G/TBT/N/USA/1289  
 
16 May 2017  
(17-2577) Page: 1/2 
Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade  Original: English  
 
  NOTIFICATION  
The following notification is being circulated in accordance with Article 10.6  
 
1. Notifying Member : UNITED STATES OF AME RICA  
If applicable, name of local government involved  (Article 3.2 and 7.2) :  
2. Agency responsible:  Consumer Product Sa fety Commission [1310]  
Name and address (including telephone and fax numbers , email and website 
addresses, if available) of agency or authority designated to handle comments 
regarding the notification  shall be indicated if different from above :  
Please sub mit comments to: USA WTO TBT Enquiry Point  
Email: usatbtep@nist.gov  
3. Notified under Article 2.9.2 [ X], 2.10.1 [  ], 5.6.2 [  ], 5.7.1 [  ], other:  
4. Products covered (HS or CCCN where applicable, otherwise nationa l tariff heading. 
ICS numbers may be provided in addition, where applicable):  Table saws . Safety of 
machinery (ICS 13.110), Machine tools (ICS 25.080).  
5. Title, number of pages  and language(s)  of the notified document:  Safety Standard 
Addressing Blade -Contact Injuries on Table Saws (58 page(s), in English)  
6. Description of content:  The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission has determined 
preliminarily that there may be an unreasonable risk of blade -contact injuries associated 
with table saws. In 2015,  there were an estimated 33,400 table saw, emergency 
department -treated injuries. Of these, CPSC staff estimates that 30,800 (92%) are likely 
related to the victim making contact with the saw blade. CPSC staff's review of the existing 
data indicates that c urrently available safety devices, such as the modular blade guard and 
riving knife, do not adequately address the unreasonable risk of blade -contact injuries on 
table saws. To address this risk, the Commission proposes a rule that is based, in part, on 
work conducted by Underwriters Laboratories Inc. The proposed rule would establish a 
performance standard that requires table saws, when powered on, to limit the depth of cut 
to 3.5 millimeters when a test probe, acting as surrogate for a human body/finger, 
contacts the spinning blade at a radial approach rate of 1 meter per second (m/s). The 
proposed rule would address an estimated 54,800 medically treated blade -contact injuries 
annually. The Commission estimates that the proposed rule's aggregate net benefi ts on an 
annual basis could range from about $625 million to about $2,300 million.  
7. Objective and rationale , including the nature of urgent problems where applicable: 
Protection of human health or safety  
8. Relevant documents:  82 Federal Register (FR) 22190, 12 May 2017; Title 16 Code of 
Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 1245. Will appear in the Federal Register when adopted .  
9. Proposed date of adoption:  To be determined  
Proposed date of entry into force: To be determined  G/TBT/N/USA/1289  
 
- 2 - 
 
  10. Final date for comments:  26 July 2017  
11. Texts available from : National enquiry point  [ ] or address, telephone and fax 
number s and e mail and website address es, if available , of other body:   
https://members.wto.org/crnattachments/2017/TBT/USA/17_2258_00_e.pdf