New York to Ban PFAS in Carpet Beginning December 2026

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A New York state law will ban the sale of carpet containing or treated with PFAS “for any purpose” starting December 31, 2026—following in the footsteps of other states, such as Colorado and Maryland, which have already forbid the intentional use of so-called “forever chemicals” in carpeting.

Like those states, the law broadly defines PFAS as “a class of fluorinated organic chemicals containing at least one fully fluorinated carbon atom.”  The term “carpet” is also defined expansively, encompassing most manufactured articles that are:

  • Used by consumers;
  • Placed on walking surfaces (including outdoors); and
  • “Primarily constructed of a top surface of synthetic or natural face fibers or yarns or tufts attached to a backing system made of synthetic or natural materials.”

Handmade rugs, area rugs, and mats are excluded from the law’s scope.

The ban was originally set to take effect in 2024, but state lawmakers postponed its implementation in 2023.  To date, it does not appear that any New York lawmaker has proposed legislation to extend its effective date again, however.

This prohibition is part of New York’s broader carpet extended producer responsibility (EPR) framework.  As discussed in a recent post, the EPR program will require that carpet manufacturers fund a carpet collection program and phases-in post-consumer recycled content requirements.

According to a New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) webpage, the agency is currently “in the preliminary stage of developing” regulations to implement the program and its associated requirements.

California Governor Vetoes PFAS Bans, Citing Cookware Concerns

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On October 13, 2025, California Governor Gavin Newsom vetoed SB 682, a high-profile bill that would have phased out the use of intentionally added PFAS across a wide range of consumer products.   The legislation represented one of California’s most comprehensive efforts to limit PFAS use, covering items from cookware to cleaning products.

In his veto message, Newsom wrote that “the broad range of products that would be impacted by this bill would result in a sizable and rapid shift in cooking products available for Californians.”  He added that “while this bill is well-intentioned, I am deeply concerned about the impact this bill would have on the availability of affordable options in cooking products.”

Under SB 682, the use of intentionally added PFAS would have been prohibited in cleaning products, dental floss, juvenile products, food packaging, and ski wax beginning in 2028.  The ban on PFAS-containing cookware was set to take effect in 2030.

More on SB 682 can be found in a previous post.

New York Carpet Producer Responsibility Program to Launch January 2026

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Carpet manufacturers selling in New York state will soon be required to fund a carpet collection and recycling program under New York’s new carpet extended producer responsibility (EPR) program, which is set to begin July 1, 2026.

New York’s carpet EPR law took effect in December 2024, and requires that carpet producers establish or join a collection program approved by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC).  Producers may comply individually or by participating in a “representative organization”—the equivalent of a producer responsibility organization (PRO) under other EPR frameworks.

Covered Products

The program applies to most carpet types sold in New York, including but not limited to:

  • Broadloom carpet
  • Modular carpet tiles
  • Artificial turf
  • Carpet pads and underlayment

Handmade rugs, area rugs, and mats are excluded from the program’s scope.

Statutory Requirements

The law establishes phased-in requirements for recycled content and recycling performance based on the number of years following NYSDEC’s approval of a producer’s initial program plan.

One year after plan approval:

  • All carpet sold must contain at least 10% post-consumer recycled content.
  • All carpet must be accompanied with the producer’s name and contact information, as well as the material, composition, and construction type.

Five years after plan approval:

  • All carpet sold must contain at least 20% post-consumer recycled content.
  • Producers must achieve a 30% recycling rate, including at least 10% closed-loop recycling.

Ten years after plan approval:

  • All carpet sold must contain at least 30% post-consumer recycled content.
  • Producers must achieve a 50% recycling rate, with at least 20% closed-loop.

Fifteen years after plan approval:

  • Producers must achieve a 75% recycling rate, of which 40% must be closed-loop.

In addition, starting December 31, 2026, no carpet sold in New York may contain or be treated with PFAS for any purpose.

If a producer or representative organization fails to meet its performance targets, starting four years after plan approval, NYSDEC will assess a penalty of $0.25 per pound for the shortfall—the difference between the actual amount recycled and the amount required to meet the goal.

Key Deadlines
  • December 31, 2025: Deadline for producers or representative organizations to submit their collection program plans to NYSDEC. The department must approve or reject plans within 90 days.
  • July 1, 2026: Producers may not sell carpet into the state unless participating in an approved collection program plan.
  • December 31, 2026: Ban on PFAS-containing carpet takes effect.
  • July 1, 2027: Producers or representative organizations must submit their first annual report to NYSDEC on their program’s implementation.

NYSDEC’s website states that it is “in the preliminary stage of developing” regulations to implement the law.  More information is available in a June 2025 NYSDEC webinar slide deck.

New Mexico Proposes First-Of-Its-Kind PFAS Labeling Requirements

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On October 8, 2025, the New Mexico Environment Department (NMED) proposed rules to implement the state’s PFAS Protection Act (HB 212).  In addition to phased-in prohibitions and reporting requirements, the proposal includes novel labeling requirements for all products containing intentionally added PFAS, with a compliance deadline of January 1, 2027.

HB 212 broadly defines PFAS as “a substance in a class of fluorinated organic chemicals containing at least one fully fluorinated carbon atom.”  This definition aligns with those adopted in other states—such as Maine and Minnesota—under their PFAS-in-products laws.

Labeling Requirements

Under the proposed rules, labels must:

  • Inform customers in both English and Spanish that the product contains intentionally added PFAS.
  • Use words and symbols approved by the department.
  • Be “likely to be seen, read and understood by an ordinary individual under customary conditions of purchase or use.”
  • Be “sufficiently durable to remain legible for the useful life of the product.”
  • Use a font size “no smaller than the largest font used for other consumer information on the product.”

For online or catalogue transactions, manufacturers or retailers must clearly disclose PFAS content to customers before purchase on sales literature, webpages, product specification sheets, and marketing materials, as applicable.  If product packaging obscures a label on the product itself, the packaging must be labeled in a compliant manner.

Example Labels

In a September 25, 2025, webinar, NMED shared preliminary label designs that would meet the proposed requirements, shown below.  The department emphasized that the graphics and language are not final.

Example labels for products and labels for product packaging

Exemptions and Special Cases

Used products are exempt from the proposed labeling requirements.  Manufacturers may also request a waiver for products in categories exempt from prohibition and reporting under HB 212—such as medical devices—if they can demonstrate that no PFAS will come into direct contact with consumers during intended use.

Complex durable goods and their components would be subject to alternative labeling requirements but would still need to inform customers of PFAS content.

If other states adopt PFAS labeling requirements, NMED’s proposal would allow manufacturers to comply by meeting comparable labeling rules in another state.

Opportunities for Engagement
  • Public comment period: Open through March 31, 2026.  Submit comments here.
  • Virtual public meeting: October 22, 2025, at 1pm MT (3pm ET).  Register here.
  • Public hearing: Expected around February 18, 2026, per NMED’s public involvement plan.
  • Final rule adoption: Expected by June 30, 2026.

For background on HB 212 and its broader PFAS restrictions, see our previous post.

Court Dismisses PFAS False Advertising Suit Against Coca-Cola – What Lessons Should Be Learned?

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On September 29, 2025, the Southern District of New York dismissed a PFAS false advertising suit against Coca-Cola over its Simply juice products, holding that the plaintiff lacked standing and failed to show a link between third-party PFAS testing and his actual purchases.  The court found no plausible economic or benefit-of-bargain injury.  The plaintiff alleged that Simply juices were falsely marketed as “All Natural” despite the presence of PFAS.

The court ruled that the plaintiff failed to allege the tested samples were from his purchases or that PFAS presence rendered the products less valuable.  Relying on precedents such as TransUnion v. Ramirez and Axon v. Florida’s Natural Growers, the court dismissed the complaint with prejudice for lack of standing.

The ruling reinforces that PFAS consumer mislabeling cases must connect laboratory testing to specific purchases and articulate a concrete injury to survive dismissal.  So, what lessons should be learned?

1. Laboratory Testing Link

Courts are dismissing PFAS mislabeling cases when the plaintiff fails to connect the specific product they purchased to the lab-tested sample.  Merely alleging that “testing of similar products” revealed PFAS, without tying that testing to the actual unit or batch purchased, is often viewed as too speculative.

2. Concrete Injury Requirement

Under TransUnion v. Ramirez and Spokeo v. Robins, plaintiffs must show a concrete, particularized injury, not just an abstract statutory violation or moral objection.  In PFAS suits, courts have required plaintiffs to allege:

  • That they overpaid for a product falsely marketed as “PFAS-free” or “non-toxic,” and
  • That the product they actually bought contained PFAS in measurable amounts.

Where plaintiffs only claim “fear of exposure,” “diminished value,” or cite general environmental harms, dismissal for lack of Article III standing is common.

3. Evidentiary and Pleading Implications

To survive Rule 12(b)(6):

  • Plaintiffs must plead chain-of-custody facts linking test results to the purchased item (e.g., same UPC, batch code, or manufacturing lot).
  • They should specify PFAS analytes and concentrations, not just allege “detectable PFAS” or presence of total organic fluorine.
  • Plaintiffs often rely on third-party advocacy testing (e.g., Mamavation, Environmental Working Group), but courts treat those as insufficient when plaintiffs fail to link the test results to the specific products they purchased.
4. Practical Takeaway for Defendants and Counsel

For companies facing PFAS labeling suits, early motions to dismiss can succeed by emphasizing:

  • Lack of product-specific testing linkage;
  • Lack of concrete injury or economic harm;
  • Compliance with trace-level detection limits (e.g., parts-per-trillion levels with no safety threshold exceeded).

The case is Lurenz v. Coca-Cola Co., No. 7:22-cv-10941 (S.D.N.Y.), filed 12/28/2022.  More details are available in a previous post.

Judge Tosses PFAS Carpet Class Action for Lack of Standing

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A proposed class action against 3M and Chemours for concealing the risks of PFAS carpet treatments failed to establish standing, a Minnesota federal judge ruled on September 30, 2025.

As discussed in a previous post, the suit alleged violations of the Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), conspiracy to commit various state-law torts, and over one hundred other state-law claims.  Plaintiffs claimed 3M and Chemours conspired to hide PFAS hazards from carpet manufacturers and consumers, deceiving purchasers and causing property damage from PFAS contamination.

These allegations never made it off the starting block.  In its order, the Minnesota District Court held that the plaintiffs failed to establish that they suffered an injury in fact or that the injury was fairly traceable to the defendants’ conduct—two requirements for Article III standing.

“Plaintiffs never allege that the carpet they purchased actually has been treated with PFAS products,” the order states.  Moreover, “none of the allegations in the Complaint trace any potential injury to Defendants’ products, as opposed to the products developed by…nonparties.”

According to the court, the complaint relied on a report produced by California’s Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) to argue that “most residential and commercial carpets are treated” with PFAS.  But since “most” could mean “a mere majority,” it “cannot support a reasonable inference that Plaintiffs’ carpets were treated with PFAS,” the order states.

Although these deficiencies alone warranted dismissal, the court went a step further, expressing concerns with the plaintiffs’ RICO charges and elements of their Minnesota common law claims.  For example, the court observed that “many courts” require that plaintiffs purchase products directly from the alleged antitrust violator to establish standing under RICO, while the plaintiffs in this case purchased their carpets from a third-party retailer.

The case is Peterson v. 3M Co., No. 24-CV-03497 (D. Minn.), filed 8/30/2024.

California Legislature Moves to Ban PFAS in Many Consumer Products

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On September 12, 2025, California’s Assembly and Senate approved SB 682, a bill imposing sweeping prohibitions on the use of intentionally added PFAS in a wide range of consumer products.  The legislation now heads to Governor Gavin Newsom for consideration.

As reported in a previous post, SB 682 would prohibit the distribution, sale, or offering for sale of cleaning products, dental floss, juvenile products, food packaging, and ski wax with intentionally added PFAS starting in 2028, and cookware beginning in 2030.

Since that earlier update, lawmakers amended the bill to exempt certain components of cleaning products until 2031.  The final version also clarifies that, beginning in 2028, cleaning products must comply with California Air Resources Board volatile organic compound (VOC) regulations without reliance on regulatory variances.

Governor Newsom has until October 12, 2025, to act on the bill.

California Legislature Advances Bill to Expand PFAS Product Prohibitions

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California has taken another significant step towards restricting the use of PFAS in consumer products with the advancement of SB 682, a bill that would add several new product-category PFAS bans beginning in 2028.  SB 682 has already passed the state Senate and is pending in committee in the Assembly.

What Products Would be Affected by SB 682?

Starting in 2028, SB 682 would prohibit the sale of products with intentionally added PFAS for the following product categories:

  • Cleaning products;
  • Dental floss;
  • Juvenile products;
  • Food packaging; and
  • Ski wax.

Starting in 2030, SB 682 would also prohibit the sale of cookware containing intentionally added PFAS.  Used products are exempt from the scope of the bill.

Existing Restrictions

SB 682 would not be the first California law to address the use of PFAS in the above product categories.  Since 2023, the state has prohibited the sale of plant fiber–based food packaging containing intentionally added PFAS, and beginning in 2024, cookware manufacturers have been required to disclose PFAS use on food contact surfaces.

California also enacted a ban on intentionally added PFAS in certain juvenile products in 2023.  SB 682 would broaden that restriction, extending it to any “product designed for use by infants and children under 12 years of age,” with limited exceptions.

Looking Ahead

If enacted, SB 682 would be California’s most far-reaching PFAS law to date, and its full Democratic support among voting senators signals a strong likelihood of passage in the Assembly.  Given California’s outsized market influence, the bill could also have spillover effects beyond state borders, encouraging broader adoption of PFAS-free product formulations.

Delta Airlines Sued for Greenwashing Making Carbon Neutral Claims

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Delta Airlines is the latest company to face a greenwashing class action lawsuit. The complaint alleges that the company has misled its customers by making carbon neutral claims. According to the complaint, Delta advertises that it has been carbon-neutral since March 2020; however, because Delta is using carbon offsets to achieve this, the complaint alleges that the company is making representations that are “manifestly and provably false.”

While on paper the purchase of carbon offsets should account for Delta’s global emissions, the complaint claims that issues exist with the accuracy and reliability of offsets issued by a voluntary carbon offset market. The complaint alleges that the voluntary offset market is comprised of “a loose arrangement of companies and NGOs that facilitate investment in green projects such as renewable energy and prevention of deforestation,” but that these carbon neutral projects have foundational issues such as inaccurate and speculative accounting of true carbon offsets, and the fact that many of these projects were scheduled and would have occurred regardless of participating carbon offset programs. Therefore, Delta’s claims “hinge[] on an underlying set of representations” that Plaintiff asserts are “manifestly and provably false.”

The complaint purports that “both scientists and government regulators have specifically identified [Delta] as one of many companies who have grossly misstated the actual carbon reduction produced by their carbon offset portfolio.” If these allegations are true, this would mean that, in reality, Delta is not fully carbon neutral, as the offsets it purchases are not accurately measured.

The Plaintiff alleges the carbon neutral claims are false and misleading and that consumers would not have purchased tickets on Delta flights at all or would have paid substantially less for them had they been aware the claims were false. This assertion is consistent with the increasing trend of consumers paying market premiums for greener products and services, i.e., products and services that have a smaller carbon footprint than competitors or no carbon footprint.

This complaint was brought pursuant to California’s Consumers Legal Remedies Act and California’s False Advertising, Business and Professions Code, which prohibits improper representations regarding the sale and source, sponsorship, approval, or certification of the services sold.

ASTM International Publishes Case Study on Standards for Biodegradable Plastic

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ASTM International, in celebration of its 125th anniversary, solicited case studies from committee members to showcase standards that have had a significant impact on society. One of the winning entries highlights a set of standards for biodegradable plastic from Committee D20 on Plastics. Two companion specification standards for compostable plastics and paper coatings have been established to promote environmentally responsible end-of-life solutions. These ASTM standards, D6400 and D6868, respectively, are crucial for gaining acceptance in the marketplace and regulatory bodies in states such as California, Washington, Minnesota, Rhode Island, and Connecticut. The plastics industry exclusively uses D6400 and D6868 for making biodegradability claims under industrial composting conditions, and these standards also serve as the basis for certifications issued by U.S. and European organizations. Many stakeholders require that compostable products meet D6400 for plastics and D6868 for coatings on paper, and industrial composters also demand adherence to these standards for the products applicable to composting