NEW YORK — A U.S. senator is requesting that three federal agencies investigate Lumber Liquidators following a “60 Minutes” report that said the company’s laminate flooring made in China may not meet California’s health and safety standards.
The “60 Minutes” report, which aired Sunday on CBS, said that Lumber Liquidators’ laminate flooring made in China contains high levels of formaldehyde, a carcinogen. In a statement, Lumber Liquidators said that it complies with applicable regulations for its products, including California standards for formaldehyde emissions for composite wood products.
U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson sent a letter Wednesday to the heads of the Consumer Product Safety Commission, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Federal Trade Commission in which he called for independent testing of the laminate flooring to see if it potentially poses a health risk to the public.
“Because this could affect millions of homeowners, it’s imperative we get some answers quickly,” Nelson said.
A statement from the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation said that the Florida senator — the committee ranking member — also wants to know if Lumber Liquidators made potentially false marketing claims about the flooring’s compliance with a California formaldehyde safety standard.
Lumber Liquidators did not have an immediate comment on Sen. Nelson’s action.
Lumber Liquidators said in a separate press release earlier Wednesday that it was withdrawing from the Raymond James’ Annual Institutional Investors Conference on Wednesday. The company also announced plans to provide a business update on March 12.
Shares of Lumber Liquidators Holdings Inc. dropped $4.52, or 11.1 percent, to $36.26 in afternoon trading.
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