A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT prohibiting the manufacture and sale of over‑the‑counter drugs and personal care products that contain synthetic plastic microbeads.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  Chapter 130A of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new Article to read:
"Article 11A.
"Prohibition on Manufacture and Sale of Products Containing Microbeads.
"§ 130A‑550.  Legislative findings and purpose.
(a)	The General Assembly finds all of the following:
(1)	Microbeads are a synthetic alternative ingredient in personal care products and over‑the‑counter drugs that are used in place of natural materials such as ground almonds, oatmeal, and pumice.
(2)	Microbeads are found in over 100 personal care products and over‑the‑counter drugs that are sold in the State and that ultimately are flushed down drains as part of the intended use of the product.
(3)	Most municipal wastewater treatment plants in the State do not effectively filter microbeads from water discharged to rivers and lakes.
(4)	Plastic microbeads are persistent organic compounds that attract other pollutants commonly present in the environment, many of which are recognized to have serious deleterious impacts on human health or the environment, including dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT), dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene (DDE), polychlorinated biphenyl (PCBs), and flame retardants.
(5)	Chemicals from plastics, such as PCBs, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), transfer to fish tissue during digestion, bioaccumulate, and result in liver damage.
(6)	Fish consumed by humans have been found to have ingested plastic microbeads.
(7)	There are economically feasible alternatives to plastic microbeads, as indicated by the current use of biodegradable, natural, and abrasive materials in many consumer personal care products.
(8)	Updating municipal wastewater treatment plants so that they effectively filter microbeads likely would be costly and take many years.
(b)	The purpose of this Part is to prevent the continued harmful effects of synthetic plastic microbeads on State waters without expending significant time and money to update wastewater treatment plants by banning the manufacture and sale of synthetic plastic microbeads in this State.
"§ 130A‑550.1.  Definitions.
The following definitions apply in this Part:
(1)	Biodegradable. – The capability of a substance to break down completely in the natural environment that the substance is likely to encounter within 24 months of its disposal, through a biological process of decomposition into elements or compounds commonly found in that environment.
(2)	Household cleansing product. – Any product, including soaps and detergents used for domestic or commercial cleaning purposes, including the cleansing of fabric, dishes, food utensils, and household and commercial premises. The term does not include any of the following:
a.	Food, drugs, and cosmetics, including personal care items such as toothpaste, shampoo, and hand soap;
b.	Products labeled, advertised, marketed, and distributed for use primarily as economic poisons as defined in 14 C.F.R. § 137.3.
(3)	Over‑the‑counter drug. – A compound, substance, or preparation that contains a label that identifies the product as a drug, as required by 21 C.F.R. § 201.66, and that includes a drug facts panel or a statement of the active ingredient or ingredients contained in the compound, substance, or preparation.
(4)	Personal care product. – Any article intended to be rubbed, poured, sprinkled, or sprayed on, introduced into, or otherwise applied to the human body or any part thereof for cleansing, beautifying, promoting attractiveness, or altering the appearance and any article intended for use as a component of any such article. The term does not include any prescription drug as that term is defined in G.S. 90‑85.3.
(5)	Plastic. – A synthetic material made from linking monomers through a chemical reaction to create an organic polymer chain that can be molded or extruded at high heat into various solid forms retaining their defined shapes during life cycle and after disposal.
(6)	Synthetic plastic microbead. – An intentionally added nonbiodegradable solid plastic particle less than five millimeters in size.
"§ 130A‑550.2.  Prohibitions regarding personal care products.
(a)	Effective December 1, 2017, no person shall manufacture in the State a personal care product that contains synthetic plastic microbeads, except for an over‑the‑counter drug.
(b)	Effective December 1, 2018, no person shall sell, offer for sale, offer for promotion, or otherwise distribute in the State a personal care product that contains synthetic plastic microbeads, except for an over‑the‑counter drug.
"§ 130A‑550.3.  Prohibitions regarding over‑the‑counter drugs.
(a)	Effective December 1, 2018, no person shall manufacture in the State an over‑the‑counter drug containing synthetic plastic microbeads.
(b)	Effective December 1, 2019, no person shall sell, offer for sale, offer for promotion, or otherwise distribute in the State an over‑the‑counter drug that contains synthetic plastic microbeads."
SECTION 2.  This act becomes effective October 1, 2015.