted under subsection ©.

So, if I understand that correctly it will cost us at least $500 a year if we wish to sell cosmetics. Is this how everyone else sees it?

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I think....until this is translated into lay person terms, I won't be buying anymore B&B supplies but instead try to get what I just stocked up on made and sold before 2013.

We could sell pre-made bases from suppliers but not be able to add anything to them without having to be tested....is my understanding. There isn't much profit there though. Seems we still have to pay the $500 fee.

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Won't there be small business exceptions to those registration fees and requirements? (ie businesses making less than $2 mil per annum). Those who make soap as "soap" without claims which change it to a cosmetic or drug will remain exempt as well.

Plus, I doubt there's any way our bloated government will get it all sorted out and enforceable in that short of a time.

Edited by TallTayl
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In Florida there is already strict regulations. We are not allowed to make b&b products for sell out of our homes. We need to rent a seperate facility with stainless steel counters. There is also a $150 inspection fee, and an $800 fee every 2 years to the state. There is also a $20 fee per product, and the labels have to be sent to the state for inspection and approval.

Needless to say I only make soap at the moment. When I lived in Seattle I made many other B&B items. From what I understand, most people who make and sell B&B in Florida either think for some reason they are exempt from the law, or don't think they will ever get caught.

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As I get it, the post above is mute and died in committee for 2011. This 2012 one is in committee and being discussed. I haven't seen exceptions for anyone. I haven't gotten to delve into any more nor have I seen anyone raise a ruckus yet.

JBN, it pertains to those who do cosmetics. As of yet, unless one makes a claim on their soap being anything more than just soap, soap isn't a cosmetic. Make one claim on it and then it's a cosmetic ... i.e. acne soap etc. has always made that type of a bar more than just soap.

I only posted this because when bills are in committees, it is time to start getting educated on what's going on and what can come down the pipe and to start rattling your reps on the hill if need be. It didn't take long for me to get the impression that this 2012 thing is going to kill a bunch of us just for the fees alone. I still plan to listen to the hearings and to try to sort through the rest of the muck.

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I have been checking Indie site and other so called industry leaders's site and there is total apathy. While I appreciate their efforts, I am afraid that a few women coming to Washington to testify is not going to do much.

Nobody seems to know who is behind this bill - who is paying for the lobbying.

We do not have a national association to represent and lobby for us. This let's wait and see attitude hoping it won't pass, it won't regulate soap and it won't affect me is getting us nowhere. This is being going on for a while and we've had plenty of time to organize and really fight this but very little has been done.

According to Debbie May of WSP there is about 200,000 business that would be affected if this becomes law. http://republicans.energycommerce.house.gov/Media/file/Hearings/Health/20120327/HHRG-112-IF14-WState-MayD--20120327.pdf

I wonder if all these business owners have contacted their elected official about this bill?

I do like making b&b but financially this will not affect me and I will transform my office into an exercise room and my workshop will become a sewing room, and my husband will be delighted to see me cook and clean again.

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This is scary and discouraging. I just started to reopen my biz and thought about dabbling with a few Bath and Body products this time around instead of focusing so heavily on candles. This is just one more regulation to discourage and severely damage small businesses. It will also produce higher costs for the big guys and will be one more thing to cause manufacturers to go somewhere else other than the U.S. This nation is heading downhill fast, if we do not turn our current government around. People better vote smart in Nov. or we are headed for big trouble. I sure hope this bill does not pass, but it would not surprise me if it does. America is not what it used to be.

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Scented is spot on - the other link is no longer applicable. That horse left the barn and is nowhere to be found.

I watched the recorded hearings last night - all 2+ hours of them. The first panel made the FDA look like a powerless joke of a government entity. The biggest impetus for moving forward with gusto is the fiasco around the "Brazilian Blowout" hair treatment product that should never have made it to market, let alone be used for years on people. It took years of use and exposure to customers, stylists and innocent bystanders to understand the level of risk the product presented. Even if scientific tests were performed on the product at its introduction the level of eventual damage would not have been so apparent.

The focus is on ingredients being used - of which we have 10 banned chemicals in the US and 2000+ in the EU. The FDA stated the fact that they have no idea what chemicals are being used, who uses them or where they are manufactured. This act would supposedly give them those answers, but still leave them powerless to do anything about pulling product from the shelves in a forced recall. The limit of their power is a strongly worded letter. The bill will do nothing to prevent manufacturers from other countries from importing product to the US as this is unfortunately the case today also (ie mercury in cosmetics and skin preparations). Little to no product testing is performed for imported goods. This is also the case for FOOD - hence melamine in baby formula that is discovered after the damage has been done. This is a thorn in my side even without the Cosmetic Chemical act...

A secondary concern is the compounded use of chemicals currently considered safe within usage limits. For instance, Formaldehyde is considered 'safe' at a usage rate of .2% in cosmetics as a preservative. The point was made that with the increasing number of products required as a person ages, that .2% compounded over 10-50 products used daily, exceeds the safe limits. Consumers are unlikely to read and understand the labels to calculate their risk exposure. This is the same thing we face with pharmaceuticals. No mention was made of chemical interactions between externally applied cosmetics, though it's only a matter of time before that changes too.

A tertiary concern is the fact that Federal Government is attempting to supersede state safety regulations. Since there's no consistent regulatory guideline between any two states, we will be forced rely on the Fed to dictate the standards for manufacturing, packaging, labeling, etc.. This doesn't fly with many other hot issues at the moment, how can cosmetics regulation succeed at this?

As for soap, M&P is already classified as a cosmetic, so those who make M&P will surely be impacted. CP makers who make no claims 'should' not be classified as cosmetics at this time. Though that too can change. Rapackagers of lotion bases are already sizable risks according to the insurance agencies. Shampoo & hair conditioners are classified as cosmetics already. There's not a whole lot left. Scrubs perhaps? We'll have a lot of shiny exfoliated people then.

In sum, we as small businesses aren't the main target, but we may well end up as collateral damage in this whole saga. If you have the time I'd recommend watching the whole thing to get a sense for where the politicians are coming from.

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Annie, there's Dona Marie, the Soapmaker's Guild and Brambleberry's Ann Marie along with Debbie May that I know of who have been trying and trying to get through lawmaker's heads. I wonder if this isn't because the bill gets shelved yearly and then reappears as if it's a new concept. I don't know who's serving on the committees. I know that some of the women mentioned have been in touch with the hill and if it weren't for them, we wouldn't know much. I also know that there was a time where they were accepting donations for small businesses to have a lobbyist or two. What's behind this are the people who are not willing to educate themselves. They hear lead and they don't care how much of a miniscule amount is in say a red mica and that it would take literally eating 1,500+ red lipsticks a day to get to the point where the trace amount in the colorant shows up. Are people wigging out that some dye replacements are coming from ground bugs in consumable products?

Should cosmetics be more regulated than the crap the FDA allows us to eat? How about diets causing cancer. How about the sun exposure from being bathing queens so long ago causing skin cancer? We can all rant about it, but it does no good if the loonies on the hill don't hear us

There are people who buy a product and suddenly it's harsh (let's forget that they probably didn't bother to consider their skin isn't 16-years-old while celebrating their 60th birthday. They don't bother to educate themselves.

Yes, get on it with your reps and stop being non-reactive.

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