New Mexico’s effort to require manufacturers to label consumer products that contain so-called ‘forever chemicals’ infringes on commercially protected speech, according to a preliminary injunction issued Wednesday by U.S. District Judge Margaret Strickland.
The disputed rule stems from the PFAS Protection Act, which the New Mexico Legislature passed and Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham enacted last year. It would require manufacturers to label consumer products containing PFAS — aka per and polyfluoroalkyl substances. The New Mexico Environmental Improvement Board sanctioned the rule in March.
Studies show PFAS is linked to kidney and reproductive cancers, decreased fertility, fetal developmental delays, disruption of immune responses and liver function in humans.
The American Chemistry Council, which advocates for chemical manufacturers, and several national manufacturer organizations, sued the New Mexico Environment Department on July 1. The organizations argued that the state requirement violates the First Amendment by enforcing manufacturers to communicate a government-mandated message and asked for the court to stop implementation of the rule set for next year.
In her order, Strickland wrote that New Mexico failed to demonstrate how the label “is a rational vehicle to achieve the goals of protecting consumer and environmental health,” and added that “the state proclaims the regulation exists to raise consumer awareness, but underneath intends the label to operate as a warning in disguise.”
The audacity of these assholes is off the charts
Cigarettes have a warning label how is this different?
That’s part of it. Surgeon general warnings on a pack of smokes have all sorts of direct messaging. Canada does better on that front, but that’s table stakes.
In this case, there is no warning attached, just “X product contains Y chemical” on the packaging. This is not at all a free-speech issue, no matter how much chemical companies want to claim it is.