Consumer Product Safety Commission
Encyclopedia
The United States Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is an independent agency of the United States government
created in 1972 through the Consumer Product Safety Act
to protect "against unreasonable risks of injuries associated with consumer products." The CPSC is an independent agency that does not report to nor is part of any other department or agency in the federal government. The CPSC is generally headed by three commissioners nominated by the President of the United States
and confirmed by the Senate
for staggered seven year terms. The commissioners set policy for the CPSC. Although the CPSC usually has three commissioners, it currently has five. The CPSC is located in Bethesda, Maryland
.
, guns are regulated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, and drugs are regulated by the Food and Drug Administration
. In recent years, the CPSC has taken action against suppliers of chemicals that could be used to manufacture fireworks. Within the scientific and educational communities, there are some who feel these actions have hampered legitimate scientific research (such as research into the use of hydrogen as an automobile fuel), model rocketry, and high school chemistry projects.
CPSC fulfills its mission by banning dangerous consumer products, issuing recalls of products already on the market, and researching potential hazards associated with consumer products. CPSC learns about unsafe products in several ways. The agency maintains a consumer hot line and website through which consumers may report concerns about unsafe products or injuries associated with products. The agency also operates the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS), a probability sample of about 100 hospitals with 24-hour emergency rooms. NEISS collects data on consumer product related injuries treated in ERs and can be used to generate national estimates.
In the 1970s the CPSC issued regulations on bicycles, which required a number of reflectors—including a white reflector mounted above the handlebar stem (the usual location for a bicycle headlight) and can only be seen by a motorist if the bicycle is being ridden on the wrong side of the road—as well as auxiliary brake levers (variously known as "safety levers" and "suicide levers.") These regulations were widely criticized by adult cyclists, like John Forester, as stemming from the belief that all bicycles are ridden by children and as providing the illusion of safety but actually creating a new hazard.
Inez Tenenbaum
: Chairman. Confirmed June 19, 2009. Current Term: June 29, 2009 - October 2013
Thomas Hill Moore
: Acting Chairman (June 1, 2009 - June 29, 2009). Original term began on May 1, 1995. Reappointed for the October 1996 - October 2003 term. Current Term: March 3, 2004 - October 2010.
Nancy Nord
: Acting Chairman (July 16, 2006 - May 31, 2009). Confirmed April 28, 2005. Original term was May 12, 2005 - October 2005. Current Term: 2005 - October 2012.
Anne Northup
: Confirmed August 7, 2009. Current Term: August 18, 2009 - October 2011
Robert S. Adler : Confirmed August 7, 2009. Current Term August 18, 2009 - October 2014
and current commissioner and former acting chairman Nancy Nord had taken more than 30 trips paid for by manufacturing groups or lobbyists representing industries that are under the supervision of the agency. According to the Post, the groups paid for over $60,000 travel and related expenses during this time.
passed in 2008 increases funding $136.4 million in 2014 with full-time employees to at least 500 by 2013.
in 2008. The bill increased funding and staffing for the CSPC, placed stricter limits on lead levels in children's products (redefined from products intended for children age seven and under to children age twelve and under), restricted certain phthalates in children's toys and child care articles, required mandatory testing and certification of applicable products, and required the CPSC to create a public database of their products.
The public database (saferproducts.gov), constructed at a cost of around $3 million USD and launched in March 2011, "publicizes complaints from virtually anyone who can provide details about a safety problem connected with any of the 15,000 kinds of consumer goods regulated by the" CSPC. While being lauded by consumer advocates for making previously hidden information available, manufacturers have expressed their concern "that most of the complaints are not first vetted by the CPSC before they are made public", meaning it could be abused and potentially used to ruin specific brands. As of mid-April 2011, the database was accruing about 30 safety complaints per day.
Independent agencies of the United States government
Independent agencies of the United States federal government are those agencies that exist outside of the federal executive departments...
created in 1972 through the Consumer Product Safety Act
Consumer Product Safety Act
The Consumer Product Safety Act was enacted in 1972 by the United States Congress. It established the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission as an independent agency of the United States federal government and defined its basic authority...
to protect "against unreasonable risks of injuries associated with consumer products." The CPSC is an independent agency that does not report to nor is part of any other department or agency in the federal government. The CPSC is generally headed by three commissioners nominated by the President of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
and confirmed by the Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
for staggered seven year terms. The commissioners set policy for the CPSC. Although the CPSC usually has three commissioners, it currently has five. The CPSC is located in Bethesda, Maryland
Bethesda, Maryland
Bethesda is a census designated place in southern Montgomery County, Maryland, United States, just northwest of Washington, D.C. It takes its name from a local church, the Bethesda Meeting House , which in turn took its name from Jerusalem's Pool of Bethesda...
.
Scope
The CPSC has the authority to regulate the sale and manufacture of more than 15,000 different consumer products, from cribs to all-terrain vehicles, and from barbecue grills to swimming pools.The CSPC is a a regulator of products. Products not under jurisdiction of the CPSC include those specifically named by law as under the jurisdiction of other federal agencies; for example, automobiles are regulated by the National Highway Traffic Safety AdministrationNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is an agency of the Executive Branch of the U.S. government, part of the Department of Transportation...
, guns are regulated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, and drugs are regulated by the Food and Drug Administration
Food and Drug Administration
The Food and Drug Administration is an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, one of the United States federal executive departments...
. In recent years, the CPSC has taken action against suppliers of chemicals that could be used to manufacture fireworks. Within the scientific and educational communities, there are some who feel these actions have hampered legitimate scientific research (such as research into the use of hydrogen as an automobile fuel), model rocketry, and high school chemistry projects.
CPSC fulfills its mission by banning dangerous consumer products, issuing recalls of products already on the market, and researching potential hazards associated with consumer products. CPSC learns about unsafe products in several ways. The agency maintains a consumer hot line and website through which consumers may report concerns about unsafe products or injuries associated with products. The agency also operates the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS), a probability sample of about 100 hospitals with 24-hour emergency rooms. NEISS collects data on consumer product related injuries treated in ERs and can be used to generate national estimates.
In the 1970s the CPSC issued regulations on bicycles, which required a number of reflectors—including a white reflector mounted above the handlebar stem (the usual location for a bicycle headlight) and can only be seen by a motorist if the bicycle is being ridden on the wrong side of the road—as well as auxiliary brake levers (variously known as "safety levers" and "suicide levers.") These regulations were widely criticized by adult cyclists, like John Forester, as stemming from the belief that all bicycles are ridden by children and as providing the illusion of safety but actually creating a new hazard.
Current commissioners
The current commissioners as of November 24, 2009 are as follows:Inez Tenenbaum
Inez Tenenbaum
Inez Moore Tenenbaum is an American politician from the state of South Carolina. She is currently serving as head of the Consumer Product Safety Commission.-Education:...
: Chairman. Confirmed June 19, 2009. Current Term: June 29, 2009 - October 2013
Thomas Hill Moore
Thomas Hill Moore
Thomas Hill Moore is a commissioner of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, an independent agency of the U.S. federal government. He was first appointed to the commission by President Bill Clinton in 1995 to complete an unexpired term and was reappointed by Clinton to a full seven-year term...
: Acting Chairman (June 1, 2009 - June 29, 2009). Original term began on May 1, 1995. Reappointed for the October 1996 - October 2003 term. Current Term: March 3, 2004 - October 2010.
Nancy Nord
Nancy Nord
Nancy Ann Nord is a commissioner of the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission . She was also the only Republican commissioner, until Anne Northup was nominated to serve alongside her in 2009. Nord is serving the remainder of a seven-year term that will expire October 26, 2012. The U.S....
: Acting Chairman (July 16, 2006 - May 31, 2009). Confirmed April 28, 2005. Original term was May 12, 2005 - October 2005. Current Term: 2005 - October 2012.
Anne Northup
Anne Northup
Anne Meagher Northup is an American Republican politician from the state of Kentucky. From 1997 to 2007, she represented the Louisville-centered 3rd congressional district of Kentucky in the United States House of Representatives, where she served on the powerful House Appropriations Committee...
: Confirmed August 7, 2009. Current Term: August 18, 2009 - October 2011
Robert S. Adler : Confirmed August 7, 2009. Current Term August 18, 2009 - October 2014
Industry-sponsored travel controversy
On November 2, 2007, the Washington Post reported that between 2002 and the date of their report, former chairman Hal StrattonHal Stratton
Harold D. “Hal” Stratton, Jr. is an American lawyer currently practicing law with the Albuquerque office of the Denver based western regional law firm, Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck LLP...
and current commissioner and former acting chairman Nancy Nord had taken more than 30 trips paid for by manufacturing groups or lobbyists representing industries that are under the supervision of the agency. According to the Post, the groups paid for over $60,000 travel and related expenses during this time.
Funding and staff
In 1972 when the agency was created, it had a budget of $34.7 million dollars and 786 staff members. By 2008 it had 401 employees on a budget of $43 million, but the Consumer Product Safety Improvement ActConsumer Product Safety Improvement Act
The Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 is a United States law signed on August 14, 2008 by President George W. Bush. The legislative bill was known as HR 4040, sponsored by Congressman Bobby Rush . On December 19, 2007, the U.S. House approved the bill 407-0. On March 6, 2008, the U.S....
passed in 2008 increases funding $136.4 million in 2014 with full-time employees to at least 500 by 2013.
2008 reform following the "Year of the Recall"
2007 has been called the "Year of the Recall" in the United States, and the CPSC alone imposed 473 recalls in 2007, a record. This notably included many incidents with lead in toys and other children's products. These issues led to the legislative interest in the reform of the agency, and the final result of these efforts was the passage of the Consumer Product Safety Improvement ActConsumer Product Safety Improvement Act
The Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 is a United States law signed on August 14, 2008 by President George W. Bush. The legislative bill was known as HR 4040, sponsored by Congressman Bobby Rush . On December 19, 2007, the U.S. House approved the bill 407-0. On March 6, 2008, the U.S....
in 2008. The bill increased funding and staffing for the CSPC, placed stricter limits on lead levels in children's products (redefined from products intended for children age seven and under to children age twelve and under), restricted certain phthalates in children's toys and child care articles, required mandatory testing and certification of applicable products, and required the CPSC to create a public database of their products.
The public database (saferproducts.gov), constructed at a cost of around $3 million USD and launched in March 2011, "publicizes complaints from virtually anyone who can provide details about a safety problem connected with any of the 15,000 kinds of consumer goods regulated by the" CSPC. While being lauded by consumer advocates for making previously hidden information available, manufacturers have expressed their concern "that most of the complaints are not first vetted by the CPSC before they are made public", meaning it could be abused and potentially used to ruin specific brands. As of mid-April 2011, the database was accruing about 30 safety complaints per day.
See also
- Code of Federal RegulationsCode of Federal RegulationsThe Code of Federal Regulations is the codification of the general and permanent rules and regulations published in the Federal Register by the executive departments and agencies of the Federal Government of the United States.The CFR is published by the Office of the Federal Register, an agency...
- Toy safetyToy safetyToy safety is the practice of ensuring that toys, especially those made for children, are safe, usually through the application of set safety standards. In many countries, commercial toys must be able to pass safety tests in order to be sold. In the U.S., some toys must meet national standards,...
- Injury preventionInjury preventionInjury prevention are efforts to prevent or reduce the severity of bodily injuries caused by external mechanisms, such as accidents, before they occur. Injury prevention is a component of safety and public health, and its goal is to improve the health of the population by preventing injuries and...
- Child-resistant packagingChild-resistant packagingChild-resistant packaging or C-R packaging is special packaging used to reduce the risk of children ingesting dangerous items. This is often accomplished by the use of a special safety cap. It is required by regulation for prescription drugs, over-the-counter medications, pesticides, and household...
- Consumer Product Safety Improvement ActConsumer Product Safety Improvement ActThe Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 is a United States law signed on August 14, 2008 by President George W. Bush. The legislative bill was known as HR 4040, sponsored by Congressman Bobby Rush . On December 19, 2007, the U.S. House approved the bill 407-0. On March 6, 2008, the U.S....
- Lead-based paint in the United StatesLead-based paint in the United StatesLead-based paint in the United States resulted in a court case against the Lead Industries Association.Due in great part to studies carried out by Philip J. Landrigan, paint containing more than 0.06% lead was banned for residential use in the United States in 1978 by the U.S...