AP

Johnson & Johnson, Mattel Inc. and other manufacturers of children’s products would be required to report whether toys, cosmetics, jewelry, apparel and other items contain certain harmful chemicals, under new rules proposed by Washington state.

Officials have come up with a list of 59 chemicals that would trigger reporting to the state. The list includes cadmium, formaldehyde, benzene and bisphenol A.

Manufacturers of products intended for sale in Washington would report how much of the chemicals are in their products and how they are being used, such as to kill germs or harden plastics. The rules also would apply to retailers like Wal-Mart Stores Inc. that directly import products into the U.S.

“We’re trying to get an understanding of what chemicals are in products,” said Carol Kraege, the Department of Ecology’s toxics policy coordinator. “This is the first step toward safer products.

Reporting would begin in 2012 for the largest manufacturers, or those with gross sales of over $1 billion. It would phase in over the next several years for smaller companies.

In 2008, Washington became the first state in the nation to pass a law requiring manufacturers to report whether children’s products contain certain chemicals.

Industry and business officials said this week they have worked with the state to make sure the proposed rules are workable for companies.

Andy Hackman, a spokesman with the Toy Industry Association, said his group still has some concerns about the low level of chemical concentration that would trigger reporting.

“The reporting levels are really quite low,” Hackman said Tuesday. “Right now they have them so low that it begins to pick up trace levels (in the environment).”

Kraege said the state isn’t setting a health-based standard. “All we’re trying to do is get information” she said. The system will help officials decide the next steps and which products they should worry about.

State officials came up with 59 chemicals of concern from about 2,000 prospective chemicals that cause cancer and harm fetal development, among other factors.

The chemicals on the list are toxic, and have been found in children’s products or have been found present in human tissues, such as blood or breast milk, Kraege said.

A chemical’s presence in a product, however, does not necessarily mean that children are being exposed to it or that a product is harmful, Kraege said.

The first round of reporting applies to products intended for children 3 and under or likely to be put in a child’s mouth, such as feeding products, or on their skin, such as lotions and creams. Clothes, jewelry, bedding and car seats come next, followed by toys.

Advocates say the reporting rules will fill a gap of information.

“Parents go to the store and have no idea what’s in toys they buy for kids,” said Ivy Sager-Rosenthal, campaign director with the Washington Toxics Coalition, which lobbied for the Washington law. “This information will give them peace of mind.”