April 2023* 

The Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) is responsible for enforcing California’s law to protect children and adults from exposure to lead and cadmium in jewelry.¹ The law restricts the amount of lead in jewelry by identifying what materials may be used and setting lead concentration thresholds that may not be exceeded. The law also restricts the amount of cadmium allowed in children’s jewelry. This fact sheet has been developed to help consumers and people in the jewelry industry understand the law and its requirements.

Background

Jewelry, including inexpensive children’s jewelry, can contain dangerously high levels of lead and cadmium. Lead is a toxic metal that can cause serious health effects, ranging from behavioral problems and learning disabilities to organ failure, and even death. Chronic cadmium ingestion can lead to kidney damage, bone loss problems, vomiting, diarrhea and even death at high enough doses.

Children fifteen years old and under are most at risk, because their bodies are growing quickly. Jewelry that contains toxic metals poses a particular concern because children are prone to placing jewelry in their mouths, which can result in dangerous amounts of toxic metals getting into their bloodstreams.

Recalls of lead and cadmium contaminated jewelry sold in places such as discount stores, gift shops and vending machines have increased people’s awareness of the health hazards associated with toxic metals in jewelry. The tragic death of a four year-old child in Minnesota after he swallowed a jewelry charm containing lead underlined the importance of taking immediate action to ensure the public is protected from this danger.²

Because of concerns about the risks they pose, California enacted laws that restrict the lead and cadmium content in jewelry. These laws together comprise California’s Metal-Containing Jewelry law, which was amended by Senate bill (SB) 647 that went into effect January 2020.³ This law prohibits persons from manufacturing, shipping, selling, or offering for sale jewelry for retail sale, or for promotional purposes, in California unless the lead and cadmium restrictions are met.

Applicability

This law applies to those who manufacture ship, sell, or offer for sale jewelry for retail sale, or offer jewelry for promotional purposes, in California. Businesses of all sizes are subject to the law, including but not limited to:

• Large retail “box” stores;
• Online stores and Web sites;
• Discount stores;
• Bead shops;
• Craft stores;
• Gift shops;
• Souvenir stores;
• Businesses that sell children’s jewelry in vending machines;
• Tattoo shops;
• Body piercing shops;
• People who make and sell their own jewelry;
• Video arcades; and
• Mail order companies.

All jewelry is subject to the lead restrictions set forth in the law. All children’s jewelry is subject to the cadmium restriction set forth in the law.

Definitions

• Jewelry: (1) Any of the following ornaments worn by a person: anklet; arm cuff; bracelet; brooch; chain; crown; cuff link; tie clip; hair accessory; earring; necklace; pin; ring; body piercing jewelry; jewelry placed in the mouth for display or ornament; (2) any bead, chain, link, pendant or other component of an ornament specified in (1) above; (3) a charm, bead, chain, link or pendant attached to shoes or clothes, that can be removed and may be used as a component of an ornament specified in (1); or (4) a watch in which a timepiece is a component of an ornament specified in (1) above, excluding the timepiece itself if the timepiece can be removed from the ornament.
• Children’s Jewelry: Jewelry made for, marketed for use by, or marketed to children ages fifteen and younger, represented in its packaging, display, or advertising.
• Body Piercing Jewelry: Any part of jewelry that is manufactured or sold for placement in a new piercing or a mucous membrane, but does not include any part of that jewelry not placed within a new piercing or a mucous membrane.

Requirements

The Metal-Containing Jewelry Law regulates the levels of lead and cadmium in jewelry in California by specifying both materials that can be used and restrictions on lead and cadmium in the materials and the jewelry.  Specific requirements for children’s jewelry, body-piercing jewelry, and all other jewelry are described below.  Please refer to the Table below for a concise guide.  Adherence to levels listed below is effective June 1, 2020.

Children’s Jewelry must meet all of the following requirements:

1. Every component of the jewelry contains no more than 0.01 percent (100 parts per million) lead by weight, excluding inaccessible component parts.
2. The jewelry has a surface coating that contains no more than 0.009 percent (90 parts per million) lead by weight.
3. The jewelry contains a component or is made of a material that is less than 0.03 percent (300 parts per million) cadmium by weight.
4. The jewelry has a surface coating that contains less than 0.0075 percent (75 parts per million) soluble cadmium by weight.
5. “Inaccessible” means not physically exposed by a sealed covering or casing and does not become physically exposed through reasonably foreseeable use and abuse of the product, including swallowing, mouthing, breaking, or other children’s activities, and the aging of the product. Paint, coatings, or electroplating do not render substrate material inaccessible to a child.

In addition to the limitations listed above, no component or material used in children’s jewelry may exceed 300 parts-per-million (ppm) cadmium by weight.

Body-Piercing Jewelry (the component of jewelry that is placed in a new piercing or a mucous membrane) must be made from one or more of the following:

1. Surgical implant stainless steel.
2. Surgical implant grade of titanium.
3. Niobium (Nb).
4. Solid 14 karat or higher white or yellow nickel-free gold.
5. Solid platinum.
6. A dense low-porosity plastic, including, but not limited to, Tygon or Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), if the plastic contains no intentionally added lead.

All Other Jewelry – must be made from one or more of the following:

1. Stainless or surgical steel.
2. Karat gold.
3. Sterling silver.
4. Platinum, palladium, iridium, ruthenium, rhodium, or osmium.
5. Natural or cultured pearls.
6. Glass, ceramic, or crystal decorative components, including cat’s eye, cubic zirconia, including cubic zirconium or CZ, rhinestones, and cloisonné.
7. A gemstone that is cut and polished for ornamental purposes, excluding aragonite, bayldonite, boleite, cerussite,crocoite, ekanite, linarite, mimetite, phosgenite, samarskite, vanadinite, and wulfenite.
8. Elastic, fabric, ribbon, rope, or string that does not contain intentionally added lead.
9. All natural decorative material, including amber, bone, coral, feathers, fur, horn, leather, shell, or wood, that is in its natural state and is not treated in a way that adds lead.
10. Adhesive.
11. Electroplated metal containing less than 0.05 percent (500 parts per million) lead by weight.
12. Unplated metal not otherwise listed containing less than 0.05 percent (500 parts per million) lead by weight.
13. Plastic or rubber, including acrylic, polystyrene, plastic beads and stones, and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) containing less than 0.02 percent (200 parts per million) lead by weight.
14. A dye or surface coating containing less than 0.05 percent (500 parts per million) lead by weight.
15. Any other material that contains less than 0.05 percent (500 parts per million) lead by weight.

Certification

A manufacturer or supplier of jewelry subject to this law must provide certification that the jewelry is in compliance with the law’s lead and cadmium restrictions. The manufacturer or supplier must either provide this certification to the person who sells this jewelry, or display the certification prominently on the shipping container or jewelry packaging. Additionally, the manufacturer or supplier of jewelry subject to this law must, upon request from DTSC and within 28 days, provide to DTSC technical documentation or other information showing that the jewelry is in compliance with the law.

SB 647 also amended the information required on the certification. The certification shall include:

1. Identify the jewelry covered by the certificate, including a description of the jewelry that is sufficiently detailed to match the certificate to each product covered by the certificate and that could not be used to describe any jewelry that is not covered by the certificate.
2. Cite to each separate rule or standard for which the jewelry is being certified.
3. Identify the manufacturer or supplier certifying compliance of the jewelry, including the name, full mailing address, and telephone number of the manufacturer or supplier.
4. Include the contact information for the person maintaining records of the test results of jewelry tested for purposes of this article, including the name, full mailing address, email address, and telephone number of that person.
5. Include the date on which the jewelry was manufactured, including at least the month and year.
6. Include the location where the jewelry was manufactured, including at least the city or administrative region, state, if applicable, and country where the product was manufactured or finally assembled. If the same manufacturer operates more than one location in the same city, the street address of the factory shall be included.
7. Include the date or dates on which, and the location or locations where, the jewelry was tested for purposes of certification.
8. Identify any third-party laboratory that performed the testing for purposes of certification, including the name, full mailing address, and telephone number of the laboratory.

Inspections

Under California’s Lead-Containing-Jewelry Law, DTSC has the authority to enter and inspect a factory, warehouse, or other establishment where jewelry is manufactured, packed, held or sold, or a vehicle used to transport, hold, or sell jewelry. DTSC is also authorized to obtain a sample, in exchange for a receipt for the item, and to review all relevant records.

Penalties

A person who violates the law may be subject to civil penalties up to $2,500 per day per violation. A manufacturer or supplier who knowingly and intentionally manufactures, ships, sells, offers for sale, or offers for promotion jewelry in violation of the law, may be fined between $5,000 and $100,000, or imprisoned up to a year, or both. A manufacturer or supplier who knowingly and with intent to deceive falsifies any document or certificate required by the law can be fined up to $50,000, or imprisoned up to a year, or both.

Test Methods for Determining Compliance

• The Metal-Containing Jewelry law requires the use of EPA Methods 3050B, 3051A, or 3052 [found in EPA Test Methods for Evaluating Solid Waste, Physical/Chemical Methods, SW-846 (Third Edition, as currently updated)] to determine compliance. The manufacturer or supplier must use the most appropriate test method for total digestion of the sample.
• The law also specifies additional sample preparation and testing procedures for certain materials. See California Health and Safety Code sections 25214.4 and 25214.4.1.

A list of certified environmental laboratories is provided on the California State Water Resources Board website.

More Information & Contacts

For more information, please visit our Web sites at:

• Lead in Jewelry
• Cadmium in Children’s Jewelry

You can call us at: (916) 322-3670.

All other questions should be directed to our Regulatory Assistance Officers using the information below. If calling from outside California, please call the “Outside CA” telephone number provided:

Toll-Free in CA: 800-728-6942 or 800 72-TOXIC
Outside CA: 916-324-2439
Email: RAO@dtsc.ca.gov

For assistance or additional information, please contact the DTSC Office nearest you. For a list of all offices, go to our Office Address and Phone Numbers web page.

Materials Required for Jewelry, by Type of Jewelry

References

¹Please note that all children’s products, including jewelry, are subject to the lead restrictions in the federal Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA), which defines “children” as 12 years old and younger.
²Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Death of a Child After Ingestion of a Metallic Charm — Minnesota, 2006.
³Health and Safety Code sections 25214.1-25214.4.2.

*Disclaimer

This fact sheet does not replace or supersede relevant statutes and regulations. The information contained in this fact sheet is based upon the statutes and regulations in effect as of the date of the fact sheet. Interested parties should keep apprised of subsequent changes to relevant statutes and regulations.