CPSC Chairman Calls for Lifting Cap on Civil Penalties Imposed on Industry
NEWS from CPSC
U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission
Office of Information and Public Affairs
Washington, DC 20207
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 28, 2002
Release # 02-111
CPSC Consumer Hotline: (800) 638-2772
CPSC Media Contact: Media Relations, (301) 504-7908
CPSC Chairman Keynotes International Product Safety Conference
-- Calls for Lifting Cap on Civil Penalties Imposed on Industry
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Thomas Moore, Acting Chairman of the U.S. Consumer
Product Safety Commission (CPSC), tells an international consumer forum
in Orlando, Fla., today that he supports eliminating the cap on civil
penalties that the CPSC may seek against industry.
"It is one thing to limit the amount one consumer can recover
against a company (not a position I necessarily support either), but it
is quite another to limit the government's ability to penalize a firm on
behalf of all consumers, thereby limiting the deterrent effect of civil
penalties," Moore declares in the keynote address to the 9th annual
meeting of the International Consumer Product Health and Safety
Organization (ICPHSO).
Congress currently allows the CPSC to seek a maximum fine of $1.65
million for corporations that fail to tell the CPSC about a hazard in a
timely fashion.
"Perhaps some companies would be less likely to try to stall our
agency by putting off reporting hazardous products if we had penalties
that were more commensurate with the harm they can cause," says Moore.
However, the acting Chairman cautions corporations that might
consider flouting CPSC regulations, noting two recent court decisions
that upheld actions the agency had taken. One of the decisions affirmed
the CPSC's fireworks inspection program and the other upheld the
principle that companies must immediately report products that create a
risk of serious injury or death.
"Any company that believes it is cost-effective to stall the CPSC
on a recall, even to the point of putting additional consumers at risk,
is making a serious miscalculation," he tells the forum.
Moore also discusses two information campaigns the agency will be
undertaking in the coming months. One campaign will work to reduce
child drownings in the home; the other initiative will address the
deaths of infants who sleep in adult beds.
ICPHSO is a forum for government, industry, and public interest
groups to discuss health and safety issues. The organization brings
together regulators, the regulated industries, and
consumers who use the products.
Elaine Tyrrell, CPSC Director of Outreach, is ICPHSO's incoming
president and organizer of this year's forum.
The conference coincides with a meeting of the European Consumer
Safety Association to offer business and government representatives a
chance to discuss international standards and safety developments. The
two organizations seek to strengthen international collaboration in
product health and safety. Attendees include manufacturers, retailers,
importers, attorneys, professional societies, government officials,
media representatives, public interest advocates, testing laboratories,
trade associations, standards developers, and researchers.
Topics of discussion at today's conference include Global
Enforcement Issues; New Ways Organizations are Educating the Public; E-
Commerce & Trade Agreements; Successful Practices for Making Better
Products; How to Deal with a Chemical Scare; Locating and Using Injury
Data; and roundtables with CPSC staff and with industry representatives.
