[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 43 (Tuesday, March 5, 2002)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 9923-9924]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-5126]


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FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION

16 CFR Part 250


Guides for the Household Furniture Industry

AGENCY: Federal Trade Commission.

ACTION: Final rule; rescission of the guides for the household 
furniture industry.

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SUMMARY: The Commission published a Federal Register document 
initiating the regulatory review of the Federal Trade Commission's 
(``Commission'') Guides for the Household Furniture Industry 
(``Furniture Guides'' or ``Guides''). The Commission has now completed 
its review, and determined to rescind the Furniture Guides.

EFFECTIVE DATE: March 5, 2002.

ADDRESSES: Requests for copies of the Federal Register document should 
be sent to the Consumer Response Center, Room 130, Federal Trade 
Commission, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20580. The 
document is available on the Internet at the Commission's website, 
http://www.ftc.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ingrid E. Whittaker-Ware, Attorney, 
Federal Trade Commission, 225 Peachtree Street, NE., Suite 1500, 
Atlanta, GA 30303, (404) 656-1390, e-mail [email protected]>.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Furniture Guides, promulgated by the 
Commission in 1973, provide guidance for industry members in the 
manufacture, sale, distribution, labeling and advertising of household 
furniture products. The Guides generally advise members of the 
furniture industry to make affirmative disclosures of product facts, 
which if known by a purchaser, might influence the purchasing decision. 
The specific disclosures concern identification of the types of wood 
and outer coverings or stuffings used in furniture. These disclosures 
were designed to protect consumers from being misled that the product 
is different from that which is actually being offered.
    The Guides advise affirmative disclosure of the composition of a 
furniture item and specifies where and how the disclosure should be 
made. For example, Section 250.1(b) advises that a tag or label 
affirmatively describing the product be permanently affixed to the 
product until consummation of sale to a consumer, and that the same 
information be included in advertising for the product. The Guides also 
provide examples of deceptive and non-deceptive descriptions of wood 
and wood imitations to ensure that prospective purchasers are not 
misled by a product's appearance. In addition, the Guides provide that 
wood names or trade names not be used to describe materials that 
simulate the appearance of wood without clearly disclosing that such 
names are merely descriptive of color or other simulated finish.
    The Commission has determined, as part of its oversight 
responsibilities, to review rules and industry guides periodically. 
These reviews seek information about the costs and benefits of the 
Commission's rules and guides, and their regulatory and economic 
impact. The information obtained assists the Commission in identifying 
rules and guides that warrant modification or rescission. The 
Commission solicited comments on the Furniture Guides in the Federal 
Register on April 10, 2000, 65 FR 18933. The comment period which was 
originally scheduled to end on June 9, 2000, was extended to July 10, 
2000, at the request of members of the furniture industry.
    The Commission received one comment. This comment was submitted by 
the American Furniture Manufacturers Association (``AFMA''). The AFMA 
expressed concern that the Guides, as currently written, have little 
practical use to members of the furniture industry due to significant 
changes in technology and terminology since the Guides were first 
promulgated. It noted that

    [T]he existing Guides are almost thirty years old, and fail to 
reflect current manufacturing processes, materials usage, 
terminology and the expectations of today's consumers. As currently 
drafted, the Guides may indeed frustrate good faith efforts to 
inform the consumer and therefore produce unintended anti-
competitive and anti-consumer consequences.

AFMA Comments to the Federal Trade Commission on Guides for the 
Household Furniture Industry, July 10, 2000, at 3

    The AFMA also suggests that it was the consensus of members of the 
industry that if the Guides were to be retained it would be necessary 
that they undergo significant modifications. The Commission received no 
comments from any consumer group.
    In the almost thirty years since the Guides were issued, the 
Commission has not received any complaints relating to practices 
covered by these Guides. Further, within the last ten years the 
Commission has not had need to initiate any enforcement action relating 
in any way to these Guides. Moreover, the Commission's unfettered 
ability to pursue actions against members of this industry for engaging 
in unfair and deceptive acts and practices under section 5 of the FTC 
Act, 15 U.S.C. 45, should deter manufacturers and sellers from 
misleading consumers in the future in the labeling, advertising or sale 
of household furniture products. If, in the future, deceptive practices 
prove to be a problem in this industry, however, the Commission may 
pursue enforcement actions as needed on a case-by-case basis.
    For the reasons explained in this notice, the Commission has 
determined not to revise the Furniture Guides substantially in order to 
bring them up to date, but instead to rescind the Guides because they 
are no longer necessary.

List of Subjects in 16 CFR Part 250

    Forest and forest products, Furniture industry, Trade practices.

PART 250--[REMOVED]

    The Commission, under authority of sections 5(a)(1) and 6(g) of the 
Federal Trade Commission Act, 15 U.S.C. 45(a)(1) and 46(g), amends 
Chapter 1 of Title 16 of the Code of Federal Regulations by removing 
Part 250.


[[Page 9924]]


    By direction of the Commission.
Donald S. Clark,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 02-5126 Filed 3-4-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6750-01-M