The U.S. Product Safety Commission

www.cpsc.gov

OVERVIEW OF THE U.S. PRODUCT SAFETY COMMISSION

The U.S. Product Safety Commission is probably not one of the first agencies that come to mind when you think about federal agencies. But yet it plays an important role in the lives of consumers. It is the one agency that is on the frontline of product recalls because its sole purpose is to protect consumers.

In 2007, there were a string of recalls involving everything from toys, toothpaste, tires to cribs.

The U.S. Product Safety Commission is an independent regulatory agency created in 1972 by Congress in the Consumer Product Safety Act. Its mandate is to protect the public against risks of injuries and deaths associated with consumer products.

The Commission is charged with protecting consumers from products that can injure children, cause death, injuries, and property damage from fire, chemical, electrical or mechanical hazards. It oversees more than 15,000 types of consumer products.

Although the Commission has jurisdiction of thousands of consumer products, it does not cover all products. For example, the Commission ensures the safety of toys, cribs, clothing to household products. But vehicles, food and drugs, along with firearms are under the jurisdiction of other federal agencies.

The Commission is headed by Acting Chairman, Inez Moore Tenenbaum. There are currently four commissioners: Robert Adler, Thomas Moore, Nancy Nord and Anne Northup. The President nominates the commissioners. Before 2008 there were only two commissioners.

The Commission is in a position to provide information on product recalls and product safety news. The Commission keeps a list of recalled products as well as provides news on product safety and standards.

How does CPSC work to reduce the risk of injuries and deaths from consumer products?

-by developing voluntary standards with industry

-by issuing and enforcing mandatory standards; banning consumer products if no feasible standard would adequately protect the public

-by obtaining the recall of products or arranging for their repair

-by conducting research on potential product hazards

-by informing and educating consumers through the media, state and local governments, private organizations, and by responding to consumer inquiries.

Deaths, injuries and property damage from faulty consumer products cost more than $700 billion annually. It could be worth finding out if a recalled product is manufactured or assembled in your state. The Commission holds scheduled public meetings in DC and town hall meetings around the country. You can get meeting information on the website by clicking on the public calendar link or by calling a recorded message for the latest agenda.

INFORMATION FOR REGIONAL REPORTERS

The CPSC has made the news quite a few times in the past few years. In “The Year of the Recall,” 2007. the CPSC imposed a record 473 recalls. This a series of discoveries of lead in toothpaste, toys and other children’s products that were made in China. The Year of the Recall led to passage of the the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act in 2008, which pledged to increase the CPSC budget to $136.4 million by 2014 and add 500 new employees by 2013.

However, some conservatives are calling for a budget cut that will drastically reduce CPSC funding. Newly elected Republican Senator Rand Paul from Kentucky proposed to cut $500 billion from the federal budget in a single year by eliminating “programs that are beyond the constitutional role of the federal government.”

Additionally, there have been questions about the ethics-review process at the Commission over the past few years. In 2007, there were calls for the resignation of the former Commission head, Nancy Nord, who is now one of the commissioners. In 2007, the Washington Post reported that Nord and former chairman Hal Stratton had indulged in over 30 trips paid for by manufacturing groups or lobbyists representing industries that fall under the supervision of the CPSC. The Consumer Product Safety Act banned commissioners from receiving favors from supervised industries.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission launched a new publicly accessible consumer product complaint database, SaferProducts.gov. The CPSC is also working with other countries to improve product safety. CPSC Chairman Tenenbaum recently signed memorandums with Hong Kong and Australia that calls for formal structures to be put in place for information sharing about recalled products, consumer product regulations, product testing requirements and product safety campaigns.

OTHER RESOURCES/CONSUMER ADVOCATE GROUPS:

Consumer Federation of America http://consumerfed.org

Consumer advocacy organization lobbying on issues such as product safety, product liability, housing, health and food safety.

Consumers Union http://consumersunion.org

Materials on a wide variety of consumer issues, including product safety, food, health care, and financial services.

National Association of Consumer Advocates http://www.naca.net

An association of more than 1000 attorneys and consumer advocates who have a wide range of experience curbing abusive and predatory business practices and promoting justice for consumers.

Consumer Action http://www.consumer-action.org

Focuses on defending consumer rights and publishing educational material.

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