S 1833 ISCommentsClose CommentsPermalink

To amend the Consumer Product Safety Act to require third-party verification of compliance of children's products with consumer product safety standards promulgated by the Consumer Product Safety Commission and for other purposes.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

July 19, 2007

Mr. NELSON of Florida (for himself and Mr. DURBIN) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and TransportationCommentsClose CommentsPermalink

To amend the Consumer Product Safety Act to require third-party verification of compliance of children's products with consumer product safety standards promulgated by the Consumer Product Safety Commission and for other purposes.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the `Children's Products Safety Act of 2007'.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

SEC. 2. PURPOSE.

The purpose of this Act and the amendments made by this Act is to prevent the introduction of dangerous toys and other products used by children into the marketplace by requiring independent third-party testing and certification that toys and other products intended for use by children comply with consumer product safety standards and rules before they enter the interstate stream of commerce.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

SEC. 3. CERTIFICATION OF COMPLIANCE OF CHILDREN'S PRODUCTS WITH CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY RULES.

(a) Expansion of Certification Requirement To Include Certification for Compliance With All Consumer Product Safety Rules Promulgated Under Acts Administered by the Consumer Product Safety Commission- Subsection (a) of section 14 of the Consumer Product Safety Act (15 U.S.C. 2063) is amended--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(1) by redesignating paragraph (2) as paragraph (5);CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(2) in paragraph (1)--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(A) by striking `Every manufacturer' and inserting `Except as provided in paragraph (2),'; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(B) by designating the second and third sentences as paragraphs (3) and (4), respectively, and indenting the margin of such paragraphs, as so designated, 2 ems from the left margin;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(3) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following:CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(2) Every manufacturer of a children's product (and the private labeler of such product if it bears a private label) which is subject to a consumer product safety standard under this Act or a rule under this or any other Act administered by the Commission declaring a consumer product a banned hazardous product shall issue a certificate which shall certify that such product conforms to such consumer product safety standard or is not a banned hazardous product under such rule, and shall specify such consumer product safety standard or such rule.';CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(4) in paragraph (3), as redesignated by paragraph (2)(B), by striking `Such certificate shall' and inserting `A certificate required under this subsection shall'; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(5) in paragraph (5), as redesignated by paragraph (1)--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(A) by striking `required by paragraph (1) of this subsection' and inserting `required by paragraph (1) or (2) (as the case may be)'; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(B) by striking `requirement under paragraph (1)' and inserting `requirement under paragraph (1) or (2) (as the case may be)'.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(b) Third-Party Certification Required- Subsection 14(b) of the Consumer Product Safety Act (15 U.S.C. 2063(b)) is amended--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(1) by striking `The Commission may' and inserting `(1) The Commission may';CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(2) by designating the second sentence as paragraph (2) and indenting the margin of such paragraph, as so designated, 2 ems from the left margin;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(3) in paragraph (2), as so designated, by striking `Any test or' and inserting `Except as provided in paragraph (3), any test or'; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(4) by adding at the end the following:CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(3) In the case of a children's product, any test or testing program on the basis of which a certificate is issued under subsection (a)(2) shall be conducted by a nongovernmental independent third party qualified to perform such tests or testing programs.'.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(c) Definition of Children's Products and Independent Third Party- Section 14 of the Consumer Product Safety Act (15 U.S.C. 2063) is amended by adding at the end the following:CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(d) Definitions- In this section:CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(1) CHILDREN'S PRODUCT- The term `children's product' means a toy or other article intended for use by a child under 60 months of age that is introduced into the interstate stream of commerce. In determining whether a toy or article is intended for use by a child under 60 months of age, the following factors shall be considered:CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(A) A statement by a manufacturer about the intended use of such toy or article, including a label on such toy or article, if such statement is reasonable.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(B) The context and manner of the advertising, promotion, and marketing associated with the toy or article.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(C) Whether the toy or article is commonly recognized by consumers as being intended for use by a child under 60 months of age.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(D) The Age Determination Guideline issued by the Consumer Product Safety Commission in September 2002 and any subsequent version of such Guideline.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(2) INDEPENDENT THIRD PARTY- The term `independent third party', with respect to a testing entity, means an independent testing entity that is physically separate from any manufacturer or private labeler whose product will be tested by such entity, and is not owned, managed, controlled, or directed by such manufacturer or private labeler.'.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(d) Label and Certification- Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Consumer Product Safety Commission shall prescribe a rule in accordance with subsection (c) of section 14 of the Consumer Product Safety Act (15 U.S.C. 2063) for children's products described in subsection (d)(1) of such section, as added by subsection (c) of this section.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

SEC. 4. PROHIBITION ON IMPORTS OF CHILDREN'S PRODUCTS WITHOUT THIRD-PARTY TESTING CERTIFICATION.

Section 17(a) of the Consumer Product Safety Act (15 U.S.C. 2066) is amended--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(1) in paragraph (4), by striking `or' at the end;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(2) in paragraph (5), by striking the period at the end and inserting a semicolon and `or'; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(3) by adding at the end the following:CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(6) is a children's product, as that term is defined in section 14(d), that is not accompanied by a certificate from a third-party verification entity required by section 14(a)(2).'.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink