Assemblymember Alex Lee Introduces Safer Soap Act To Protect Consumers From Antibacterial Soaps

Despite the lack of any evidence showing antibacterial soaps’ safety and efficacy, these products have been a boon for the cleaning products industry. The global antibacterial soap market is estimated to reach over $6.9 billion by 2030, up from $3.7 billion in 2020. But federal officials have advised consumers against using antibacterial soaps — warning that these products can do more harm than good. 

In an effort to protect Californians’ health and safety, Assemblymember Alex Lee introduced AB 916, the Safer Soap Act, to ban the sale of consumer hand soap or body wash containing antibacterial chemicals that pose public health risks. 

According to the Food and Drug Administration and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there’s no evidence showing that consumer antibacterial soaps are better at preventing illness than hand washing with plain soap and water. Public health officials have warned that antibacterial soaps may “give people a false sense of security,” and long-term daily use of antibacterial soap may be unsafe for consumers. 

“Companies manufacturing antibacterial soaps have had over eight years to prove that these soaps are safe and effective. Yet to this day, they continue to profit while failing to provide evidence that antibacterial soaps are more effective than regular soap and water at preventing illness,” said Assemblymember Lee. “Even worse, studies suggest that antibacterial soaps may contribute to antibiotic resistance, pollute waterways, and irritate skin. AB 916 protects consumers from being harmed and misled by an everyday product like soap.”

In 2016, the FDA banned 19 of 22 active ingredients in antibacterial consumer soaps. Due to pressure from the American Cleaning Institute, which represents the cleaning products industry, the agency delayed regulatory action on the remaining three chemicals Benzalkonium chloride, Benzethonium chloride, and Chloroxylenol. More than eight years later, the industry has failed to provide evidence that antibacterial consumer soaps containing these chemicals are safe or more effective than plain soap and water.

Assemblymember Lee is now taking legislative action. AB 916 will ban the sale of over-the-counter hand soap or body wash that contain Benzalkonium chloride, Benzethonium chloride, and Chloroxylenol. Research has shown that these chemicals may be harmful to human health — ingredients that are increasingly being used since COVID-19 and the FDA’s 2016 ban on various antimicrobials. They have been linked to health risks including skin irritation and respiratory illness. What’s more, the long-term use of antibacterial products may cause bacteria to evolve and evade the effects of antibacterial chemicals, exacerbating the growing public health threat of antimicrobial resistance. 

“Millions of people wash their hands every day with antibacterial soaps under the false impression that they offer better protection against illness,” said Rebecca Fuoco, Director of Science Communications at the Green Science Policy Institute. “In reality, these unnecessary antimicrobial ingredients are increasingly linked to health problems and may contribute to the rise of antibiotic-resistant superbugs. The Safer Soap Act is a common-sense, science-based policy that aligns with what researchers, the CDC, and the FDA have been telling us for years: plain soap works just as well without the potential harm.”

"California's kids deserve the highest levels of protection against harmful ingredients in our everyday products like hand soaps,” said Ted Lempert, President of Children Now. “Children are more vulnerable to the effects of toxic chemicals, and it's time for the state to ban the last of these antimicrobial compounds through the Safer Soap Act."

"Harmful chemicals in everyday products like hand soap and body wash put families at risk, even though the companies that market these products know that they’re no better than plain soap and water. Women, who are often the primary purchasers of household products and continue to bear a greater burden of household cleaning and childcare duties, are disproportionately exposed to these unnecessary chemicals. We need AB 916 to ensure consumers are not misled into using products that may do more harm than good,” said Debra Erenberg, Co-Executive Director of Women’s Voices for the Earth.