WASHINGTON, D.C. – THE U.S. CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY COMMISSION (CPSC) VOTED (5-0) TO RECOGNIZE FOUR FIREWALLED TESTING LABORATORIES, ALSO KNOWN AS FIREWALLED CONFORMITY ASSESSMENT BODIES. THE RECENTLY AMENDED CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY ACT (CPSA) NOW REQUIRES THAT CHILDREN’S PRODUCT MAKERS TEST THEIR PRODUCTS AT A CPSC-RECOGNIZED LABORATORY AS THE BASIS FOR THE MAKER’S REQUIRED CERTIFICATION THAT THEIR PRODUCTS MEET CERTAIN CPSC SAFETY RULES – SUCH AS SAFETY STANDARDS FOR CRIBS AND PACIFIERS, A BAN ON CHILDREN’S METAL JEWELRY WITH LEAD, AND BANS ON TOYS WITH SMALL PARTS AND LEAD PAINT. TO DATE, THE COMMISSION HAS RECOGNIZED NEARLY 250 THIRD-PARTY TESTING LABORATORIES. THE FOUR FIREWALLED LABS RECOGNIZED TODAY HAVE DEMONSTRATED, TO A CPSC REVIEW COMMITTEE, THEIR ABILITY TO CONFORM TO REQUIREMENTS ESTABLISHED UNDER THE CPSA.
FEDERAL LAW MANDATES THAT A TESTING LAB THAT IS OWNED, MANAGED, OR CONTROLLED BY A MANUFACTURER OR PRIVATE LABELER MAY TEST THAT COMPANY’S PRODUCTS AS A BASIS FOR CERTIFICATION ONLY IF THE CPSC FINDS THAT THE LABORATORY HAS MET CRITERIA ESTABLISHED BY THE CPSA TO ENSURE THAT THE LABORATORY’S TEST RESULTS ARE “FIREWALLED” FROM THE PARENT COMPANY.
Leave a Reply