CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY COMMISSION (CPSC) Priorities

CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY COMMISSION (CPSC)

Statement of Regulatory Priorities

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission is charged with protecting the public from unreasonable risks of death and injury associated with consumer products. To achieve this goal, the Commission:

Participates in the development or revision of voluntary product safety standards;

Develops mandatory product safety standards or banning rules when other, less restrictive efforts are inadequate to address a safety hazard;

Obtains repair, replacement, or refund of the purchase price for defective products which present a substantial product hazard; and

Develops information and education campaigns about the safety of consumer products.

When deciding which of these approaches to take in any specific case, the Commission gathers the best available data about the nature and extent of the hazard presented by the product. The Commission then analyzes this information to determine the best way to reduce the hazard in each case. The Commission's rules require the Commission to consider, among other factors, the following criteria when deciding the level of priority for any particular project:

Frequency and severity of injury;

Causality of injury;

Chronic illness and future injuries;

Cost and benefit of Commission action;

Unforeseen nature of the risk;

Vulnerability of the population at risk; and

Probability of exposure to the hazard.

Additionally, if the Commission proposes a mandatory safety standard for a particular product, the Commission is generally required to make statutory cost-benefit findings and adopt the least burdensome requirements which adequately protect the public.

The Commission's statutory authority requires it to rely on voluntary standards rather than mandatory standards whenever a voluntary standard is likely to result in the elimination or adequate reduction of the risk of injury and it is likely that there will be substantial compliance with the voluntary standard. As a result, much of the Commission's work involves cooperative efforts with other participants in the voluntary standard-setting process rather than promulgating mandatory standards.

In fiscal year 1997, the Commission's significant rulemaking activities will involve development of options to address risks of fire associated with upholstered furniture ignited by small, open-flame sources and development of performance requirements for bicycle helmets as directed by the Children's Bicycle Helmet Safety Act of 1994. These projects are described in detail below.

Both of these rulemaking proceedings in the Commission's 1997 regulatory plan are related to protection of vulnerable populations. Upholstered furniture fires kill and injure children, the elderly, and families and individuals with lower incomes disproportionately to the representation of these persons in the population. Children are more likely than older riders to suffer head injuries in accidents associated with bicycles. The Commission's proposed standard for bicycle helmets, which Congress directed the Commission to develop, includes a requirement to help prevent the helmet from coming off the rider's head in an accident and other provisions that are applicable to the safety of helmets intended for children.

The emphasis on these two rulemaking activities in the Commission's 1997 regulatory plan is consistent with the Commission's statutory mandate and its criteria for setting priorities. Additionally, the Commission's 1997 regulatory plan supports the President's goal to reduce costs of health care by preventing injuries to individuals who are among the most likely to be injured in accidents associated with the use of consumer products.