Uncertainty prompted by tariffs and qualms about member companies’ legal obligations is one of the household cleaning industry’s most pressing challenges, says Household and Commercial Products Association President and CEO Steve Caldeira.

At the Household and Commercial Products Association’s (HCPA) 2025 Mid-Year Meeting on June 22-25 at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington DC, Association President and CEO Steve Caldeira said the HCPA is working with coalition partners, the National Association of Manufacturers and the US Chamber of Commerce to ensure the Trump Administration’s awareness of these policies’ burdensome monetary impact on the industry.

“The newly formed Department of Government Efficiency imposed reducing the size and scope, including voluntary programs of the Environmental Protection Agency, recognizing that the EPA was already experiencing resource constraints,” said Caldeira. “HCPA’s aimed its efficacy efforts at maintaining the agency’s four regulatory functions and improving outcomes for our members.”

Mike Gruber educated Trump’s transition team about the EPA’s office of pesticide programs. He also informed Congress about preferred changes to Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) with a focus on the new chemicals program and implementation recommendations.

“We became worried about the future of the Safer Choice Program, which had already been targeted for privatization, and the Heritage Foundation’s presidential transition initiative project 2025,” said Caldeira.

Working with a coalition of stakeholders, HCPA penned a letter in support of Safer Choice signed by a “gratifying network” of nearly 300 business organizations which included many of its members companies. As a result of this effort, Safer Choice was preserved and will be managed under the EPA’s new chemicals program. It is one of the Association’s biggest achievements in 2025.

“HCPA included funding for Safer Choice in our appropriations request as well as money for the EPA’s Pesticide Licensing Program, which will hopefully help to improve regulatory outcomes by addressing registration backlogs, Caldeira said. “Priorities shifted quickly between administrations, and in response, we directed even more resources to progressive states that have been filling the void of federal-level leadership. This is especially true of our issues related to air quality, animal testing, chemicals under discussion, extended producer responsibility, household hazardous waste, microplastics, and pesticide registrations and restrictions. Most of the legislation surrounding these issues are shaped by political pressures rather than science-based, common-sense policies that balance environmental and public health protection with the need for product innovation. I am proud to say that to date, HCPA has been successful in amending or neutralizing some of the most burdensome legislation and legislative proposals.”

States and PFAS

Caldeira cited “significant work” by several states to introduce broad PFAS restrictions that cover cleaning products. These include California, Illinois, Maryland, New Mexico, New York and Vermont.
He said HCPA will focus on establishing precise definitions for PFAS and what it means to add an ingredient to a product versus contaminants.

“We want lawmakers to understand why it’s so important to have accurate testing methods,” he said.
PFAS will not be the only chemical under discussion this year.

States continue to explore policies related to chemical disclosure, ingredient bans and product labeling. A Connecticut legislator, for one, introduced a bill that mimics New York’s 1,4-dioxane limits in cleaning and personal care products. While HCPA successfully dissuaded the legislator from considering the proposal, Caldeira admonished this will not be the last time this and similar bills are introduced in states across the country.

The California Air Resources Board (CARB) conducted a survey of consumer product categories to inform the next rule-making that will help reduce ozone-forming potential. Nicholas Georges, SVP-scientific and international affairs, has been effectively engaged with CARB to discuss survey challenges in an effort to assist member companies with their responses, according to Caldeira.

CARB is also considering using Maximum Incremental Reactivity (MIR) to replace the current mass volatile organic compound approach.

“Since this is a new approach for many companies, HCPA has hosted two training webinars to help membered companies better understand how MIR applies to their products and will continue to look for additional educational opportunities,” he said.

Averting Microplastic Policies Patchwork

Legislators in the state introduced a bill to restrict the use of microbeads in cleaning products.
“It was a big win for the industry when HCPA successfully limited the scope of materials that would impact member products,” recalled Caldeira. “However, California’s Department of Toxic Substances Control continues its efforts to add microplastics to the list of chemicals that may be regulated under the state’s Safer Consumer Products Program. Before it proliferates like the PFAS issue, we want to prevent a state-by-state patchwork of polices for microplastics and other restrictions. As we know, inconsistent rules burden companies with conflicting requirements and can cause confusion. At the end of the day, policies rooted in sound science, inspired and incentivized innovation, can provide a reliable and consistent foundation that can be broadly applied across the country.”

Regarding insecticides and herbicides, numerous state bills have focused on restricting their use, from prohibiting the sale of these products in retail locations to limiting their use to licensed applicators, according to Caldeira.

Extended Producer Responsibility

Household hazardous waste remains a hot topic that is gaining ground at the state level. To date, seven states—California, Colorado, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, Oregon and Washington—have active laws that shift the financial and operational responsibility for packaging waste for cities to producers aiming to drive meaningful improvements in recycling.

HCPA, led by Molly Blessing, VP-sustainability & product stewardship, is collaborating with allied trade associations and Circular Action Alliance, the packaging producer responsibility organization, to ensure that certain products such as aerosols and low-risk pesticides are included on state recycling lists, he said.

Vermont passed legislation to establish an Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) program for household hazardous waste (HHW). Vermont’s law was recently amended to include that manufacturers pay a stewardship organization to administer financial reimbursement to the state’s eight solid waste management entities for costs incurred managing HHW. Legislation to establish HHW EPR programs in California and Illinois are under consideration but are not expected to advance this year, according to HCPA.

In other sustainable packaging news, Caldeira said HCPA is leveraging an aerosol recycling initiative to improve the recyclability status of aerosols. The Association is collaborating with producer-led nonprofit Circular Action Alliance to develop messaging for Portland, OR that communicates how to properly recycle aerosols. If aerosols are included in curbside recycling lists, their EPR fees will be significantly lower compared to other metal cans, he said.

“2025 has presented many challenges, but also opportunities for the industry to continue to act with transparency and innovate boldly, which is what our members do,” Caldeira concluded.