State Legislation
ISPA monitors and advocates on legislation that may affect the mattress industry. Below is a summary of state and local legislation currently being considered during the 2009 – 2010 legislative sessions.
View all of the state legislation ISPA is currently tracking.
New York Bed Bug Legislation
New York State bed bug legislation that ISPA was successful in influencing has passed the Assembly and the Senate and is awaiting signature by the Governor. Over the last year, ISPA worked with the bill's authors to amend provisions that would have imposed substantial new costs on retailers that pick up used mattresses from consumers. The bill would have prohibited the transport, storage or sale of new and used mattresses together unless the used mattress had been sanitized. Thanks to ISPA's efforts, the legislation now allows retailers to transport used mattresses on the same truck with new mattresses if the used products are placed in a protective covering (including plastic wrapping). Once our concerns with the bill were addressed, ISPA supported the legislation.
New York Chemical Legislation
Bills being considered by the New York Legislature that would authorize the state to regulate chemicals used in some consumer products were recently amended week to specifically include chemicals used in children's mattresses and bedding. The legislation would require manufacturers to submit chemical data to the state and allow the state to regulate and ban chemicals used in children's products. ISPA and other trade associations are opposing the legislation on the grounds that such regulation should be administered at the federal level.
California
Recycling/Extended Producer Responsibility
Legislation that would have set up an "extended producer responsibility" system in California failed to pass that state's Assembly. An extended producer responsibility regime holds manufacturers responsible for disposing of their products at the end of their useful life. The failed legislation would have allowed the state to mandate that specific industries set up product collection, recycling, or disposal systems to manage the disposal of their products. Manufacturers would bear the cost of such programs. Though the legislation failed, similar bills are expected to return for consideration in future legislative sessions. More information can be found in the sustainability section of the ISPA website.
California Flame Retardant Legislation
Legislation being considered in the California Senate would have required the state to regulate flame retardants under the state's Green Chemistry Initiative. ISPA has joined other business groups in opposing the legislation because it would subject flame retardants to different rules than would be applied to other chemicals under California's Green Chemistry Initiative. The bill was voted down by a 13-20 vote.
Texas House Environmental Regulation Committee
The Committee on Environmental Regulation of the Texas House of Representatives heard testimony recently on how to increase the recycling of used mattress components. ISPA President Ryan Trainer testified before the Committee and described the current state of mattress recycling and obstacles that today's recyclers face when trying to expand their businesses.
Suggestions offered to address these obstacles included amending the state's existing bedding law to permit mattress producers to use a "new materials" law label on mattresses that contain new components made from used mattress materials, provided that the manufacturing process used to make the new components results in a clean and hygienic product. This change will help mattress producers serve those consumers that want products made with recycled content, as well as increase demand for used mattress foam and make recycling more commercially viable.
The Committee was also asked to support increased regulation of unscrupulous mattress renovators. In addition to protecting consumers from the health and safety risks and deceptive sales practices that renovated mattresses too often present, more stringent policing of dishonest renovators will help improve the efficiency of legitimate component recyclers because they can instead dismantle used mattresses that would otherwise be diverted to these bad actors.
