New Jersey Broadens Ban on Intentionally Added PFAS to Apparel and Diaper Products

Continuing a growing trend nationwide of banning per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in consumer products, New Jersey has broadened its PFAS restrictions to include apparel and diaper products. On August 27, 2026, Governor Mikie Sherrill signed Senate Bill 1281 into law as Public Law 2026, c.76 (the Law).¹ The Law builds on New Jersey’s Protecting Against Forever Chemicals Act, which previously restricted intentionally added PFAS in cosmetics, carpets, fabric treatments, food packaging, and cookware.² There is a two-year grace period, and beginning on August 27, 2028, the sale, offering for sale, manufacturing, or distribution of any apparel or diaper product in New Jersey containing intentionally added PFAS will be prohibited.³

The Law

The Law defines “apparel” broadly, covering regular wear and formal clothing, undergarments, shirts, pants, dresses, school uniforms, athletic wear, everyday swimwear, footwear, and workwear.⁴ It also covers outdoor apparel, including such apparel “designed for severe wet conditions,” and specialized apparel for outdoor sports that is not marketed to general consumers and that protects against heavy rain or prolonged exposure to water or snow.⁵ Carved out from the Law is personal protective equipment, clothing made exclusively for the U.S. military, and gear designed for the safe operation of motorcycles or off-highway vehicles.⁶

The Law also regulates diaper products, which are defined to include products that are absorbent, disposable or reusable, and manufactured to be worn to contain human waste.⁷ Menstrual products, however, are excluded.⁸

“PFAS” is defined by the Law to mean substances that include any member of the class of fluorinated organic chemicals containing at least one fully fluorinated carbon atom.⁹ The definition of “PFAS” also includes PFAS breakdown byproducts.¹⁰ Importantly, however, the Law does not enact a complete ban on PFAS in the enumerated products. It turns instead on “intentionally added” PFAS, a term carried over from the Protecting Against Forever Chemicals Act.¹¹ “Intentionally added” PFAS means PFAS that are added to a product or used in developing the product or any of its components to give it a particular characteristic, appearance, or quality or to make it perform a specific function.¹²

There is no numerical threshold for intentionally added PFAS, but the Law does acknowledge the potential for unavoidable trace amounts from impurities, the manufacturing process, storage, or packaging.¹³ According to the Law, the existence of such trace amounts of PFAS would not violate the Law per se. But the manufacturing entity would likely need to be able to substantiate that such PFAS were not intentional. In the end, what matters is whether PFAS were put in intentionally and not whether testing can detect them.

A violation of the Law’s sales ban or certification requirement is a violation of the Protecting Against Forever Chemicals Act and carries the full range of remedies and penalties.¹⁴

Next Steps for Subject Entities

Following the full implementation of the Law, manufacturing entities must take steps to confirm that their products are made without intentionally added PFAS, and then they must certify the lack of PFAS to the Division of Consumer Affairs.¹⁵ A certification lasts five years and must be updated whenever the manufacturing process or materials change.¹⁶ Manufacturers must also “provide a copy of the certification” to every buyer of the product.¹⁷ And notably, “[m]anufacturer,” a defined term under the Law, covers not only the company that makes the product but also anyone whose brand name appears on it.¹⁸ For imported products, the importer or first U.S. distributor can also be treated as the manufacturer if the maker or brand owner has no U.S. presence.¹⁹

Eventually, the Division of Consumer Affairs will issue regulations implementing the law.²⁰ Those rules will likely address testing methods and the documentation needed to support a certification, neither of which the Law itself specifies. In the event that the regulations are not promulgated by August 2028, the Division of Consumer Affairs’ agency interpretation will likely govern how the Law is initially implemented.

As noted in our prior articles on this topic (see, e.g., Client Alert on the Toxic Packaging Reduction Act), the Law signals a continuing trend in New Jersey and other states²¹ to shift to front-end regulation of PFAS in an effort to remove them from the chain of commerce, thus arguably reducing the possibility for future PFAS releases. Because compliance with the Law hinges on a product’s specific raw materials, manufacturers and other regulated entities would be well advised to use the two-year grace period to review their products and the products’ chemical composition. Entities engaging in business in New Jersey should expect PFAS bans on specific products to continue to expand.

If you have questions about PFAS, the Law, other amendments to the Protecting Against Forever Chemicals Act, or other requirements for consumer products, please contact the authors of this article.

¹ See S.B. 1281, 222d Leg., Reg. Sess. (N.J. 2026).
² The Protecting Against Forever Chemicals Act, P.L.2025, c.202, was codified at N.J.S.A. 56:3-53 to -63 and 13:1D-71 to -73.
³ See S.B. 1281 § (1)(b).
⁴ Id. § 3.
⁵ Id.
⁶Id.
⁷ Id.
⁸ Id.; see also N.J.S.A. 56:3-52.1.
⁹ N.J.S.A. 56:3-55.
¹⁰ Id.
¹¹ S.B. 1281 § (1)(b).
¹² N.J.S.A. 56:3-55.
¹³ Id.
¹⁴ N.J.S.A. 56:3-62.
¹⁵ S.B. 1281 § (1)(b).
¹⁶ Id.
¹⁷ Id.
¹⁸ N.J.S.A. 56:3-55.
¹⁹ Id.
²⁰ See N.J.S.A. 56:3-62.
²¹ Various states have enacted similar legislation. See, e.g., Colo. Rev. Stat. § 25-15-604; Cal. Health & Safety Code § 108971; Conn. Gen. Stat. § 22a-903c; Me. Stat. tit. 38, § 1614(1).