[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 194 (Tuesday, October 6, 2020)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 63012-63014]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-19515]


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FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION

16 CFR Part 303

RIN 3084-AB28


Rules and Regulations Under the Textile Fiber Products 
Identification Act

AGENCY: Federal Trade Commission.

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Federal Trade Commission (``FTC'' or ``Commission'') 
amends the Rules and Regulations Under the Textile Fiber Products 
Identification Act (``Textile Rules'' or ``Rules'') to incorporate the 
most recent ISO 2076 standard for generic fiber names.

DATES: This rule is effective November 5, 2020. The incorporation by 
reference of certain publications listed in the rule is approved by the 
Director of the Federal Register as of November 5, 2020.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jock Chung, (202) 326-2984, Attorney, 
Division of Enforcement, Bureau of Consumer Protection, Federal Trade 
Commission, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20580.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    The Textile Fiber Products Identification Act (``Textile Act'') \1\ 
and Rules require marketers to, among other things, attach a label to 
each covered textile product disclosing: (1) The product's generic 
names; (2) the percentages, by weight, of its constituent fibers; (3) 
the name under which the manufacturer or other responsible company does 
business or, in lieu thereof, the company's registered identification 
number; and (4) the name of the country where the product was processed 
or manufactured.\2\
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    \1\ 15 U.S.C. 70 et seq.
    \2\ See 15 U.S.C. 70b(b).
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    Section 303.7 of the Textile Rules (Generic names and definitions 
for manufactured fibers) establishes the generic names for man-made 
fibers that manufacturers must disclose. This provision lists the 
generic names and definitions established by the Commission through its 
textile petition

[[Page 63013]]

process under Sec.  303.8, and incorporates by reference the generic 
names and definitions set forth in the ISO 2076 standard.
    The Commission cannot automatically incorporate future changes to 
an incorporated standard.\3\ Therefore, it periodically updates the 
Rule's reference to the ISO standard to keep abreast of ISO 2076 
amendments.\4\
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    \3\ Specifically, Office of the Federal Register regulations 
state that incorporation by reference is ``limited to the edition of 
the publication that is approved,'' and ``future amendments or 
revisions of the publication are not included.'' See 1 CFR 51.1(f).
    \4\ See 79 FR 18766 (Apr. 4, 2014).
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II. Amendments to the Textile Rules

    In a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (``NPRM'') published on February 
18, 2020,\5\ the Commission proposed amending Sec.  303.7 to 
incorporate the most recent version of the relevant ISO standard, ISO 
2076:2013(E), ``Textiles--Man-made fibres--Generic names.'' This 
standard includes seven generic fiber names that are not defined in the 
currently-incorporated 2010 ISO standard: ``chitin,'' ``ceramic,'' 
``polybenzimidazol,'' ``polycarbamide,'' ``polypropylene/polyamide 
bicomponent,'' ``protein,'' and ``trivinyl.''
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    \5\ 85 FR 8781 (Feb. 18, 2020).
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    In the NPRM, the Commission noted that Commission staff had 
received several inquiries from manufacturers interested in using the 
petition process to add ``chitin,'' a name recognized in ISO 
2076:2013(E), to the Commission's list of approved generic fiber names. 
The Commission stated that incorporating the updated ISO standard into 
the Textile Rules would resolve those requests, save both the 
Commission and manufacturers resources, and harmonize the two standards 
without the need to address other ISO recognized names individually.
    The Commission did not receive any germane comments. Accordingly, 
based on the analysis provided in the NPRM, the Commission now amends 
the Textile Rules to change the Rules' current reference to the ISO 
2076:2010(E) standard for generic fiber names to the updated ISO 
2076:2013(E) standard.
    Pursuant to the Congressional Review Act (5 U.S.C. 801 et seq.), 
the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs has designated this 
rule as not a `major rule,' as defined by 5 U.S.C. 804(2).

III. Paperwork Reduction Act

    The Textile Rules contain recordkeeping and disclosure requirements 
that constitute information collection requirements as defined by 5 CFR 
1320.3(c), the definitional provision within the Office of Management 
and Budget (``OMB'') regulations that implement the Paperwork Reduction 
Act (``PRA''). OMB has approved the Rule's existing information 
collection requirements through May 31, 2021 (OMB Control No. 3084-
0101). The amended Textile Rules do not impose any additional 
collection of information requirements.

IV. Regulatory Flexibility Act

    The Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA), 5 U.S.C. 601-612, requires 
that the Commission provide an Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis 
(IRFA) with a Proposed Rule, and a Final Regulatory Flexibility 
Analysis (FRFA) with the final Rule, unless the Commission certifies 
that the Rule will not have a significant economic impact on a 
substantial number of small entities.\6\
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    \6\ 5 U.S.C. 603-605.
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    The Commission anticipates that the final amendment will not have a 
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. 
The amendment incorporates the most recent version of the relevant ISO 
standard for textile fiber names, ISO 2076:2013(E), and should not 
increase the costs of small entities that manufacture or import textile 
fiber products. Instead, the amendment will enable these entities to 
market products in the United States under seven additional fiber 
names. Therefore, based on available information, the Commission 
certifies that amending the Textile Rules will not have a significant 
economic impact on a substantial number of small businesses. Although 
the Commission certifies under the RFA that the amendment will not have 
a significant impact on a substantial number of small entities, the 
Commission has determined, nonetheless, that it is appropriate to 
publish a Final Regulatory Flexibility Analysis in order to explain the 
impact of the amendment on small entities as follows:

A. Description of the Reason for Agency Action

    The Commission is amending the Rules to provide greater flexibility 
in complying with the Rules' disclosure requirements by permitting 
textile fiber product marketers to market products containing fibers 
defined in the updated ISO 2076:2013(E) standard.

B. Issues Raised by Comments in Response to the IRFA

    The Commission did not receive any comments related to the impact 
of the final amendment on small businesses. In addition, the Commission 
did not receive any comments filed by the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of 
the Small Business Administration.

C. Estimate of Number of Small Entities to Which the Amendments Will 
Apply

    Under the Small Business Size Standards issued by the Small 
Business Administration, textile apparel manufacturers qualify as small 
businesses if they have 500 or fewer employees. Clothing wholesalers 
qualify as small business if they have 100 or fewer employees. The 
Commission's staff has estimated that approximately 10,744 textile 
fiber product manufacturers and importers are covered by the Textile 
Rules' disclosure requirements.\7\ A substantial number of these 
entities likely qualify as small businesses. The Commission estimates 
that the amendment will not have a significant impact on these small 
businesses because it does not impose any new obligations; rather, it 
permits them to offer more products while complying with the Textile 
Rules.
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    \7\ 83 FR 2992, 2993 (Jan. 22, 2015).
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D. Projected Reporting, Recordkeeping, and Other Compliance 
Requirements, Including Classes of Covered Small Entities and 
Professional Skills Needed To Comply

    The amendment is not expected to increase any reporting, 
recordkeeping, or other requirements associated with the Textile Rules.

E. Description of Steps Taken To Minimize Significant Economic Impact, 
If Any, on Small Entities, Including Alternatives

    The Commission did not propose any specific small entity exemption 
or other significant alternatives because the amendment is not expected 
to increase reporting requirements and will not impose any new 
requirements or compliance costs. No comments identified any new 
compliance costs.

V. Incorporation by Reference

    Consistent with 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR part 51, the Commission 
incorporates the specifications of the following standard issued by the 
International Organization of Standardization (ISO): ISO 2076:2013(E), 
which lists the generic names used to designate the different 
categories of man-made fibres, based on

[[Page 63014]]

a main polymer, currently manufactured on an industrial scale for 
textile and other purposes, together with the distinguishing attributes 
that characterize them.
    This ISO standard is reasonably available to interested parties. 
Members of the public can obtain copies of ISO 2076:2013(E) from the 
International Organization for Standardization, ISO Central 
Secretariat, Chemin de Blandonnet 8, CP 401-1214 Vernier, Geneva, 
Switzerland; (+41 22 749 01 11); [email protected]; https://www.iso.org/home.html. They can also obtain copies from the American National 
Standards Institute, 25 West 43rd Street, Fourth Floor, New York, NY 
10036-7417; (212) 642-4900; [email protected]; https://www.ansi.org. This 
ISO standard is also available for inspection at the FTC Library, (202) 
326-2395, Federal Trade Commission, Room H-630, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue 
NW, Washington, DC 20580.

List of Subjects in 16 CFR Part 303

    Advertising, Incorporation by reference, Labeling, Recordkeeping, 
Textile fiber products.

    For the reasons discussed in the preamble, the Commission amends 
part 303 of title 16, Code of Federal Regulations, as follows:

PART 303--RULES AND REGULATIONS UNDER THE TEXTILE FIBER PRODUCTS 
IDENTIFICATION ACT

0
1. The authority citation for part 303 continues to read as follows:

    Authority:  15 U.S.C. 70 et seq.


0
2. Amend Sec.  303.7:
0
a. By revising the introductory text; and
0
b. In paragraph (v), by removing the words ``16 CFR 303.7(c)'' and 
adding, their place, the words ``paragraph (c) of this section''.
    The revision reads as follows:


Sec.  303.7   Generic names and definitions for manufactured fibers.

    Pursuant to the provisions of section 7(c) of the Act, the 
Commission hereby establishes the generic names for manufactured 
fibers, together with their respective definitions, set forth in this 
section, and the generic names for manufactured fibers, together with 
their respective definitions, set forth in International Organization 
for Standardization (ISO) 2076:2013(E). ISO 2076:2013(E), ``Textiles--
Man-made fibres--Generic names,'' Sixth edition, November 15, 2013, is 
incorporated by reference into this section with the approval of the 
Director of the Federal Register under 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR part 
51.
    To enforce any edition other than that specified in this section, 
the Federal Trade Commission must publish notice of change in the 
Federal Register and the material must be available to the public. All 
approved material is available for inspection at the Federal Trade 
Commission, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Room H-630, Washington, DC 
20580, (202) 326-2222, and is available from: (a) The International 
Organization for Standardization, ISO Central Secretariat, Chemin de 
Blandonnet 8, CP 401-1214 Vernier, Geneva, Switzerland; (+41 22 749 01 
11); [email protected]; https://www.iso.org/home.html; and (b) the 
American National Standards Institute, 25 West 43rd Street, Fourth 
Floor, New York, NY 10036-7417; (212) 642-4900; [email protected]; https://www.ansi.org. It is also available for inspection at the National 
Archives and Records Administration (NARA). For information on the 
availability of this material at NARA, email [email protected], or 
go to http://www.archives.gov/federal-register/cfr/ibr-locations.html.
* * * * *

    By direction of the Commission, Commissioner Slaughter not 
participating.
April J. Tabor,
Acting Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2020-19515 Filed 10-5-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6750-01-P