Research Catalog

Title

Product-risk labeling : a federal responsibility / W. Kip Viscusi.

Author

Viscusi, W. Kip.

Publication

Washington, D.C. : AEI Press ; Lanham, Md. : Distributed by arrangement with UPA, 1993.

Items in the Library & Off-site

Holdings

Details

Description

ix, 83 pages : illustrations; 23 cm.

Summary

• California's Proposition 65, the first major state warnings effort, requires that manufacturers inform the public about the risks of cancer or reproductive toxicity that are posed by their products. Now eight other states have bills pending before their legislatures or are considering measures like Proposition 65. This volume asks, Would such warnings benefit the public?
• Or would some labeling strategies actually distort consumers' perceptions of relative risks and impair their ability to make informed choices?
• This book examines state regulations for hazard warnings - for foods, for drugs, and for medical devices - and demonstrates why a federal warnings approach would be preferable. Conducted at the national level, product-risk labeling could adopt a standardized warnings vocabulary and avoid the fragmentation of national markets that would be so costly for our economy.

Series Statement

AEI studies in regulation and federalism

Uniform Title

AEI studies in regulation and federalism.

Subject

• Labels > Compliance costs > California
• Consumer goods > Economic aspects > United States
• Risk communication > Economic aspects > United States

Bibliography (note)

• Includes bibliographical references.

Contents

Foreword / Christopher C. DeMuth -- 1. Hazard Warnings. Hazard Warnings as a Regulatory Policy. Hazard Warnings and the Federalism Debate. Principal Findings -- 2. State Warnings for Food, Drugs, Cosmetics, and Medical Devices. California's Proposition 65. Summary of State Warnings Regulations -- 3. Policy Scope and Warnings Criteria. Product Coverage of State Labeling Regulations. Thresholds for Warnings. Listed Chemicals in California. Acceptable Warnings Methods. National Market Share Affected. International Trade Repercussions -- 4. Costs of Compliance, Warnings, and Reformulation. Costs of Testing and Litigation. Reformulation Costs. Labeling and Distribution Costs -- 5. Do Consumers Benefit from Informational Costs? Informational Costs. Northwestern University Test Sample -- 6. Conclusion -- Appendix: Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986.

ISBN

• 0844738212
• 0844738204 (pbk.)

LCCN

92035079

OCLC

• 26809677
• ocm26809677

Owning Institutions

Columbia University Libraries