CPSC HEARINGS START OCT 7; MASTER CALENDAR GOES ONLINE CPSC members October 7 will renew the long-lapsed practice of regular commission hearings with one that will cover a recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) report on imports, the substantial hazard statuses of drawstrings and hair dryers, and the status of the registration card project.
EXPRESS CARRIERS MIGHT AVOID MUCH CPSIA OVERSIGHT Express air carriers might be able to dodge the CPSIA’s certification and tracking label provisions if they can identify shipments subject to those rules.
NRDC RAISES CONCERN OF BIAS IN CHAP SELECTION Visitors to CPSC from the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) September 22 told Commissioner Bob Adler that they are concerned about alleged bias of agency staffers involved in selecting the in-the-works Chronic Hazard Advisory Panel (CHAP) that will look at six phthalates.
SMART GRID AND ECO-PRODUCTS MIGHT EFFECT SAFETY Movement toward a “smart grid” electricity distribution system means that standards makers and product safety regulators will need to stay on top of the effects on how products operate.
AAJ WANTS MORE ACCOUNTABILITY FOR OVERSEAS COMPANIES The American Association for Justice (AAJ) September 24 pointed to a ruling in a New Orleans liability suit to say that U.S. product safety laws need to be further stiffened related to foreign manufacturers.
AUSTRALIANS SORT OUT RISKY HOT WATER BOTTLES The Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) said that a nationwide “blitz” this past summer targeting faulty hot water bottles netted 18 brands that did not comply with Australian standards.
MORE COLLABORATION NEEDED ON NANOTECH, EU HEARS A need for coordination and collaboration among the EU’s risk assessment bodies was among the points raised at a hearing on nanotech risks, sponsored by DG Sanco, earlier this month.
CDC REVIEWS SCALDS AMONG SENIORS There were an estimated 53,600 emergency room visits for non-fatal scald injuries among those ages 65 and older from 2001 to 2006, according to analysis of CPSC NEISS data by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
NHTSA FINDS ELECTRIC CARS POSE INCREASED RISKS TO BIKES Hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) might be more dangerous to bicyclists and pedestrians because they are quieter than traditional vehicles and the noise they do make often is not what bikers and walkers associate with danger.
HUD GRANTS TARGET HOME SAFETY The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is conducting three grant programs related to home safety.
NEMA OPPOSES PILOTS’ BATTERY-BAN PROPOSAL The National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) is opposing an effort by the Air Line Pilots Association to get the Department of Transportation to ban transport of lithium batteries in aircraft cargo.
CPSC LAUNCHES SOCIAL MEDIA EFFORT CPSC September 22 launched a social media effort, CPSC 2.0, that includes popular web tools FlickR, Twitter and YouTube, as well as podcasts and a blog.
FOREIGN & INTERNATIONAL BRIEFS Briefs on bike chains, make-up remover, termostats, magnetic toys, toy watering cans, garlic presses/slicers, pacifiers, hot water bottles, children's furniture, rattles, cushions, stair gates, strollers, RAPEX.
