Page images
PDF
EPUB

abuse of authority, and waste of funds. It reviews existing and proposed legislation concerning the economy, efficiency, and effectiveness of such legislation on Commission operations.

$1000.18 Office of Equal Employment Opportunity and Minority Enterprise.

The Office of Equal Employment Opportunity and Minority Enterprise assures compliance with all laws and regulations relating to equal employment opportunity in accordance with the Equal Employment Act of 1972, 29 CFR part 1613, and section 8(a) of the Small Business Act. The Office reports directly to the Chairman and provides advice to the Chairman and Commission staff on EEO matters and the agency Procurement Preference Program. The Office manages the discrimination complaint process, the Upward Mobility Program, the stay-in-school program, and other special emphasis activities having to do with affirmative action employment practices. The Office makes recommendations to the Chairman on ways to promote equal opportunity in order to enhance the Commission's EEO posture.

$1000.19 Office of the Executive Director.

The Executive Director with the assistance of the Deputy Executive Director, under the broad direction of the Chairman and in accordance with Commission policy, acts as the chief operating manager of the agency, supporting the development of the agency's budget and operating plan before and after Commission approval, and managing the execution of those plans. The Executive Director has direct line authority over the following directorates and offices: the Directorate for Administration and the Directorate for Field Operations; the Office of the Budget, the Office of Hazard Identification and Reduction, the Office of Information and Public Affairs, the Office of Compliance and Enforcement, and the Office of Planning and Evaluation.

[56 FR 30496, July 3, 1991, as amended at 56 FR 46235, Sept. 11, 1991]

§ 1000.20 Office of the Budget.

The Office of the Budget is responsible for overseeing the development of the Commission's budget. The Office, in consultation with other offices and directorates, prepares, for the Commission's approval, the annual budget requests to Congress and the Office of Management and Budget and the operating plans for each fiscal year. It manages the execution of the Commission's budget. The Office recommends to the Office of the Executive Director actions to enhance effectiveness of the Commission's programs and activities. $1000.21 Office of Hazard Identification and Reduction.

The Office of Hazard Identification and Reduction, under the direction of the Assistant Executive Director for Hazard Identification and Reduction, is responsible for managing the Commission's Hazard Identification and Analysis Program and its Hazard Assessment and Reduction Program. The Office reports to the Executive Director, and has line authority over the Directorates for Epidemiology, Economic Analysis, Engineering Sciences, and Health Sciences. The Office develops strategies for and implements the agency's operating plans for these two hazard programs. This includes the collection and analysis of data to identify hazards and hazard patterns, the implementation of the Commission's safety standards development projects, the coordination of voluntary standards activities and international liaison activities related to consumer product safety, and providing overall direction and evaluation of projects involving hazard analysis, data collection, emerging hazards, mandatory and voluntary standards, petitions, and labeling rules. The Office assures that relevant technical, environmental, economic, and social impacts of projects are comprehensively and objectively presented to the Commission for decision.

§ 1000.22 Office of Planning and Evaluation.

The Office of Planning and Evaluation reports to the Executive Director and is responsible for the Commission's planning and evaluation activities. It

develops integrated short and long range plans for achieving the Commission's goals and objectives. The office is responsible for the development and analysis of both major policy and operational issues. Evaluation studies are conducted to determine how well the Commission fulfills its mission. These studies include impact and process evaluations of Commission programs, projects, functions, and activities. Recommendations are made to the Executive Director for changes to improve their efficiency and effectiveness. Management analyses and special studies are also conducted. These cover, but are not limited to, internal controls, organizational performance, structure, and productivity measurement. Recommendations are made to the Executive Director for improving management efficiency and effectiveness. The Office also coordinates, develops, and issues agencywide directives and manages the Commission's information collection budget and obtains Office of Management and Budget clearance for information collections.

$1000.23 Office of Information and Public Affairs.

The Office of Information and Public Affairs is responsible for the development, implementation, and evaluation of a comprehensive national information and public affairs program designed to promote product safety. This includes responsibility for developing and maintaining relations with a wide range of national groups such as consumer organizations; business groups; trade associations; state and local government entities; labor organizations; medical, legal, scientific and other professional associations; and other Federal health, safety and consumer agencies. The Office also manages the Commission's Hotline, described in §1000.3 of this chapter. The Office also is responsible for implementing the Commission's media relations program nationwide. The Office serves as the Commission's spokesperson to the national print and broadcast media, develops and disseminates the Commission's news releases, and organizes Commission news conferences.

§ 1000.24 Office of Compliance and Enforcement.

The Office of Compliance and Enforcement, which is managed by the Assistant Executive Director for Compliance and Enforcement, conducts or supervises the conduct of compliance and administrative enforcement activity under all administered acts, provides advice and guidance to regulated industries on complying with all administered acts and reviews proposed standards and rules with respect to their enforceability. The Office's responsibility also includes identifying and acting on safety hazards in consumer products already in distribution, promoting industry compliance with existing safety rules, and conducting litigation before an administrative law judge relative to administrative complaints. It directs the enforcement efforts of the field offices and provides program guidance, advice, and case guidance to field offices and participates in the development of standards before their promulgation to assure enforceability of the final product. It enforces the Consumer Product Safety Act requirement that firms identify and report product defects which could present possible substantial hazards, violations of consumer product safety rules, violations of standards relied upon by the Commission, or unreasonable risk of serious injury or death, and the requirement that firms report certain lawsuit information. It reviews consumer complaints, in-depth investigations, and other data to identify those consumer products containing such hazards or which do not comply with existing safety requirements. The Office negotiates and subsequently monitors corrective action plans designed to give public notice of hazards and recall defective or non-complying products subject to the Commission's jurisdiction, gives public warning to consumers where appropriate, and provides guidelines and directs the field in negotiating and monitoring corrective action plans designed to recall products which fail to comply with specific regulations. It gathers information on generic product hazards which may lead to subsequent initiation of safety standard setting procedures. The Office develops surveillance strategies and

programs designed to assure compliance with Commission standards and regulations. It originates instructions to field offices and provides subsequent interpretations or guidance for field surveillance and enforcement activities.

§ 1000.25 Directorate for Epidemiology.

The Directorate for Epidemiology, which is managed by the Associate Executive Director for Epidemiology, is responsible for injury and human factors data analysis to identify consumer-product related hazards or hazard patterns. The Directorate collects data on consumer product-related hazards and potential hazards, determines the frequency, severity, and distribution of the various types of injuries, and investigates their causes. It assesses the effects of product safety standards and programs on consumer injuries and conducts epidemiological and human factors studies and research in the field of consumer product-related injuries. The Directorate provides statistical support for all other Commission organizations, including, but not limited to, standards development, certification programs, and sampling for field inspection programs. It performs risk assessments based on injury and incident data for physical, thermal, and electrical hazards in consumer products. It maintains the National Injury Information Clearinghouse and manages the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS). The Directorate manages hazard assessment and reduction projects as assigned.

$1000.26 Directorate for Economic Analysis.

The Directorate for Economic Analysis, which is managed by the Associate Executive Director for Economic Analysis, is responsible for providing the Commission with advice and information on economic and environmental matters and on the economic, social and environmental effects of Commission actions. It analyzes the potential effects of CPSC actions on consumers and on industries, including effects on competitive structure and commercial practices. The Directorate acquires,

compiles, and maintains economic data on movements and trends in the general economy and on the production, distribution, and sales of consumer products and their components to assist in the analysis of CPSC priorities, policies, actions, and rules. It plans and carries out economic surveys of consumers and industries. It studies the costs of accidents and injuries. It evaluates the economic, societal, and environmental impact of product safety rules and standards. It performs regulatory analyses and studies of costs and benefits of CPSC actions as required by the Consumer Product Safety Act, The National Environmental Policy Act, the Regulatory Flexibility Act and other Acts, and by policies established by the Consumer Product Safety Commission. The Directorate manages hazard assessment and reduction projects as assigned.

$1000.27 Directorate for Engineering Sciences.

The Directorate for Engineering Sciences, which is managed by the Associate Executive Director for Engineering Sciences, is responsible for developing technical policy for and implementing the Commission's engineering programs. The Directorate develops and evaluates product safety standards and test methods; conducts specific product testing to support general agency regulatory activities; manages hazard assessment and reduction projects as assigned by the Office of Hazard Identification and Reduction; develops and evaluates performance criteria, design specifications, and quality control standards for certain consumer products; provides scientific and technical expertise to the Commission and Commission staff; provides advice on proposed mandatory standards and industry voluntary standard efforts; performs or monitors research in the engineering sciences; manages the Commission's engineering laboratory and test facilities; and provides analytical services in support of the Commission's enforcement activities. It coordinates engineering research, testing, and evaluation activities with the National Institute of Standards and Technology and other Federal agencies, private industry, and consumer interest

[blocks in formation]

The Directorate for Health Sciences, which is managed by the Associate Executive Director for Health Sciences, is responsible for developing science policy and implementing the Commission's Health Sciences program. The Directorate's functional responsibilities include development and evaluation of the content of product safety standards and test methods based on the chemical, biological and medical sciences, and the conduct and evaluation of specific product testing to support general agency regulatory activity. The Directorate also provides health sciences and medical expertise to the Commission, and develops and evaluates performance criteria, design specifications, and quality control standards for certain consumer products. It conducts and evaluates scientific tests and test methods from a chemical or biological perspective, participates in the scientific development of product safety standards, and provides advice on proposed standards. It collects health sciences and medical data, reviews and evaluates toxicological, medical, and chemical hazards, and determines exposure, uptake and metabolism, including identification of the toxicological and physiological bases which cause some population segments to be at special risk. It performs risk assessments for chemical hazards, and physical hazards based on medical injury modeling, in consumer products. It performs or monitors research, and conducts studies of the safety of consumer products. It provides the Commission's primary source of technical expertise for implementation of the Poison Prevention Packag

ing Act. It provides the expertise on how chemical products are manufactured and provides scientific and laboratory support to the Commission's regulatory development and enforcement activities. It provides health sciences and medical support to all Commission organizations, activities, and programs. It manages hazard assessment and reduction projects as assigned. The Directorate provides scientific liaison with the National Toxicological Program, the National Cancer Institute, the Environmental Protection Agency, other federal agencies and programs, and organizations concerned with reducing the risks to consumers from exposure to chemical hazards.

§ 1000.29 Directorate for Administration.

ac

The Directorate of Administration, which is managed by the Associate Executive Director for Administration, is responsible for general policy and internal control within his or her functional area of administrative responsibility. The Directorate's functional responsibility includes all general and delegated administrative functions supporting the Commission in the areas of financial management, personnel administration, information resources management, procurement, and general administrative support services. The Directorate is responsible for the payment, accounting, and reporting of all expenditures within the Commission and for operating and maintaining the Commission's counting system and subsidiary Management Information System which allocates staff work time and costs to programs and projects. The Directorate is responsible for all aspects of personnel management for the Commission, including recruitment and placement, position classification, employee and labor-management relations, and training and executive development. The Directorate provides the operational interface with the Food and Drug Administration's Parklawn Computer Center, manages the Commission's Office Automation System and personal computers, and provides ADP operational and programming support for data collection, information re

trieval, report generation, and statistical and mathematical requirements of the Commission. The Directorate is responsible for all CPSC contracts and procurement services, and provides general administrative support services including property and space management, physical security, printing and reproduction, records disposition, transportation, mail, telecommunications, warehousing, and library services.

$1000.30 Directorate for Field Operations.

(a) The Directorate for Field Operations, which is managed by the Associate Executive Director for Field Operations, has direct line authority over all Commission field operations; develops, issues, approves, or clears proposals and instructions affecting the field activities; and provides a central point within the Commission from which Headquarters officials can obtain field support services. The Directorate provides direction and leadership to the Regional Center Directors and to all field employees and promulgates policies and operational guidelines which form the framework for management of Commission field operations. The Directorate works closely with the other Headquarters functional units, the Regional Centers, and other field offices to assure effective Headquarters-field relationships, proper allocation of resources to support Commission priorities in the field, and effective performance of field tasks. It represents the field and prepares field program documents. It coordinates direct contact procedures between Headquarter's offices and Regional Centers. The Directorate is also responsible for liaison with State, local, and other Federal agencies on product safety programs in the field.

(b) Regional Centers are responsible for carrying out investigative, compliance, and consumer information and public affairs activities within their areas. They encourage voluntary industry compliance with the laws and regulations administered by the Commission, identify product related incidents and investigate selected injuries or deaths associated with consumer products, and implement wide-ranging pub

lic information and education programs designed to reduce consumer product injuries. They also provide support and maintain liaison with components of the Commission, other Regional Centers, and appropriate Federal, State, and local government offices.

PART 1009-GENERAL STATEMENTS OF POLICY OR INTERPRETATION

Sec.

1009.3 Policy on imported products, importers, and foreign manufacturers.

1009.8 Policy on establishing priorities for Commission action.

1009.9 Policy regarding the granting of emergency exemptions from Commission regulations.

$1009.3 Policy on imported products, importers, and foreign manufactur

ers.

(a) This policy states the Commission's views as to imported products subject to the Consumer Product Safety Act (15 U.S.C. 2051) and the other Acts the Commission administers: The Federal Hazardous Substances Act (15 U.S.C. 1261), the Flammable Fabrics Act (15 U.S.C. 1191), the Poison Prevention Packaging Act (15 U.S.C. 1471), and the Refrigerator Safety Act (15 U.S.C. 1211). Basically, the Policy states that in order to fully protect the American consumer from hazardous consumer products the Commission will seek to ensure that importers and foreign manufacturers, as well as domestic manufacturers, distributors, and retailers, carry out their obligations and responsibilities under the five Acts. The Commission will also seek to establish, to the maximum extent possible, uniform import procedures for products subject to the Acts the Commission administers.

(b) The Consumer Product Safety Act recognizes the critical position of importers in protecting American consumers from unreasonably hazardous products made abroad and accordingly, under that Act, importers are made subject to the same responsibilities as domestic manufacturers. This is explicitly stated in the definition of “manufacturer" as any person who manufac

« PreviousContinue »