New York Bans Mercury in Cosmetics and Personal Care Products

On December 23, 2022, the Governor of New York State signed a bill (S8291A/A8630A), which amends the Environmental Conservation Law to add a mercury ban alongside the state’s existing regulatory restrictions on 1,4-dioxane in cosmetics and personal care products. The bill will take effect on June 1, 2023.

New York’s Mercury Ban

Starting from the effective date, the distribution and sales of cosmetics and personal care products containing mercury will be prohibited in the state.

"Mercury" here refers to elemental mercury Hg, mercuric iodide, mercury oxide, mercurous chloride, ethyl mercury, phenyl mercuric salts, ammoniated mercury, amide chloride of mercury, mercury sulfide or cinnabaris, and mercury iodide.
“Cosmetics” and “Personal Care Products” to which the ban applies refer to:

Cosmetic product	Any article (a) intended to be rubbed, sprinkled, or sprayed on, introduced into, or otherwise applied to the human body or any part thereof for beautifying, promoting attractiveness, or altering the appearance, or (b) intended for use as a component of any such article. It shall not include any personal care products.
Personal care product	Any product intended for cleaning or cleansing any part of the body, such as the skin and hair, including but not limited to, hair shampoo, hair conditioner, soap, bath gels and other bath products.

Notably, the bill makes New York the third state, after Minnesota and California, to introduce an outright mercury ban in cosmetics and personal care products.

Federal Regulations on Mercury

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has already banned mercury as an ingredient in cosmetics, with the following exceptions.

When used in eye area products and no other effective and safe preservative is available: the mercury content shall not exceed 65 ppm.
When used in all other cosmetics and its presence is unavoidable under good manufacturing practice: the mercury content shall not exceed 1 ppm.