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In August 2008, President Bush signed into law the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA), which requires manufacturers of domestic and imported children’s products, including books and other printed products, to test and certify their products to ensure they meet specific lead and phthalate (e.g., plasticizers that could be found in inks, coatings, and adhesives) content limits established by the CPSIA.
Since the last update, there has been a burst of activity that has been positive for the printing and
publishing industry. The most important one is that the testing and certification stay has been
extended for another year. This is critical as it allows us additional time to work on obtaining
additional exemptions for laminates, plastic and metal coil, foil, spot colors, adhesives that are
accessible, and saddle stitching wire.
Here is a summary of the actions in chronological order:
• On October 29, the CPSC issued a policy statement that provides guidance on how the
August 26, 2009 exemption determination
(www.cpsc.gov/businfo/frnotices/fr09/leadcontent.pdf) is to be applied. There is one
example involving a book made from components that are exempt and not exempt from
the testing and certification requirements. The key to this example is that the CPSC is
only expecting that the component that is not exempt be tested and a certification issued
for the product. The entire product does not have to be tested. This “component testing”
approach makes compliance demonstration process much easier as a certificate is only
required for the nonexempt components. The Statement of Policy: Testing and
Certification of Lead Content in Children's Products can be found at
www.cpsc.gov/about/cpsia/leadpolicy.pdf.
This policy statement along with the August 29, 2009 determination are .
Several members have been able to use these documents to avoid meeting this
customer request. If testing is required, then only the component that is not currently
exempt would have to be tested.
• On December 10, and 11, 2009, CPSC held a two-day workshop to solicit feedback from
regulated industries, testing labs, consumer groups, and other interested parties relating
to the sampling, testing, certification, challenges of small manufacturers, reasonable
testing program conditions, component testing and material changes, verification of third
party lab tests, undue influence on third party labs, and labeling of certain consumer
products pursuant to Section 14 of the CPSA. Printing Industries staff was present at the
workshop and contributed to the discussions presenting options for the CPSC to consider
as they complete the development of a rule that will specify how products and
components that are not exempt are to be sampled and tested. More details about the
workshop including archives of the sessions can be found at
http://www.cpsc.gov/about/cpsia/cpsiatesting.html.
• On December 16, 2009 , the CPSC responded to Printing Industries' petition for an
extension of the CPSIA's testing and certification requirements for children’s books and
other printed matter that was set to expire February 10, 2010. The Commission voted to
extend the stay for certain products including books and other printed matter for one
additional year, until February 10, 2011. The petition was granted because the CPSC
realized it has not completed all of the necessary rulemaking to implement the
requirements, there is insufficient lab testing capability, and more time is needed to
educate the regulated community. The Commission did not extend the stay for all
products and their press release containing details about the stay and the products that
are can be found at www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml10/10083.html. The stay
became official on December 28, 2009 when it was published in the Federal Register.
The stay can be found at www.cpsc.gov/businfo/frnotices/fr10/stay.pdf.
The action by the Commission included a very significant change as it applies to third
party testing of children’s products in inventory. According to the newly revised stay, any
third party testing is to be conducted on products manufactured after February 10, 2010.
It does not apply retroactively, which is a dramatic change in the Commission’s previous
actions. The continuation of the stay is very important provides additional time before
testing and certification is required and it contained two important actions that are
important to the printing and publishing industry.
Although the Commission will not enforce the independent testing and certification rules
until February 10, 2011, the products still must contain lead levels under the current 300-
parts-per-million limit set forth by the Act unless a component such as metal coil is
painted and then the limit is 90 parts-per-million. In addition, the stay does not include
painted parts, which means painted coil used in a children’s book or other printed product
must be tested and certified.
• On December 16, 2009 The CPSC also voted to approve an updated interim testing
policy that allows component part testing, something the industry has been hoping for,
rather than testing of the final product. In other words, a printer would be allowed to
purchase an already tested and certified spiral binding or toy component to be attached
to the book, rather than having to put the entire finished book through a costly testing
process. Such testing must be done by a recognized third party laboratory. This policy
also confirms that if a product is made with materials that the Commission has concluded
would not exceed lead limits and thus are “low lead” products (such as paper, CMYK
inks, coatings, animal based glues, etc.) neither have to be tested nor are subject to a
certification requirement. All products must still comply with the applicable requirements.
The updated interim enforcement policy can be found at
http://www.cpsc.gov/businfo/frnotices/fr10/comppol.pdf.
The November 12, 2008, has triggered many questions and requests by print customers for certification statements from printers. This first compliance date has resulted in a misunderstanding by many printer customers of the CPSIA’s requirements regarding certification.
The first date of November 12, 2008 was for the general conformity certification of existing CPSC requirements and does not apply to children’s products including books and other articles made from paper. Therefore, there is no general conformity certification was due.
The second date of December 21, 2008 was for testing the lead content in paint, including paint used on children’s products. The CPSIA establishes limits for the amount of lead in paint. It is important to understand that printing inks are not considered “paint” by the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and thus are NOT subject to the lead paint testing requirements that go into effect December 21, 2008.
On January 30, 2009,
The CPSC granted a one-year stay (extended in 2010) of enforcement for testing and certification of certain children’s products and toys subject to the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 (CPSIA). The press release and statements by the CPSC’s acting chairman and commissioners can be found here. The CPSC’s full notice can be found here.
The stay postpones the requirement for printers to test and certify their products against the new lead and phthalate standards. Please refer to Printing Industries of America’s FAQ for more information on the lead and phthalate standards.
In the event that you are being asked about certification by your customers, the attached letter is provided that can be used to send to your customer that will help explain the current and future requirements. Right now, it is important to understand that no testing or certification is required for books or other printed matter.
While the Printing Industries of America supports the intention of the CPSIA, there are many questions about the specifics of this new requirement and we are working with several leading book printers and other trade organizations, including the American Association of Publishers and the National Association of Printing Ink Manufacturers, to get answers to these questions. It is the goal of this group to demonstrate to the CPSC that the majority of children’s printed good products do not pose a health hazard to children, and as such do not require product testing and certification under the CPSIA. If an exemption is not provided, one of the key questions is to clarify the extent and nature of the testing and certification that will be required for all products sold or distributed (including products from inventory). It is not clear if testing of component materials, final products, or both will be required to demonstrate compliance with the new lead and phthalate standards. Additionally, to the best of our knowledge, the CPSC has not accredited any third party organizations to perform the scope of testing required by the CPSIA.
The full legislative language and frequently asked questions regarding the CPSIA can be found at: http://www.cpsc.gov/ABOUT/Cpsia/legislation.html#summaries
If you have any questions regarding the CPSIA, please contact Gary Jones at 412-259-1794, Rick Hartwig at 412-259-1792, or Christopher Dugan at 412-259-1794.
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