Protecting Industry Interests

By Genevieve Valek

Change within the plumbing manufacturing industry involves many moving parts; preparation, advocacy and action are what cause the most productive change in the legislative process of bills affecting the industry. Recently, the California State Legislature considered AB 2060, which in its original form proposed to place into law a Jan. 1, 2021, effective date for the NSF 61 (2020) lead testing standard. 

Valek & Company worked together with Plumbing Manufacturers International (PMI) to increase the awareness of this new legislation, but with a slightly different message: Valek & Co. created a letter to the attention of the California Senate Committee on Environmental Quality Ben Allen urging the Senate Committee to ensure that AB 2060 would be amended to change the effective date to January 1, 2024. Along with this letter, Valek & Company curated a brochure detailing specific reasons as to why plumbing manufacturing companies need three years to produce and market new products in compliance with the new NSF 61 standard. In addition, Valek & Co. curated social media messages for Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn to post about the issue and direct towards California assemblymembers in order to spread awareness about the proposed change.

Valek and PMI’s work helped protect plumbing manufacturers’ interests while enabling bipartisan solutions to reducing lead content in plumbing fixture fittings used to provide drinking water. PMI members produce 90% of the plumbing products in the United States and have a long history of innovation in reducing the necessity of lead in fixtures. PMI also worked effectively with the California Energy Commission to address California’s drought by significantly lowering the maximum water flow rates for our products – again with structured compliance dates to design, manufacture, test, certify and deliver new products to ensure the protection of public health and safety.