The Maine Department of Environmental Protection has published a list of substances used in consumer products and considered to be of high concern for their impact on children. Under Maine law, inclusion on this list is a first step for possible regulatory action, including a possible prohibition of use of the substance in products intended for use by children. A ban will be considered only if satisfactory alternatives are found to exist.

The list is similar to, but not exactly the same as, one already adopted in Washington State. The Maine legislation defines a children’s product as “a consumer product intended for, made for or marketed for use by children under 12 years of age, such as baby products, toys, car seats, personal care products and clothing, and any consumer product containing a chemical of high concern that when used or disposed of will likely result in a child under 12 years of age or a fetus being exposed to that chemical. The list of chemicals of high concern includes

• Formaldehyde
• Benzene
• Vinyl chloride
• Tetrabromobisphenol A
• Dicyclohexyl phthalate; DCHP
• Diethyl phthalate
• Dibutyl phthalate, DBP
• Di-n-Hexyl Phthalate
• Benzyl Butyl phthalate; BBP
• Hexachlorobutadiene
• 2-Naphthylamine
• 4-Hydroxybiphenyl
• Benzidine and its salts
• Propyl paraben
• Butyl paraben
• 2-Aminotoluene
• Methyl paraben
• p-Hydroxybenzoic acid
• Styrene
• 4,4´-Methylenebis(2-Chloroaniline)
• Epichlorohydrin
• 1,2-Dibromoethane
• 1,3-Butadiene
• Toluene
• Tris(2-chloroethyl) phosphate
• Di-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate, DEHP
• Hexachlorobenzene
• Ethyl paraben
• 2,2′,4,4′-tetrahydroxybenzophenone, BP-2
• 2,4-Dihydroxybenzophenon
• Mono-n-butylphthalate
• 1,1,3,3-Tetramethyl-4-butylphenol
• Octamethylcyclotetrasiloxane
• Benzene, pentachloro-
• 2,2′,3,3′,4,4′,5,5′,6,6′-Decabromodiphenyl ether; BDE-209
• Methyl tert-butyl ether; MTBE
• perfluorooctanyl sulphonic acid and its salts; PFOS
• Phenol, 4-octyl-
• 2-Naphthalenol, 1-[(4-methyl-2-nitrophenyl)azo]-
• 2-ethyl-hexyl-4-methoxycinnamate
• Mercury & mercury compounds
• Nickel & nickel compounds
• Arsenic & Arsenic compounds
• Beryllium & Beryllium compounds
• Cadmium
• Quartz
• Butylated hydroxyanisole
• Hexabromocyclododecane
• (1,1,3,3-tetramethylbutyl)-phenol

The Chemicals of High Concern list, as well as links to the Chemicals of Concern list (a list of almost 1400 substances of somewhat lower concern to the State of Maine than the Chemicals of High Concern list), the relevant Maine legislation, and indications of the product categories in which the listed substances may be found, are available at http://www.maine.gov/dep/safechem/index.html