California Proposition 65 Warning

Understanding Proposition 65

Proposition 65, formally titled the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986, was approved by California voters as a ballot initiative in November 1986. This law serves to protect California's drinking water sources from contamination by chemicals known to cause cancer, birth defects, or other reproductive harm. It also mandates that businesses notify Californians about potential exposures to these chemicals.

This comprehensive law affects any company that conducts business in California, distributes products within California, or produces items that could be sold or transported into California.

It's crucial to understand that the presence of a Proposition 65 listed chemical in a product does not indicate the product is unsafe or that it will cause cancer, birth defects, or reproductive harm. California has explicitly stated that "the fact that a product bears a Proposition 65 warning does not mean by itself that the product is unsafe." Consider this law as providing a "Right to Know" rather than indicating danger.

The law mandates warning labels on products containing or potentially containing any of over 800 substances that the California Air Resources Board identifies as harmful. Numerous substances listed under Proposition 65 have been standard components in consumer products for decades without documented harm.

California maintains and regularly updates a comprehensive list of chemicals recognized by the state to cause cancer or reproductive toxicity, which is available here.

To ensure complete compliance with Proposition 65, we display appropriate warnings on our website. While this law is specific to California and the listed chemicals are not prohibited under US Federal law, we are obligated to include warnings on applicable products sold in California or discontinue their sale in the state. Though we believe the chemical levels in our products are safe, compliance with Proposition 65 is mandatory.

Non-compliance with Proposition 65 carries substantial penalties, including civil lawsuits from private parties and state government penalties. Since there are no penalties for providing precautionary warnings, we, like numerous manufacturers across various industries, have chosen to display Proposition 65 notices as a protective measure against potential liability.

Why Products Outside California Display This Warning

At Holiday House Distributing, we are committed to providing our customers with high-quality OEM parts and products for commercial coffee brewers and related equipment. In compliance with California’s Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986 (Proposition 65), we are required to inform California residents that some of the products we distribute may contain chemicals known to the State of California to cause cancer, birth defects, or other reproductive harm.

Because we ship products nationwide and do not track the final destination of each item at the point of sale, it is not feasible to label only those products that will be sold or used in California. As a result, and out of an abundance of caution, we include this general Proposition 65 warning on our website to ensure compliance and transparency.