Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Wastewater Infrastruc-
ture Pollution Prevention and Environmental Safety Act’’ 
or the ‘‘WIPPES Act’’. 
SEC. 2. ‘‘DO NOT FLUSH’’ LABELING. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—A covered entity shall label a cov-
ered product clearly and conspicuously with the label notice 
and symbol, in accordance with subsections (b) and (c). 
(b) REQUIREMENTS.— 
(1) CYLINDRICAL PACKAGING.—In the case of a 
covered product sold in cylindrical or near-cylin-
drical packaging, and intended to dispense individual 
wipes— 
(A) the symbol and label notice shall be dis-
played on the principal display panel in a clear 
and conspicuous location reasonably visible to 
the user each time a wipe is dispensed; or 
(B) the symbol shall be displayed on the 
principal display panel and the label notice, or 
a combination of the label notice and symbol, 
shall be displayed on a flip lid in a manner that 
covers at least 8 percent of the surface area of the 
flip lid. 
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(2) FLEXIBLE FILM PACKAGING.—In the case of 
a covered product sold in flexible film packaging, and 
intended to dispense individual wipes— 
(A) the symbol shall be displayed on the 
principal display panel and, if the principal 
display panel is not on the dispensing side of the 
packaging, on the dispensing side panel; and 
(B) the label notice shall be displayed on ei-
ther the principal display panel or the dis-
pensing side panel, in a clear and conspicuous 
location reasonably visible to the user each time 
a wipe is dispensed. 
(3) RIGID PACKAGING.—In the case of a covered 
product sold in a refillable tub or other rigid pack-
aging that may be reused by a customer, and that is 
intended to dispense individual wipes, the symbol and 
label notice shall be displayed on the principal dis-
play panel in a clear and conspicuous location rea-
sonably visible to the user each time a wipe is dis-
pensed. 
(4) PACKAGING NOT INTENDED TO DISPENSE IN-
DIVIDUAL WIPES.—In the case of a covered product 
sold in packaging that is not intended to dispense in-
dividual wipes, the symbol and label notice shall be 
displayed on the principal display panel in a clear 
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and conspicuous location reasonably visible to the 
user of the covered product. 
(5) BULK PACKAGING.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—In the case of a covered 
product sold in bulk at retail, the symbol and 
label notice shall be displayed on both the outer 
packaging visible at retail and the individual 
packaging contained within the outer packaging. 
(B) EXEMPTION.—The following shall be ex-
empt from the requirements of subparagraph (A): 
(i) 
Individually 
packaged 
covered 
products that are contained within outer 
packaging, are not intended to dispense in-
dividual wipes, and have no retail labeling. 
(ii) Outer packaging that does not ob-
scure the symbol and label notice on indi-
vidually packaged covered products con-
tained within. 
(6) PACKAGING OF COMBINED PRODUCTS.— 
(A) OUTER PACKAGING.—The outer pack-
aging of combined products shall be exempt from 
the symbol and label notice requirements of sub-
section (a). 
(B) 
PACKAGES
LESS
THAN
BY
INCHES.—In the case of a covered product in 
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packaging smaller than 3 inches by 3 inches 
(such as an individually packaged wipe in tear- 
top packaging) and sold as part of a combined 
product, if a symbol and label notice are placed 
in a prominent location reasonably visible to the 
user of the covered product, such covered product 
shall be considered to be labeled clearly and con-
spicuously. 
(c) REASONABLE VISIBILITY OF SYMBOL AND LABEL 
NOTICE.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—A covered entity shall ensure 
that— 
(A) packaging seams or folds or other pack-
aging design elements do not obscure the symbol 
or label notice; 
(B) the symbol and label notice are each 
equal in size to at least 2 percent of the surface 
area of the principal display panel; and 
(C) the symbol and label notice have high 
contrast with the immediate background of the 
packaging so that such symbol and label notice 
may be seen and read by an ordinary individual 
under customary conditions of purchase and use. 
(2) PROXIMITY
OF
SYMBOL
AND
LABEL
NO-
TICE.—A covered entity may display a symbol and 
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label notice either adjacent to or on separate areas of 
the principal display panel. 
(3) EXCEPTION.—Paragraph (1)(C) does not 
apply to an embossed symbol or label notice on the 
flip lid of a covered product sold in cylindrical or 
near-cylindrical packaging. 
(d) REPRESENTATIONS OF FLUSHABILITY.—With re-
spect to a covered product, a covered entity may not make 
any express or implied representation that such covered 
product can or should be flushed. 
(e) ENFORCEMENT
BY FEDERAL TRADE COMMIS-
SION.— 
(1) UNFAIR
OR
DECEPTIVE
ACTS
OR
PRAC-
TICES.—A violation of this section or any regulation 
promulgated under this section shall be treated as a 
violation of a regulation under section 18(a)(1)(B) of 
the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 
57a(a)(1)(B)) regarding unfair or deceptive acts or 
practices. 
(2) POWERS OF COMMISSION.—The Commission 
shall enforce this section and any regulations promul-
gated under this section by the same means, and with 
the same jurisdiction, powers, and duties, as though 
all applicable terms and provisions of the Federal 
Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 41 et seq.) were in-
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corporated into and made a part of this section, and 
any person who violates this section or any regulation 
promulgated under this section shall be subject to the 
penalties and entitled to the privileges and immuni-
ties provided in the Federal Trade Commission Act. 
(3) REGULATIONS.—The Commission may pro-
mulgate regulations under section 553 of title 5, 
United States Code, to implement this section. In de-
veloping the regulations, the Commission may consult 
with the Administrator of the Environmental Protec-
tion Agency, the Commissioner of Food and Drugs, 
the Consumer Product Safety Commission, or any 
other agency as appropriate. 
(4) AUTHORITY
PRESERVED.—Nothing in this 
section may be construed to limit the authority of the 
Commission under any other provision of law. 
(f) PREEMPTION OF STATE LAWS.—No State or polit-
ical subdivision of a State may directly or indirectly estab-
lish or continue in effect, under any authority, requirements 
with respect to the ‘‘Do Not Flush’’ labeling of covered prod-
ucts that are not identical to the requirements of this section 
and the regulations promulgated under this section. 
(g) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
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(1) COMBINED PRODUCT.—The term ‘‘combined 
product’’ means two or more products sold in shared 
retail packaging, of which— 
(A) at least one of the products is a covered 
product; and 
(B) at least one of the products is another 
consumer product intended to be used in com-
bination with such covered product. 
(2) 
COMMISSION.—The 
term 
‘‘Commission’’ 
means the Federal Trade Commission. 
(3) COVERED ENTITY.—The term ‘‘covered enti-
ty’’ means a manufacturer, wholesaler, supplier, indi-
vidual or group of individuals, or retailer that is re-
sponsible for the labeling or retail packaging of a cov-
ered product that is sold or offered for retail sale in 
the United States. 
(4) COVERED PRODUCT.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘covered prod-
uct’’ means a premoistened, nonwoven disposable 
wipe sold or offered for retail sale— 
(i) that is marketed as a baby wipe or 
diapering wipe; or 
(ii) that is a household or personal 
care wipe (including a wipe described in 
subparagraph (B)) that— 
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(I) is composed entirely, or in 
part, of petrochemical-derived fibers; 
and 
(II) has significant potential to be 
flushed. 
(B) INCLUSIONS.—The wipes described in 
this subparagraph are— 
(i) antibacterial wipes and disinfecting 
wipes; 
(ii) wipes intended for general purpose 
cleaning or bathroom cleaning, including 
toilet cleaning and hard surface cleaning; 
and 
(iii) wipes intended for personal care 
use on the body, including hand sanitizing, 
makeup removal, feminine hygiene, adult 
hygiene (including incontinence hygiene), 
and body cleansing. 
(5) HIGH CONTRAST.—The term ‘‘high contrast’’ 
means, with respect to the symbol or label notice, that 
such symbol or label notice— 
(A) is either light on a solid dark back-
ground or dark on a solid light background; and 
(B) has a contrast percentage of at least 70 
percent between such symbol or label notice and 
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the background, using the formula (B1 - B2) / 
B1 * 100 = contrast percentage, where B1 is the 
light reflectance value of the lighter area and B2 
is the light reflectance value of the darker area. 
(6) LABEL
NOTICE.—The term ‘‘label notice’’ 
means the written phrase ‘‘Do Not Flush’’. 
(7) PRINCIPAL
DISPLAY
PANEL.—The term 
‘‘principal display panel’’ means the side of a prod-
uct package that is most likely to be displayed, pre-
sented, or shown under customary conditions of dis-
play for retail sale, and— 
(A) in the case of a cylindrical or near-cy-
lindrical package, the surface area of which con-
stitutes at least 40 percent of the product pack-
age, as measured by multiplying the height by 
the circumference of the package; or 
(B) in the case of a flexible film package in 
which a rectangular prism or near-rectangular 
prism stack of wipes is housed within the film, 
the surface area of which is measured by multi-
plying the length by the width of the side of the 
package when the flexible packaging film is 
pressed flat against the stack of wipes on all 
sides of the stack. 
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(8) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means each State 
of the United States, the District of Columbia, and 
each commonwealth, territory, or possession of the 
United States. 
(9) SYMBOL.—The term ‘‘symbol’’ means the ‘‘Do 
Not Flush’’ symbol, as depicted in the most recent edi-
tion of the Guidelines for Assessing the Flushability 
of Disposable Nonwoven Products published by the 
Association of the Nonwoven Fabrics Industry 
(INDA) 
and 
the 
European 
Disposables 
And 
Nonwovens Association (EDANA), or an otherwise 
equivalent symbol adopted by the Commission 
through rulemaking under this section. 
(h) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall apply to a 
covered entity beginning on the date that is 1 year after 
the date of the enactment of this Act. 
Amend the title so as to read: ‘‘A bill to require cer-
tain products to be labeled with ‘Do Not Flush’ labeling, 
and for other purposes.’’. 
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Union Calendar No. 371 
118TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 2964 
[Report No. 118–447] 
A BILL 
To require the Federal Trade Commission to issue 
regulations requiring certain products to have 
‘‘Do Not Flush’’ labeling, and for other purposes. 
APRIL 5, 2024 
Reported with amendments, committed to the Committee 
of the Whole House on the State of the Union, and or-
dered to be printed 
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