Mohorovic announces resignation effective October 20
October 18, 2017, Product Safety Letter
Commissioner Joseph Mohorovic October 18 announced his resignation effective close of business Friday, October 20. This came at CPSC’s decisional meeting on its phthalates rulemaking. Mohorovic, a Chicago resident, cited a desire to spend more time with his family. He has regularly commuted back to that city on weekends and holidays during his tenure. He will join the Dentons law firm as a principal in their Chicago office.
Seasoned Litigator Nominated to Replace Commissioner Robinson and Establish Republican Majority at CPSC
September 21, 2017, consumerproductmatters.com
President Trump announced his nomination of Dana Baiocco to be a Republican Commissioner on the Consumer Product Safety Commission. If confirmed, Ms. Baiocco would take the seat of Commissioner Robinson, whose term expires on October 26, 2017. Baiocco is a well-known litigator and partner at Jones Day in Boston, Massachusetts. She is also familiar with the world of product safety. Baiocco’s product safety experience includes extensive product-liability litigation, having defended many major consumer product companies.
Statement of Commissioner Joseph P. Mohorovic on the Commission’s Final Rule Prohibiting Children’s Toys and Child Care Articles Containing Specified Phthalates
October 18, 2017, cpsc.gov
Departing Commissioner Joseph Mohorovic of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission was unable to join in a decision to issue a Final Rule prohibiting children’s toys and child care articles containing certain phthalates. He says “I was unable to join in this decision because the Final Rule is contrary to the most recent and best available scientific data… it is clear from today’s decision that the Commission willfully ignored the data to justify its predetermined decision to approve the Final Rule.”
Potentially harmful chemicals now banned from kids products
October 18, 2017, Consumer Reports
Almost a decade after the Consumer Product Safety Commission was ordered to study the potential health affects of phthalates—chemicals often used in plastic products for children—and make recommendations on what further steps should be taken, the agency has voted to approve a final rule that prohibits manufacturers from selling items that have more than a minimal level of five of these chemicals.
Ban on fire retardant products: San Francisco action is first in nation
October 18, 2017, California Patch
San Francisco supervisors Tuesday unanimously approved a ban on the sale of furniture and children’s products treated with flame retardant chemicals.The vote makes San Francisco the first city in the nation to approve such a ban, according to Supervisor Mark Farrell, who introduced the legislation.
California passes first cleaning product chemical disclosure law in U.S.
October 17, 2017, Triplepundit.com
Governor Jerry Brown signed into law Senate Bill No. 258, otherwise known as the Cleaning Products Right to Know Act. The law’s authors say its overarching goal is to give consumers the information they need so they can make informed purchasing decisions while reducing any impacts these products could have on public health. First, companies will have to disclose chemicals in their products online by 2020, and will then be required to list those chemicals on their products’ labels before 2021. If this law is not overturned by a statewide ballot proposition or held up in courts, SB 258 could have ramifications nationwide.
Perspective: Fortune favors the quick (to report): Judge slaps Spectrum Brands with $1.9 million penalty in DOJ/CPSC tag-team enforcement action
October 19, 2017, Morrison Foerster
A federal district court in Wisconsin recently hit Spectrum Brands Inc. (Spectrum) with civil penalties of $1.9 million for violations of the Consumer Products Safety Act (CPSA). The court’s 23-page opinion is a strong reminder of how devastating the impact can be for waiting to report violations and also shows the consequences of failing to implement robust CPSA compliance and recall programs. This judgment provides insight into the costs and benefits of litigation versus settlement following a CPSC civil penalties investigation.
After historic Ikea dresser recall, another child has died
October 18, 2017, Philly.com
Jozef Dudek, 2, was crushed by a Malm dresser in his California bedroom in May after being put down for a nap, according to a lawyer for the boy’s parents. Ikea and the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission on Wednesday both confirmed being aware of the death, and a spokesman for the safety agency said it had opened an investigation. Ikea has redesigned many of its dressers to meet the industry’s safety standard, which requires dressers to remain upright without being anchored when a 50-pound weight is hung on a drawer.
CPSC: Notice of Proposed Rule making for certain engineered wood products
October 13, 2017, Federal Register
The Consumer Product Safety Commission is proposing a rule to determine that certain untreated and unfinished engineered wood products (EWPs), specifically, particleboard, hardwood plywood, and medium-density fiberboard, made from virgin wood or pre- consumer waste wood would not contain lead, the ASTM F963 elements, or specified phthalates that exceed the limits set forth under the CPSC’s statutes for children’s products, children’s toys, and child care articles.
RAPEX lists juvenile products among top five notifications in 2016
October 18, 2017, Openpr.com
RAPEX, the European Union’s (EU) rapid alert system for dangerous products, excluding food, pharmaceuticals and medical devices, listed juvenile products among its top five notified types of products in 2016. In recent years, notifications for childcare articles and children’s equipment have been steadily increasing.
India’s tightened consumer goods standards could hurt China imports
October 18, 2017, Reuters
India is tightening quality controls for consumer and capital goods, officials say, a move that follows calls to curb cheap imports from China amid diplomatic tensions between the world’s two most populous nations over their shared border.The new rules target toys, electronic goods, machinery, food processing, construction and chemicals, sectors dominated by China, and come amid greater scrutiny of mainland firms looking to enter India’s multi-billion dollar power transmission and telecoms business.
