§1274 — Title 15 Commerce and Trade | U.S. Code

Summary

The Commission can order makers, sellers, or dealers of a product that is found to be a banned hazardous substance to warn the public, send notices to other sellers, and mail notices to people who bought it. The same kinds of orders can be made for toys or children’s articles that are not banned but have a defect that creates a serious risk of injury to children. If the Commission finds it is in the public interest, it can also require the maker, seller, or dealer to fix the item, replace it with a safe one, or give a refund. If the item has been with a consumer for 1 year or more, refunds may be reduced by a reasonable amount for use, measured either at the time of public notice or when the consumer gets actual notice (whichever comes first for children’s items; for banned hazardous substances the refund timing is at public notice or actual notice). No one except manufacturers, distributors, or dealers may be charged for these remedies. The ordered party must pay consumers’ reasonable costs to use the remedy. The Commission may also require businesses to reimburse each other if it finds that fair. Orders can be issued only after a hearing under section 554 of title 5, and the Commission may let a group with the same interest speak through one representative. “Manufacturer” includes an importer for resale, and a wholesale seller counts as the distributor for that sale. The Commission is not required to do a cost-versus-benefit comparison before ordering action.

Title 15, §1274

Commerce and Trade — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)If any article or substance sold in commerce is defined as a banned hazardous substance (whether or not it was such at the time of its sale) and the Commission determines (after affording interested persons, including consumers and consumer organizations, an opportunity for a hearing) that notification is required to adequately protect the public from such article or substance, the Commission may order the manufacturer or any distributor or dealer of the article or substance to take any one or more of the following actions:

(1)To give public notice that the article or substance is a banned hazardous substance.

(2)To mail such notice to each person who is a manufacturer, distributor, or dealer of such article or substance.

(3)To mail such notice to every person to whom the person giving the notice knows such article or substance was delivered or sold.

(b)If any article or substance sold in commerce is defined as a banned hazardous substance (whether or not it was such at the time of its sale) and the Commission determines (after affording interested persons, including consumers and consumer organizations, an opportunity for a hearing) that action under this subsection is in the public interest, the Commission may order the manufacturer, distributor, or dealer to take whichever of the following actions the person to whom the order is directed elects:

(1)If repairs to or changes in the article or substance may be made so that it will not be a banned hazardous substance, to make such repairs or changes.

(2)To replace such article or substance with a like or equivalent article or substance which is not a banned hazardous substance.

(3)To refund the purchase price of the article or substance (less a reasonable allowance for use, if the article or substance has been in the possession of the consumer for one year or more—

(A)at the time of public notice under subsection (a), or

(B)at the time the consumer receives actual notice that the article or substance is a banned hazardous substance,

(c)(1)If the Commission determines (after affording interested persons, including consumers and consumer organizations, an opportunity for a hearing in accordance with subsection (e) of this section) that any toy or other article intended for use by children that is not a banned hazardous substance contains a defect which creates a substantial risk of injury to children (because of the pattern of defect, the number of defective toys or such articles distributed in commerce, the severity of the risk, or otherwise) and that notification is required to protect adequately the public from such toy or article, the Commission may order the manufacturer or any distributor or dealer of such toy or article to take any one or more of the following actions:

(A)To give public notice that such defective toy or article contains a defect which creates a substantial risk of injury to children.

(B)To mail such notice to each person who is a manufacturer, distributor, or dealer of such toy or article.

(C)To mail such notice to every person to whom the person giving notice knows such toy or article was delivered or sold.

(2)If the Commission determines (after affording interested persons, including consumers and consumer organizations, an opportunity for a hearing in accordance with subsection (e) of this section) that any toy or other article intended for use by children that is not a banned hazardous substance contains a defect which creates a substantial risk of injury to children (because of the pattern of defect, the number of defective toys or such articles distributed in commerce, the severity of the risk, or otherwise) and that action under this paragraph is in the public interest, the Commission may order the manufacturer, distributor, or dealer to take whichever of the following actions the person to whom the order is directed elects:

(A)If repairs to or changes in the toy or article can be made so that it will not contain a defect which creates a substantial risk of injury to children, to make such repairs or changes.

(B)To replace such toy or article with a like or equivalent toy or article which does not contain a defect which creates a substantial risk of injury to children.

(C)To refund the purchase price of such toy or article (less a reasonable allowance for use, if such toy or article has been in the possession of the consumer for 1 year or more (i) at the time of public notice under paragraph (1)(A), or (ii) at the time the consumer receives actual notice that the toy or article contains a defect which creates a substantial risk of injury to children, whichever first occurs).

(d)(1)No charge shall be made to any person (other than a manufacturer, distributor, or dealer) who avails himself of any remedy provided under an order issued under subsection (b) or (c), and the person subject to the order shall reimburse each person (other than a manufacturer, distributor, or dealer) who is entitled to such a remedy for any reasonable and foreseeable expenses incurred by such person in availing himself of such remedy.

(2)An order issued under subsection (a), (b), or (c) with respect to a toy, article or substance may require any person who is a manufacturer, distributor, or dealer of the toy, article or substance to reimburse any other person who is a manufacturer, distributor, or dealer of such toy, article or substance for such other person’s expenses in connection with carrying out the order, if the Commission determines such reimbursement to be in the public interest.

(e)An order under subsection (a), (b), or (c) may be issued only after an opportunity for a hearing in accordance with section 554 of title 5, except that, if the Commission determines that any person who wishes to participate in such hearing is a part of a class of participants who share an identity of interest, the Commission may limit such person’s participation in such hearing to participation through a single representative designated by such class (or by the Commission if such class fails to designate such a representative).

(f)For purposes of this section (1) the term “manufacturer” includes an importer for resale, and (2) a dealer who sells at wholesale an article or substance shall with respect to that sale be considered the distributor of that article or substance.

(g)Nothing in this section shall be construed to require the Commission, in determining that an article or substance distributed in commerce presents a substantial product hazard and that notification or other action under this section should be taken, to prepare a comparison of the costs that would be incurred in providing notification or taking other action under this section with the benefits from such notification or action.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

The Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States, referred to in subsecs. (b) and (c)(2), is not set out in the Code. See Publication of Harmonized Tariff Schedule note set out under section 1202 of Title 19, Customs Duties.

Amendments

2008—Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 110–314 substituted “Commission may order” for “Consumer Product Safety Commission may order” in introductory provisions. 1990—Subsec. (g). Pub. L. 101–608 added subsec. (g). 1988—Subsecs. (b), (c)(2). Pub. L. 100–418 substituted “general note 2 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States” for “general headnote 2 to the Tariff Schedules of the United States”. 1984—Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 98–491, § 2(a)(2), added subsec. (c). Former subsec. (c) redesignated (d). Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 98–491, § 2(a)(1), redesignated subsec. (c) as (d). Former subsec. (d) redesignated (e). Subsec. (d)(1). Pub. L. 98–491, § 2(b), inserted “or (c)” after “subsection (b)”. Subsec. (d)(2). Pub. L. 98–491, § 2(c), (d), substituted “a toy, article” for “an article”, “toy, article” for “article” in two places, and “subsection (a), (b), or (c)” for “subsection (a) or (b)”. Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 98–491, § 2(a)(2), (d), redesignated subsec. (d) as (e) and substituted “subsection (a), (b), or (c)” for “subsection (a) or (b)”. Former subsec. (e) redesignated (f). Subsec. (f). Pub. L. 98–491, § 2(a)(1), redesignated subsec. (e) as (f). 1983—Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 97–414 added subsec. (e). 1981—Pub. L. 97–35 revised section generally and substituted provisions authorizing the Commission to require the manufacturers, distributors, or dealers as the case may be to notify the public that the article or substance was a banned hazardous one, and to repair, replace or refund the purchase price, when the Commission determines after providing the manufacturer, distributor, or dealer an opportunity for a hearing that banned hazardous substances were sold for provisions requiring the manufacturer, distributor or dealer to repurchase the banned hazardous article or substance.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

of 1988 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 100–418 effective Jan. 1, 1989, and applicable with respect to articles entered on or after such date, see section 1217(b)(1) of Pub. L. 100–418, set out as an

Effective Date

note under section 3001 of Title 19, Customs Duties.

Effective Date

of 1981 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 97–35 effective Aug. 13, 1981, see section 1215 of Pub. L. 97–35, set out as a note under section 2052 of this title.

Effective Date

Section effective on sixtieth day following Nov. 6, 1969, see section 5 of Pub. L. 91–113, set out as an

Effective Date

of 1969 Amendment note under section 1261 of this title.

§1274 Remedies Respecting Banned Hazardous Substances

Summary

Title 15, §1274

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

Amendments

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

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