[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 83 (Monday, May 1, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 25570-25571]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 06-4102]


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CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY COMMISSION


Proposed Collection; Comment Request--Consumer Opinion Forum

AGENCY: Consumer Product Safety Commission.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: As required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 
Chapter 35), the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC or 
Commission) requests comments on a proposed collection of information 
from persons who may voluntarily register and participate in a Consumer 
Opinion Forum posted on the CPSC Web site, http://wwww.cpsc.gov. The 
Commission will consider all comments received in response to this 
notice before requesting approval of this collection of information 
from the Office of Management and Budget.

[[Page 25571]]


DATES: Written comments must be received by the Office of the Secretary 
not later than June 30, 2006.

ADDRESSES: Written comments should be captioned ``Consumer Opinion 
Forum'' and e-mailed to [email protected]. Comments may also be sent by 
facsimile to (301) 504-0127, or by mail to the Office of the Secretary, 
Consumer Product Safety Commission, 4330 East West Highway, Bethesda, 
Maryland 20814.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For information about the proposed 
collection of information call or write Linda L. Glatz, Management and 
Program Analyst, Office of Planning and Evaluation, Consumer Product 
Safety Commission, 4330 East West Highway, Bethesda, Maryland 20814; 
(301) 04-7671.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

A. Background

    The Commission is authorized under section 5(a) of the Consumer 
Product Safety Act (CPSA), 15 U.S.C. 2054(a), to collect information, 
conduct research, perform studies and investigations relating to the 
causes and prevention of deaths, accidents, injuries, illnesses, other 
health impairments, and economic losses associated with consumer 
products. Section 5(b) of the CPSA, 15 U.S.C. 2054(b), further provides 
that the Commission may conduct research, studies and investigations on 
the safety of consumer products or test consumer products and develop 
product safety test methods and testing devices.
    In order to better identify and evaluate the risks of product-
related incidents, the Commission staff seeks to solicit consumer 
opinions and perceptions related to consumer product use, on a 
voluntary basis, through questions posted on the CPSC's Consumer 
Opinion Forum on the CPSC Web site, http://www.cpsc.gov. Through the 
forum, consumers will be able to answer questions and provide 
information regrading their experiences, opinions and/or perceptions on 
the use or pattern of use of a specific product or type of product. The 
Consumer Opinion Forum is intended for consumers, 18 years and older, 
who have access to the Internet and e-mail, who voluntarily register to 
participate through a participant registration process, and respond to 
the questions posted in the Consumer Opinion Forum. New questions will 
be posted periodically on the CPSC Web site, http://www.cpsc.gov, and 
registered participants will be invited via e-mail to respond to 
various questions, but not more frequently than once every four weeks.
    The information collected from the Consumer Opinion Forum will help 
inform the Commission's evaluation of consumer products and product use 
by providing insight and information into consumer perceptions and 
usage patterns. Such information may also assist the Commission in its 
efforts to support voluntary standards activities, and help the staff 
identify areas regarding consumer safety issues that need additional 
research. In addition, based on the information obtained, the staff may 
be able to provide safety information to the public that is easier to 
read and is more easily understood by a wider range of consumers. For 
example, the staff may be able to propose new language or revisions to 
existing language in warning labels or manuals if the staff finds that 
certain warning language is perceived by many participants to be 
unclear or subject to misinterpretation. Finally, the Consumer Opinion 
Forum may be used to solicit consumer opinions and feedback regarding 
the effectiveness of product recall communications and in determining 
what action is being taken by consumers in response to such 
communications and why. This may aid in tailoring future recall 
activities to increase the success of those activities. If this 
information is not collected, the Commission would not have available 
useful information regarding consumer experiences, opinions, and 
perceptions related to specific product use, which the Commission 
relies on in its ongoing efforts to improve the safety of consumer 
products on behalf of consumers.

B. Estimated Burden

    The Commission staff currently estimates that there may be up to 
5,000 respondents who register to participate in the Consumer Opinion 
Forum. The Commission staff estimates that each respondent will take 10 
minutes or less to complete the one-time registration process. The 
Commission staff further estimates that the amount of time required to 
respond to each set of questions on the Consumer Opinion Forum will be 
15 minutes or less. If, at the maximum, each respondent responds to 12 
sets of questions over the course of a year, or once a month, the 
yearly burden would result in approximately 3 hours per year for each 
respondent. If as many as 5,000 consumers respond, the Commission staff 
estimates that the annual burden could total approximately 15,833 hours 
per year.
    The Commission staff estimates the value of the time of respondents 
to this collection of information at $28.75 an hour. This is based on 
the 2005 U.S. Department of Labor Employer Costs for Employee 
Compensation. At this valuation, the estimated annual cost to the 
public of this information collection will be about $455,000 per year.

C. Request for Comments

    The Commission solicits written comments from all interested 
persons about the proposed collection of information. The commission 
specifically solicits information relevant to the following topics:

--Whether the collection of information described above is necessary 
for the proper performance of the Commission's functions, including 
whether the information would have practical utility;
--Whether the estimated burden of the proposed collection of 
information is accurate;
--Whether the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be 
collected could be enhanced; and
--Whether the burden imposed by the collection of information could be 
minimized by use of automated, electronic or other technological 
collection techniques, or other forms of information technology.

    Dated: April 26, 2006.
Todd A. Stevenson,
Secretary, Consumer Product Safety Commission.
[FR Doc. 06-4102 Filed 4-28-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6355-01-M