[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 98 (Wednesday, May 20, 2020)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 30605-30608]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-09166]


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CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY COMMISSION

16 CFR Part 1225

[Docket No. CPSC-2012-0068]


Safety Standard for Hand-Held Infant Carriers

AGENCY: Consumer Product Safety Commission.

ACTION: Direct final rule.

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SUMMARY: In December 2013, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission 
(CPSC) issued a consumer product safety standard for hand-held infant 
carriers. The standard incorporated by reference the applicable ASTM 
voluntary standard, with one modification in the definition of the 
product, to clarify that semi-rigid carriers fall within the scope of 
the standard. We are publishing this direct final rule revising the 
CPSC's mandatory standard for hand-held infant carriers to incorporate 
by reference the most recent version of the applicable ASTM standard.

DATES: The rule is effective on August 3, 2020, unless we receive 
significant adverse comment by June 19, 2020. If we receive timely 
significant adverse comments, we will publish notification in the 
Federal Register, withdrawing this direct final rule before its 
effective date. The incorporation by reference of the publication 
listed in this rule is approved by the Director of the Federal Register 
as of August 3, 2020.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by Docket No. CPSC-2012-
0068, by any of the following methods:
    Electronic Submissions: Submit electronic comments to the Federal 
eRulemaking Portal at: https://www.regulations.gov. Follow the 
instructions for submitting comments. The CPSC does not accept comments 
submitted by electronic mail (email), except through https://www.regulations.gov. The CPSC encourages you to submit electronic 
comments by using the Federal eRulemaking Portal, as described above.
    Mail/hand delivery/courier Written Submissions: Submit comments by 
mail/hand delivery/courier to: Division of the Secretariat, Consumer 
Product Safety Commission, Room 820, 4330 East-West Highway, Bethesda, 
MD 20814; telephone: (301) 504-7479; email: [email protected].
    Instructions: All submissions must include the agency name and 
docket number for this notification. CPSC may post all comments 
received without change, including any personal identifiers, contact 
information, or other personal information provided, to: https://www.regulations.gov. Do not submit electronically: Confidential 
business information, trade secret information, or other sensitive or 
protected information that you do not want to be available to the 
public. If you wish to submit such information, please submit it 
according to the instructions for written submissions.
    Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or 
comments received, go to: https:/www.regulations.gov, and insert the 
docket number, CPSC-2012-0068, into the ``Search'' box, and follow the 
prompts.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Keysha L. Walker, Compliance Officer, 
Office of Compliance and Field Operations, Consumer Product Safety 
Commission, 4330 East-West Highway, Bethesda, MD 20814-4408; telephone: 
301-504-6820; email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

A. Background

1. Statutory Authority

    Section 104(b)(1)(B) of the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act 
(CPSIA), also known as the Danny Keysar Child Product Safety 
Notification Act, requires the Commission to promulgate consumer 
product safety standards for durable infant or toddler products. The 
law requires these standards to be ``substantially the same as'' 
applicable voluntary standards or more stringent than the voluntary 
standards if the Commission concludes that more stringent requirements 
would further reduce the risk of injury associated with the product.
    The CPSIA also sets forth a process for updating CPSC's durable 
infant or toddler standards when the voluntary standard upon which the 
CPSC standard was based is changed. Section 104(b)(4)(B) of the CPSIA 
provides that if an organization revises a standard that has been 
adopted, in whole or in part, as a consumer product safety standard 
under this subsection, it shall notify the Commission. In addition, the 
revised voluntary standard shall be considered to be a consumer product 
safety standard issued by the Commission under section 9 of the 
Consumer Product Safety Act (15 U.S.C. 2058), effective 180 days after 
the date on which the organization notifies the Commission (or such 
later date specified by the Commission in the Federal Register) unless, 
within 90 days after receiving that notice, the Commission notifies the 
organization that it has determined that the proposed revision does not 
improve the safety of the consumer product covered by the standard and 
that the Commission is retaining the existing consumer product safety 
standard.

2. The Hand-Held Infant Carriers Standard

    On December 6, 2013, the Commission published a final rule issuing 
a mandatory standard for hand-held infant carriers that incorporated by 
reference the standard in effect at that time, ASTM F2050-13a, Standard 
Consumer Specification for Hand-Held Infant Carriers, with one 
modification in the definition of the product, to clarify that semi-
rigid carriers fall within the scope of the standard. 78 FR 73415. The 
ASTM standard for hand-held infant carriers, ASTM F2050-19, Standard 
Consumer Safety Specification for Hand-Held Infant Carries, applies to 
hand-held infant carriers that are rigid (e.g., infant car seat removed 
from the car) or semi-rigid (e.g., Moses baskets). A hand-held infant 
carrier seat often serves as an infant car seat and also can be used 
with strollers and travel systems. A hand-held bassinet/cradle includes 
products such as carriage baskets (removed from a stroller base) and 
Moses baskets (those

[[Page 30606]]

with handles). The standard was codified in the Commission's 
regulations at 16 CFR part 1225. Since publication of ASTM F2050-13a, 
the current mandatory standard, ASTM has published two revisions to 
ASTM F2050. ASTM did not notify CPSC of the first revision. The second 
revision, ASTM F2050-19 was approved on December 15, 2019, and 
published in January 2020. ASTM officially notified the Commission of 
this revision on February 5, 2020. The rule is incorporating ASTM 
F2050-19 as the mandatory standard.

B. Revisions to the ASTM Standard

    Under section 104(b)(4)(B) of the CPSIA, unless the Commission 
determines that ASTM's revision of a voluntary standard that is a CPSC 
mandatory standard ``does not improve the safety of the consumer 
product covered by the standard,'' the revised voluntary standard 
becomes the new mandatory standard. As discussed below, the Commission 
determines that the changes made in ASTM F2050-16 and -19 are neutral 
or improve the safety of hand-held infant carriers. Therefore, the 
Commission will allow the ASTM F2050-19 to become effective as a 
mandatory consumer product safety standard under the statute, effective 
August 3, 2020.
1. Differences Between 16 CFR Part 1225 and ASTM F2050-16
    On February 1, 2016, ASTM approved a revised version ASTM F2050 and 
published ASTM F2050-16, but ASTM did not notify CPSC of the revision. 
The 2016 revision contained several editorial non-substantive changes 
and one substantive change, as described below.
Non-Substantive Changes
    Minor formatting changes were made to bring the standard into 
accord with ASTM form and style guidelines (e.g., ``5s'' to ``5 s'', 
punctuation at the end of a sentence, and removing a repeated word). We 
find that all of the non-substantive changes made in ASTM F2050-16 are 
editorial in nature, and therefore, are neutral regarding safety for 
hand-held infant carriers.
Substantive Change
    In section 8.3.2.1, hand-held bassinets/cradles were exempt from 
the requirement to display a ``NEVER leave child unattended'' warning 
message. Although we generally assesses exemptions as a reduction in 
safety, in the case of this warning message, the exemption is unlikely 
to reduce safety because it is targeted at bassinets and cradles that 
are intended for sleep. In such a case, the caregiver would be rightly 
expected to leave a sleeping child unattended in a bassinet. Therefore, 
we conclude this exemption is neutral regarding safety.
2. Differences Between 16 CFR Part 1225 and ASTM F2050-19
    In December 2019, ASTM revised ASTM F2050-19. These changes 
included non-substantive changes and one substantive change. The 
resulting standard is ASTM F2050-19, which was published in January 
2020. The 2019 revision contained several editorial non-substantive 
changes and two substantive changes as described below.
Non-Substantive Changes
    A number of minor and editorial changes were made throughout ASTM 
F2050-19 that do not affect the safety of hand-held infant carriers. 
These include:
     In section 1.7, ``safety and health'' was changed to 
``safety, health, and environmental.''
     Section 1.8 was added, stating that ASTM developed the 
standard in accordance with principles recognized by the World Trade 
Organization.
     Changes to unit expressions bring the standard into 
accordance with ASTM form and style guidelines. For example, the 
revision added a unit of measurement for each numerical value--``73 
[deg]F  9 [deg]F.'' instead of ``73  9 [deg]F'' 
and ``minute'' changed to ``min.''
     Minor spelling changes (e.g., ``gage'' to ``gauge'' in 
7.4.2.1)
     Definition for acronyms added (e.g., ``EPS (expanded 
polystyrene), EPP (expanded polypropylene)'' in note 3).
    All of the non-substantive changes made in ASTM F2050-19 are 
editorial in nature and are neutral regarding safety for hand-held 
infant carriers.
Substantive Changes
    There are two substantive changes in ASTM F2050-19 that impact the 
safety of hand-held infant carriers, as described below.
     In section 3.1.3, the definition of ``hand-held infant 
carrier'' changed to include ``semi-rigid.'' This change harmonizes 
ASTM F2050 with the definition in16 CFR part 1225, and is, therefore, 
an improvement in safety over the previous standard.
     In section 9.2.4.1, ASTM added a new warning icon and 
warning statement regarding the fall hazard with shopping cart use. 
Specifically, the message ``Fall Hazard: The carrier can fall from the 
shopping cart. Do not use on shopping cart,'' and a related icon must 
now appear in the instructional literature for a hand-held infant 
carrier. We conclude that this change is an improvement in safety 
because it alerts the caregiver to an additional hazard.
    The two substantive changes made to ASTM F2050-19 improve the 
safety of hand-held infant carriers, and the non-substantive changes 
are neutral regarding safety.
    In December 2013, the Commission incorporated by reference ASTM 
F2050-13a, with one modification in 16 CFR 1225.2(b)(1) to the 
definition of ``hand-held infant carrier'' in section 3.1.3 of ASTM 
F2050-13a to clarify that semi-rigid carriers fall within the scope of 
the standard. The modification in 16 CFR 1225.2(b)(1) is no longer 
necessary because ASTM F2050-19 includes semi-rigid products in the 
definition. Therefore, the rule incorporates by reference ASTM F2050-19 
and removes 16 CFR 1225.2(b)(1).

C. Incorporation by Reference

    The Office of the Federal Register (OFR) has regulations concerning 
incorporation by reference. 1 CFR part 51. Under these regulations, 
agencies must discuss, in the preamble to the final rule, ways that the 
materials the agency incorporates by reference are reasonably available 
to interested persons and how interested parties can obtain the 
materials. In addition, the preamble to the final rule must summarize 
the material. 1 CFR 51.5(b).
    In accordance with the OFR's requirements, section A of this 
preamble summarizes the major provisions of the ASTM F2050-19 standard 
that the Commission incorporates by reference into 16 CFR part 1225. 
The standard is reasonably available to interested parties, and 
interested parties may purchase a copy of the standard from ASTM 
International, 100 Barr Harbor Drive, P.O. Box C700, West Conshohocken, 
PA 19428-2959 USA; phone: 610-832-9585; www.astm.org. In addition, once 
the rule becomes effective, a read-only copy of the standard will be 
available for viewing on the ASTM website at: https://www.astm.org/READINGLIBRARY/. A copy of the standard can also be inspected at CPSC's 
Division of the Secretariat, U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, 
Room 820, 4330 East-West Highway, Bethesda, MD 20814; telephone: 301-
504-7479; email: [email protected].

D. Certification

    Section 14(a) of the CPSA requires manufacturers of products 
subject to a consumer product safety rule under the CPSA, or to a 
similar rule, ban, standard, or regulation under any other

[[Page 30607]]

act enforced by the Commission, to certify that the products comply 
with all applicable CPSC requirements. 15 U.S.C. 2063(a). Such 
certification must be based on a test of each product, or on a 
reasonable testing program, or, for children's products, on tests on a 
sufficient number of samples by a third party conformity assessment 
body accredited by the Commission to test according to the applicable 
requirements. As noted, standards issued under section 104(b)(1)(B) of 
the CPSIA are ``consumer product safety standards.'' Thus, they are 
subject to the testing and certification requirements of section 14 of 
the CPSA.
    Because hand-held infant carriers are children's products, a CPSC-
accepted third party conformity assessment body must test samples of 
the products. These products also must comply with all other applicable 
CPSC requirements, such as the lead content requirements in section 101 
of the CPSIA,\1\ the phthalates prohibitions in section 108 of the 
CPSIA and 16 CFR part 1307,\2\ the tracking label requirement in 
section 14(a)(5) of the CPSA,\3\ and the consumer registration form 
requirements in section 104(d) of the CPSIA.\4\
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    \1\ 15 U.S.C. 1278a.
    \2\ 15 U.S.C. 2057c.
    \3\ 15 U.S.C. 2063(a)(5).
    \4\ 15 U.S.C. 2056a(d).
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E. Notice of Requirements

    In accordance with section 14(a)(3)(B)(iv) of the CPSIA, the 
Commission has previously published a notice of requirements (NOR) for 
accreditation of third party conformity assessment bodies for testing 
portable bed rails (78 FR 73415, December 6, 2013). The NOR provided 
the criteria and process for our acceptance of accreditation of third 
party conformity assessment bodies for testing hand-held infant 
carriers to 16 CFR part 1225. The NORs for all mandatory standards for 
durable infant or toddler products are listed in the Commission's rule, 
``Requirements Pertaining to Third Party Conformity Assessment 
Bodies,'' codified at 16 CFR part 1112.
    None of the test methods have been changed in the revised standard 
ASTM F2050-19. Therefore, testing laboratories that are currently CPSC-
accepted, have demonstrated competence for testing in accordance with 
ASTM F2050-13a, and will have the competence to source a new sheet and 
conduct the testing to the new standard under the revised standard ASTM 
F2050-19. Therefore, the Commission considers the existing CPSC-
accepted laboratories for testing to ASTM F2050-13a to be capable of 
testing to ASTM F2050-19 as well. Accordingly, the existing NOR for 
this standard will remain in place, and CPSC-accepted third party 
conformity assessment bodies are expected to update the scope of the 
testing laboratories' accreditation to reflect the revised standard in 
the normal course of renewing their accreditation.

F. Direct Final Rule Process

    The Commission is issuing this rule as a direct final rule. 
Although the Administrative Procedure Act (APA; 5 U.S.C. 551-559) 
generally requires agencies to provide notice of a rule and an 
opportunity for interested parties to comment on it. Section 553 of the 
APA provides an exception when the agency, ``for good cause,'' finds 
that notice and comment are ``impracticable, unnecessary, or contrary 
to the public interest.'' 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B). The Commission concludes 
that when the Commission updates a reference to an ASTM standard that 
the Commission has incorporated by reference under section 104(b) of 
the CPSIA, notice and comment are not necessary.
    Under the process set out in section 104(b)(4)(B) of the CPSIA, 
when ASTM revises a standard that the Commission has previously 
incorporated by reference under section 104(b)(1)(b) of the CPSIA, that 
revision will become the new CPSC standard, unless the Commission 
determines that ASTM's revision does not improve the safety of the 
product. Thus, unless the Commission makes such a determination, the 
ASTM revision becomes CPSC's standard, by operation of law. The 
Commission is allowing ASTM F2050-19 to become CPSC's new standard. The 
purpose of this direct final rule is merely to update the reference in 
the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) so that it reflects accurately 
the version of the standard that takes effect by statute. The rule 
updates the reference in the CFR, but under the terms of the CPSIA, 
ASTM F2050-19 takes effect as the new CPSC standard for hand-held 
infant carriers, even if the Commission did not issue this rule. Thus, 
public comments would not impact the substantive changes to the 
standard or the effect of the revised standard as a consumer product 
safety standard under section 104(b) of the CPSIA. Under these 
circumstances, notice and comment are not necessary.
    In Recommendation 95-4, the Administrative Conference of the United 
States (ACUS) endorsed direct final rulemaking as an appropriate 
procedure to expedite rules that are noncontroversial and that are not 
expected to generate significant adverse comment. See 60 FR 43108 
(August 18, 1995). ACUS recommends that agencies use the direct final 
rule process when they act under the ``unnecessary'' prong of the good 
cause exemption in 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B). Consistent with the ACUS 
recommendation, the Commission is publishing this rule as a direct 
final rule because CPSC does not expect any significant adverse 
comments.
    Unless CPSC receives a significant adverse comment within 30 days 
of this notification, the rule will become effective on August 3, 2020. 
In accordance with ACUS's recommendation, the Commission considers a 
significant adverse comment to be ``one where the commenter explains 
why the rule would be inappropriate,'' including an assertion 
challenging ``the rule's underlying premise or approach,'' or a claim 
that the rule would be ``ineffective or unacceptable without change.'' 
60 FR 43108, 43111. As noted, this rule merely updates a reference in 
the CFR to reflect a change that occurs by statute.
    If the Commission receives a significant adverse comment, the 
Commission would withdraw this direct final rule. Depending on the 
comments and other circumstances, the Commission may then incorporate 
the adverse comment into a subsequent direct final rule or publish a 
notice of proposed rulemaking, providing an opportunity for public 
comment.

G. Regulatory Flexibility Act

    The Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) generally requires that 
agencies review proposed and final rules for their potential economic 
impact on small entities, including small businesses, and prepare 
regulatory flexibility analyses. 5 U.S.C. 603 and 604. The RFA applies 
to any rule that is subject to notice and comment procedures under 
section 553 of the APA. Id. As explained, the Commission has determined 
that notice and comment are not necessary for this direct final rule. 
Thus, the RFA does not apply. We also note the limited nature of this 
document, which merely updates the incorporation by reference to 
reflect the mandatory CPSC standard that takes effect under section 104 
of the CPSIA.

H. Paperwork Reduction Act

    The standard for hand-held infant carriers contains information-
collection requirements under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 
U.S.C. 3501-3520). The revisions made no changes to that section of the 
standard. Thus, the revisions will have no effect on the information-
collection requirements related to the standard.

[[Page 30608]]

I. Environmental Considerations

    The Commission's regulations provide a categorical exclusion for 
the Commission's rules from any requirement to prepare an environmental 
assessment or an environmental impact statement where they ``have 
little or no potential for affecting the human environment.'' 16 CFR 
1021.5(c)(2). This rule falls within the categorical exclusion, so no 
environmental assessment or environmental impact statement is required.

J. Preemption

    Section 26(a) of the CPSA, 15 U.S.C. 2075(a), provides that where a 
consumer product safety standard is in effect and applies to a product, 
no state or political subdivision of a state may either establish or 
continue in effect a requirement dealing with the same risk of injury 
unless the state requirement is identical to the federal standard. 
Section 26(c) of the CPSA also provides that states or political 
subdivisions of states may apply to the CPSC for an exemption from this 
preemption under certain circumstances. Section 104(b) of the CPSIA 
deems rules issued under that provision ``consumer product safety 
rules.'' Therefore, once a rule issued under section 104 of the CPSIA 
takes effect, it will preempt in accordance with section 26(a) of the 
CPSA.

K. Effective Date

    Under the procedure set forth in section 104(b)(4)(B) of the CPSIA, 
when a voluntary standard organization revises a standard that the 
Commission adopted as a mandatory standard, the revision becomes the 
CPSC standard within 180 days of notification to the Commission, unless 
the Commission determines that the revision does not improve the safety 
of the product, or the Commission sets a later date in the Federal 
Register. The Commission has not set a different effective date. Thus, 
in accordance with this provision, this rule takes effect 180 days 
after we received notification from ASTM of revision to this standard. 
As discussed in the preceding section, this is a direct final rule. 
Unless we receive a significant adverse comment within 30 days, the 
rule will become effective on August 3, 2020.

L. The Congressional Review Act

    The Congressional Review Act (CRA; 5 U.S.C. 801-808) states that, 
before a rule may take effect, the agency issuing the rule must submit 
the rule, and certain related information, to each House of Congress 
and the Comptroller General. 5 U.S.C. 801(a)(1). The submission must 
indicate whether the rule is a ``major rule.'' The CRA states that the 
Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) determines whether 
a rule qualifies as a ``major rule.'' Pursuant to the CRA, this rule 
does not qualify as a ``major rule,'' as defined in 5 U.S.C. 804(2). To 
comply with the CRA, the Office of the General Counsel will submit the 
required information to each House of Congress and the Comptroller 
General.

List of Subjects in 16 CFR Part 1225

    Consumer protection, Imports, Incorporation by reference, Infants 
and children, Law enforcement, Safety, Toys.

    For the reasons stated above, the Commission amends 16 CFR chapter 
II as follows:

PART 1225--SAFETY STANDARD FOR HAND-HELD INFANT CARRIERS

0
1. Revise the authority citation for part 1225 to read as follows:

    Authority: 15 U.S.C. 2056a(b)(4)(B).


0
2. Revise Sec.  1225.2 to read as follows:


Sec.  1225.2   Requirements for hand-held infant carriers.

    Each hand-held infant carrier must comply with all applicable 
provisions of ASTM F2050-19, Standard Consumer Safety Specification for 
Hand-Held Infant Carriers, approved on December 15, 2019. The Director 
of the Federal Register approves the incorporation by reference listed 
in this section in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR part 51. 
You may obtain a copy of this ASTM standard from ASTM International, 
100 Barr Harbor Drive, P.O. Box C700, West Conshohocken, PA 19428-2959 
USA; phone: 610-832-9585; www.astm.org. A read-only copy of the 
standard is available for viewing on the ASTM website at https://www.astm.org/READINGLIBRARY/. You may inspect a copy at the Division of 
the Secretariat, U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, Room 820, 
4330 East-West Highway, Bethesda, MD 20814, telephone 301-504-7479, or 
at the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). For 
information on the availability of this material at NARA, email 
[email protected], or go to: www.archives.gov/federal-register/cfr/ibr-locations.html.

Alberta E. Mills,
 Secretary, U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.
[FR Doc. 2020-09166 Filed 5-19-20; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6355-01-P