§ 1051.5 - Requirements and recommendations for petitions.

§ 1051.5 Requirements and recommendations for petitions.

(a) Requirements. To be considered a petition under this part, any request to issue, amend or revoke a rule shall meet the requirements of this paragraph (a). A petition shall:

(1) Be written in the English language;

(2) Contain the name and address of the petitioner;

(3) Indicate the product (or products) regulated under the Consumer Product Safety Act or other statute the Commission administers for which a rule is sought or for which there is an existing rule sought to be modified or revoked. (If the petition regards a procedural or other rule not involving a specific product, the type of rule involved must be indicated.)

(4) Set forth facts which establish the claim that the issuance, amendment, or revocation of the rule is necessary (for example, such facts may include personal experience; medical, engineering or injury data; or a research study); and

(5) Contain an explicit request to initiate Commission rulemaking and set forth a brief description of the substance of the proposed rule or amendment or revocation thereof which it is claimed should be issued by the Commission. (A general request for regulatory action which does not reasonably specify the type of action requested shall not be sufficient for purposes of this subsection.)

(b) Recommendations. The Commission encourages the submission of as much information as possible related to the petition. Thus, to assist the Commission in its evaluation of a petition, to the extent the information is known and available to the petitioner, the petitioner is encouraged to supply the following information or any other information relating to the petition. The petition will be considered by the Commission even if the petitioner is unable to supply the information recommended in this paragraph (b). However, as applicable, and to the extent possible, the petitioner is encouraged to:

(1) Describe the specific risk(s) of injury to which the petition is addressed, including the degree (severity) and the nature of the risk(s) of injury associated with the product and possible reasons for the existence of the risk of injury (for example, product defect, poor design, faulty workmanship, or intentional or unintentional misuse);

(2) State why a consumer product safety standard would not be feasible if the petition requests the issuance of a rule declaring the product to be a banned hazardous product; and

(3) Supply or reference any known documentation, engineering studies, technical studies, reports of injuries, medical findings, legal analyses, economic analyses and environmental impact analyses relating to the petition.

(c) Procedural recommendations. The following are procedural recommendations to help the Commission in its consideration of petitions. The Commission requests, but does not require, that a petition filed under this part:

(1) Be typewritten,

(2) Include the word “petition” in a heading preceding the text,

(3) Specify what section of the statute administered by the Commission authorizes the requested rulemaking,

(4) Include the telephone number of the petitioner, and

(5) Be accompanied by at least five (5) copies of the petition.