Cheers for a New U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission Rule That Exposes Renegade Manufacturers to Greater Civil Penalties
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) voted last week to approve (4-1) a final rule interpreting factors to be considered when seeking a civil penalty amount for knowing violations of CPSC laws. The new factors required to be considered are: (1) the nature, circumstances, extent and gravity of the violation, including the nature of the product defect or the substance; (2) the appropriateness of the penalty in relation to the size of the business or of the person charged, including how to mitigate undue adverse economic impacts on small businesses; and (3) other factors as appropriate. These factors are in addition to the factors already required to be considered: the severity of the risk of injury; the occurrence or absence of injury; and the number of defective products or the amount of substance distributed. Under the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA), the Commis