STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
1797
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 14, 2025
___________
Introduced by M. of A. HYNDMAN -- read once and referred to the Commit-
tee on Consumer Affairs and Protection
AN ACT to amend the general business law, in relation to hair relaxer
labeling
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The general business law is amended by adding a new section
2 391-x to read as follows:
3 § 391-x. Hair relaxer labeling. 1. For purposes of this section:
4 a. "Hair relaxer" shall mean any product topically applied to hair for
5 the purpose of weakening the structure and curliness of the hair fiber
6 and allowing for a straightening of the hair;
7 b. "Manufacturer" shall mean a person, firm, association, partnership
8 or corporation who manufactures the final hair relaxer or whose brand
9 name is affixed to the product. In the case of a product that was
10 imported into the United States, "manufacturer" includes the importer or
11 first domestic distributor of the product if the entity who currently
12 manufactures or assembles the product or whose brand name is affixed to
13 the product does not have a presence in the United States;
14 c. "Chemical" shall mean a substance with a distinct molecular compo-
15 sition or a group of structurally related substances and includes the
16 breakdown products of the substance or substances that form through
17 decomposition, degradation or metabolism;
18 d. "Carcinogen" shall mean any chemical identified as:
19 (i) a "Group 1 carcinogen" or "Group 2A carcinogen" by the World
20 Health Organization or International Agency for Research on Cancer;
21 (ii) "known to be a human carcinogen" and "reasonably anticipated to
22 be a human carcinogen" by the Secretary of the United States Department
23 of Health and Human Services pursuant to the Public Health Service Act,
24 42 United States Code, Section 241(b)(4), as amended; and
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD03661-01-5
A. 1797 2
1 (iii) "Group A carcinogens" or "Group B carcinogens" by the United
2 States Environmental Protection Agency; and
3 e. "Reproductive toxicant" is any chemical identified as a reproduc-
4 tive or a developmental toxicant by the United States Department of
5 Health and Human Services, National Toxicology Program, Center for the
6 Evaluation of Risks to Human Reproduction.
7 2. Any hair relaxer being offered for sale in the state of New York
8 that contains a carcinogen or a reproductive toxicant shall provide a
9 clear and conspicuous warning label displayed on the packaging or prod-
10 uct itself, which shall be printed in type no less than size twelve-
11 point font, that notifies the consumer at the time of the sale that such
12 hair relaxer contains such chemicals. The warning label shall state:
13 (i) if a product contains a carcinogen: "This product contains a chem-
14 ical known to cause cancer";
15 (ii) if a product contains a reproductive toxicant: "This product
16 contains a chemical known to cause birth defects or other reproductive
17 harm"; or
18 (iii) if a product contains both a carcinogen and a reproductive toxi-
19 cant: "This product contains chemicals known to cause cancer and birth
20 defects or other reproductive harm".
21 3. Manufacturers shall be responsible for ensuring that all hair
22 relaxers display the warning label as required by subdivision two of
23 this section.
24 4. Whenever there shall be a violation of this section, an application
25 may be made by the attorney general in the name of the people of the
26 state of New York to a court or justice having jurisdiction by a special
27 proceeding to issue an injunction, and upon notice to the defendant of
28 not less than five days, to enjoin and restrain the continuance of such
29 violation; and if it shall appear to the satisfaction of the court or
30 justice that the defendant has, in fact, violated this section, an
31 injunction may be issued by such court or justice, enjoining and
32 restraining any further violation, without requiring proof that any
33 person has, in fact, been injured or damaged thereby. Whenever the
34 court shall determine that a violation of this section has occurred, the
35 court may impose a civil penalty up to two hundred fifty dollars per
36 unit for the first offense and up to five hundred dollars per unit for
37 each subsequent offense. In connection with any such proposed applica-
38 tion, the attorney general is authorized to take proof and make a deter-
39 mination of the relevant facts and to issue subpoenas in accordance with
40 the civil practice law and rules.
41 § 2. This act shall take effect eighteen months after it shall have
42 become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amendment and/or
43 repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation of
44 this act on its effective date are authorized to be made and completed
45 on or before such effective date.
