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Title 15 — Commerce and TradeRelease 119-73

§1204 Congressional veto of flammability regulations

Title 15 › Chapter CHAPTER 25— - FLAMMABLE FABRICS › § 1204

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

When the Consumer Product Safety Commission issues a flammability rule under the Flammable Fabrics Act, it must send a copy to the Secretary of the Senate and the Clerk of the House. The rule cannot take effect if Congress votes to reject it. That can happen two ways: both Houses pass a disapproval resolution within 90 calendar days of continuous session after the rule is issued; or one House passes the resolution and sends it to the other within 60 calendar days, and the other House does not reject it within 30 calendar days of receiving it. If Congress does nothing or fails to pass a disapproval resolution, that does not count as approval and does not make the rule legally presumed valid. For counting the time periods, a continuous session only ends when Congress adjourns without setting a return date, and days when either House is away for more than three days to a set date are not counted.

Full Legal Text

Title 15, §1204

Commerce and Trade — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)The Commission shall transmit to the Secretary of the Senate and the Clerk of the House of Representatives a copy of any flammability regulation promulgated by the Commission under section 1193 of this title.
(b)Any regulation specified in subsection (a) shall not take effect if—
(1)within the ninety calendar days of continuous session of the Congress which occur after the date of the promulgation of such regulation, both Houses of the Congress adopt a concurrent resolution, the matter after the resolving clause of which is as follows (with the blank spaces appropriately filled): “That the Congress disapproves the flammability regulation which was promulgated under the Flammable Fabrics Act by the Consumer Product Safety Commission with respect to and which was transmitted to the Congress on and disapproves the regulation for the following reasons: .”; or
(2)within the sixty calendar days of continuous session of the Congress which occur after the date of the promulgation of such regulation, one House of the Congress adopts such concurrent resolution and transmits such resolution to the other House and such resolution is not disapproved by such other House within the thirty calendar days of continuous session of the Congress which occur after the date of such transmittal.
(c)Congressional inaction on, or rejection of, a concurrent resolution of disapproval under this section shall not be construed as an expression of approval of the regulation involved, and shall not be construed to create any presumption of validity with respect to such regulation.
(d)For purposes of this section—
(1)continuity of session is broken only by an adjournment of the Congress sine die; and
(2)the days on which either House is not in session because of an adjournment of more than three days to a day certain are excluded in the computation of the periods of continuous session of the Congress specified in subsection (b).

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

The Flammable Fabrics Act, referred to in subsec. (b), is act June 30, 1953, ch. 164, 67 Stat. 111, which is classified generally to this chapter. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see

Short Title

note set out under section 1191 of this title and Tables.

Prior Provisions

A prior section 1204, act
June 30, 1953, ch. 164, § 17, as added Dec. 14, 1967, Pub. L. 90–189, § 10, 81 Stat. 574; amended
May 11, 1976, Pub. L. 94–284, § 19, 90 Stat. 514, related to the National Advisory Committee for Flammable Fabrics Act, prior to repeal by Pub. L. 97–35, title XII, § 1205(b), Aug. 13, 1981, 95 Stat. 716, eff. Aug. 13, 1981.

Amendments

2008—Pub. L. 110–314, § 204(c)(2)(H), which directed substitution of “Commission” for “Consumer Product Safety Commission” in this section, was executed by making the substitution in subsec. (a) before “shall transmit”, but not in subsec. (b)(1), to reflect the probable intent of Congress. Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 110–314, § 204(c)(2)(C), which directed substitution of “Commission” for “Secretary” wherever appearing in the Flammable Fabrics Act, classified to this chapter, was not executed in subsec. (a) of this section, where “Secretary” precedes “of the Senate”, to reflect the probable intent of Congress. Amendment was part of a series of conforming

Amendments

to change references to the “Secretary” of Commerce to “Commission”.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

Section applicable with respect to consumer product safety rules under chapter 47 of this title and

Regulations

under this chapter and chapter 30 of this title promulgated after Aug. 13, 1981, see section 1215 of Pub. L. 97–35, set out as an

Effective Date

of 1981 Amendment note under section 2052 of this title.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

15 U.S.C. § 1204

Title 15 — Commerce and Trade

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73