[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 66 (Thursday, April 5, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 20614-20615]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-8187]
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CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY COMMISSION
[Docket No. CPSC-2011-0087]
Petition Requesting Exception from Lead Content Limits; Notice
Granting Exception
AGENCY: U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: The Consumer Product Safety Commission (``Commission'' or
``CPSC'' or ``we'') has received a petition requesting an exception
from the 100 ppm lead content limit under section 101(b) of the
Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 (``CPSIA''), as amended
by Public Law 112-28. We are granting an exception to the 100 ppm lead
content limit for certain aluminum alloy components of children's die-
cast, ride-on pedal tractors, and similar component parts made of
aluminum alloy on similar ride-on children's products for children ages
3 years and older. Such products may include other children's ride-on
tractors, children's ride-on cars, and other ride-on toys. These
aluminum alloy components must meet a lead content limit of 300 ppm.
DATES: The effective date is April 5, 2012.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kristina Hatlelid, Ph.D., M.P.H.,
Directorate for Health Sciences, Consumer Product Safety Commission,
4330 East West Highway, Bethesda, MD 20814; email: khatlelid@cpsc.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under section 101(a) of the CPSIA, consumer
products designed or intended primarily for children 12 years old and
younger that contain lead content in excess of 100 ppm are considered
to be banned hazardous substances under the Federal Hazardous
Substances Act (``FHSA'').
Section 101(b)(1) of the CPSIA provides for a functional purpose
exception from the lead content limits, under certain circumstances.
The exception allows CPSC, on its own initiative, or upon petition by
an interested party, to exclude a specific product, class of product,
material, or component part from the lead limits established for
children's products under the CPSIA if, after notice and a hearing, we
determine that: (i) The product, class of product, material, or
component part requires the inclusion of lead because it is not
practicable or not technologically feasible to manufacture such
product, class of product, material, or component part, as the case may
be, in accordance with section 101(a) of the CPSIA, by removing the
excessive lead or by making the lead inaccessible; (ii) the product,
class of product, material, or component part is not likely to be
placed in the mouth or ingested, taking into account normal and
reasonably foreseeable use and abuse of such product, class of product,
material, or component part by a child; and (iii) an exception for the
product, class of product, material, or component part will have no
measurable adverse effect on public health or safety, taking into
account normal and reasonably foreseeable use and abuse. Under section
101(b)(1)(B) of the CPSIA, there is no measurable adverse effect on
public health or safety if the exception will result in no measurable
increase in blood lead levels of a child.
On September 29, 2011, Joseph L. Ertl, Inc., Scale Models and
Dyersville Die Cast (``petitioner''), submitted a petition requesting
an exception from the lead content limit of 100 ppm under section
101(b) of the CPSIA for its die-cast, ride-on pedal tractors, scaled
for children ages 3-10 years. Given the highly technical nature of the
information sought, including data on the lead content of the product
and test methods used to obtain those data, we believe that notice and
solicitation for written comments is the most efficient process for
obtaining the necessary information, and provides adequate
[[Page 20615]]
opportunity for all interested parties to participate in the
proceedings. Accordingly, we invited comments on the issues raised by
the petition. In the Federal Register of November 16, 2011 (76 FR
70975), we invited comments on the issues raised by the petition with
comments due on December 16, 2011. On January 5, 2012 (77 FR 478), we
reopened the comment period for 30 days, with comments due on February
6, 2012. We received one comment in support of the petition. The
commenter stated that pedal tractors with aluminum alloy components
cannot practicably be manufactured in accordance with the 100 ppm lead
content requirement. The commenter also stated that the aluminum alloy
components are not likely to be placed in the mouth or ingested and
will not have a measurable adverse effect on public health or safety.
The petitioner stated that the components of its pedal tractors are
made of aluminum metal die castings, which are the best alloy of choice
for pedal tractor production, based on weight, cost, structural
properties, surface finish and coatings, corrosion resistance, bearing
properties, and wear resistance. The pedal tractor components are
manufactured via the aluminum die-casting process. Although the
petitioner stated that it is able to meet the lead content requirements
of 300 ppm for its pedal tractor components, it is unable to meet
consistently the 100 ppm lead content limits, due to alloys used in the
aluminum die-cast process. Accordingly, the petitioner requested an
exception from the 100 ppm lead content limit.
For the reasons described in CPSC staff's briefing package,
available at http://www.cpsc.gov/library/foia/foia12/brief/ertl.pdf, we
agree with the petitioner and the commenter that an exception to the
100 ppm lead content limit for certain children's ride-on pedal tractor
component parts is appropriate. The petitioner indicated that two
aluminum alloys with relatively low lead concentration can be purchased
and used to manufacture the pedal tractor products. One of these
aluminum alloys (A380.1) may contain more than 300 ppm lead, although
the petitioner indicated that this alloy can be obtained, with careful
purchasing, with a lead content of no more than 300 ppm. The petitioner
indicated that the second aluminum alloy (A413.1) that can be used to
manufacture the products is available with less than 200 ppm lead.
While the petitioner indicated that it is possible to manufacture their
products with the specific alloy with lead content less than 200 ppm,
the A380.1 alloy, or a similar alloy, with lead content no more than
300 ppm, is a practicable material for manufacturing the component
parts of the pedal tractors because the A380.1 aluminum alloy is one of
the most commonly used aluminum alloys in manufacturing and is more
readily obtainable from sources than the A413.1 aluminum alloy. In
addition, the A413.1 alloy costs $0.99 to $1.65 per unit more than the
A380.1 alloy (about 1 percent of the cost of the product), resulting in
additional material costs of the product. Obtaining aluminum alloys at
100 ppm or other substitute alloys was considered not practicable for
the petitioner. The use of another metal alloy, such as steel, or using
plastic molded component parts was not practicable because it would
result in completely retooling the manufacturing process and result in
products that appeared different from the current product, which uses
die-cast component parts.
In addition, the products included in the petition are similar to
two types of products that have specific statutory provisions regarding
lead content requirements. The CPSIA, as amended by Public Law 112-28,
established new provisions for specific exceptions from the 100 ppm
lead content requirement. Section 101(b)(5) of the CPSIA provides that
the lead content limit does not apply to off-highway vehicles. Section
101(b)(6) of the CPSIA also provides that for metal component parts of
bicycles and related products, the lead limit is 300 ppm, not 100 ppm,
as otherwise applicable to children's products.
The petitioner's children's ride-on pedal tractors made with
aluminum alloys are therefore granted an exception from the 100 ppm
lead content limit, and allowed to have a lead limit of 300 ppm
instead, because it is not practicable to impose the lower lead limit
on such aluminum alloys. These aluminum components include: body
castings (right and left sides), rear wheel hubs, wide front axle
yokes, wide front-end adaptor brackets, and other component parts that
are similar to these parts and are not likely be placed in the mouth or
ingested or extensively contacted by children because of their function
and location on the product. The exposure to lead in such parts at the
300 ppm limit is expected to be so low that it would have no measurable
adverse effect on public health or safety as defined at 15 U.S.C.
1278a(b)(1)(B), taking into account normal and reasonably foreseeable
use and abuse.
For the same reasons, children's products that are similar, such as
other children's ride-on tractors, children's ride-on cars, and other
ride-on toys intended for children ages 3 years and older that contain
similar aluminum alloy component parts, including body castings (right
and left sides), rear wheel hubs, wide front axle yokes, wide front-end
adaptor brackets, and other component parts that are similar to these
parts and are not likely to be placed in the mouth or ingested, or
extensively contacted by children because of their function and
location on the product must meet a lead content limit of 300 ppm for
the aluminum alloy component parts. The exposure to lead in these
similar component parts is expected to be so low that it would have no
measurable adverse effect on public health or safety as defined at 15
U.S.C. 1278a(b)(1)(B), taking into account normal and reasonably
foreseeable use and abuse.
Dated: April 2, 2012.
Todd A. Stevenson,
Secretary, U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.
[FR Doc. 2012-8187 Filed 4-4-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6355-01-P