The Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (2008 CPSIA) Does Not Replace the Consumer Product Safety Act (1972 CPSA)

Over the last few months, I have been asked several times whether the CPSIA of 2008 replaces the CPSA. The
answer is no. The CPSIA of 2008 amends previous
laws, in some instances by revising the language, and in others by adding entirely new sections.  In fact, the CPSA of 1972 has been
amended several times over the years.

The original Consumer Product Safety Act was entered into law on October 27,
1972 and sits in the United States Code at Title 15, along with other
laws governing Commerce and Trade. Within
Title 15 there are over 100 chapters setting forth laws on everything from monopolies
and trademarks to industry specific rules for various industries such as fisheries
and textiles. Chapter 47 of Title 15
is dedicated to Consumer Product Safety.
While other chapters also address product safety matters, such as Chapter
86 which establishes rules for Children’s Bicycle Helmet Safety, the focus for
this post is Chapter 47, where the majority of the amendments made by the CPSIA
of 2008 as well as most other laws associated with the Consumer Product Safety Commission
(CPSC) are reflected.

If you are interested in how Consumer Product Safety
laws have changed over the years, a list of the amendments to Title 15, Chapter
47, is presented below. You can review
summaries of the amendments by entering the Public Law number shown below on
the Public Law search page
at the Library of Congress. The
first part of the Public Law number refers to the congressional session during
which the law was passed. When
searching, first select the congress number, then select the number range that
contains the Public Law in which you are interested.

In my next post, I will
provide a guide to locating specific amendments set forth by the CPSIA 2008 in
the code.

Oct. 27, 1972:
Consumer Product Safety
Act of 1972
Public
Law 92-573; 86 Stat.
1207

May 11, 1976:
Consumer Product Safety
Commission Improvements Act of 1976
Public Law 94-284, 90 Stat. 503

July 11, 1978:
Emergency Interim Consumer
Product Safety Standard Act of 1978
Public Law 95-319, 92 Stat. 386

November 10, 1978:
Consumer Product Safety
Act Authorization Act of 1978
Public Law 95-631, 92 Stat. 3742

October 3, 1980:
Public Law 96-373, 94 Stat. 1366

August 13, 1981:
Consumer Product Safety
Amendments of 1981
Public Law 97-35, title 12, subtitle A, 95 Stat. 703

January 4, 1983:
Orphan Drug Act
Public Law 97-414, 96 Stat. 2049

October 31, 1988:
Lead Contamination Control
Act of 1988
Public Law 100-572, 102 Stat. 2884

November 18, 1988:
Anti-Drug Abuse Act of
1988
Public Law 100-690, 102 Stat. 4181

November 16, 1990:
Consumer Product Safety
Improvement Act of 1990
Public Law 101-608, 104 Stat. 3110

June 16, 1994:
Child Safety Protection
Act
Public Law 103-267, 108 Stat. 722

November 2, 1994:
Public Law 103-437, 108 Stat. 4581

August 14, 2008:
Consumer Product Safety
Improvement Act of 2008
Public
Law 110-314, 122 Stat. 3016

Reference Note:

The list of amendments provided above was identified by CPSC staff in their unofficial compilation of the CPSA.  Amendments, not including the CPSIA of 2008, can also be found by reviewing Title 15, Chapter 47 of the official code, the amendments of which are listed at the end of each section.  Currently, the government website that provides the official source for these documents is “experiencing technical problems.”  I will provide a link as it becomes available.