March 24, 2009

VIA ELECTRONIC MAIL

Office of the Secretary
U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission
4330 East-West Highway, Room 502
Bethesda, MD 20814-4408  

Re: Request for Emergency Stay of Enforcement (CPSIA §103)  

Dear Mr. Stevenson:

Section 103 of the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) requires a new
tracking label for children’s products made on or after August 14, 2009. With the quick
deadline approaching and a lack of guidance from the Consumer Product Safety
Commission (“Commission”), the undersigned respectfully request that the Commission
stay enforcement of the tracking label provision of the CPSIA.  

In a February 26, 2009 Federal Register notice, the Commission solicited comments on
how the new tracking label requirement should be implemented. The National
Association of Manufacturers (NAM) CPSC Coalition looks forward to providing input
to this process and further engaging with the Commission and other product safety
stakeholders on ways to ensure commonsense implementation of this important
provision. Adopting thoughtful rules that can be implemented across a wide spectrum of
businesses who make, import, distribute and sell children’s products will require a careful
analysis of options, issues and costs, an assessment of different technologies that might
be used to deliver the required information (labels, codes, databases, RFID or EPC) and
the associated costs, and an evaluation of how a tracking label system relates to existing
labeling schemes required under other provisions of the CPSIA, such as Section 102, as
well as other laws. In addition, we are mindful that we are in a global environment that
requires close cooperation to develop a harmonized system that can be adopted across
many regions.  

Toward that end, we are concerned that there remains insufficient time before August 14,
2009 for this new regulation to be implemented in a predictable fashion. The comment
period does not close until April 27, 2009. The Commission will no doubt need several
months to review comments, and develop and publish comprehensive guidelines and
regulations for the many questions related to this provision. If past is prologue,
regulations might not be finalized and published until shortly before the August 14, 2009
entry into force date. Such an outcome would prove extremely disruptive and costly to
the business community. From that standpoint, it is vital that the Commission quickly
make clear circumstances where it is not “practicable” to apply tracking labels. This
would include, for example, situations where the children’s product is very small, such as
many small toys, art materials like paint brushes or children’s jewelry, to name a few.  

Even if the Commission were to publish guidance on this new provision today, there
would still be insufficient time for companies to implement this provision properly.
Changes in product processes, including changes in labeling requirements for packaging
and products, usually take at least a year in many sectors in order to ensure smooth
execution. This process must begin at the design phase of the product, well before
production takes place. Implementation of the new tracking label provision will
necessitate legal reviews, compliance clearance, and training of supply chain partners.
Moreover, many companies are already now ordering, planning, and costing production
of goods that will be made in fall 2009 or later, meaning they are already making guesses
about how the new labeling provision will be implemented. Should those guesses prove
to be wrong when the Commission publishes guidance shortly before the August 14,
2009 implementation date, companies will have to scramble to rework labeling and
packaging at significant cost. Electronic databases may need to be developed and tested
to facilitate effective tracking, another aspect that will require significant time and
resources in many industries.  

With this in mind, we are asking the Commission on an urgent basis to immediately vote
to stay enforcement of the provision for a full year, until August 14, 2010. Taking such
an action now will provide the Commission, industry, and other product safety
stakeholders time to work together to develop an orderly approach to this new
requirement, maximizing the prospects for a tracking label system to be both useful and
cost-effective for all stakeholders. We believe the time between now and August 14,
2009 can best be spent working to develop and publish clear and understandable rules on
how this requirement will be implemented and enforced. The period from August 14,
2009 until August 14, 2010 can be spent educating the various industry supply chains on
implementing this new requirement. By the time full enforcement starts – on August 14,
2010 – the Commission, the business community, and consumers will have a common
understanding of how this new provision is intended to work, as well as an understanding
of the products or product categories to which the requirements do not apply.  

Delaying the enforcement of the tracking label provisions would provide all product
safety stakeholders the time to develop and implement this provision without any adverse
impact on product safety or public health. In fact, such a delay would enable the
Commission to strengthen the product safety system by ensuring a smooth and orderly
implementation of this provision. 

The new tracking label requirement can play an important role in facilitating recalls and
creating greater transparency to help companies track product safety efforts. Our hope is
that the Commission can use the next 18 months to create a pathway for compliance for
the business community. Requesters hereby respectfully request that the Commission, on
an emergency basis, use the discretion afforded it to issue an immediately effective stay
of enforcement for twelve months from August 14, 2009 of the requirements for tracking
labels in Section 103 of the CPSIA.  

 

Respectfully submitted,

Alliance for Children’s Product Safety
American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA)
American Fiber Manufacturers Association
Association for Safe Glass and Ceramicware
Coalition for Safe and Affordable Childrenswear, Inc.
Fashion Incubator Association
Fashion Jewelry Trade Association
Fashion Accessories Shippers Association (FASA)
Gift and Home Trade Association
Greeting Card Association
Handmade Toy Alliance
INDA, Association of the Nonwoven Fabrics Industry
International Sleep Products Association
Manufacturing Jewelers and Suppliers of America
National Association of Manufacturers
National Council of Textile Organizations (NCTO)
National Paint & Coatings Association, Inc.
National Retail Federation
National Textile Association
Promotional Products Association International
Retail Industry Leaders Association
Specialty Graphic Imaging Association
Society of Glass & Ceramic Decorated Products
The Art & Creative Materials Institute
The Hosiery Association
The Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association (JPMA)
The National Cotton Council
Toy Industry Association
Travel Goods Association (TGA)
U.S. Association of Importers of Textiles and Apparel
U.S. Chamber of Commerce