United States Government Publishing Office publisher pbl distributor dst United States Government Accountability Office Health, Education, and Human Services Division author aut Government Organization text government publication eng GAOREPORTS Legislative Agency Publications gao legislative 2010-08-12 U.S. Government Printing Office 1997-09-29 monographic deposited born digital 136 p. GA 1.13:HEHS-97-147 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-HEHS-97-147 P0b002ee18037e79e f:he97147 DGPO 2010-08-12 2011-03-28 GAOREPORTS-HEHS-97-147 machine generated eng fdlp REPORT GAOREPORTS-HEHS-97-147 HEHS-97-147 Consumer protection Statistical data Data collection Data integrity Statistical methods Cost effectiveness analysis Safety regulation Reporting requirements Product safety Management information systems CPSC National Electronic Injury Surveillance System Letter Report HEHS Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the Consumer Product Safety Commission's (CPSC) project selection, use of cost-benefit analysis and risk assessment, and information release procedures, focusing on: (1) the criteria CPSC uses to select projects and the information it relies upon in making these choices; (2) the information CPSC draws on to perform risk assessment and cost-benefit analyses and CPSC's methodology for conducting cost-benefit analyses; and (3) CPSC's procedures for releasing manufacturer-specific information to the public and whether evidence exists that CPSC violated its statutory requirements concerning the release of such information.<p/>GAO noted that: (1) although CPSC has established criteria to help select new projects, with the agency's current data these criteria can be measured only imprecisely, if at all; (2) although CPSC has described itself as "data driven," its information on product-related injuries and deaths is often sketchy; (3) this makes it more difficult not only for agency management to monitor current projects but also for staff and commissioners to assess and prioritize the need for new projects in different hazard areas; (4) CPSC has insufficient data on both internal agency efforts and external product hazards to assess the impact and cost of each project; (5) to help evaluate alternative methods of addressing potential hazards, CPSC may perform a risk assessment to estimate the likelihood of injury associated with a hazard or conduct a cost-benefit analysis to assess the potential effects of a proposed regulation; (6) although CPSC does not complete either a risk assessment or cost-benefit analysis for every project, the agency conducts these analyses more often than it is required to by law; (7) nevertheless, CPSC's data are often insufficient to support a thorough application of these analytical techniques; (8) to evaluate relative risks, it is usually necessary to have information on how many consumers use the product--information that CPSC frequently does not have; (9) risk assessment of consumer products requires measurement of the number of harmful incidents; (10) CPSC's imprecise and incomplete death and injury data make risk assessment and cost-benefit analysis at best less reliable and at worst impossible to do; (11) the cost-benefit analyses conducted by CPSC between 1990 and 1996 were often not comprehensive; (12) CPSC has established procedures to implement statutory requirements concerning the release of manufacturer-specific information; (13) when releasing information to the public that identifies a specific manufacturer, CPSC is required to verify the information and allow the manufacturer an opportunity to comment; (14) evidence from the industry and from legal cases suggests that CPSC has met its statutory requirements in this area; (15) individuals within CPSC, as well as some industry representatives and consumer groups, expressed dissatisfaction with the requirements of this law; and (16) some of these individuals have proposed statutory changes that range from reducing to expanding the current requirements. https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-HEHS-97-147/html/GAOREPORTS-HEHS-97-147.htm https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-HEHS-97-147/pdf/GAOREPORTS-HEHS-97-147.pdf GAO/HEHS-97-147 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-HEHS-97-147 Letter Report GAO/HEHS-97-147; Consumer Product Safety Commission: Better Data Needed to Help Identify and Analyze Potential Hazards; Consumer protection Statistical data Data collection Data integrity Statistical methods Cost effectiveness analysis Safety regulation Reporting requirements Product safety Management information systems CPSC National Electronic Injury Surveillance System Public Law 86-613 Public Law 91-601 Public Law 92-573 Public Law 94-409 Public Law 103-267