1.This Act may be cited as
the Imported and Domestic Product
Safety Act of 2009
.
2.In this Act:
(1)The
term Council means the Product Safety Coordinating Council
established by section 4(a).
(2)The
term Director means the Director of Imported and Domestic Product
Safety appointed under section 3(b).
(3)The
term Office means the Office of Imported and Domestic Product
Safety established by section 3(a).
(4)The term product means any of
the following:
(A)Food, as defined
in section 201 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 321),
including—
(i)poultry and
poultry products, as defined in section 4 of the Poultry Products Inspection
Act (21 U.S.C. 453);
(ii)meat and meat
food products, as defined in section 1 of the Federal Meat Inspection Act (21
U.S.C. 601); and
(iii)eggs and egg
products, as defined in section 4 of the Egg Products Inspection Act (21 U.S.C.
1033).
(B)A drug, device,
cosmetic, dietary supplement, infant formula, and food additive, as such terms
are defined in section 201 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21
U.S.C. 321).
(C)A consumer
product, as such term is defined in section 3(a) of the Consumer Product Safety
Act (15 U.S.C. 2052).
(D)A motor vehicle,
motor vehicle equipment, and replacement equipment, as such terms are defined
in section 30102 of title 49, United States Code.
(E)A biological
product, as such term is defined in section 351(i) of the Public Health Service
Act (42 U.S.C. 262(i)).
(F)A pesticide, as
such term is defined in section 2 of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and
Rodenticide Act (7 U.S.C. 136).
(G)Any other food,
consumer product, fishery product, beverage, or tobacco product with respect to
which a department or agency that is represented on the Council has
jurisdiction.
3.Office of
Imported and Domestic Product Safety; Director
(a)There
is established in the Department of Commerce an office to be known as the
Office of Imported and Domestic Product Safety
.
(b)The
Director of Imported and Domestic Product Safety shall be the head of the
Office. The Director shall be appointed by the President, by and with the
advice and consent of the Senate, from among individuals who have—
(1)not less than 10
years of leadership and management experience in the public or private sector;
and
(2)expertise in
areas relating to product safety and protection of the public.
(c)The Director shall, working with the Council—
(1)ensure that there
is coordination among all departments and agencies that have responsibility for
product safety in a manner that—
(A)protects the
health and safety of United States consumers; and
(B)provides that
consumers and businesses have access to product safety information;
(2)establish
policies, objectives, and priorities to improve the management, coordination,
promotion, and oversight of all departments and agencies that have
responsibility for product safety;
(3)work with
consumer groups, industry, and other interested parties to establish the
policies, objectives, and priorities described in paragraph (2);
(4)improve the
www.Recalls.gov Internet website (or successor Federal website) that provides
product safety information and recall information for products under different
Federal agencies;
(5)develop and
maintain a database that—
(A)is
centralized;
(B)is user
friendly;
(C)is accessible to
the public;
(D)includes
information about all mandatory and voluntary actions taken with respect to
product safety by businesses and departments and agencies that have
responsibility for product safety, including—
(i)recalls;
(ii)advisories;
(iii)alerts;
(iv)seizures;
(v)defect
determinations;
(vi)import bans;
and
(vii)such other
actions as the Director considers appropriate; and
(E)incorporates
hyperlinks to databases maintained by the departments and agencies that have
responsibility for product safety with respect to the actions described in
subparagraph (D);
(6)develop
guidelines for effective and efficient dissemination, by the departments and
agencies of members of the Council, of product recall alerts to consumers and
businesses, including retailers, the media, and medical professionals;
(7)promote the
development of risk assessment models to assist Federal departments and
agencies responsible for the importation and safety of products to better
identify and prevent the importation or introduction into commerce of unsafe
products;
(8)promote the
development of tracing technology to provide consumers with access to the
supply chain history of a product;
(9)develop
guidelines to facilitate information sharing relating to the importation and
safety of products among businesses, United States trading partners, and
departments and agencies of Federal, State, and local governments;
(10)develop and
maintain a public electronic directory of services to assist consumers and
businesses in locating product safety information;
(11)develop a
framework for engaging United States trading partners in efforts to improve
product safety, including cooperation and coordination related to safety
standards, testing, certification, audits, and inspections before products are
shipped to the United States;
(12)establish an
inventory of memoranda of understanding negotiated by Federal departments and
agencies with foreign governments related to the importation and safety of
products;
(13)promote
coordination among Federal departments and agencies seeking to negotiate new
memoranda described in paragraph (11); and
(14)develop
guidelines to ensure that there is a unified effort to protect the health and
safety of United States consumers, including—
(A)simplifying
consumer-retailer interaction regarding products identified as unsafe;
(B)improving product
labeling;
(C)developing
comprehensive recordkeeping throughout the production, importation, and
distribution of products; and
(D)increasing public
access to information regarding—
(i)product safety
standards, testing, and certification;
(ii)enforcement of
product safety laws; and
(iii)product-related
deaths, injuries, and illness.
(d)
(1)The Director may employ and fix the compensation of such
officers and employees as may be necessary to assist the Director in carrying
out the duties of the Director set forth by subsection (c).
(2)Detail of
Government employeesThe Director may direct, with the
concurrence of the Secretary of a department or head of an agency, the
temporary reassignment within the Federal Government of personnel employed by
such department or agency on a reimbursable or nonreimbursable basis to the
Office.
(e)The
Director shall report to the Secretary of Commerce.
(f)Section
5314 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the
following new item:
Director of Imported and Domestic Product Safety,
Department of
Commerce.
.
4.Product Safety
Coordinating Council
(a)There
is established a Product Safety Coordinating Council—
(1)to improve the
management, coordination, promotion, and oversight of product safety
responsibilities; and
(2)to assist the
Director in—
(A)carrying out the
functions of the Office set forth by section 3(c);
(B)developing the
strategic plan under section 5; and
(C)developing the
report under section 6.
(b)
(1)The
Council shall consist of the Director and 1 individual designated by each of
the following from their respective departments and agencies:
(A)The Commissioner
of Customs and Border Protection of the Department of Homeland Security.
(B)The Under
Secretary for International Trade of the Department of Commerce.
(C)The United States
Trade Representative.
(D)The Under
Secretary for Economic, Energy, and Agricultural Affairs of the Department of
State.
(E)The Under
Secretary for Food Safety of the Department of Agriculture.
(F)The Commissioner
of the Food and Drug Administration of the Department of Health and Human
Services.
(G)The Under
Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere of the Department of Commerce.
(H)The Chairman of
the Consumer Product Safety Commission.
(I)The Administrator
of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration of the Department of
Transportation.
(J)The Administrator
of the Environmental Protection Agency.
(K)The Administrator
of the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau of the Department of the
Treasury.
(L)The Attorney
General.
(M)The Director of
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of the Department of Health and
Human Services.
(N)The Chairman of
the Federal Trade Commission.
(O)The Chairman of
the United States International Trade Commission.
(P)The Director of
the Office of Management and Budget.
(Q)Such other
officers of the United States as the Director determines necessary to carry out
the functions of the Council.
(2)Each
individual designated under paragraph (1) shall be selected from among
individuals who are—
(A)involved in
product safety and protection of the public from risks to safety; and
(B)qualified to
serve on the Council.
(c)Department and
agency responsibilities
(1)The department or agency of each member of the Council
shall assist the Director in—
(A)developing and
implementing a unified effort to protect the health and safety of United States
consumers;
(B)ensuring that
consumers and businesses have access to product safety information; and
(C)carrying out the
duties of the Director set forth by section 3(c).
(2)Each
member of the Council shall ensure that the department or agency the member
represents—
(A)provides such
assistance, information, and advice as the Director may request;
(B)complies with
information sharing policies, procedures, guidelines, and standards established
by the Director; and
(C)provides adequate
resources to support the activities and operations of the Office.
(d)The
Council shall meet not less frequently than monthly at the call of the
Director.
(e)The
Director shall be the chairperson of the Council.
5.
(a)Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment
of this Act, and every 2 years thereafter, the Director shall, after consulting
with the members of the Council, submit to the President and to Congress a
strategic plan.
(b)Contents of
strategic planThe strategic plan submitted under subsection (a)
shall contain—
(1)a detailed
description of the goals, objectives, and priorities of the Office and the
Council;
(2)a description of
the methods for achieving such goals, objectives, and priorities;
(3)a description of
the performance measures that will be used to monitor results in achieving such
goals, objectives, and priorities; and
(4)an estimate of
the resources necessary to achieve such goals, objectives, and priorities, and
an estimate of the cost of such resources.
6.Annual report on
product safety
(a)Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of
this Act and November 1 of each calendar year thereafter, the Director shall
submit to the President and to Congress a written report on the safety of
products.
(b)The report submitted under subsection (a) shall contain a
detailed description of how the duties set forth in section 3(c) are being
implemented.
(c)The
Director shall consult with the members of the Council with respect to the
preparation of the report required by subsection (a). Any comments provided by
the members of the Council for a report under such subsection shall be
submitted to the Director not later than 1 month before the date such report is
submitted to Congress. The Director shall submit the report to Congress after
taking into account all comments received.
7.Authorization of
appropriationsThere are
authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of Commerce such sums as may be
necessary to carry out the provisions of this Act and the activities of the
Office.
8.Authorization of
interagency support for product safety coordinationThe use of interagency funding and other
forms of support is authorized by Congress to carry out the functions and
activities of the Office and the functions and activities of the
Council.