[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 185 (Tuesday, September 24, 2013)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 58491-58492]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-23138]


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CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY COMMISSION

16 CFR Part 1240

[CPSC Docket No. CPSC-2012-0050]


Magnet Sets; Notice of Opportunity for Oral Presentation of 
Comments

AGENCY: Consumer Product Safety Commission.

ACTION: Notice of opportunity for oral presentation of comments.

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SUMMARY: The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC, Commission) 
announces that there will be an opportunity for interested persons to 
present oral comments on the notice of proposed rulemaking (NPR) the 
Commission issued proposing a standard to reduce the risk of injury 
associated with children ingesting magnets that are part of a magnet 
set. Any oral comments will be part of the rulemaking record.

DATES: The meeting will begin at 10 a.m., October 22, 2013, in the 
Hearing Room, 4th Floor of the Bethesda Towers Building, 4330 East West 
Highway, Bethesda, MD 20814. Requests to make oral presentations and 
the written text of any oral presentations must be received by the 
Office of the Secretary not later than 5 p.m. Eastern Standard Time 
(EST) on October 15, 2013.

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be in the Hearing Room, 4th Floor of the 
Bethesda Towers Building, 4330 East West Highway, Bethesda, MD 20814. 
Requests to make oral presentations, and texts of oral presentations, 
should be captioned: ``Magnet Sets NPR; Oral Presentation'' and 
submitted by email to [email protected], or mailed or delivered to the 
Office of the Secretary, Consumer Product Safety Commission, 4330 East-
West Highway, Bethesda, MD 20814, not later than 5 p.m. EST on October 
15, 2013.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For information about the purpose or 
subject matter of this meeting, contact Jonathan D. Midgett, Ph.D., 
Project Manager, Office of Hazard Identification and Reduction, 
Consumer Product Safety Commission, 5 Research Place, Rockville, MD 
20850; telephone (301) 987-2561; [email protected]. For information 
about the procedure to make an oral presentation, contact Rockelle 
Hammond, Office of the Secretary, Consumer Product Safety Commission, 
4330 East-West Highway, Bethesda, MD 20814; telephone (301) 504-7923.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

[[Page 58492]]

A. Background

    On September 4, 2012, the Commission issued an NPR to address the 
risk of injury posed by magnet sets. 77 FR 53781. The NPR defined 
``magnet set'' as ``any aggregation of separable, permanent, magnetic 
objects that is a consumer product intended or marketed by the 
manufacturer primarily as a manipulative or construction desk toy for 
general entertainment, such as puzzle working, sculpture building, 
mental stimulation, or stress relief.'' As explained in the NPR, magnet 
sets can cause serious, life-threatening injuries. The NPR and staff's 
briefing package are available on the Commission's Web site at: http://www.cpsc.gov/PageFiles/128934/magnetstd.pdf. Under the proposed rule, 
if a magnet that is part of a magnet set fits within the CPSC's small 
parts cylinder, the magnet would be required to have a flux index of 50 
or less, or the magnet set would violate the standard. The flux index 
would be determined by the method described in ASTM F963-11, Standard 
Consumer Safety Specification for Toy Safety. These requirements would 
be issued under the Consumer Product Safety Act (CPSA).

B. The Public Meeting

    The CPSA requires that the Commission provide an opportunity for 
the ``oral presentation of data, views, or arguments,'' in addition to 
written comments, when the Commission develops a consumer product 
safety standard. 15 U.S.C. 2058(d)(2). Thus, the Commission is 
providing this forum for oral presentations concerning the proposed 
magnet set standard. See the information under the headings DATES and 
ADDRESSES at the beginning of this notice for information on making 
requests to give oral presentations at the meeting.
    Participants should limit their presentations to approximately 10 
minutes, exclusive of any periods of questioning by the Commissioners 
or CPSC staff. To prevent duplicative presentations, groups will be 
directed to designate a spokesperson. The Commission reserves the right 
to limit the time further for any presentation and impose restrictions 
to avoid excessive duplication of presentations.

    Dated: September 19, 2013.
Todd A. Stevenson,
Secretary, U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.
[FR Doc. 2013-23138 Filed 9-23-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6355-01-P