News and Media
04/01/2012
Reminder: Stays Of Enforcement Will End December 31, 2011
The Consumer Product Safety Commission’s Director of Compliance and Field Operations recently sent a letter (http://www.cpsc.gov/businfo/sleepwearpolicy.pdf) to manufacturers, distributors, importers and retailers in an effort to reinforce the CPSC staff’s enforcement policy on children’s sleepwear and loungewear.
In the letter, the Commission defined the term “children’s sleepwear” to include any product of wearing apparel (in sizes 0-14), such as nightgowns, pyjamas or similar or related items, such as robes, that are intended to be worn primarily for sleeping or activities related to sleeping. This definition includes loungewear. The definition of sleepwear also exempts (1) diapers and underwear, (2) infant garments (sized nine months and younger) and (3) “tight-fitting garments” that meet specific maximum dimensions.
The letter also included a summary of the CPSIA requirements for manufacturers and importers of children’s sleepwear that is sold in stores or online. These requirements include tracking labels and a certificate of compliance based on testing by a CPSC accredited third party laboratory. Children’s sleepwear are required to be tested under the Fabric Flammability Act, lead content and surface coatings (i.e. snaps, zippers) and meet the requirements for phthalates (sleepwear is considered a child care article).
The children’s sleepwear standards were developed to prevent sleepwear from igniting due to exposure to ignition sources, such as matches/lighters, candles, ranges, stoves, space heaters, and fireplaces. Details of the standards can be found at http://www.cpsc.gov/businfo/sreg.html.
CPSC Launches Registry for Small Batch Children’s Product Manufacturers
On December 23, 2011, the CPSC launched a registry for small batch manufacturers. Small batch manufacturers are defined as companies that earned $1 million or less in total gross revenues from sales of consumer products in 2011, and who produced in total no more than 7500 units of at least one consumer product in 2011. Small batch manufacturers that satisfy this definition can register for the calendar year of 2012 at www.saferproducts.gov.
The manufacturers that qualify are not required to third party test for compliance with certain children’s product safety rules during 2012 for products which they produced no more than 7500 units in the previous calendar year.
While the registry does not exempt small batch manufacturers from ensuring that their products comply with the standards, it does allow the required certificates of compliance to not be based on third party testing.
For additional information on the Small Batch Manufacturers Registry and small batch guidance materials, please see www.cpsc.gov/smallbatch.
