The Washington Legislature passed a bill changing the state's food-safety regulations with the right intentions: making sure the products we use in our kitchens are safe. That's a goal all Washingtonians can agree with, but the law as written moves away from established testing methods for how safety risks are measured.
Instead of using scientific testing standards for eliminating products that have the potential to transfer dangerous substances into food, the Lead in Cookware Act relies on an overly broad approach that ignores real exposure risks. This makes it harder for state regulators to enforce the law effectively, fails to target bad actors, and risks widespread bans on safe cookware and kitchen appliance products that already comply with strict national and international testing requirements.
Washington can do better. Concerned stakeholders from across the state are speaking out to demand a fix that follows the science and is tailored to achieve the intended public health benefit.
Members of the Washington Legislature have responded, introducing a bipartisan bill that will fix the previous law by:
Join us in calling on decisionmakers in Olympia to pass SB 5975 during the 2026 legislative session. Together, we can ensure Washington's food-safety laws protect public health in a way that is focused, effective, and grounded in science.
Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers: 1111 19th Street, NW, Suite 1150, Washington, DC 20036Senate Environment, Energy & Technology Committee Members—
I am writing to express support for SB 5975, which would refine the Lead in Cookware law to better align with established scientific testing standards and more effectively target bad actors.
The law was enacted to address a legitimate public health concern. However, rather than relying on exposure-based testing methods that measure whether lead can transfer into food, the current statute focuses on total material content—including naturally occurring trace amounts and internal components that never come into contact with food. This overly broad approach moves away from best practices for testing and oversight, makes the law difficult to enforce in practice, and risks unnecessarily impacting safe products that already meet rigorous national and international food-safety standards.
SB 5975 would strengthen the law by adopting a science-based testing framework that allows regulators to focus on real exposure risks and apply the law consistently, while preserving access to the kitchen products and cookware Washingtonians rely on every day.
I respectfully urge your support for SB 5975.
Respectfully,
[your name]
