Notice2022-16693
Notice of Availability and Request for Comment: Revision to the Voluntary Standard for Gates and Enclosures
Primary source
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Published
August 4, 2022
Issuing agencies
Consumer Product Safety Commission
Abstract
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission's (Commission or CPSC) mandatory rule, Safety Standard for Gates and Enclosures, incorporates by reference ASTM F1004-21, Standard Consumer Safety Specification for Expansion Gates and Expandable Enclosures. The Commission has received notice of a revision to this incorporated voluntary standard. CPSC seeks comment on whether the revision improves the safety of the consumer products covered by the standard.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 87 Issue 149 (Thursday, August 4, 2022)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 149 (Thursday, August 4, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 47729-47730]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2022-16693]
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CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY COMMISSION
[Docket No. CPSC-2019-0014]
Notice of Availability and Request for Comment: Revision to the
Voluntary Standard for Gates and Enclosures
AGENCY: Consumer Product Safety Commission.
ACTION: Notice of availability and request for comment.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission's (Commission or
CPSC) mandatory rule, Safety Standard for Gates and Enclosures,
incorporates by reference ASTM F1004-21, Standard Consumer Safety
Specification for Expansion Gates and Expandable Enclosures. The
Commission has received notice of a revision to this incorporated
voluntary standard. CPSC seeks comment on whether the revision improves
the safety of the consumer products covered by the standard.
DATES: Comments must be received by August 18, 2022.
ADDRESSES: Submit comments, identified by Docket No. CPSC-2019-0014, by
any of the following methods:
Electronic Submissions: Submit electronic comments to the Federal
eRulemaking Portal at: <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>. Follow the
instructions for submitting comments. Do not submit through this
website: confidential business information, trade secret information,
or other sensitive or protected information that you do not want to be
available to the public. CPSC typically does not accept comments
submitted by electronic mail (email), except as described below.
Mail/hand delivery/courier/confidential Written Submissions: CPSC
encourages you to submit electronic comments by using the Federal
eRulemaking Portal. You may, however, submit comments by mail, hand
delivery, or courier to: Office of the Secretary, Consumer Product
Safety Commission, 4330 East West Highway, Bethesda, MD 20814;
telephone: (301) 504-7479.
Instructions: All submissions must include the agency name and
docket number. CPSC may post all comments without change, including any
personal identifiers, contact information, or other personal
information provided, to: <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>. If you wish to
submit confidential business information, trade secret information, or
other sensitive or protected information that you do not want to be
available to the public, you may submit such comments by mail, hand
delivery, or courier, or you may email them to: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#42213231216f2d3102213231216c252d34"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="197a696a7a34766a597a696a7a377e766f">[email protected]</span></a>.
Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or
comments received, go to: <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>, and insert the
docket number, CPSC-2019-0014, into the ``Search'' box, and follow the
prompts.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Carlos Torres, Project Manager,
Division of Mechanical and Combustion Engineering, U.S. Consumer
Product Safety Commission, 5 Research Place, Rockville, MD 20850;
telephone: (301) 987-2504; email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#9dfee9f2efeff8eeddfeedeefeb3faf2eb"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="3457405b4646514774574447571a535b42">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 104(b) of the Consumer Product
Safety Improvement Act of 2008 (CPSIA) requires the Commission to adopt
mandatory standards for durable infant or toddler products. 15 U.S.C.
2056a(b)(1). Mandatory standards must be ``substantially the same as''
voluntary standards, or may be ``more stringent'' than voluntary
standards, if the Commission determines that more stringent
requirements would further reduce the risk of injury associated with
the products. Id. Mandatory standards may be based, in whole or in
part, on a voluntary standard.
Pursuant to section 104(b)(4)(B) of the CPSIA, if a voluntary
standards organization revises a standard that has been adopted, in
whole or in part, as a consumer product safety standard under CPSIA
section 104, it must notify the Commission. The revised voluntary
standard then shall be considered to be a consumer product safety
standard issued by the Commission under section 9 of the Consumer
Product Safety Act (15 U.S.C. 2058), effective 180 days after the date
on which the organization notifies the Commission (or a later date
specified by the Commission in the Federal Register) unless, within 90
days after receiving that notice, the Commission responds to the
organization that it has determined that the proposed revision does not
improve the safety of the consumer product covered by the standard, and
therefore the Commission is retaining its existing mandatory consumer
product safety standard. 15 U.S.C. 2056a(b)(4)(B).
Under this authority, in 2020 the Commission issued a mandatory
safety rule for gates and enclosures. The rulemaking created 16 CFR
part 1239, which incorporated by reference ASTM F1004-19, Standard
Consumer Safety Specification for Expansion Gates and Expandable
Enclosures. 85 FR 40100 (July 6, 2020). The mandatory standard included
performance requirements and test methods, as well as requirements for
warning labels and instructions, to address hazards to children. In
2021, ASTM revised the voluntary standard for gates and enclosures. On
September 28, 2021, the Commission issued a direct final rule to update
the mandatory standard for gates and enclosures to incorporate by
reference that revision known as ASTM F1004-21 (86 FR 53535).
In July 2022, ASTM published a further revised version of the
incorporated voluntary standard. On July 25, 2022, ASTM notified the
Commission that it had approved and published the revised version of
the voluntary standard. CPSC staff is assessing the revised voluntary
standard to determine, consistent with section 104(b)(4)(B) of the
CPSIA, its effect on the safety of consumer products covered by the
standard. The Commission invites public comment on that question to
inform staff's assessment and any subsequent Commission consideration
of the revisions in ASTM F1004-22.\1\
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\1\ The Commission voted unanimously (5-0) to approve this
notice.
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The existing voluntary standard and the revised voluntary standard
are available for review in several ways. ASTM has provided on its
website (<a href="https://www.astm.org/CPSC.htm">https://www.astm.org/CPSC.htm</a>), at no cost, a read-only copy
of ASTM F1004-22 and a red-lined version that identifies the changes
made to ASTM F1004-21. Likewise, a read-only copy of the existing,
incorporated standard is available for viewing, at no cost, on the ASTM
website at: <a href="https://www.astm.org/READINGLIBRARY/">https://www.astm.org/READINGLIBRARY/</a>. Interested parties
can also download copies of the standards by purchasing them from ASTM
International, 100 Barr Harbor Drive, P.O. Box C700, West Conshohocken,
PA 19428-2959; phone: 610-832-9585; <a href="https://www.astm.org">https://www.astm.org</a>.
Alternatively, interested parties can schedule an appointment to
inspect copies of the standards at CPSC's Office of the Secretary, U.S.
Consumer Product Safety Commission, 4330 East West Highway, Bethesda,
MD 20814, telephone: 301-504-7479; email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#5e3d2e2d3d73312d1e3d2e2d3d70393128"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="aecddeddcd83c1ddeecddeddcd80c9c1d8">[email protected]</span></a>.
Comments must be received by August 18, 2022. Because of the short
statutory time frame Congress established for the Commission to
consider revised voluntary standards under section 104(b)(4) of the
CPSIA,
[[Page 47730]]
CPSC will not consider comments received after this date.
Alberta E. Mills,
Secretary, Consumer Product Safety Commission.
[FR Doc. 2022-16693 Filed 8-3-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6355-01-P
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