You Can Soon Tell The Government What You Think About Gas Stoves As It Weighs Whether To Regulate Them
March 1, 2023, Fortune
The Consumer Product Safety Commission has voted to seek public input on gas stoves, a potential first step in regulating the appliances. The agency voted 3—1 to approve a request for information on the health hazards of gas stove emissions and the potential solutions to those hazards, spokeswoman Meghan Sebold said. While the call for comments doesn’t necessarily trigger a regulation, it could form the basis for future rules regulating the household appliances.
CPSC Statement on Request for Information (RFI) on Gas Stoves
CPSC Says The Industry’s 3-Class E-Bike Framework Is Not Part Of Our Statutes
March 1, 2023, Bicycle Retailer
Consumer Product Safety Commission Chair Alex Hoehn-Saric told Bicycle Retailer and Industry News (BRAIN) that the agency doesn’t recognize the industry’s three e-bike classes but instead treats the regulation of e-bikes on a case-by-case basis. When asked about regulating Class 3 e-bikes and e-MTBs, and “out-of-category” e-bikes, Hoehn-Saric said, “I know there have been questions and confusion around jurisdiction of these products, so I want to take this opportunity to provide some clarity about where CPSC stands.
CPSC Releases Artwork For Clothing Storage Unit Labels Required By New Safety Standard
March 2, 2023, Furniture World
The Consumer Product Safety Commission has released the artwork necessary for product labeling required under the new Safety Standard for Clothing Storage Units, which goes into effect May 25, 2023. All units meeting the functional definition of a clothing storage unit under the new rule and having a manufacture date of May 25, 2023, or later must carry a new tip-over warning label item must also have a hang tag that displays the unit’s “stability rating” as calculated by the rule’s performance testing.
How To Become More Adaptable In Challenging Situations
March 3, 2023, Harvard Business Review
In unfamiliar, high-stakes situations, we’re hard-wired to default to the mechanisms that we’ve relied on the past. However, new situations often can’t be met with old solutions. When we most need to learn, change, and adapt, we are most likely to react with old approaches that aren’t suited to our new situation, leading to poorer decisions and ineffective solutions. To better overcome the obstacles posed by our old habits, the authors propose the strategy of Deliberate Calm to help leaders take stock of their situation and encourage them to discover new solutions with intention, creativity, and objectivity.
Army Reg Says Helmets Must Be Worn When Riding Bikes On Installations
March 1, 2023, U.S. Army
Army Regulation 385-10, 11-11, states bicycle helmets approved by the Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) will be worn by all personnel, including family members riding bicycles on Army installations. In fact, they must be worn when riding bicycles, skateboards, scooters, hover boards, segways, and roller or in-line skates. When purchasing a new helmet, riders should look for headgear that meets or exceeds CPSC standards.
New European Report Sets Out Safety Recommendations For E-Scooters
February 28, 2023, TTI
A new report, published by the European Transport Safety Council (ETSC) and the UK Parliamentary Advisory Council for Transport Safety (PACTS), has set out recommended safer technical standards for e-scooters and their usage in Europe. The recommendations include a 20 km/h factory-set speed limit, larger wheels, a ban on passengers and pavement riding, among others. The report is in response to the rapid growth of e-scooter usage over the last five years, and an associated increase in deaths and serious injuries.
New Report: 2022 Was Record-Breaking Year For U.S. Product Recalls
March 2, 2023, Benzinga
For the second consecutive year, more than 1 billion units of food, drugs, medical devices, automobiles, and consumer products were recalled in the U.S. According to Sedgwick’s latest state of the nation recall index report, 2022 was a record-breaking year for the number of units recalled, reaching nearly 1.5 billion. With regulatory scrutiny continuing to increase, 2023 may shape up to be another 1-billion-unit year, requiring businesses across industries to remain vigilant on matters of product safety and recall preparedness.
Consumer Reports: How To Prevent An Electric-Bike Fire
February 27, 2023, NewsChannel5Nashville
If you’ve got an e-bike, which actually runs on batteries, you should know that there have been a growing number of fires — some of them fatal — caused by these batteries. “When the lithium-ion batteries used in e-bikes are poorly made, overused, overcharged or used with the wrong charger, they can cause fires — and those fires can be very violent and difficult to put out,” said Ben Preston with Consumer Reports. “Thanks to a trade law unofficially known as the ‘Amazon loophole,’ which allows items under $800 to sort of dodge taxes and regulations that other products might have to go through,” says Preston.
Trying To Replace China’s Supply Chains? Don’t Bother
March 1, 2023, The Washington Post
The reality is industrial companies will manage to source the parts and components they need — some from China, others from Japan and Southeast Asia, and yet more from Mexico. Commercial ties will prevail and labor problems will abound as skilled manufacturing workers run short. Businesses will be forced to selectively decouple and certain sectors will struggle more than others. The higher the economic value of technology, the harder it’ll be to rely on others for it. There won’t be one new factory floor of the world to replace China. Just a new model of globalization to get used to.
A New Era Of Consumer Product Safety Regulation In Europe
March 1, 2023, Law360/Cooley
The final text of the new European General Product Safety Regulation is now available. This is the text of the provisional agreement reached between the European Commission, Parliament and European Council during the last round of trialogue discussions. While there are still a few hurdles to clear before this becomes law, and it is possible there could still be some changes to the text, this is largely expected to represent what the final legislation should look like.
