By Alexander M. Smith

Last week, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced the Consumer Right to Know Act (“Act”) as part of his proposed executive budget.  The Act would authorize the New York Department of Environmental Conservation, along with the New York Department of Health and the New York Department of State, to promulgate regulations requiring product manufacturers to disclose the presence of potentially hazardous substances on their product labeling.  Among other things, the Act would require these agencies to assess the feasibility of on-package labeling; develop regulations establishing a labeling requirement for designated products; develop a list of more than 1,000 substances that must be labeled; and identify the types of consumer products that will be subject to these new labeling requirements.  The Act would also extend the Department of Environmental Conservation’s disclosure requirements for household cleaning products to encompass all cleaning products sold in New York, and it would empower the Department of Health to require similar disclosures for personal care products like shampoo, deodorant, or baby powder.  Needless to say, these disclosure requirements would be among the most stringent—if not the most stringent—in the United States. 

Governor Cuomo’s announcement is available here.  We will keep our readers updated on the progress of Governor Cuomo’s proposal. 

2018 was another busy year for the Consumer Law Round-Up. Launched by the firm’s Consumer Law Practice, the blog updates readers on key developments within consumer law and provides insights that are relevant to companies and individuals that may be affected by the ever-increasing patchwork of federal and state consumer protection statutes. In 2018, the Consumer Law Round-Up featured posts by approximately 20 different authors on a wide array of topics. 

Below is a list of the Top 10 most popular posts of 2018. 

#1 SDNY Rules CFPB Unconstitutional, Creating Split of Authority and Raising New Questions

Since its inception, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has faced controversy over its structure as an independent agency headed by a single director who can be removed by the President only for cause. Critics have invoked the unitary executive theory to argue that the Constitution permits an agency to enjoy independence from at-will termination by the President only if the agency is headed by multiple commissioners, directors, or board members...Read more

#2 SEC Take on Tokens Clarifies Some Crypto Community Quandaries

In a June 14 speech, William Hinman, the SEC’s Director of the Division of Corporate Finance, began to place additional definition around the raging debate over whether digital assets, including tokens, are securities. Until that speech, much commentary had focused on the repeat statements by SEC officials that digital assets distributed in initial coin offerings (ICOs) are almost always securities in the SEC’s view, with the possible exception of widely disseminated cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin...Read more

#3 The Supreme Court Reaffirms the Reach and Force of the Federal Arbitration Act, This Time in Employment Cases

On May 21, 2018, the Supreme Court issued its long-awaited decision in the consolidated cases Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis, No. 16-285; Ernst & Young LLP v. Morris, No. 16-300; and NLRB v. Murphy Oil USA, No. 16-307. In a 5-4 opinion by Justice Gorsuch, the Court held that courts must enforce arbitration agreements requiring employees to bring employment-related claims in individualized arbitration proceedings, and barring them from pursuing those claims...Read more