New Jersey Bans Intentionally Added PFAS in Apparel and Diapers Products

First published: September 2026

 

On 27 August, 2026, Governor Mikie Sherrill signed the bill S1281 into law as P.L.2026, c.76, amending New Jersey’s 2025 “Protecting Against Forever Chemicals Act” (P.L.2025, c.202) to add apparel and diaper products as newly covered categories. The base Act (P.L.2025, c.202), signed by outgoing Governor Murphy in January 2026 with prohibitions taking effect January 2028, already regulates intentionally added PFAS in carpets, cosmetics, fabric treatments, plant-fibre derived food packaging, and cookware.

 

What makes New Jersey different

All existing U.S. state PFAS apparel bans, including California, Colorado and New York, place the compliance burden on manufacturers to self-manage, with enforcement triggered as part of market surveillance for non-conforming products.

New Jersey takes a different approach. Manufacturers must certify to the New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs (NJDCA) that each covered product contains no intentionally added PFAS, in a prescribed form. Certifications are valid for five years and must be renewed if manufacturing processes or materials change. Manufacturers are required to pass copies of the certification to their purchasers. Hence, the obligation doesn’t stop at the brand; it flows down the supply chain. Retailers and distributors buying into New Jersey will be asking their suppliers for documentation.

This shifts the compliance model from reactive to proactive. Companies cannot simply rely on supplier assurances or existing RSL programs; they likely will need documented, certifiable evidence of no intentionally added PFAS status for each product, ready to transmit to NJDCA and to provide customers on request.

The prohibition and the certification requirement become effective on 27 August, 2028. However, the NJDCA still needs to issue the implementing rules that define exactly what that documentation looks like. Companies that use this window to build the underlying evidence base, rather than waiting to see what the regulations say, will be in a much stronger position come August 2028.

Scope

The amended law creates two separate covered-product categories:

• Apparel — clothing items intended for regular wear or formal occasions, defined broadly to include undergarments, shirts, pants, skirts, dresses, overalls, bodysuits, costumes, vests, dancewear, suits, saris, scarves, tops, leggings, school uniforms, leisurewear, athletic wear, sports uniforms, everyday swimwear, formal wear, onesies, bibs, footwear, and everyday workwear, plus outdoor apparel (including apparel designed for severe wet conditions).
  Scope exclusions: Personal protective equipment; clothing exclusively for U.S. military use; and equipment/protective apparel designed for safe motorcycle or off-highway-vehicle operation.
• Diaper products — absorbent products, disposable or reusable, manufactured to be worn to contain human waste. Menstrual products are excluded from this definition.

Key Obligations

• Prohibition: No person may sell, offer for sale, manufacture, or distribute for sale or use in New Jersey any apparel or diaper product containing intentionally added PFAS.
• “Intentionally added PFAS” is defined as PFAS added to a product, or intentionally used during development of a product or a product component, to provide a specific characteristic, appearance, or quality, or to perform a specific function — including known degradation byproducts. The definition excludes technically unavoidable trace PFAS stemming from impurities in natural or synthetic ingredients or from the manufacturing process.
• Manufacturer certification: Manufacturers must certify, in a form and manner to be prescribed by the NJDCA, that each apparel or diaper product they manufacture does not contain intentionally added PFAS. Certifications are valid for five years and must be updated if manufacturing processes or materials change. Manufacturers must provide certification copies to purchasers.
• “Manufacturer” is defined to include the entity whose brand name is affixed to the product. For imported products, the importer or first domestic distributor is deemed the manufacturer if the actual manufacturer/brand owner has no U.S. presence.

Effective Dates

• The act took effect immediately upon signing (27 August 2026).
• The sales/manufacture/distribution prohibition and the certification requirement take effect two years later, on 27 August 2028.
• The Division of Consumer Affairs is authorised to adopt implementing regulations and will prescribe the form and manner of the required certification. Companies should monitor future NJDCA guidance or rulemaking concerning implementation of the certification requirement.

Enforcement

A violation of this section constitutes a violation of the underlying Protecting Against Forever Chemicals Act (P.L.2025, c.202), triggering that act’s existing remedies and penalties. Under that framework, NJDCA may impose civil administrative penalties in the range of $1,000–$20,000 per violation per day; penalties pursued through the courts can reach up to $25,000 per day.

What You Should Do Now

Brands and manufacturers selling apparel or diaper products into New Jersey have a two-year window to 27 August 2028. Use it to:

• Review product formulations and supply chain inputs for intentionally added PFAS across all apparel and diaper SKUs sold into New Jersey
• Work with suppliers to eliminate intentionally added PFAS where present
• Monitor NJDCA for implementing regulations: these will define the required form and manner of certification, and likely address testing methods and documentation standards
• Begin preparing for the manufacturer certification process now, even before implementing rules are issued

How Eurofins Sustainability Services Can Help

We offer PFAS testing services for apparel and textiles to support your compliance with New Jersey’s prohibition and certification requirement. Our team can assist with PFAS screening and quantification across your product line, helping you identify intentionally added PFAS and build the documentation needed for NJDCA certification.

Contact us today to ensure PFAS compliance. You can also download our Managing PFAS whitepaper to learn more .