[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 107 (Friday, June 3, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 33755-33756]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-11900]


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CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY COMMISSION

[Docket No. CPSC-2014-0018]


Notice of Availability and Request for Comment: Revision to the 
Voluntary Standard for Sling Carriers

AGENCY: Consumer Product Safety Commission.

ACTION: Notice of availability and request for comment.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission's (Commission or 
CPSC) mandatory rule, Safety Standard for Sling Carriers, incorporates 
by reference ASTM F2907-19, Standard Consumer Safety Specification for 
Sling Carriers. The Commission has received notice of a revision to 
this incorporated voluntary standard. CPSC seeks comment on whether the 
revision improves the safety of the consumer product covered by the 
standard.

DATES: Comments must be received by June 17, 2022.

ADDRESSES: Submit comments, identified by Docket No. CPSC-2014-0018, by 
any of the following methods:

[[Page 33756]]

    Electronic Submissions: Submit electronic comments to the Federal 
eRulemaking Portal at: https://www.regulations.gov. Follow the 
instructions for submitting comments. CPSC typically does not accept 
comments submitted by electronic mail (email), except as described 
below. CPSC encourages you to submit electronic comments by using the 
Federal eRulemaking Portal.
    Mail/hand delivery/courier/confidential Written Submissions: Submit 
comments by mail, hand delivery, or courier to: Division of the 
Secretariat, Consumer Product Safety Commission, 4330 East West 
Highway, Bethesda, MD 20814; telephone: (301) 504-7479. If you wish to 
submit confidential business information, trade secret information, or 
other sensitive or protected information that you do not want to be 
available to the public, you may submit such comments by mail, hand 
delivery, or courier, or you may email them to: [email protected].
    Instructions: All submissions must include the agency name and 
docket number. CPSC may post all comments without change, including any 
personal identifiers, contact information, or other personal 
information provided, to: https://www.regulations.gov. Do not submit 
through this website: 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 mail/
hand delivery/courier/confidential 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-2014-0018, into the ``Search'' box, and follow the 
prompts.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Zachary Foster, Project Manager, 
Division of Human Factors, U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, 5 
Research Place, Rockville, MD 20850; telephone: (301) 987-2034; email: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 104(b) of the Consumer Product 
Safety Improvement Act of 2008 (CPSIA) requires the Commission to adopt 
mandatory standards for durable infant or toddler products. 15 U.S.C. 
2056a(b)(1). Mandatory standards must be ``substantially the same as'' 
voluntary standards, or may be ``more stringent'' than voluntary 
standards, if the Commission determines that more stringent 
requirements would further reduce the risk of injury associated with 
the products. Id. Mandatory standards may be based, in whole or in 
part, on a voluntary standard.
    Pursuant to section 104(b)(4)(B) of the CPSIA, if a voluntary 
standards organization revises a standard that has been adopted, in 
whole or in part, as a consumer product safety standard under CPSIA 
section 104, it must notify the Commission. The revised voluntary 
standard then 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 a later date 
specified by the Commission in the Federal Register) unless, within 90 
days after receiving that notice, the Commission responds to the 
organization that it has determined that the proposed revision does not 
improve the safety of the consumer product covered by the standard, and 
therefore, the Commission is retaining its existing mandatory consumer 
product safety standard. 15 U.S.C. 2056a(b)(4)(B).
    Under this CPSIA authority, the Commission issued a mandatory 
safety rule for sling carriers. The rulemaking created 16 CFR part 
1228, which incorporated by reference ASTM F2907-15, Standard Consumer 
Safety Specification for Sling Carriers. 82 FR 8671 (Jan. 30, 2017). 
The mandatory standard included performance requirements and test 
methods, as well as requirements for warning labels and instructional 
literature, to address hazards to children associated with sling 
carriers. On April 20, 2020, the CPSC published a revised standard for 
sling carriers, which incorporated by reference ASTM F2907-19, with 
modifications to the requirements for test methods, labeling, and 
instructional literature which improved the safety of sling carriers. 
85 FR 21766.
    In April 2022, ASTM published a further revised version of the 
incorporated voluntary standard. On May 23, 2022, ASTM notified the 
Commission that it had approved the revised version of the voluntary 
standard. This revised version includes revisions made to the standard 
in 2021 (ASTM F2907-21) and 2022 (ASTM F2907-22).
    CPSC staff is assessing the revised voluntary standard to 
determine, consistent with section 104(b)(4)(B) of the CPSIA, its 
effect on the safety of the consumer product covered by the standard. 
The Commission invites public comment on that question to inform 
Staff's assessment and any subsequent Commission consideration of the 
revisions in ASTM F2907-21 and ASTM F2907-22.
    The existing voluntary standard and the revised voluntary standard 
are available for review in several ways. ASTM has provided read-only 
copies, at no cost, of the red-lined versions of ASTM F2907-21 and ASTM 
F2907-22 that identify the changes made to the ASTM F2907-19 version, 
and the revised standard, on ASTM's website at: https://www.astm.org/CPSC.htm. Likewise, a read-only copy of the existing, incorporated 
standard is available for viewing, at no cost, on the ASTM website at: 
https://www.astm.org/products-services/reading-room.html. Interested 
parties can also download copies of the standards by purchasing them 
from ASTM International, 100 Barr Harbor Drive, P.O. Box C700, West 
Conshohocken, PA 19428-2959; phone: 610-832-9585; www.astm.org. 
Alternatively, interested parties can schedule an appointment to 
inspect copies of the standards at CPSC's Division of the Secretariat, 
U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, 4330 East West Highway, 
Bethesda, MD 20814, telephone: 301-504-7479; email: [email protected].
    Comments must be received by June 17, 2022. Because of the short 
statutory time frame Congress established for the Commission to 
consider revised voluntary standards under section 104(b)(4) of the 
CPSIA, CPSC will not consider comments received past this date.

Alberta E. Mills,
Secretary, Consumer Product Safety Commission.
[FR Doc. 2022-11900 Filed 6-2-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6355-01-P