Important Compliance Update — Labeling Changes for Utah and California

Several major compliance changes are being implemented in the US states of Utah and California, and GRS is here to help you prepare for their implications. We attended the annual conference of IABFLO (International Association of Bedding and Furniture Labeling Officials) and got the inside scoop on these impending changes.

This article will cover the compliance changes in Utah and California, as well as how manufacturers and retailers can prepare for them to avoid fines and violations.

Utah Online Labeling and Retailer Responsibilities

The state of Utah is implementing changes that will affect every manufacturer and retailer that sells stuffed articles online.

Currently, every stuffed product must have a physical law label so consumers can review it in brick-and-mortar stores. This will still be true under Utah’s new law.

Moving forward, every stuffed product that’s sold online must also have a digital version of their law label viewable online prior to purchase in addition to the physical label on the product itself.

In short, this means that if you sell stuffed articles online then you need an online, digital law label for each product. No action is needed for products that are only sold in-store.

Utah also announced another change that will put further responsibility on retailers. Retailers in Utah are already responsible for their manufacturers, but moving forward they will also be responsible for their importers and distributors.

This means that leaning on importers and distributors to handle compliance is no longer a gray area. Retailers will need to remain more engaged in order to avoid costly fines and violations.

What To Do About Utah’s Changes

Utah’s update means that manufacturers and distributors will need to make a digital version of their products’ law labels available to any retailers who sell them in the United States.

If you don’t have a digital copy of your law label already — or if you just want to double check that your existing label is compliant — Global Registration Services offers professional law label design and auditing services. Start your design or audit here.

As for retailers who will soon take on more responsibilities, you can find peace of mind through GRS’ Retail Compliance program. It’s a free program that lets you keep better tabs on your suppliers, and has drastically reduced nationwide violations to nearly zero for our major retail partners. 

California Labeling Requirements

The state of California has always been a bit of an anomaly when it comes to law label requirements. Currently they do not have a codified standard for law labels, and instead accept standards from other states.

That will soon change, as California is proposing several changes to bring their labeling requirements into consistency with other states. Those changes have not yet been made public, but GRS doesn’t anticipate any regulations that should cause major waves.

California is also considering a legislative change similar to Utah’s, where a law label would need to be presented to a consumer prior to purchase. 

What To Do About California’s Changes

We’re hopeful that California’s movement toward consistent law label codes shouldn’t bring any major surprises for manufacturers of stuffed articles. The best way to stay informed about these changes, as well as other important compliance updates, is to subscribe to the GRS newsletter using the form at the bottom of this page.

While the legislation regarding online-available law labels hasn’t passed yet, it’s never a bad idea to get ahead of the curve. Global Registration Services can design your online-compliant law label, or audit your existing label for your peace of mind. Start your law label design or audit here.

Stay Compliant With GRS’ Law Label Lookup

After lengthy conversations with the states over the past year, GRS has developed a solution to help manufacturers stay compliant with Utah and California’s upcoming regulations: the Law Label Lookup database

Law Label Lookup is a consolidated online database that will allow manufacturers to upload their labels in one convenient online location, so consumers and the states can view them as per Utah and California’s new requirements.

Our database makes your labels available to consumers without the headache, and will optionally include a professional audit to ensure each of your labels is fully compliant. 

We look forward to sharing more about Law Label Lookup, and helping businesses stay compliant with these upcoming regulations.