Details of the Senate Committee-Amended CPSC Bill on Product Safety (Part V - Trade in Recalled Products, Etc.)
On December 5, 2007, the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute, S. 2045, the CPSC Reform Act of 2007, to reform the Consumer Product Safety Commission to provide greater protection to children's products, and for other purposes.
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This is Part V of a multi-part series of summaries of the version of S. 2045 ordered to be favorably reported by the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee. Part V highlights provisions of S. 2045 related to trade in recalled products and certain other unlawful acts. (See future issues for additional summaries.)
Unlawful to Sell, Manufacture, Distribute, Import Products That Are Recalled, Etc.
S. 2045 would amend 15 USC 2068(a) by broadening the scope of paragraph (1) to make it unlawful for any person to sell, offer for sale, manufacture for sale, distribute in commerce or import into the U.S. any consumer product or other product or substance that is regulated by the Consumer Product Safety Act (15 USC 2051 et seq., CPSA) or any other act enforced by the CPSC that is:
- not in conformity with an applicable consumer product safety standard or similar rule; or
- subject to a recall (e.g., a voluntary corrective action) by the manufacturer (that is known or should have been known); or
- subject to an order issued under Section 12 or 15 of the CPSA, or designated a banned hazardous substance under the Federal Hazardous Substances Act (15 USC 1261 et seq.).
Unlawful to Export Products That Are Recalled, Etc.
S. 2045 would amend 15 USC 2067 by adding a new paragraph (c) to allow the CPSC to prohibit a person from exporting from the U.S. for the purpose of sale any consumer product, or other product or substance that is regulated under the CPSA or any other act enforced by the CPSC, that the CPSC determines meets criteria similar to (1) - (3) above, and/or additional criteria regarding the product safety standards of the importing country.
(S. 2045 would also make a conforming amendment to Section 15 of the Flammable Fabrics Act (15 USC 1202) to allow the CPSC to prohibit a person from exporting from the U.S. for the purpose of sale any fabric, related material, or product that the CPSC determines meets criteria similar to (1) - (3) above.)
Unlawful Acts Regarding Certifications, Misrepresentations, Third Party Labs
S. 2045 would also amend 15 USC 2068(a) by amending paragraph 6, and adding new paragraphs 13, 14, and 15, as follows:
Failure to furnish certificates or CPSC-required labels. Paragraph 6 would be amended to make it unlawful for any person to fail to furnish a certificate required by the CPSC or to issue a false certificate if such a person in the exercise of due care has reason to know that the certificate is false or misleading in any material respect; or to fail to comply with any rule under Section 14(c) of the CPSA regarding CPSC-required labels containing information on the date and place of manufacture, identification of the manufacturer, etc.
False certification marks. New paragraph 13 would make it unlawful for any person to sell, offer for sale, distribute in commerce, or import into the U.S. any consumer product bearing false certification mark of compliance with a safety standard established by a nationally recognized testing laboratory if such person knew or should have known that the certification mark was false.
Misrepresentation to CPSC. New paragraph 14 would make it unlawful for any person to misrepresent to any officer or employee of the CPSC the scope of consumer products subject to an action required under Section 12 or 15 of the CPSA or to make a material misrepresentation to such a person in the course of an investigation under the CPSA or any other Act enforced by the CPSC.
Attempt to influence third party labs. New paragraph 15 would make it unlawful for a person to exercise or attempt to exercise undue influence on a third party laboratory (as defined in section 14(e)(2) of the CPSA) with respect to the testing, or reporting of the results of testing, of any product for compliance with a standard under the CPSA or any other Act enforced by the CPSC.
(See ITT's Online Archives or 11/06/07, 11/07/07, 11/08/07, and 11/20/07 news, 07110600, 07110710, 07110810 and 07112010, for Parts I-IV.
See ITT's Online Archives or 10/22/07 news, 07102205, for BP summary of earlier version of S. 2045.
See ITT's Online Archives or 10/18/07 news, 07101815, for BP summary of H.R. 2474, a House-passed bill to increase maximum civil penalties that can be imposed by the CPSC.)
Committee reported version of S. 2045 available at http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/C?c110:./temp/c110wcOuA3
Consumer Product Safety Act (Public Law 92-573, dated 10/27/72) available at http://www.cpsc.gov/BUSINFO/Cpsa.pdf