Third Party Testing for Certain Children's Products; Clothing Textiles: Requirements for Accreditation of Third Party Conformity Assessment Bodies, 51016-51020 [2010-20497]

Agencies

• Consumer Product Safety Commission

[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 159 (Wednesday, August 18, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 51016-51020]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-20497]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY COMMISSION

[CPSC Docket No. CPSC-2010-0086]


Third Party Testing for Certain Children's Products; Clothing 
Textiles: Requirements for Accreditation of Third Party Conformity 
Assessment Bodies

AGENCY: Consumer Product Safety Commission.

ACTION: Notice of Requirements.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC or Commission) is 
issuing a notice of requirements that provides the criteria and process 
for Commission acceptance of accreditation of third party conformity 
assessment bodies for testing pursuant to CPSC regulations under the 
Flammable Fabrics Act relating to clothing textiles. The Commission is 
issuing this notice of requirements pursuant to the Consumer Product 
Safety Act (CPSA).

DATES: Effective Date: The requirements for accreditation of third 
party conformity assessment bodies to assess conformity with 16 CFR 
part 1610 are effective upon publication of this notice in the Federal 
Register.\1\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ The Commission voted 3-2 to publish this notice of 
requirements. Chairman Inez M. Tenenbaum, Commissioner Nancy A. 
Nord, and Commissioner Anne Meagher Northup each issued a statement, 
and the statements can be found at https://www.cpsc.gov/pr/statements.html.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

[[Page 51017]]

    Comments in response to this notice of requirements should be 
submitted by September 17, 2010. Comments on this notice should be 
captioned ``Third Party Testing for Certain Children's Products; 
Clothing Textiles: Requirements for Accreditation of Third Party 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Conformity Assessment Bodies.''

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by Docket No. CPSC-2010-
0086 by any of the following methods:
    Electronic Submissions: Submit electronic comments in the following 
way:
    Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov. Follow the 
instructions for submitting comments. To ensure timely processing of 
comments, the Commission is no longer accepting comments submitted by 
electronic mail (e-mail) except through https://www.regulations.gov.
    Written Submissions: Submit written submissions in the following 
way:
    Mail/Hand delivery/Courier (for paper, disk, or CD-ROM submissions) 
preferably in five copies, to: Office of the Secretary, U.S. Consumer 
Product Safety Commission, Room 820, 4330 East West Highway, Bethesda, 
Maryland 20814; telephone (301) 504-7923.
    Instructions: All submissions received must include the agency name 
and docket number for this notice. All comments received may be posted 
without change to https://www.regulations.gov, including any personal 
information provided. Do not submit confidential business information, 
trade secret information, or other sensitive or protected information 
(such as a Social Security Number) electronically; if furnished at all, 
such information should be submitted in writing.
    Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or 
comments received, go to https://www.regulations.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Robert ``Jay'' Howell, Assistant 
Executive Director for The Office of Hazard Identification and 
Reduction, U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, 4330 East West 
Highway, Bethesda, Maryland 20814; e-mail rhowell@cpsc.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Introduction

    Section 14(a)(3)(B)(vi) of the CPSA, as added by section 102(a)(2) 
of the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 (CPSIA), Public 
Law 110-314, directs the CPSC to publish a notice of requirements for 
accreditation of third party conformity assessment bodies to assess 
children's products for conformity with ``other children's product 
safety rules.'' Section 14(f)(1) of the CPSA defines ``children's 
product safety rule'' as ``a consumer product safety rule under [the 
CPSA] or similar rule, regulation, standard, or ban under any other Act 
enforced by the Commission, including a rule declaring a consumer 
product to be a banned hazardous product or substance.'' Under section 
14(a)(3)(A) of the CPSA, each manufacturer (including the importer) or 
private labeler of products subject to those regulations must have 
products that are manufactured more than 90 days after the Federal 
Register publication date of a notice of the requirements for 
accreditation, tested by a third party conformity assessment body 
accredited to do so, and must issue a certificate of compliance with 
the applicable regulations based on that testing. Section 14(a)(2) of 
the CPSA, as added by section 102(a)(2) of the CPSIA, requires that 
certification be based on testing of sufficient samples of the product, 
or samples that are identical in all material respects to the product. 
The Commission also emphasizes that, irrespective of certification, the 
product in question must comply with applicable CPSC requirements (see, 
e.g., section 14(h) of the CPSA, as added by section 102(b) of the 
CPSIA).
    The Commission also is recognizing limited circumstances in which 
it will accept certifications based on product testing conducted before 
the third party conformity assessment body is accepted as accredited by 
the CPSC. The details regarding those limited circumstances can be 
found in part IV of this document below.
    This notice provides the criteria and process for Commission 
acceptance of accreditation of third party conformity assessment bodies 
for testing pursuant to 16 CFR part 1610, Standard for the Flammability 
of Clothing Textiles, which sets a minimum standard for flammability of 
clothing textiles under the Flammable Fabrics Act (15 U.S.C. 1191 et 
seq.) (FFA).
    Section 3(a)(2) of the CPSA defines a children's product as ``a 
consumer product designed or intended primarily for children 12 years 
of age or younger.'' Although clothing textiles are often used in 
nonchildren's wearing apparel, some clothing textiles are ``designed or 
intended primarily for children 12 years of age or younger.'' Clothing 
textiles designed or intended primarily for children 12 years of age or 
younger are subject to the third party testing and certification 
requirements in section 14(a)(2) of the CPSA. Accordingly, this notice 
of requirements addresses the accreditation of conformity assessment 
bodies to test such clothing textiles for conformity with 16 CFR part 
1610.
    Some clothing textiles are exempt from part 1610 testing. See 16 
CFR 1610.1(d). Manufacturers do not need to submit exempt clothing 
textiles designed or intended primarily for children 12 years of age or 
younger to a third party conformity assessment body to confirm that the 
exemption applies. For clothing textiles designed or intended primarily 
for children 12 years of age or younger that are subject to 16 CFR part 
1610, manufacturers may submit a product for third party testing at 
either the pre- or post-garment stage of production.
    Although section 14(a)(3)(B)(vi) of the CPSA directs the CPSC to 
publish a notice of requirements for accreditation of third party 
conformity assessment bodies to assess conformity with ``all other 
children's product safety rules,'' this notice of requirements is 
limited to the regulations identified immediately above.
    The CPSC also recognizes that section 14(a)(3)(B)(vi) of the CPSA 
is captioned as ``All Other Children's Product Safety Rules,'' but the 
body of the statutory requirement refers only to ``other children's 
product safety rules.'' Nevertheless, section 14(a)(3)(B)(vi) of the 
CPSA could be construed as requiring a notice of requirements for 
``all'' other children's product safety rules, rather than a notice of 
requirements for ``some'' or ``certain'' children's product safety 
rules. However, whether a particular rule represents a ``children's 
product safety rule'' may be subject to interpretation, and the 
Commission staff is continuing to evaluate which rules, regulations, 
standards, or bans are ``children's product safety rules.'' The CPSC 
intends to issue additional notices of requirements for other rules 
which the Commission determines to be ``children's product safety 
rules.''
    This notice of requirements applies to all third party conformity 
assessment bodies as described in section 14(f)(2) of the CPSA. 
Generally speaking, such third party conformity assessment bodies are: 
(1) Third party conformity assessment bodies that are not owned, 
managed, or controlled by a manufacturer or private labeler of a 
children's product to be tested by the third party conformity 
assessment body for certification purposes; (2) ``firewalled'' 
conformity assessment bodies (those that are owned, managed, or 
controlled by a manufacturer or private labeler of a children's product 
to be tested by the third party conformity assessment body for 
certification purposes and that seek accreditation

[[Page 51018]]

under the additional statutory criteria for ``firewalled'' conformity 
assessment bodies); and (3) third party conformity assessment bodies 
owned or controlled, in whole or in part, by a government.
    The Commission requires baseline accreditation of each category of 
third party conformity assessment body to the International 
Organization for Standardization (ISO)/International Electrotechnical 
Commission (IEC) Standard 17025:2005, ``General Requirements for the 
Competence of Testing and Calibration Laboratories.'' The accreditation 
must be by an accreditation body that is a signatory to the 
International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation-Mutual Recognition 
Arrangement (ILAC-MRA), and the scope of the accreditation must include 
testing in accordance with the regulations identified earlier in part I 
of this document for which the third party conformity assessment body 
seeks to be accredited.
    (A description of the history and content of the ILAC-MRA approach 
and of the requirements of the ISO/IEC 17025:2005 laboratory 
accreditation standard is provided in the CPSC staff briefing 
memorandum ``Third Party Conformity Assessment Body Accreditation 
Requirements for Testing Compliance with 16 CFR Part 1501 (Small Parts 
Regulations),'' dated November 2008 and available on the CPSC's Web 
site at https://www.cpsc.gov/library/foia/foia09/brief/smallparts.pdf.)
    The Commission has established an electronic accreditation 
registration and listing system that can be accessed via its Web site 
at https://www.cpsc.gov/ABOUT/Cpsia/labaccred.html.
    The Commission stayed the enforcement of certain provisions of 
section 14(a) of the CPSA in a notice published in the Federal Register 
on February 9, 2009 (74 FR 6396); the stay applied to testing and 
certification of various products, including clothing textiles. On 
December 28, 2009, the Commission published a notice in the Federal 
Register (74 FR 68588) revising the terms of the stay. One section of 
the December 28, 2009, notice addressed ``Consumer Products or 
Children's Products Where the Commission Is Continuing the Stay of 
Enforcement Until Further Notice,'' due to factors such as pending 
rulemaking proceedings affecting the product or the absence of a notice 
of requirements. The clothing textile testing and certification 
requirements were included in that section of the December 28, 2009, 
notice. As the factor preventing the stay from being lifted in the 
December 28, 2009, notice with regard to testing and certifications of 
clothing textiles was the absence of a notice of requirements, 
publication of this notice has the effect of lifting the stay with 
regard to 16 CFR part 1610.
    The Commission noted in the December 28, 2009, notice that the stay 
of enforcement did not extend to guaranties under the FFA. The 
manufacturer or supplier of clothing textiles may issue a guaranty, 
based on reasonable and representative testing, that the clothing 
textile complies with FFA standards. The holder of a valid guaranty is 
not subject to criminal prosecution under section 7 of the FFA 
(penalties) for a violation of section 3 of the FFA (prohibited 
transactions).
    The reasonable and representative tests sufficient for the issuance 
of an FFA guaranty are generally performed by the manufacturer; those 
tests are sufficient for the issuance of a general conformity 
certification for nonchildren's products under section 14(a)(1) of the 
CPSA. However, because section 14(a)(2) of the CPSA requires children's 
products subject to a children's product safety rule to be tested by an 
accredited third party conformity assessment body, reasonable and 
representative tests performed by a manufacturer sufficient for the 
issuance of an FFA guaranty are not sufficient for the issuance of a 
certification of compliance with 16 CFR part 1610 for clothing textiles 
designed or intended primarily for children 12 years of age or younger 
(unless the manufacturer's facility is a CPSC-accepted firewalled 
conformity assessment body). The textiles may be tested by a CPSC-
accepted third party laboratory or the final garment may be tested to 
ensure that the textiles used meet the standard's flammability 
requirements.
    This notice of requirements is effective on August 18, 2010. 
Further, as the publication of this notice of requirements effectively 
lifts the stay of enforcement with regard to testing and certifications 
related to 16 CFR part 1610, each manufacturer of a children's product 
subject to 16 CFR part 1610 must have any such product manufactured 
after November 16, 2010 tested by a third party conformity assessment 
body accredited to do so and must issue a certificate of compliance 
with 16 CFR part 1610 based on that testing. (Under the CPSA, the term 
``manufacturer'' includes anyone who manufactures or imports a 
product.)
    This notice of requirements is exempt from the notice and comment 
rulemaking requirements of the Administrative Procedure Act, 5 U.S.C. 
553 (see section 14(a)(3)(G) of the CPSA, as added by section 102(a)(2) 
of the CPSIA (15 U.S.C. 2063(a)(3)(G)).

II. Accreditation Requirements

A. Baseline Third Party Conformity Assessment Body Accreditation 
Requirements

    For a third party conformity assessment body to be accredited to 
test children's products for conformity with the test methods in the 
regulations identified earlier in part I of this document, it must be 
accredited by an ILAC-MRA signatory accrediting body, and the 
accreditation must be registered with, and accepted by, the Commission. 
A listing of ILAC-MRA signatory accrediting bodies is available on the 
Internet at https://ilac.org/membersbycategory.html. The accreditation 
must be to ISO Standard ISO/IEC 17025:2005, ``General Requirements for 
the Competence of Testing and Calibration Laboratories,'' and the scope 
of the accreditation must expressly include testing to the regulations 
in 16 CFR part 1610, Standard for the Flammability of Clothing 
Textiles. A true copy, in English, of the accreditation and scope 
documents demonstrating compliance with the requirements of this notice 
must be registered with the Commission electronically. The additional 
requirements for accreditation of firewalled and governmental 
conformity assessment bodies are described in parts II.B and II.C of 
this document below.
    The Commission will maintain on its Web site an up-to-date listing 
of third party conformity assessment bodies whose accreditations it has 
accepted and the scope of each accreditation. Subject to the limited 
provisions for acceptance of ``retrospective'' testing noted in part IV 
below, once the Commission adds a third party conformity assessment 
body to that list, the third party conformity assessment body may 
commence testing of children's products to support the manufacturer's 
certification that the product complies with the regulations identified 
earlier in part I of this document.

B. Additional Accreditation Requirements for Firewalled Conformity 
Assessment Bodies

    In addition to the baseline accreditation requirements in part II.A 
of this document above, firewalled conformity assessment bodies seeking 
accredited status must submit to the Commission copies, in English, of 
their training documents showing how employees are trained to notify 
the Commission immediately and confidentially of any attempt by the 
manufacturer, private labeler, or other interested party to hide or 
exert undue

[[Page 51019]]

influence over the third party conformity assessment body's test 
results. This additional requirement applies to any third party 
conformity assessment body in which a manufacturer or private labeler 
of a children's product to be tested by the third party conformity 
assessment body owns an interest of ten percent or more. While the 
Commission is not addressing common parentage of a third party 
conformity assessment body and a children's product manufacturer at 
this time, it will be vigilant to see if this issue needs to be 
addressed in the future.
    As required by section 14(f)(2)(D) of the CPSA, the Commission must 
formally accept, by order, the accreditation application of a third 
party conformity assessment body before the third party conformity 
assessment body can become an accredited firewalled conformity 
assessment body.

C. Additional Accreditation Requirements for Governmental Conformity 
Assessment Bodies

    In addition to the baseline accreditation requirements of part II.A 
of this document above, the CPSIA permits accreditation of a third 
party conformity assessment body owned or controlled, in whole or in 
part, by a government if:
     To the extent practicable, manufacturers or private 
labelers located in any nation are permitted to choose conformity 
assessment bodies that are not owned or controlled by the government of 
that nation;
     The third party conformity assessment body's testing 
results are not subject to undue influence by any other person, 
including another governmental entity;
     The third party conformity assessment body is not accorded 
more favorable treatment than other third party conformity assessment 
bodies that have been accredited in the same nation;
     The third party conformity assessment body's testing 
results are accorded no greater weight by other governmental 
authorities than those of other accredited third party conformity 
assessment bodies; and
     The third party conformity assessment body does not 
exercise undue influence over other governmental authorities on matters 
affecting its operations or on decisions by other governmental 
authorities controlling distribution of products based on outcomes of 
the third party conformity assessment body's conformity assessments.
    The Commission will accept the accreditation of a governmental 
third party conformity assessment body if it meets the baseline 
accreditation requirements of part II.A of this document above and 
meets the additional conditions stated here. To obtain this assurance, 
CPSC staff will engage the governmental entities relevant to the 
accreditation request.

III. How Does a Third Party Conformity Assessment Body Apply for 
Acceptance of Its Accreditation?

    The Commission has established an electronic accreditation 
acceptance and registration system accessed via the Commission's 
Internet site at https://www.cpsc.gov/about/cpsia/labaccred.html. The 
applicant provides, in English, basic identifying information 
concerning its location, the type of accreditation it is seeking, 
electronic copies of its ILAC-MRA accreditation certificate and scope 
statement, and firewalled third party conformity assessment body 
training document(s), if relevant.
    Commission staff will review the submission for accuracy and 
completeness. In the case of baseline third party conformity assessment 
bodies and government-owned or government-operated conformity 
assessment bodies, when that review and any necessary discussions with 
the applicant are satisfactorily completed, the third party conformity 
assessment body in question is added to the CPSC's list of accredited 
third party conformity assessment bodies at https://www.cpsc.gov/about/
cpsia/labaccred.html. In the case of a firewalled conformity assessment 
body seeking accredited status, when the staff's review is complete, 
the staff transmits its recommendation on accreditation to the 
Commission for consideration. (A third party conformity assessment body 
that may ultimately seek acceptance as a firewalled third party 
conformity assessment body also can initially request acceptance as a 
third party conformity assessment body accredited for testing of 
children's products other than those of its owners.) If the Commission 
accepts a staff recommendation to accredit a firewalled conformity 
assessment body, the firewalled conformity assessment body will then be 
added to the CPSC's list of accredited third party conformity 
assessment bodies. In each case, the Commission will notify the third 
party conformity assessment body electronically of acceptance of its 
accreditation. All information to support an accreditation acceptance 
request must be provided in the English language.
    Subject to the limited provisions for acceptance of 
``retrospective'' testing noted in part IV of this document below, once 
the Commission adds a third party conformity assessment body to the 
list, the third party conformity assessment body may then begin testing 
of children's products to support certification of compliance with the 
regulations identified earlier in part I of this document for which it 
has been accredited.

IV. Limited Acceptance of Children's Product Certifications Based on 
Third Party Conformity Assessment Body Testing Prior to the 
Commission's Acceptance of Accreditation

    The Commission will accept a certificate of compliance with the 
standard for clothing textiles included in 16 CFR part 1610, Standard 
for the Flammability of Clothing Textiles, based on testing performed 
by an accredited third party conformity assessment body (including a 
government-owned or -controlled conformity assessment body, and a 
firewalled conformity assessment body) prior to the Commission's 
acceptance of its accreditation if:
     At the time of product testing, the product was tested by 
a third party conformity assessment body that was ISO/IEC 17025 
accredited by an ILAC-MRA member at the time of the test. For 
firewalled conformity assessment bodies, the firewalled conformity 
assessment body must be one that the Commission accredited by order at 
or before the time the product was tested, even though the order will 
not have included the test methods in the regulations specified in this 
notice. If the third party conformity assessment body has not been 
accredited by a Commission order as a firewalled conformity assessment 
body, the Commission will not accept a certificate of compliance based 
on testing performed by the third party conformity assessment body 
before it is accredited, by Commission order, as a firewalled 
conformity assessment body;
     The third party conformity assessment body's application 
for testing using the test methods in the regulations identified in 
this notice is accepted by the CPSC on or before October 18, 2010;
     The product was tested on or after August 18, 2010 with 
respect to the regulations identified in this notice;
     The accreditation scope in effect for the third party 
conformity assessment body at the time of testing expressly included 
testing to the regulations

[[Page 51020]]

identified earlier in part I of this document;
     The test results show compliance with the applicable 
current standards and/or regulations; and
     The third party conformity assessment body's 
accreditation, including inclusion in its scope the standards described 
in part I of this notice, remains in effect through the effective date 
for mandatory third party testing and manufacturer certification for 
conformity with 16 CFR part 1610.

    Dated: August 13, 2010.
Todd A. Stevenson,
Secretary, Consumer Product Safety Commission.
[FR Doc. 2010-20497 Filed 8-17-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6355-01-P