Newsom Kills Glitter, Microbead Ban Bill Authored By SD Lawmaker

SAN DIEGO, CA — Gov. Gavin Newsom has vetoed a bill from a San Diego assemblymember that aimed to ban glitter and other microplastics in personal care products to reduce pollution.

Authored by Tasha Boerner (D-Encinitas), AB 823 aimed to expand a law passed in 2015 that targets plastic microbeads in personal care products that are rinsed off. The law would have also banned the sale of non-rinse-off products, certain cleaning products and personal care products containing plastic glitter.

Microbeads are tiny plastic particles used in personal care products like exfoliants or toothpaste. Boener says these tiny pieces of plastic don’t break down easily and can end up in drinking water supplies, food sources and human tissue.

“What we’ve seen is in the last couple of years increasing research that has shown how dangerous plastic microbeads and plastic glitter are for our human bodies and for our planet,” Boerner said previously.

Leah Kirpalani, owner of a beauty and wellness boutique with locations in North Park and Del Mar, had expressed support for the eco-friendly bill, insisting that there are alternatives for exfoliants like sugar, pumice, mineral salts, oats and volcanic clay.

“These are all natural ingredients that can reach the same effects, if not better, results because they have less of a chance to create micro tears in people's skin, which is a really great benefit of some of these more natural ingredients if done right,” Kirpalani said.

However, the governor didn't appear support the ousting of particles like glitter from products through the method Boerner had pitched.

Newsom wrote in his veto message that the approach may "incidentally result in a prohibition on biodegradable or natural alternatives."