12182 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 40 / Wednesday, February 29, 2012 / Rules and Regulations 

1The Commission voted 4–0 to approve 

publication of this final rule. 

respond to, nor shall a person be subject to 

a penalty for failure to comply with a 

collection of information subject to the 

requirements of the Paperwork Reduction 

Act unless that collection of information 

displays a current valid OMB Control 

Number. The OMB Control Number for this 

information collection is 2120–0056. Public 

reporting for this collection of information is 

estimated to be approximately 5 minutes per 

response, including the time for reviewing 

instructions, completing and reviewing the 

collection of information. All responses to 

this collection of information are mandatory. 

Comments concerning the accuracy of this 

burden and suggestions for reducing the 

burden should be directed to the FAA at: 800 

Independence Ave. SW., Washington, DC 

20591, Attn: Information Collection 

Clearance Officer, AES–200. 

(l) Alternative Methods of Compliance 

(AMOCs) 

(1) The Manager, Fort Worth ACO, FAA, 

has the authority to approve AMOCs for this 

AD, if requested using the procedures found 

in 14 CFR 39.19. In accordance with 14 CFR 

39.19, send your request to your principal 

inspector or local Flight Standards District 

Office, as appropriate. If sending information 

directly to the manager of the ACO, send it 

to the attention of the person identified in the 

Related Information section of this AD. 

(2) Before using any approved AMOC, 

notify your appropriate principal inspector, 

or lacking a principal inspector, the manager 

of the local flight standards district office/ 

certificate holding district office. 

(m) Related Information 

For more information about this AD, 

contact Andrew McAnaul, Aerospace 

Engineer, ASW–150 (c/o MIDO–43), 10100 

Reunion Place, Suite 650, San Antonio, 

Texas 78216; telephone: (210) 308–3365; 

facsimile: (210) 308–3370; email: andrew.

mcanaul@faa.gov. 

(n) Material Incorporated by Reference 

(1) You must use Mooney Aviation 

Company, Inc. Service Bulletin No. M20– 

313, dated February 7, 2012, to do the actions 

required by this AD, unless the AD specifies 

otherwise. The Director of the Federal 

Register approved the incorporation by 

reference (IBR) under 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 

1 CFR part 51. 

(2) For service information identified in 

this AD, contact Mooney Aviation Company, 

Inc., 165 Al Mooney Road North, Kerrville, 

Texas 78028; telephone: (830) 896–6000; 

email: technicalsupport@mooney.com; 

Internet: www.mooney.com. 

(3) You may review copies of the 

referenced service information at the FAA, 

Small Airplane Directorate, 901 Locust, 

Kansas City, Missouri 64106. For information 

on the availability of this material at the 

FAA, call (816) 329–4148. 

(4) You may also review copies of the 

service information that is incorporated by 

reference at the National Archives and 

Records Administration (NARA). For 

information on the availability of this 

material at NARA, call 202–741–6030, or go 

to: http://www.archives.gov/federal-register/

cfr/ibr_locations.html. 

Issued in Kansas City, Missouri, on 

February 16, 2012. 

Earl Lawrence, 

Manager, Small Airplane Directorate, Aircraft 

Certification Service. 

[FR Doc. 2012–4176 Filed 2–28–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–13–P 

CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY 

COMMISSION 

16 CFR Part 1224 

[CPSC Docket No. CPSC–2011–0019] 

Safety Standard for Portable Bed Rails: 

Final Rule 

AGENCY: Consumer Product Safety 

Commission. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: Section 104(b) of the 

Consumer Product Safety Improvement 

Act of 2008 (‘‘CPSIA’’) requires the U.S. 

Consumer Product Safety Commission 

(‘‘CPSC,’’ ‘‘Commission,’’ or ‘‘we’’) to 

promulgate consumer product safety 

standards for durable infant or toddler 

products. These standards are to be 

‘‘substantially the same as’’ applicable 

voluntary standards or more stringent 

than the voluntary standard if the 

Commission concludes that more 

stringent requirements would further 

reduce the risk of injury associated with 

the product. In this rule, the 

Commission is issuing a safety standard 

for portable bed rails in response to the 

CPSIA.1

DATES: The rule will become effective 

August 29, 2012 and apply to product 

manufactured or imported on or after 

that date. The incorporation by 

reference of the publication listed in 

this rule is approved by the Director of 

the Federal Register as of August 29, 

2012. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Rohit Khanna, Project Manager, Office 

of Hazard Identification and Reduction, 

U.S. Consumer Product Safety 

Commission, 5 Research Place, 

Rockville, MD 20850; telephone (301) 

987–2508 ; rkhanna@cpsc.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

A. Background: Section 104(b) of the 

Consumer Product Safety Improvement 

Act 

The Consumer Product Safety 

Improvement Act of 2008, Public Law 

110–314 (‘‘CPSIA’’) was enacted on 

August 14, 2008. Section 104(b) of the 

CPSIA requires the Commission to 

promulgate consumer product safety 

standards for durable infant or toddler 

products. These standards are to be 

‘‘substantially the same as’’ applicable 

voluntary standards or more stringent 

than the voluntary standard if the 

Commission concludes that more 

stringent requirements would further 

reduce the risk of injury associated with 

the product. The term ‘‘durable infant or 

toddler product’’ is defined in section 

104(f) of the CPSIA as a durable product 

intended for use, or that may be 

reasonably expected to be used, by 

children under the age of 5 years. 

Portable bed rails (also referred to as 

‘‘bed rail’’ or ‘‘bedrail’’) are one of the 

products identified by the Commission 

under section 104(f) of the CPSIA as 

durable infant or toddler products. On 

December 29, 2009, the Commission 

issued requirements for consumer 

registration of durable infant or toddler 

products and a bed rail was identified 

as a durable infant or toddler products 

that needed to comply with the 

registration card requirements. 76 FR 

68668. 

In the Federal Register of April 11, 

2011 (76 FR 19914), we published a 

proposed rule that would incorporate by 

reference ASTM F2085–10a, ‘‘Standard 

Consumer Safety Specification for 

Portable Bed Rails’’ but with several 

modifications that strengthen the 

standard. In response to the proposed 

rule and based on comments to the 

proposed rule, the ASTM Subcommittee 

on Portable Bed Rails, in collaboration 

with CPSC staff, developed a newer 

edition of the standard, ASTM F2085– 

12, ‘‘Standard Consumer Safety 

Specification for Portable Bed Rails,’’ 

which incorporates many of the 

proposed modifications in the proposed 

rule, with a few clarifications and 

modifications that strengthen the 

standard. ASTM F2085–12 contains 

more stringent requirements than its 

predecessor, ASTM F2085–10a, and 

would further reduce the risk of injury 

associated with portable bed rails. In 

this document, we are issuing a safety 

standard for portable bed rails, which 

incorporates by reference, the new 

voluntary safety standard developed by 

ASTM International (formerly known as 

the American Society for Testing and 

Materials), ASTM F2085–12, ‘‘Standard 

Consumer Safety Specification for 

Portable Bed Rails.’’ We summarize the 

proposed rule and discuss the final rule 

(including differences between the 

proposal and the final rule) in section F 

of this preamble. The information 

discussed in this preamble comes from 

CPSC staff’s briefing package for the 

portable bed rails final rule, which is 


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Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 40 / Wednesday, February 29, 2012 / Rules and Regulations 12183 

available on the CPSC’s Web site at 

http://www.cpsc.gov/library/foia/foia12/ 

brief/briefing.html. 

B. The Product 

ASTM F2085–12, and its predecessor 

ASTM F2085–10a, define a ‘‘portable 

bed rail’’ as a ‘‘portable railing installed 

on the side of an adult bed and/or on 

the mattress surface which is intended 

to keep a child from falling out of bed.’’ 

The scope of ASTM F2085–12, and its 

predecessor, ASTM F2085–10a, also 

states that a portable bed rail ‘‘is as a 

device intended to be installed on an 

adult bed to prevent children from 

falling out of bed.’’ Portable bed rails are 

intended for children (typically from 2 

to 5 years of age) who can get in and out 

of an adult bed unassisted. They include 

bed rails that only have a vertical plane 

that presses against the side of the 

mattress but does not extend over it 

(referred to as ‘‘adjacent type bed rails’’), 

as well as bed rails that extend over the 

sleeping surface of the mattress (called 

‘‘mattress-top bed rails’’). 

As discussed in the preamble to the 

proposed rule, a review of market 

information showed that there are 

products that differ from traditional, 

rigid portable bed rails in that they are 

constructed of nonrigid (also referred to 

as ‘‘non-rigid’’) materials, such as foam 

or inflatable materials. (76 FR 19915 

through 19916). Although these foam 

and inflatable products do not use the 

term ‘‘bed rails’’ in their packaging or 

labeling, we stated that such products 

meet the definition of a portable bed rail 

and should be included in the scope of 

the standard. However, most of the 

performance requirements in the ASTM 

standard, which pertain to traditional, 

rigid portable bed rails, did not apply to 

these products because the standard was 

developed to address the hazards from 

portable bed rails constructed from rigid 

(wood/metal) materials. Accordingly, 

the revised ASTM F2085–12 standard 

now covers foam and inflatable 

products but would require that only 

certain relevant provisions of the 

standard apply to such bed rails. 

Both portable bed rails made for a 

specific manufacturer’s adult-size beds 

and ‘‘universal’’ bed rails that can attach 

to any adult-size bed are included in the 

scope of ASTM F2085–12 and its 

predecessor, ASTM F2085–10a. 

However, as we stated in the preamble 

to the proposed rule (76 FR 19916), 

guard rails that are used with crib 

mattresses on toddler beds are not 

covered under this voluntary standard. 

They are addressed under the Consumer 

Safety Specification for Toddler Beds. 

Other products that are not covered 

include: side rails that connect the 

headboard to the footboard and may or 

may not have any barrier purposes; 

conversion rails intended to convert a 

crib to a full-size bed; and adult-size 

beds, where the rail is permanently 

attached to the bed (i.e., bunk beds). 

ASTM F2085–12 now makes it clear 

that such products are not covered 

under the standard. 

Additionally, the U.S. Food and Drug 

Administration (‘‘FDA’’) has several 

regulations pertaining to hospital beds, 

including a regulation for pediatric 

hospital beds (21 CFR 880.5140). The 

FDA regulations, in general, identify a 

hospital bed as having (among other 

things) movable and latchable side rails. 

If a pediatric hospital bed is subject to 

regulation by the FDA as a medical 

device, then the bed rails on that 

pediatric hospital bed are outside the 

scope of this final rule. 

C. Incident Data 

The preamble to the proposed rule (76 

FR 19916 through 19917) summarized 

the data for incidents from January 1, 

2000 through March 31, 2010, related to 

portable bed rails. For that period, we 

received reports of a total of 132 

incidents related to portable bed rails. 

Among the 132 reported incidents, there 

were 13 fatalities, 40 nonfatal injuries, 

and 79 noninjury incidents. Of the 13 

child fatalities reported involving 

portable bed rails, most children (9 out 

of 13) were under 1 year old; two were 

between 1 and 2 years old; and two 

children, both physically handicapped, 

were 6 years old. Of the 13 fatalities, 

there were two deaths that resulted from 

portable bed rail displacement, when 

the portable bed rail partially pushed 

away from beneath the mattress and 

allowed the child to fall into the 

opening and get trapped. There were 

three cases of portable bed rail 

misassembly. In three additional fatal 

incidents, not enough information was 

available to determine the contributing 

factor(s) that led to the hazardous 

entrapment scenario. The beds used in 

the eight cases mentioned previously 

were adult-size beds. More information 

concerning these incidents is provided 

in the preamble to the proposed rule (76 

FR 19916 through 19917). 

On the remaining five fatalities (out of 

13), after publication of the proposed 

rule, we received additional 

information, through in-depth follow-up 

investigations on 4 deaths out of the 5 

remaining fatalities that were listed as 

having insufficient information at the 

time of publication of the proposed rule. 

One of the 4 fatalities included among 

the incident data in the portable bed rail 

proposed rule is now known to have 

occurred from partial displacement of 

the bed rail, which led to the 

entrapment of the decedent. A second 

fatality listed previously as lacking 

sufficient information, still remains in 

that status. The third fatality is now 

known not to involve any portable bed 

rail; what was originally reported as a 

bed rail has now been confirmed to be 

a crib rail. Finally, it seems unlikely that 

the fourth fatality was associated with a 

portable bed rail. The decedent, cosleeping with a sibling and a parent, 

suffocated. The role, if any, of a portable 

bed rail, now seems questionable. A 

fifth fatality could not be investigated 

because the victim’s name was not 

released. 

While preparing a final rule, CPSC 

staff also conducted a new search of the 

CPSC’s epidemiological databases and 

found that there were 23 new portable 

bed rail-related incidents reported 

between April 1, 2010 and November 9, 

2011. These incidents are reported to 

have occurred between 2009 and 2011. 

Four of the 23 incidents were fatal, and 

19 were nonfatal incidents, 8 of which 

reported an injury. Among the 23 newly 

reported incidents that specified age (18 

out of 23), three reported a child 

younger than 15 months old. The 

majority of the incidents (15 out of 18) 

reported the child’s age to be between 

15 months and 4 years. 

Among the newly reported incidents, 

there were 4 fatalities. One resulted 

from a misinstalled bed rail, where the 

decedent was strangled by the straps of 

the reinforced anchor system. The 

second fatality occurred when the infant 

slipped through the torn section of the 

mesh and got caught when the bed rail 

flipped down and caught him at the 

neck. The remaining 2 fatalities lacked 

any information on the product or 

scenario-specific details. 

Among the newly reported incidents, 

there were 19 nonfatal incidents 

resulting in 8 injuries. The 8 injuries 

sustained were mostly bumps and 

bruises; one case reported a laceration 

that was severe enough to require 

multiple stitches, and another reported 

a fractured collar-bone. None of the 

injuries required hospitalization. The 

hazard patterns identified among the 23 

incident reports were similar to the 

hazard patterns identified in the data 

included in the proposed rule, 

including hinge-lock failure (8 incidents 

including 4 injuries and 1 fatality). The 

fatality was attributable, in part, to the 

hinge-lock failure of the bed rail and, in 

part, to the torn mesh panel). Other 

hazard patterns showed displacement of 

the bed rail (7 incidents, including 3 

injuries, where the bed rail pushed out 

from underneath the mattress and 

created an opening between the mattress 


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12184 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 40 / Wednesday, February 29, 2012 / Rules and Regulations 

and the rail); sharp surface (3 incidents, 

including 1 injury, due to sharp surfaces 

on the bed rail); misinstallation (1 

strangulation fatality on the straps of the 

reinforced anchor system of the bed rail 

was reported to have been due to the 

improper misinstallation of the bed 

rail); and miscellaneous issues that 

included 4 incidents and 2 fatalities 

with insufficient information on the 

product or scenario and 2 non-fatal 

incidents (1 reporting hazards from 

broken screws and the other reporting 

design issues with the bed rail). 

D. The ASTM Voluntary Standard 

Section 104(b) of the CPSIA requires 

the Commission to assess the 

effectiveness of the voluntary standard 

in consultation with representatives of 

consumer groups, juvenile product 

manufacturers, and other experts. We 

have consulted with these groups 

regarding the ASTM voluntary standard, 

‘‘Standard Consumer Safety 

Specification for Portable Bed Rails,’’ 

throughout its development. In response 

to the proposed rule, and in comments 

to the proposed rule, the ASTM 

Subcommittee on Portable Bed Rails, in 

collaboration with the CPSC staff, 

developed a new ASTM standard on 

portable bed rails, ASTM F2085–12, 

‘‘Standard Consumer Safety 

Specification for Portable Bed Rails,’’ 

which incorporates many of the 

proposed modifications in the proposed 

rule, with a few clarifications and 

modifications that strengthen the 

standard. ASTM F2085–12 contains 

more stringent requirements than its 

predecessor, ASTM F2085–10a, and it 

would further reduce the risk of injury 

associated with portable bed rails. 

E. Response to Comments on the 

Proposed Rule 

The preamble to the proposed rule 

invited comments concerning all 

aspects of the proposed rule. We 

received 16 comments. Eight 

commenters stated general support for 

the proposed rule. Eight commenters 

raised specific issues that are addressed 

by topic below. 

We describe and respond to the 

comments in section E of this document 

and also describe the final rule. To make 

it easier to identify the comments and 

our responses, the word ‘‘Comment,’’ in 

parentheses, will appear before the 

comment’s description, and the word 

‘‘Response,’’ in parentheses, will appear 

before our response. We also have 

numbered each comment to help 

distinguish between different 

comments. The number assigned to each 

comment is purely for organizational 

purposes and does not signify the 

comment’s value or importance, or the 

order in which it was received. 

1. Proposed Misassembly and 

Misinstallation Requirements 

(Comment 1) One commenter 

questioned the need for a revised 

standard. Two commenters expressed 

concerns about the proposed 

requirements to address portable bed 

rail misassembly and misinstallation. 

The commenters stated that the 

proposed language is vague, arbitrary, 

and invites unacceptable variability in 

test conditions because there are too 

many possible misassembly options. 

(Response 1) We believe that 

requirements are necessary to address 

the entrapment hazards that may result 

from the misassembly and 

misinstallation of portable bed rails 

based on our incident data. However, 

we agree that the proposed requirements 

of the proposed rule could be clarified 

and improved. After publication of the 

proposed rule, the ASTM Portable Bed 

Rail Subcommittee working group 

developed alternate performance 

requirements to address the 

commenters’ concerns about testing and 

limited the misassembly possibilities to 

configurations most likely to present 

entrapment hazards. These 

requirements have been added to ASTM 

F2085–12, ‘‘Standard Consumer Safety 

Specification for Portable Bed Rails,’’ 

which improves upon the proposed test 

requirements in the proposed rule. In 

order to improve the misassembly 

requirements, ASTM F208–12 requires 

captive hardware to ensure that 

fasteners remain attached to their 

respective components before normal 

assembly and after normal disassembly. 

The addition of Figure 1 depicts types 

of captive hardware, including bolts that 

are free floating and that can retract but 

are not completely removable, as well as 

a pin that is retractable but is not 

removable without tools. Installation 

components are required to be fully 

assembled, inseparable, and 

permanently attached to a component 

requiring consumer assembly. 

ASTM F2085–12 also addresses the 

issue regarding the potential for 

variability in misassembly test 

conditions. A significant difference 

between the proposed rule and ASTM 

F2085–12 is that there are no longer any 

test requirements or procedures to 

determine if a misassembled bed rail 

lacks sufficient vertical structure or 

provides sufficient visual cues that 

would notify a consumer that the bed 

rail is not assembled properly. Instead, 

the new standard focuses the testing on 

components that were identified in the 

incident data. The addition of figures 

and illustrations clarifies the pass and 

fail criteria of the requirements. Figure 

5 in ASTM F2085–12 shows an example 

of a center horizontal structural 

component that is omitted; 

consequently, the bed rail’s mesh fabric 

does not engage the center structural 

component. Figure 6 in ASTM F2085– 

12 shows additional examples of fail 

conditions, including a bed rail fabric 

with the bottom zipper 

misassembled,where the fabric cover 

can be zipped up without engaging the 

bottom horizontal bar. There also is an 

illustration of how the bottom bar can 

be omitted from insertion into the fabric 

sleeve or channel located at the base of 

the fabric component. Figure 7 in ASTM 

F2085–12 gives an example of a 

condition that is not to be tested; Figure 

8 in ASTM F2085–12 gives an example 

of a tube that is inverted or 

interchanged; and Figure 9 shows an 

example of a test for unidirectional arm. 

Test personnel will conduct visual 

assessments of a bed rail after 

attempting to misassemble the bed rail. 

This will require some judgment to 

determine whether a bed rail can be 

misassembled using reasonable 

engineering judgment. We believe that 

the addition of such illustrations and 

figures will identify the misassembly 

combinations that actually would occur 

and that will prevent unnecessary 

testing of an unlimited variety of test 

configurations. 

2. Foam and Inflatable (Nonrigid) Bed 

Rails 

(Comment 2) Several commenters 

requested that inflatable and foam bed 

rails be included in the scope. A few 

commenters stated that these types of 

bed rails should meet all of the 

requirements in the standard and/or 

have requirements to address a potential 

suffocation hazard. 

(Response 2) Nonrigid portable bed 

rails are included in the scope of ASTM 

F2085–12 and will need to meet the 

general requirements to address sharp 

edges or point, small parts, and 

permanency of labels, as well as 

requirements for a new warning label. 

However, the standard was developed 

for rigid portable bed rails, and many of 

the test requirements would not be 

applicable to these products. Although 

we are not imposing additional 

requirements at this time, we expect the 

ASTM Subcommittee on Portable Bed 

Rails to continue to monitor these types 

of nonrigid portable bed rails and 

pursue the development of additional 

requirements, as necessary. 


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3. Test Equipment: Mattress Platform 

and Sheeting Material 

(Comment 3) One commenter stated 

that the specifications for the Mattress 

Test Platform 2 and the bed sheeting 

requirements in ASTM F2085–10a— 

Section 7.1.2.1 (and 7.1.1.1 for sheeting) 

Mattress Construction are too restrictive 

and difficult to obtain. 

(Response 3) We agree that the 

Mattress Test Platform 2 and the bed 

sheeting specification in ASTM F2085– 

10a are unnecessarily restrictive. ASTM 

F2085–12 removes the Intention Load 

Deflection (‘‘ILD’’) test that is designed 

to test the firmness of a foam material 

and is relevant for Test Platform 1, 

which is a 4′′-thick foam mattress. Test 

Platform 1 was selected to use on a thin 

and not very firm mattress. Test 

Platform 2 is an inner spring mattress, 

and thus, not solid foam. It was selected 

for use on a thick mattress (10–11′′). 

However, there is no concern about the 

foam firmness of Test Platform 2 

because the inner spring design gives 

the mattress rigidity. Therefore, there is 

no need to have an ILD requirement and 

test for Test Platform 2. In addition, 

there is no practical way to test the foam 

in an inner spring mattress to the ILD 

test. ASTM F2085–12 also allows 

greater flexibility for available bed sheet 

types for use in testing. The change in 

the sheet specifications was based on 

our finding that sheets that provide the 

weight-per-ounce were not practical. We 

believe that a 50/50 cotton-poly sheet 

over the mattress is a basic requirement 

for the test and that the range in thread 

count would not otherwise affect the 

results. Accordingly, ASTM F2085–12 

allows greater flexibility for available 

mattress and bed sheet types for use in 

testing. 

4. Double-Sided Bed Rails 

(Comment 4) Several commenters 

recommended that portable bed rails be 

sold in sets of two (double-sided) only, 

to reduce entrapment between the wall 

and a piece of furniture. 

(Response 4) Double-sided bed rails 

currently, are available to consumers. 

However, we believe that the potential 

for entrapment between the bed and the 

wall is not related to, or limited by, the 

use of a single-sided bed rail, and there 

is no evidence to support the assertion 

that requiring double-sided bed rails 

will address this hazard. We believe that 

consumers should continue to be 

educated regarding a safe sleep 

environment for children, including 

being aware of and eliminating hazards 

that are caused by gaps between a 

mattress and a wall. 

5. Bed Sheet Changing 

(Comment 5) One commenter stated 

that the proposed standard does not 

address issues such as daily changing of 

bed sheets or other routine use that can 

cause movement or stress on the 

components of a bed rail and lead to an 

unsafe product. 

(Response 5) A review of the incident 

data did not indicate that changing of 

bedding or other routine behavior 

contributed to fatal or nonfatal incidents 

due to additional stress on the 

component parts of a bed rail. The 

standard contains requirements that test 

the strength of the bed rail. We believe 

that these requirements are adequate to 

address potential stress-related failures. 

6. Mattress Systems 

(Comment 6) One commenter stated 

that the rulemaking proceeding does not 

address the fact that portable bed rails 

can be used in various mattress systems. 

(Response 6) Our review of portable 

bed rail products showed that most 

portable bed rails are adjustable to fit 

various size mattresses. ASTM F2085– 

12 contains test requirements that 

evaluate the safety of portable bed rails 

on test platforms intended to represent 

the different types of adult beds 

available in the market. 

7. Warning Language 

In general, all eight comments that 

addressed the warning requirements 

appear to support the general approach 

to improving the warning language that 

was in ASTM F2085–10a. However, 

some comments raised specific issues 

and suggested that additional revisions 

to these requirements would be helpful. 

(Comment 7) Several commenters 

requested more specificity in the 

warning language. One commenter 

stated that warning labels should 

include age limits because bed rails 

should not be used with children 

younger than 2 years old. Another 

commenter noted the importance of 

describing the hazard more concisely 

than the warning in the current 

voluntary standard. One commenter 

stated that the proposed rule suggested 

that the revision to the entrapment 

hazard warning for critical installation 

components misleads consumers 

because it provides a false sense of 

security for those with children who can 

get in and out of an adult bed without 

help. 

(Response 7) We agree that the 

primary bed rail warning label on the 

product and its retail packaging should 

include explicit age guidance and that 

the warning statements in the previous 

edition of the voluntary standard, 

ASTM F2085–10a, lacked this 

specificity. We believe that the new 

ASTM F2085–12 warning requirements 

address the public comments and are an 

improvement to the requirements in 

both the prior version of the voluntary 

standard and the proposed rule. The age 

at which children should not be using 

a bed rail has been made more explicit 

with the statement: ‘‘NEVER use with 

children younger than 2 years old’’; and 

the statement immediately following: 

‘‘Use ONLY with older children who 

can get in and out of adult bed without 

help,’’ clarifies that children must meet 

both criteria. Additional revisions to the 

language, such as ‘‘Gaps in and around 

bed rails have entrapped young children 

and killed infants’’ clarify the 

mechanism by which children are dying 

or becoming injured. 

The new warning requirements in 

ASTM F2085–12 also result in a more 

concise warning, which may increase 

the likelihood that consumers will take 

the time to read the warning and 

understand the information. For 

example, the proposed rule’s warning 

requirements would result in a warning 

approximately 148 words long; whereas, 

the warning requirements in ASTM 

F2085–12 result in a much shorter 

warning of 102 words long. The revised 

warning language is now written at a 

slightly lower grade level than the 

proposed rule warning language, so that 

more people who read the warning may 

be more likely to understand it. 

We disagree that the entrapment 

hazard warning for critical installation 

components misleads consumers. The 

purpose of the entrapment hazard 

warning is to alert consumers to the 

importance of installing the bed rail 

correctly. The statement in question— 

‘‘Incorrect installation can allow the 

portable bed rail to move away from the 

mattress, which can lead to entrapment 

and death’’—refers specifically to 

incorrect installation as the mechanism 

by which the bed rail can move away 

from the mattress. Nothing in the 

warning suggests that other mechanisms 

of entrapment exist that do not involve 

movement of the bed rail. Moreover, the 

bed rail itself includes a more 

comprehensive warning that discusses 

other sources of entrapment, such as the 

placement of the bed rail relative to the 

headboard or footboard of the adult bed, 

which clearly shows that other hazards 

and entrapment scenarios exist. 

(Comment 8) One commenter stated 

that the warning labels should describe 

the materials used when producing the 

bed rails. 

(Response 8) We disagree that the 

warning requirements should specify 

the materials used in the product. 


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Warnings are intended to be used only 

to identify a significant hazard. The 

commenter has not identified what 

materials present a hazard or what a 

warning requirement would address. 

The consequences of exposure to the 

hazard and appropriate avoidance 

behavior in response to the hazard also 

are key pieces of information that 

should be present in a warning, unless 

this information can be inferred readily. 

The commenter did not specify any of 

this information. Thus, including in a 

warning label a description of the 

materials used when the bed rail is 

produced is not appropriate at this time. 

(Comment 9) Another commenter 

stated that there should be a strict 

warning about modification of the bed 

rail and the bed rail components. 

(Response 9) We disagree that 

warning requirements should include 

provisions regarding modification of the 

bed rail and its components. We 

interpret this comment to indicate that 

the commenter seeks the addition of 

warning language to address the 

scenario of consumers intentionally 

altering the bed rail components. Our 

review of incident data does not support 

that consumers’ intentional alteration of 

bed rail components leads to injury. 

Thus, mandating such warning language 

is not supported by the data. 

8. Adult Bed Rails 

(Comment 10) Two commenters 

stated that the scope of the rule should 

guarantee more stringent safety 

standards for all portable bed rails, 

including adult bed rails. These 

commenters note that bed rails are used 

routinely in nursing facilities, hospitals, 

and private homes. According to the 

commenters’ data, between 1985 and 

2009, the FDA received reports of 803 

incidents of patients caught, trapped, 

entangled, or strangled in hospital beds, 

including 408 deaths, 138 non-fatal 

injuries, and 185 near-misses due to 

staff intervention. To address these 

types of incidents, the commenters 

requested that the Commission take 

action on adult bed rails, including 

mandating warning labels, enforcing 

reporting requirements, recalls, and 

civil penalties, and engaging in greater 

collaboration with the FDA. 

(Response 10) Section 104(b) of the 

Consumer Product Safety Improvement 

Act requires the Commission to 

promulgate consumer product safety 

standards for durable infant or toddler 

products. Accordingly, this rulemaking 

is limited to bed rails intended for use 

with children (typically from 2 to 5 

years of age) to keep them from falling 

out of an adult bed. Comments 

pertaining to other bed rail products 

intended for use by older children or 

adults are outside the scope of this 

proceeding. With respect to bed rails 

intended for use by adults or older 

children, we are aware that some bed 

rails may be considered ‘‘devices’’ 

under the Federal Food, Drug, and 

Cosmetic Act (‘‘FDCA’’); therefore, they 

are subject to regulation by the FDA. 

The FDA has several regulations 

pertaining to hospital beds, including a 

regulation for pediatric hospital beds 

(21 CFR 880.5140). The FDA 

regulations, in general, identify a 

hospital bed as having (among other 

things) movable and latchable side rails. 

However, the commenters raised 

important issues regarding incidents 

with bed rails that were not intended to 

be either a part of, or an accessory to, 

a hospital bed or FDA-regulated 

pediatric bed. To the extent that there 

may be such bed rails that are not 

regarded as medical devices regulated 

by the FDA, but that are considered, 

instead, to be ‘‘consumer products’’ 

under the CPSA or otherwise subject to 

our jurisdiction, we will continue to 

review this issue and consider what 

actions are appropriate, if any. 

9. Shipment Costs and Product Size 

(Comment 11) One commenter stated 

that shipping costs are a significant 

portion of the product’s total cost and 

increasing the box size to contain a 

preassembled product could potentially 

increase the cost to ship the product by 

50 percent. This commenter also stated 

that the proposed rule may result in 

adverse retail response to stocking 

bulkier packages on shelves or in 

inventory, or retailers dropping 

products, or refusing to accept a price 

increase, thus, placing the cost burden 

on manufacturers. 

(Response 11) Not all products would 

need to be preassembled or put in larger 

boxes. Retooled and redesigned 

components may allow manufacturers 

to use existing boxes. To the extent that 

a manufacturer decides to preassemble 

parts, or the portable bed rail, we agree 

that preassembling portable bed rails 

may require larger boxes and that 

shipping larger boxes is likely to 

increase shipping costs. It is possible 

that the increased shipping costs could 

be significant for some small firms. We 

also agree that if larger boxes for bed 

rails were required, they would need 

additional storage and shelving space. 

As a result, some retailers might choose 

to decrease the number or type of bed 

rail models they offer to the public, 

which, in turn, could result in decrease 

in product demand for some 

manufacturers. 

F. Summary of ASTM F2085–12, 

‘‘Standard Consumer Safety 

Specification for Portable Bed Rails’’ 

When the Commission issued its 

proposed rule in April 2011, the 

Commission proposed incorporating by 

reference ASTM F2085–10a, Standard 

Consumer Safety Specification for 

Portable Bed Rails, with certain 

modifications, under a new 16 CFR part 

1224, Safety Specification for Portable 

Bed Rails. The requirements for portable 

bed rails in ASTM F2085–12 

incorporate many of the proposed 

changes in the proposed rule, with 

additional clarifications and 

improvements. Accordingly, 16 CFR 

part 1224 will incorporate by reference, 

without modification, ASTM F2085–12, 

which includes more stringent 

requirements that would further reduce 

the risk of injury associated with 

portable bed rails. 

1. Scope 

ASTM F2085–10a provided that 

under section 1, Scope, 1.1: ‘‘This 

consumer safety specification 

establishes requirements for the 

performance of portable bed rails. It also 

contains requirements for labeling and 

instructional literature.’’ 

The proposed rule would not make 

any change to section 1.1. However the 

preamble to the proposed rule made 

clear that the standard did not cover 

guardrails that fall under the scope of 

the ‘‘Consumer Safety Specification for 

Toddler Beds’’, ASTM F1821; or side 

rails that connect the headboard to the 

footboard; conversion rails that convert 

a crib to a full-size bed; and adult-size 

beds, on which the rail is permanently 

attached to the bed. 76 FR 19916. 

Accordingly, to make the scope of 

portable bed rails explicit so that it does 

not include such products, ASTM 

F2085–12 now provides under section 

1.1: ‘‘This consumer safety specification 

establishes requirements for the 

performance of portable bed rails. It also 

contains requirements for labeling and 

instructional literature. This consumer 

safety specification does not cover 

guardrails that fall under the scope of 

the Consumer Safety Specification for 

Toddler Beds, F1821 or guardrails that 

are designed for a specific model of bed 

and which attaches at the headboard or 

footboard.’’ 

The proposed rule also would revise 

section 1.4 of ASTM F2085–10a to state: 

‘‘In addition to complying with section 

1.4 of ASTM F2085–10a, comply with 

the following: (i) 1.4.1 Foam and 

inflatable bed rails need meet only the 

General Requirements of section 5, the 

performance requirement of 6.3. 


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Enclosed Openings, and the warning 

requirement of section 9.3.1.’’ This 

section is addressed below in section 3, 

‘‘Terminology,’’ and section 5, ‘‘General 

Requirement.’’ 

2. Referenced Documents 

Consistent with the clarification in 

scope under section 1 (Scope)—that the 

new standard does not cover toddler 

beds—ASTM F2085–12 includes in 

section 2, (Referenced Documents) 

ASTM F1821, ‘‘Consumer Safety 

Specification for Toddler Beds.’’ In 

addition, ASTM F2085–12 includes 

Reference Document ASTM F1487, 

‘‘Consumer Safety Performance 

Specification for Playground Equipment 

for Public Use’’ to specify the protusion 

gauge for entanglement used in the 

performance requirements. 

3. Terminology 

The proposed rule would revise the 

terminology in section 3 of ASTM 

F2085–10a, by creating the following 

new terms: 

• 3.1.10 foam bed rail, n—portable 

bed rail constructed primarily of 

nonrigid materials such as fabric or 

foam. 

• 3.1.11 inflatable bed rail, n—a 

portable bed rail constructed primarily 

of nonrigid material that requires air be 

inflated into the product to achieve 

structure. 

• 3.1.12 critical assembly 

component, n—any component of the 

portable bed rail that requires consumer 

assembly in order to meet the 

performance requirements of 

6.1 Structural Integrity, 6.3 Enclosed 

Openings, 6.4 Openings Created by 

Portable Bed Rail Displacement of 

Adjacent Style Portable Bed Rails, 6.5 

Openings Created by Displacement of 

Mattress-Top Portable Bed Rails and 6.6 

Openings Created by Displacement of 

Portable Bed Rails Intended for Use on 

Specific Manufacturers’ Beds. 

• 3.1.13 critical installation 

component, n—any component of the 

portable bed rail that is used to attach 

the portable bed rail onto the bed. 

• 3.1.14 misassembled/functional 

portable bed rail, n—a portable bed rail 

that has been assembled incorrectly but 

appears to function as a portable bed 

rail. Misassembly/functionality is 

determined by meeting one of the 

criteria listed in 6.9. 

In ASTM F2085–12 the following 

terminology and figures have been 

included in section 3: 

• 3.1.4 captive hardware, n— 

fasteners that remain attached to their 

respective components before normal 

assembly and after normal disassembly 

(see Fig. 1). 

• 3.1.6 consumer adjustment, n— 

those activities defined by the 

instructions to be taken by the consumer 

in order to properly fit and secure the 

bedrail to the mattress. 

• 3.1.6.1 Discussion—Examples 

include sliding telescoping poles for 

proper fit, or initial adjustment for use, 

tightening of anchoring straps and 

positioning or changing of attachment 

components or locking pins. 

• 3.1.7 consumer assembly, v—the 

fitting together of components of the 

bedrail according to manufacturer 

instructions. 

• 3.1.8 installation component, 

n—component of the bed rail that is 

specifically designed to attach the bed 

rail to the bed and typically located 

under the mattress when in the 

manufacturer’s recommended use 

position. 

• 3.1.10 misassembled bed rail, 

n—a bed rail that has been assembled 

incorrectly but appears to function as a 

bedrail. 

• 3.1.12 non-rigid bed rail, 

n—portable bed rail constructed of nonrigid materials, including but not 

limited to fabric or foam, or that 

requires air be inflated into the product 

to achieve structure. 

The new standard, ASTM F2085–12, 

contains some, but not all, of the 

proposed terminology. Proposed 

sections 3.1.10, foam bed rail, and 

3.1.11, inflatable bed rail, are terms that 

are now incorporated as non-rigid bed 

rail under new section 3.1.12 in ASTM 

F2085–12. ASTM F2085–12 does not 

add proposed section 3.1.12, critical 

assembly component, because all of the 

bed rail components are critical to 

safety. Proposed section 3.1.13, critical 

installation component, has been 

modified to make clear the purpose of 

the installation component under new 

section 3.1.8 in ASTM F2085–12. 

Proposed section 3.1.14, misassembled/ 

functional portable bed rail, also has 

been modified to make clear under new 

section 3.1.10 in ASTM F2085–12 what 

is meant by misassembled bed rail. 

ASTM F2085–12 also adds additional 

terms for captive hardware under new 

section 3.1.4, consumer assembly under 

new section 3.1.7, consumer adjustment 

under new section 3.1.6, and new 

section 3.1.6.1 Discussion. These new 

sections create terminology to help 

testing laboratories differentiate 

between components that require 

consumer adjustment, such as straps 

and telescoping rods, and components 

that are fitted or fastened together for 

the bed rails’ structure, and components 

that do not require consumer 

adjustment. 

The basis for the new terminology is 

explained further under section 5 

(General Requirements), section 6 

(Performance Requirements), section 7 

(Test Equipment), section 8 (Test 

Methods), section 9 (Marking and 

Labeling), and section 11 (Instructional 

Literature). 

4. Calibration and Standardization 

The proposed rule would not make 

any changes to section 4 of ASTM 

F2085–10a (Calibration and 

Standardization). This section is 

unchanged in ASTM F2085–12. 

5. General Requirements 

The proposed rule would add a 

section 1.4.1 stating, ‘‘1.4.1 Foam and 

inflatable bed rails need meet only the 

General Requirements of section 5, the 

performance requirement of 6.3 

Enclosed Openings, and the warning 

requirement of section 9.3.1.’’ 

New section 5.5 of ASTM F2085–12 

provides that ‘‘Non-rigid bed rails need 

only meet the general requirements of 

Section 5, the performance requirement 

of 6.3, and the warning requirements of 

9.3.’’ This section provides that both 

foam and inflatable bed rails are covered 

under the term ‘‘non-rigid’’ but are not 

limited to foam and inflatable products 

that are also used as bed rails. 

In addition, the proposed rule would 

add the following sections to ASTM 

F2085–10a: 

• 5.6 Critical Installation 

Components that are also critical 

assembly components and that meet the 

definition of a misassembled/functional 

portable bed rail must meet 5.6.1 or 

5.6.2. 

• 5.6.1 Critical installation 

components must be permanently 

affixed to a structural component(s) of 

the portable bed rail. 

• 5.6.2 If a critical installation 

component(s) is also a critical assembly 

component and may result in a 

misassembled/functional portable bed 

rail, the portable bed rail must meet 

6.10.1. 

ASTM F2085–12 provides similar, but 

modified, language under new section 

5.7 and section 5.8. 

• 5.7 Installation components that 

are required to meet the performance 

requirements of 6.4, 6.5, and 6.6 shall be 

fully assembled, inseparable, and 

permanently attached to a component 

requiring consumer assembly (this 

excludes any consumer adjustment). 


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• 5.8 For products requiring 

consumer assembly, supplied hardware 

used for assembly of the bed rail such 

as screws, nuts or bolts shall be captive 

hardware to their respective 

components. 

The proposed rule’s critical 

installation components would prevent 

components (such as anchor plates and 

straps) that are used to attach the bed 

rail to the bed from being discarded or 

lost. All installation component(s) 

would be attached permanently to a 

structural component(s) of the bed rail. 

ASTM F2085–12 combines 5.6, 5.6.1, 

and 5.6.2 of the proposed rule into new 

section 5.7 and section 5.8. Like the 

proposed rule, these sections in ASTM 

F2085–12 require all installation 

components to be permanently attached 

to a structural component(s) that is 

required to make up the bed rail. This 

prevents installation components from 

being discarded or lost. The wording in 

ASTM F2085–12 clarifies the difference 

between installation components will 

require consumer adjustment and those 

components are part of consumer 

assembly. Test personnel will be able to 

identify components subject to the 

misinstallation requirement and it 

addresses the concern raised by 

commenters about the ambiguity of test 

requirements for installation 

components that are adjustable. 

6. Performance Requirements 

The proposed rule would add the 

following sections to ASTM F2085–10a: 

• 6.9 Determining Misassembled/ 

Functional Portable Bed Rail—a 

portable bed rail must be considered a 

misassembled/functional portable bed 

rail if it meets one of the criteria in 

6.9.1, 6.9.2, 6.9.3, or 6.9.4. 

• 6.9.1 The portable bed rail can be 

assembled without any critical assembly 

component. 

• 6.9.2 The portable bed rail can be 

assembled without the supplied 

fasteners, such as screws, nuts, or bolts 

that are not captive to a critical 

assembly component such as the frame. 

• 6.9.3 The portable bed rail’s fabric 

cover or mesh can be placed over the 

rigid frame structure without engaging 

parts of the frame as intended in final 

assembly. 

• 6.9.4 The portable bed rail can be 

assembled by improper placement of 

any critical assembly component, such 

as an inverted or an interchanged part, 

without permanent deformation or 

breakage. 

• 6.10 Determining Acceptability of 

Misassembled/Functional Portable Bed 

Rail—Misassembled/Functional 

Portable Bed Rails must meet 6.10.1, 

6.10.2, 6.10.3 or 6.10.4. 

• 6.10.1 The portable bed rail must 

not remain upright or the vertical height 

must decrease by 6 inches at any point 

along the top rail when tested to 8.7. 

• 6.10.2 The fabric cover or mesh 

must have a permanent sag a minimum 

of 3 inches after tested in accordance 

with 8.8. 

• 6.10.3 The fabric cover will not fit 

over the frame without tearing. 

• 6.10.4 Mating parts must clearly 

show misassembly by two parts 

overlapping and creating a minimum of 

a 1⁄2-inch protrusion out of the plane of 

the rail. Under ASTM F2085–12, the 

following new sections and figures have 

been added: 

• 6.9 Bed rail components requiring 

consumer assembly shall not be able to 

be misassembled when evaluated to 

6.9.1. 

• 6.9.1 Determining Misassembled 

Bed Rail—A bed rail shall be considered 

a misassembled bed rail if it appears to 

be a functional bed rail under any one 

of the conditions listed in 6.9.1.1, 

6.9.1.2, or 6.9.1.3 and it does not meet 

the requirements of 6.4, 6.5, or 6.6. 

• 6.9.1.1 The bed rail’s fabric cover 

or mesh can be placed over the rigid 

frame structure without engaging all 

structural components of the frame as 

intended in final assembly (Fig. 5 and 

Fig. 6). When the bed rail is evaluated, 

zippers and other means of attachment 

should be fully fastened. If possible to 

fasten the means of attachments without 

engaging said structural components, 

evaluation for misassembly should 

account for that (see Fig. 6). 

• Note 1—Any means of attachment, 

including, but not limited to, zippers, 

hooks and loops, and snaps, should be 

fully fastened. Fig. 7 represents a 

passing condition. 

• 6.9.1.2 The bed rail can be 

consumer assembled with any 

horizontal structural components 

improperly positioned such as being 

inverted or interchanged, without 

permanent deformation or breakage of 

the component or bed rail. This 

excludes consumer adjustment or 

universal components that are designed 

to be interchangeable (Fig. 8). For 

example: 

(1) Horizontal structural components 

shall be interchanged (Components 1, 2, 

3). 

(2) Horizontal structural components 

shall be inverted (AB:BA); (CD:DC); 

(EF:FE). 

• 6.9.1.3 Bed rails where the 

position of the arms are intended to be 

unidirectional are able to be assembled 

when the arms are rotated 180 degrees 

above the vertical axis (Fig. 9). 


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The proposed rule contained 

performance requirements that did not 

exist in ASTM F2085–10a and were 

intended to address the risk of 

entrapment hazards associated with 

consumer misassembly of portable bed 

rails. The proposed rule contained test 

methods and performance criteria to 

determine if a misassembled bed rail 

provided sufficient visual cues for a 

consumer to identify that the bed rail 

was misassembled. If the misassembled 

bed rail did not stay upright, or the top 

rail collapsed after testing, the 

misassembly was considered to have a 

sufficient visual cue for the consumer to 

recognize that the product was not 

assembled correctly. This condition 

would be considered a passing result 

because the bed rail only could be 

misassembled in a way that was obvious 

to the consumer. Bed rails that are 

preassembled or designed to reduce the 

potential for consumer misassembly, 


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without deforming or breaking parts, 

also would meet these requirements. 

CPSC staff developed two prototype bed 

rails to demonstrate that products could 

be redesigned to meet the proposed 

requirement. 

ASTM F2085–12 provides a means for 

determining misassembled portable bed 

rails that is similar to the proposed rule, 

but targets specific misassembled 

portable bed rail scenarios, such as 

missing horizontal components, 

fastening the fabric mesh without 

engaging a horizontal bar, and 

assembling parts to the wrong 

components or inverted components. 

ASTM F2085–12 addresses 

misassembly by identifying criteria 

similar to the proposed rule, but it 

contains additional figures and 

illustrations showing examples of 

passing and failing bed rails that have 

been misassembled. ASTM F2085–12 

section 5.8 is equivalent to section 6.9.2 

of the proposed rule, and it requires that 

nuts and bolts be attached to the bed rail 

structure to prevent the consumer from 

discarding or misplacing the fasteners. 

ASTM F2085–12 section 6.9.1.1 is 

equivalent to sections 6.9.3 and 6.9.4 of 

the proposed rule. These requirements 

identify a misassembled bed rail as a 

bed rail that can be assembled without 

a part or without the fabric engaging the 

entire frame as intended by the 

manufacturer. These requirements 

directly address the fatal incidents 

where the horizontal bar was not used 

or where the fabric was not installed 

properly over the bottom horizontal bar. 

ASTM F2085–12 sections 6.9.1.2 and 

6.9.1.3 are equivalent to section 6.9.4 of 

the proposed rule and require that bed 

rail components not be interchanged or 

inverted. This prevents the consumer 

from assembling a component in a 

backward or upside-down position. 

The primary difference between 

ASTM F2085–12 and the proposed rule 

is that ASTM F2085–12 does not have 

a physical test that establishes pass and 

fail criteria to determine whether a 

misassembled bed rail appears to be 

functional as proposed in section 6.10.1 

of the proposed rule. Determination of 

whether a misassembled bed rail 

appears to be functional (failing the 

standard) or appears not to be functional 

(passing the standard) is up to the 

judgment of the testing laboratory. The 

figures that show examples of passing 

and failing bed rails will provide 

guidance to testing laboratories in 

making the determination. The new 

requirements reduce the potential for 

numerous test configurations, eliminate 

the testing of zippered products for sag 

variability, reduce the possibility of 

misassembly of adjustable components 

for installation, and improve 

repeatability of testing between labs. 

7. Test Equipment 

The proposed rule did not suggest any 

changes to the test platforms in ASTM 

F2085–10a. However, we received 

comments to the proposed rule that the 

specifications for the Mattress Test 

Platform and the bed sheeting 

requirements in ASTM F2085–10a 

under Section 7.1.1.1 and 7.1.1.2 are too 

restrictive. In response to the comments, 

ASTM F2085–12 modifies the language 

to make it easier to test the mattresses 

and sheeting. 

ASTM F2085–10a provided under 

section 7. Test Equipment, 7.1.1 Test 

Platform 1, 7.1.1.1 Mattress 

Construction: 

• The mattress shall be of standard 

twin size, 38 by 74.5 in. 6 0.5 in. (0.97 

by 1.89 m + 13 mm). The mattress shall 

be made from open cell polyurethane 

foam padding and be 4 to 5 in. (102 to 

127 mm) thick with a density of 1 lb/ 

ft3 +0.2, ¥0 (16 kg/m3 +3.2, ¥0). The 

mattress shall weigh between 6.0 and 

9.5 lb (2.7 to 4.3 kg). There shall be no 

surface texture features (for example, 

quilting) on the test mattress. The 

mattress shall be covered with a 

standard twin sized fitted sheet. The 

sheet shall be white, 50/50 cotton/ 

polyester blend. It shall have 180 

threads per square inch and fabric 

weight of approximately 3.5 oz/yd2 

(161 g/m2). The sheet shall be 

laundered once before use in an 

automatic home washer, using hot water 

setting and longest normal cycle with 

the manufacturer’s recommended 

quantity of a commercial detergent, and 

dried in an automatic home tumble 

dryer. 

ASTM F2085–12 provides under new 

section 7: 

• 7. Test Equipment, 7.1.1 Test 

Platform 1, 7.1.1.1 Mattress 

Construction—The mattress shall be of 

standard twin size, 38 by 74.5 in. ± 0.5 

in. (0.97 by 1.89 m ± 13 mm). The 

mattress shall be made from open cell 

polyurethane foam padding and be 4 to 

5 in. (102 to 127 mm) thick with a 

density of 1 lb/ft3 +0.2, ¥0 (16 kg/m3 

+3.2, ¥0). The mattress shall weigh 

between 6.0 and 9.5 lb (2.7 to 4.3 kg). 

There shall be no surface texture 

features (for example, quilting) on the 

test mattress. The mattress shall be 

covered with a standard twin sized 

fitted sheet. The sheet shall be white, 

50/50 cotton/polyester blend. It shall 

have 100 to 300 threads per square inch. 

ASTM F2085–10a provided under 

section 7. Test Equipment, 7.1.2 Test 

Platform 2, 7.1.2.1 Mattress 

Construction: 

• The mattress shall be of standard 

twin size, 38 in. by 74.5 in. ± 0.5 in. 

(0.97 m by 1.89m ± 13 mm). The 

mattress shall be of an innerspring 

design and be between 10.0 in. (0.25 m) 

and 11.0 in. (0.28 m) thick. The mattress 

shall weigh 50 ± 10 lb (22.7 ± 4.5 kg). 

The mattress shall be covered with a 

standard twin sized cotton fitted sheet. 

The sheet shall be white, 50/50 cotton/ 

polyester blend. It shall have 180 

threads per square inch and fabric 

weight of approximately 3.5 oz/yd2 

(161 g/m2). The sheet shall be 

laundered once before use in an 

automatic home washer using hot water 

setting and longest normal cycle with 

the manufacturer’s recommended 

quantity of a commercial detergent, and 

dried in an automatic home tumble 

dryer. 

ASTM F2085–12 provides that under 

new section 7.1.2. Test Platform 2: 

• 7.1.2.1 Mattress Construction— 

The mattress shall be of standard twin 

size, 38 in. by 74.5 in. ± 0.5 in. (0.97 m 

by 1.89m ± 13 mm). The mattress shall 

be of an innerspring design and be 

between 10.0 in. (0.25 m) and 11.0 in. 

(0.28 m) thick. The mattress shall weigh 

50 ± 10 lb (22.7 ± 4.5 kg). The mattress 

shall be covered with a standard twin 

sized cotton fitted sheet. The sheet shall 

be white, 50/50 cotton/polyester blend. 

It shall have 100 to 300 threads per 

square inch. 

ASTM F2085–12 also deletes section 

7.1.2.2 of ASTM F2085–10a, which 

provides: 

• 7.1.2.2 Mattress Performance— 

The foam shall have an Indentation 

Load Deflection (ILD) of between 28 and 

33 when tested in accordance with Test 

Methods D3574, Method B1. 

In response to comments to the 

proposed rule that asserted that the 

specifications for the mattress platform 

and sheeting material were unduly 

restrictive (Comment 3 and Response 3), 

ASTM F2085–12 removed the Intention 

Load Deflection (‘‘ILD’’) test that is 

designed to test the firmness of a foam 

material because it was not appropriate 

for a rigid mattress under Test Platform 

2. In addition, we agreed that 

purchasing sheets that provide the 

weight per ounce is not practical and 

that the range in thread count would not 

otherwise affect the results. 

Accordingly, we believe that the new 

requirements are an improvement over 

the existing standard. 

The proposed rule would add the 

following section to ASTM F2085–10a 

on the force gauge: 

• 7.6 Force Gauge—gauge must 

have a minimum range of 0 to 50 lb 

(222N) with a maximum tolerance of 

± 0.25 lb (1.11N) to clarify the manner 


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in which the force will be applied under 

the proposed test method to determine 

acceptability of vertical structure of a 

misassembled/functional portable bed 

rail. 

ASTM F2085–12 does not have a test 

to determine acceptability of the vertical 

structure of a misassembled/functional 

portable bed rail. Accordingly, under 

the new section, reference to the vertical 

structure of a misassembled/functional 

portable bed rail is omitted. However, 

because the force gauge is used for other 

tests in the standard, section 7.6 of 

ASTM F2085–12 states: 

• 7.6 Force Gauge—gauge must 

have a minimum range of 0 to 50 lb 

(222N) with a maximum tolerance of 

± 0.25 lb (1.11N). 

8. Test Methods 

The proposed rule would add the 

following sections to ASTM F–2085– 

10a: 

• 8.7 Test Method for Determining 

Acceptability of Vertical Structure of a 

Misassembled/Functional Portable Bed 

Rail: 

• 8.7.1 If possible, attempt to 

assemble the bed rail in a misassembled 

configuration(s), as defined in 6.9 

Determining Misassembled/Functional 

Portable Bed Rail: 

• 8.7.2 Firmly secure the 

misassembled portable bed rail on a 

table top or other stationary flat surface, 

using clamps. The clamps should be 

located 4 to 6 inches from the 

intersection of the portable bed rail legs 

to the vertical plane (see figure 8). 

• 8.7.3 Gradually apply a force of 

10 lbs, using a 1⁄2-inch disc to the 

uppermost horizontal component of the 

rail in a downward direction at a 

location along the horizontal component 

that would most likely vertically deform 

the bed rail (see figure 8). Apply the 

force over a period of 5 seconds; hold 

the force for 10 seconds, and release. 

• 8.7.4 Repeat 8.7.1 through 8.7.3 

for all misassembly configurations 

discovered in 6.9. 

• 8.8 Test Method for Determining 

Fabric Sag Acceptability of a 

Misassembled/Functional Portable Bed 

Rail: 

• 8.8.1 If possible, attempt to 

assemble the bed rail in a misassembled 

configuration(s), as defined in 6.9 

Determining Misassembled/Functional 

Portable Bed Rail. 

• 8.8.2 Gradually apply a force of 

1 lb, using a 1⁄2-inch disc on the fabric/ 

mesh in any direction or location along 

the fabric/mesh that is most likely to 

cause it to come off of the frame (see 

Figure 8). Apply the force over a period 

of 5 seconds, hold for an additional 

10 seconds, and release. 

• 8.8.3 Repeat 8.8.1 through 8.8.2 

for all misassembly configurations 

discovered in 6.9. 

Section 6 in ASTM F2085–12 

establishes requirements for 

determining misassembled portable bed 

rails, by targeting specific misassembled 

portable bed rail scenarios, such as 

missing horizontal components, 

fastening the fabric mesh without 

engaging a horizontal bar, and 

assembling parts to the wrong 

components or inverted components. 

ASTM F2085–12 does not have a test to 

determine acceptability of the vertical 

structure of a misassembled/functional 

portable bed rail. The testing 

laboratories are in the best position to 

determine whether a misassembled bed 

rail appears to be functional (failing the 

standard) or appears not to be functional 

(passing the standard). Accordingly, we 

believe that the new requirements under 

sections 5 (General Requirements) and 6 

(Performance Requirements) are an 

improvement over the proposed rule’s 

test requirements; accordingly, our 

proposed requirements in section 8 are 

not necessary. 

9. Marking and Labeling 

The proposed rule would make the 

following revisions to section 9, 

Marking and Labeling of ASTM F085– 

10a: 


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• 9.3.1.3 Children who cannot get in 

and out of an adult bed without help 

can be trapped between a mattress and 

a wall and suffocate. NEVER place 

children younger than 2 years old in 

adult beds with or without a portable 

bed rail. 

• 9.4.1. The warning must including 

[sic] the following, exactly as stated 

below: 

ASTM F2085–12 adopts some of the 

requirements in the proposed rule, but 

clarifies the warning label. The new 

provisions state: 

• 9.3.1 The warning statements 

shall include the following wording, 

exactly as stated below: 


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• 9.3.2 For manufacturers’ specific 

bed rails, the warning statements shall 

also address the following: 

Use only on (manufacturer insert 

applicable bed and mattress/platform 

information). 

• 9.4.1 The following warning shall 

be addressed: 


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Note 2—Addressed means that 

verbiage other than what is shown can 

be used as long as the intent is the same 

or information that is product-specific is 

presented. 

We believe that the new ASTM 

F2085–12 warning requirements address 

the comments received on the proposed 

rule and improve the requirements in 

the prior version of the voluntary 

standard and the proposed rule. The age 

at which children should not be using 

a portable bed rail has been made 

explicit with the statement: ‘‘NEVER use 

with children younger than 2 years 

old.’’ Also, the statement immediately 

following that: ‘‘Use ONLY with older 

children who can get in and out of adult 

bed without help,’’ clarifies that 

children must meet both criteria: They 

must be at least 2 years old, and they 

must be able to get in and out of an 

adult bed without help. Additional 

revisions to the language, such as the 

statement: ‘‘Gaps in and around bed 

rails have entrapped young children and 

killed infants,’’ clarifies for consumers 

the mechanism by which children are 

dying or becoming injured. 

The new warning requirements in 

ASTM F2085–12 also result in a 

considerably more concise warning, 

which may increase the likelihood that 

consumers will take the time to read the 

warning and encode the information. 

For example, the proposed rule’s 

warning requirements would have 

resulted in a warning approximately 148 

words long; whereas, the warning 

requirements in ASTM F2085–12 result 

in a warning that is 102 words long. The 

revised warning language also is written 

at a slightly lower grade level than the 

proposed rule warning language, and 

people who read the warning may be 

more likely to understand it. 

10. Permanency of Label and Warnings 

The proposed rule would not make 

any change to section 10 of ASTM 

F2085–10a ‘‘Permanency of Label and 

Warnings.’’ This section is unchanged 

in ASTM F2085–12. 

11. Instructional Literature 

We proposed to revise section 11.1 of 

ASTM F2085–10a to state: 

• 11.1 Instructions must be 

provided with the portable bed rail and 

must be easy to read and understand. 

Assembly, installation, maintenance, 

cleaning, operating, and adjustment 

instructions and warnings, where 

applicable, must be included. 

ASTM F2085–12 incorporates this 

provision but adds clarifying language 

in section 11.1.1. ASTM F2085–10a 

provided that: 

• 11.1.1 The instructions shall 

contain the warning statements, 

required by 9.3.1 in the exact format, 

and shall address the statements in 

9.3.2. In addition, instructions shall 

address the following: Discontinue use 

if damaged, broken or if parts are 

missing. ASTM 2085–12 section 11.1.1. 

now states: 

• 11.1.1 The instructions shall 

contain the warning statements, 

required by 9.3.1 in the exact format, 

and where applicable, shall address the 

statement in 9.3.2. In addition, 

instructions shall address the following: 

• 11.1.1.1 Discontinue use if 

damaged, broken, or if parts are missing. 

The revised requirement helps clarify 

that the instructions are appropriate for 

manufacturers’ specific bed rails, 

including the manufacturer’s applicable 

bed and mattress/platform information 

that was revised in section 7 (Test 

Equipment). 

12. Keywords 

The proposed rule would not change 

section 12 of ASTM F2085–10a 

‘‘Keywords.’’ This section is unchanged 

in ASTM F2085–12. 

13. Conforming Edits 

ASTM F2085–12 provides conforming 

edits, including renumbering the figures 

to incorporate the addition of figures in 

section 3 (Terminology), and section 6 

(Performance Requirements). ASTM 

F2085–12 also provides additional 

rationale for the changes in its 

appendix. The appendix is 

nonmandatory information and may be 

viewed in the ASTM F2085–12 standard 

under ‘‘Appendix (Nonmandatory 

Information); XI. Rationale.’’ 

14. Additional Change to the Final Rule 

On our own initiative, we revised 

§ 1224.1, ‘‘Scope, application, and 

effective date,’’ by replacing ‘‘This part 

1224 establishes * * *’’ with ‘‘This part 

establishes * * *.’’ This is a nonsubstantive change intended to simplify 

the sentence structure in § 1224.1. 

G. Effective Date 

The Administrative Procedure Act 

(‘‘APA’’) generally requires that the 

effective date of a rule be a least 30 days 

after publication of the final rule. 

5 U.S.C. 553(d). The preamble to the 

proposed rule indicated that the 

standard would become effective 

6 months after publication of a final 

rule. We sought comment on how long 

it would take manufacturers of portable 

bed rails to come into compliance with 

the rule. One commenter stated that 6 

months allowed for too much delay of 

administrative enforcement of the new 

requirements. One commenter stated 

that if a CPSC mandatory regulation 

differed from the ASTM standard, a 

minimum of 1 year is appropriate to 

allow adequate time for manufacturers 

to bring products into compliance with 

the new requirements. Because ASTM 

has published a new standard that was 

approved as of January 1, 2012, and 

because the final rule adopts the new 

standard as a CPSC mandatory 

regulation, we believe 6 months is an 

adequate length of time for 

manufacturers to comply with the new 

requirements. We believe that 

manufacturers would benefit from the 

additional 6 months after publication of 

a final rule to review the new 

requirements thoroughly and to ensure 

that new portable bed rails 

manufactured or imported after that 

date are in compliance with the new 

requirements, including the fabrication 

of new labels, as well as the retooling 

and redesign of products. Accordingly, 

the final rule provides that the rule will 

be effective 6 months after publication 

of the final rule in the Federal Register. 

A 6 month effective date should also 

enable the Commission to complete the 

required rulemaking with regard to the 

notice of requirements regarding the 

accreditation of laboratories to conduct 

the requisite third party testing to this 

new portable bed rails standard. 

H. Regulatory Flexibility Act 

1. Introduction 

The Regulatory Flexibility Act 

(‘‘RFA’’), 5 U.S.C. 601–612, requires that 

final rules be reviewed for their 

potential economic impact on small 

entities, including small businesses. 

Section 604 of the RFA requires that 

CPSC staff prepare a final regulatory 

flexibility analysis when the 

Commission promulgates a final rule. 

The final regulatory flexibility analysis 

must describe the impact of the rule on 

small entities and identify any 

alternatives that may reduce the impact. 

Specifically, the final regulatory 

flexibility analysis must contain: 

1. A succinct statement of the objectives of, 

and legal basis for, the rule; 

2. A summary of the significant issues 

raised by public comments in response to the 

initial regulatory flexibility analysis; a 

summary of the assessment of the agency of 

such issues; and a statement of any changes 

made in the proposed rule as a result of such 

comments; 

3. A description of, and where feasible, an 

estimate of, the number of small entities to 

which the rule will apply; 

4. A description of the projected reporting, 

recordkeeping, and other compliance 

requirements of the rule, including an 

estimate of the classes of small entities 


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subject to the requirements, and the type of 

professional skills necessary for the 

preparation of reports or records; and 

5. A description of the steps the agency has 

taken to reduce the significant economic 

impact on small entities, consistent with the 

stated objectives of applicable statutes, 

including a statement of the factual, policy, 

and legal reasons for selecting the alternative 

adopted in the rule, and why each one of the 

other significant alternatives to the rule 

considered by the agency, which affect the 

impact on small entities, was rejected. 

2. The Market 

Typically, portable bed rails are 

produced and/or marketed by juvenile 

product manufacturers and distributors 

or by furniture manufacturers and 

distributors. When the proposed rule 

was published, we were aware of 14 

manufacturers or importers supplying 

bed rails to the U.S. market. We are now 

aware of at least 17 known 

manufacturers or importers supplying 

bed rails to the U.S. market. Thirteen are 

domestic manufacturers (76 percent), 

and three are domestic importers (17 

percent). The remaining firm has an 

unknown supply source, and there is no 

publically available information 

regarding its size. 

Under U.S. Small Business 

Administration (‘‘SBA’’) guidelines, a 

manufacturer of portable bed rails is 

small if it has 500 or fewer employees; 

an importer is considered small if it has 

100 or fewer employees. Based on these 

guidelines, 12 of the domestic 

manufacturers and three of the domestic 

importers known to be supplying 

portable bed rails to the U.S. market are 

small. There may be additional 

unknown small manufacturers and 

importers operating in the U.S. market 

as well. 

The Juvenile Products Manufacturers 

Association (‘‘JPMA’’), the major U.S. 

trade association that represents 

juvenile product manufacturers and 

importers, runs a voluntary Certification 

Program for several juvenile products. 

Five manufacturers supply bed rails to 

the U.S. market that are compliant with 

the ASTM standard F2085–10a (the 

previous voluntary standard). Among 

them, four are JPMA-certified as 

compliant with ASTM F2085–10a, and 

one firm claims compliance. Of the 

three importers, one firm is JPMAcertified as ASTM compliant with 

ASTM F2085–10a, and one firm claims 

to be in compliance. All seven firms, 

which are either JPMA-certified or claim 

compliance with ASTM F2085–10a, are 

small. However, none of these firms 

meets the requirements of the current 

voluntary standard, ASTM F2085–12. 

JPMA estimates that current annual 

sales of portable bed rails are 

approximately 750,000 units, and retail 

sales are approximately $20 million. No 

information is available about the 

average product life of bed rails; but if, 

for example, bed rail sales are assumed 

to have remained constant in recent 

years, and bed rails remain in use for 3 

to 5 years, then currently, there might be 

2.25 million to 3.75 million bed rails in 

use. National estimates of bed rail 

product-related injuries are not 

available because the National 

Electronic Injury Surveillance System 

(‘‘NEISS’’) data do not allow for clear 

identification of youth bed rails. 

Therefore, the risk of injury associated 

with the number of products in use 

cannot be calculated. 

3. Impact of the Standard on Small 

Business 

There are 17 firms currently known to 

be producing or selling portable bed 

rails in the United States. Of these firms, 

12 are small domestic manufacturers, 

and three are small domestic importers. 

The remainder of this analysis focuses 

on these 15 small domestic firms. 

Small Domestic Manufacturers 

The impact of the draft final rule on 

small manufacturers may differ, based 

on whether they compliant with the 

preceding ASTM standard, ASTM 

F2085–10a. Of the 12 domestic 

manufacturers, five produce portable 

bed rails that are certified as compliant 

by JPMA or claim to be in compliance 

with ASTM F2085–10a. 

The products of the firms that are not 

in compliance with ASTM F2085–10a 

may require substantial modifications to 

meet ASTM F2085–12. The costs 

associated with these modifications 

could include product redesign, 

development and marketing staff time, 

product testing, and focus group 

expenses. It is possible that some firms 

may change the type of materials used 

to make portable bed rails, resulting in 

some cost increase. Costs may also rise 

if additional materials are required, or 

the products need to be redesigned. The 

actual costs of product modifications are 

unknown, but they could be significant 

for some firms. However, the impact of 

these costs may be mitigated if they are 

treated as new product expenses and 

amortized. 

The impact on the firms that produce 

portable bed rails that are compliant 

with ASTM F2085–10a may be less 

significant. Firms already in compliance 

with ASTM F2085–10a may require 

fewer modifications in order to bring 

their product into compliance with the 

current voluntary standard. Some firms 

may opt to preassemble component(s) 

rather than redesign their product. If 

firms decide to preassemble products, 

then portable bed rails may require 

larger shipping boxes. Shipping larger 

boxes is likely to increase shipping 

costs, and increased shipping costs may 

be significant in some cases. Larger 

boxes will also require greater storage 

space and may cause some retailers to 

reduce portable bed rails from their 

shelves and inventories. 

All manufacturers will need to modify 

existing warning labels. Costs associated 

with the new warning label would be 

low because no new materials are used. 

However, eliminating the specified test 

methods in the proposed rule and 

reducing the number of testing 

configurations as well as reducing the 

number of warnings may result in a 

small reduction in costs. At least four 

small manufacturers’ product lines 

consist primarily or entirely of nonrigid 

portable bed rails. These firms may need 

to alter the warning label and 

requirements for enclosed openings; but 

otherwise, these firms are not likely to 

be affected significantly by the 

voluntary standard. 

Additionally, once the final rule and 

the notice of requirements is in effect, 

all manufacturers will be subject to the 

additional costs associated with the 

third party testing and certification 

requirements. 

Small Domestic Importers 

All three small domestic importers 

would need to find an alternate source 

of portable bed rails if their existing 

supplier does not come into compliance 

with the current voluntary standard. 

The cost to importers may increase and 

in turn, they may pass on some of those 

increased costs to consumers. Some 

importers may respond to the rule by 

discontinuing the import of their 

portable bed rails. However, the impact 

of such a decision may be lessened by 

replacing the noncompliant portable 

bed rail with a complying product or 

another juvenile product. Deciding to 

import an alternative product would be 

a reasonable and realistic way for most 

importers to offset any lost revenue, 

given that most import a variety of 

products. However, for small importers 

whose product lines rely largely on bed 

rails, substituting another product may 

not be realistic. The impact on these 

small importers likely would be more 

significant. 

As is the case with manufacturers, all 

importers will be subject to third party 

testing and certification requirements, 

and consequently, will experience 

additional costs. 


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12196 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 40 / Wednesday, February 29, 2012 / Rules and Regulations 

4. Alternatives 

Section 104 of the CPSIA requires the 

Commission to adopt a mandatory 

standard substantially the same as, or 

more stringent than, the voluntary 

standard, if the Commission determines 

that more stringent standards would 

further reduce the risk of injury 

associated with such products. One 

alternative would be to set an effective 

date later than the staff-recommended 6 

months. This would allow suppliers 

(and manufacturers) additional time to 

modify and/or develop compliant 

portable bed rails, thereby spreading the 

associated costs over a longer period of 

time. 

I. Environmental Considerations 

The Commission’s regulations 

provide a categorical exclusion for the 

Commission’s rules from any 

requirement to prepare an 

environmental assessment or an 

environmental impact statement 

because they ‘‘have little or no potential 

for affecting the human environment.’’ 

16 CFR 1021.5(c)(2). This rule falls 

within the categorical exclusion, so no 

environmental assessment or 

environmental impact statement is 

required. 

J. Paperwork Reduction Act 

This rule contains information 

collection requirements that are subject 

to public comment and review by the 

Office of Management and Budget 

(‘‘OMB’’) under the Paperwork 

Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501– 

3520). The preamble to the proposed 

rule (76 FR 19922 through 19923) 

discussed the information collection 

burden of the proposed rule and 

specifically requested comments on the 

accuracy of our estimates. OMB has 

assigned control number 3041–0149 to 

this information collection. We did not 

receive any comment regarding the 

information collection burden of the 

proposal. However, the final rule makes 

modifications regarding the information 

collection burden because the number 

of estimated manufacturers subject to 

the information collection burden is 

now estimated at 17 manufacturers 

rather than the 14 manufacturers 

initially estimated in the proposed rule. 

Accordingly, the estimated burden of 

this collection of information is 

modified as follows: 

TABLE 1—ESTIMATED ANNUAL REPORTING BURDEN

16 CFR Section Number of 

respondents 

Frequency of 

responses 

Total annual 

responses 

Hours per 

response 

Total burden 

hours 

1224.2(a) .......................................................... 17 2 34 1 34 

There are no capital costs or operating 

and maintenance costs associated with 

this collection of information. 

There are 17 known firms that supply 

portable bed rails to the U.S. market. All 

17 firms are assumed to use labels on 

their products and their packaging, but 

they would need to make some 

modifications to their existing labels. 

The estimated time required to make 

these modifications is about 1 hour per 

model. Each firm supplies an average of 

two different models of portable bed 

rails; therefore, the estimated burden 

hours associated with labels is: 1 hour 

× 17 firms × 2 models per firm = 34 

annual hours. We estimate that the 

hourly compensation for the time 

required to create and update labels is 

$28.36 (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 

September 2011, all workers, goodsproducing industries, sales, and office, 

Table 9). Therefore, the estimated 

annual cost to industry associated with 

the Commission-recommended labeling 

requirements is $964 ($28.36 per hour × 

34 hours = $964.24, which we have 

rounded down to $964). 

In compliance with the Paperwork 

Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 

3507(d)), we have submitted the 

information collection requirements of 

this final rule to the OMB. 

K. Preemption 

Section 26(a) of the CPSA, 15 U.S.C. 

2075(a), provides that where a 

‘‘consumer product safety standard 

under [the CPSA]’’ is in effect and 

applies to a product, no state or political 

subdivision of a state may either 

establish or continue in effect a 

requirement dealing with the same risk 

of injury unless the state requirement is 

identical to the federal standard. Section 

26(c) of the CPSA also provides that 

states or political subdivisions of states 

may apply to the Commission for an 

exemption from this preemption under 

certain circumstances. Section 104(b) of 

the CPSIA refers to the rules to be 

issued under that section as ‘‘consumer 

product safety rules,’’ thus, implying 

that the preemptive effect of section 

26(a) of the CPSA would apply. 

Therefore, a rule issued under section 

104 of the CPSIA will invoke the 

preemptive effect of section 26(a) of the 

CPSA when it becomes effective. 

L. Certification 

Section 14(a) of the Consumer 

Product Safety Act (‘‘CPSA’’) imposes 

the requirement that products subject to 

a consumer product safety rule under 

the CPSA, or to a similar rule, ban, 

standard, or regulation under any other 

act enforced by the Commission, be 

certified as complying with all 

applicable CPSC-enforced requirements. 

15 U.S.C. 2063(a). Such certification 

must be based on a test of each product 

or on a reasonable testing program or, 

for children’s products, on tests on a 

sufficient number of samples by a third 

party conformity assessment body 

accredited by the Commission to test 

according to the applicable 

requirements. As discussed in part K of 

this preamble, section 104(b)(1)(B) of 

the CPSIA refers to standards issued 

under that section, such as this final 

rule for portable bed rails, as ‘‘consumer 

product safety standards.’’ Furthermore, 

the designation of ‘‘consumer product 

safety standards’’ subjects such 

standards to certain sections of the 

CPSA, such as section 26(a) of the 

CPSA, regarding preemption. By the 

same reasoning, such standards also 

would be subject to section 14 of the 

CPSA, regarding testing and 

certification. Therefore, any such 

standard would be considered a 

consumer product safety rule to which 

products subject to the rule must be 

certified. We intend to issue a notice of 

requirements in the near future to 

explain how accredited laboratories can 

become recognized by CPSC as third 

party conformity assessments bodies to 

test to the new portable bed rails 

standard. 

Additionally, because portable bed 

rails covered by this final rule are 

‘‘children’s products,’’ they must 

comply with all other applicable CPSC 

requirements, such as the lead content 

and phthalates content requirements in 

sections 101 and 108 of the CPSIA; the 

tracking label requirement in section 

14(a)(5) of the CPSA; and the consumer 

registration form requirements in 

section 104 of the CPSIA. 


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Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 40 / Wednesday, February 29, 2012 / Rules and Regulations 12197 

1The Commission voted 3–0–1 to approve 

publication of this rule. Chairman Inez M. 

Tenenbaum and Commissioners Nancy A. Nord and 

Robert S. Adler voted for the rule. Commissioner 

Ann M. Northup abstained from voting. 

Commissioner Adler filed a statement concerning 

this action which may be viewed on the 

Commission’s Web site at http://www.cpsc.gov/pr/ 

statements.html or obtained from the Commission’s 

Office of the Secretary. 

List of Subjects in 16 CFR Part 1224 

Consumer protection, Imports, 

Incorporation by reference, Infants and 

children, Labeling, and Law 

enforcement. 

For the reasons stated in the 

preamble, the Commission amends Title 

16 of the Code of Federal Regulations by 

adding a new part to read as follows: 

PART 1224—SAFETY STANDARD FOR 

PORTABLE BED RAILS 

Sec. 

1224.1 Scope, application, and effective 

date. 

1224.2 Requirements for portable bed rails. 

Authority: Sections 3 and 104 of Pub. L. 

110–314, 122 Stat. 3016 (August 14, 2008). 

§ 1224.1 Scope, application, and effective 

date. 

This part establishes a consumer 

product safety standard for portable bed 

rails manufactured or imported on or 

afterAugust 29, 2012. 

§ 1224.2 Requirements for portable bed 

rails. 

(a) Each portable bed rail as defined 

in ASTM F2085–12, Standard 

Consumer Safety Specification for 

Portable Bed Rails, approved January 1, 

2012, must comply with all applicable 

provisions of ASTM F2085–12. The 

Director of the Federal Register 

approves this incorporation by reference 

in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 

1 CFR part 51. You may obtain a copy 

of this ASTM standard from ASTM 

International, 100 Barr Harbor Drive, 

P.O. Box C700, West Conshohocken, PA 

19428–2959 USA, phone: 610–832– 

9585; http://www.astm.org/. You may 

inspect copies at the Office of the 

Secretary, U.S. Consumer Product 

Safety Commission, Room 820, 4330 

East West Highway, Bethesda, MD 

20814, telephone 301–504–7923, or at 

the National Archives and Records 

Administration (NARA). For 

information on the availability of this 

material at NARA, call 202–741–6030, 

or go to: http://www.archives.gov/

federal_register/code_of_federal 

regulations/ibr_locations.html. 

(b) [Reserved] 

Dated: February 22, 2012. 

Todd A. Stevenson, 

Secretary, U.S. Consumer Product Safety 

Commission. 

[FR Doc. 2012–4451 Filed 2–28–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6355–01–P 

CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY 

COMMISSION 

16 CFR Part 1420 

[CPSC Docket No. CPSC–2011–0047] 

Standard for All-Terrain Vehicles 

AGENCY: Consumer Product Safety 

Commission. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: The Consumer Product Safety 

Improvement Act of 2008 (‘‘CPSIA’’) 

required the Consumer Product Safety 

Commission (‘‘Commission,’’ ‘‘CPSC,’’ 

or ‘‘we’’) to publish, as a mandatory 

consumer product safety standard, the 

American National Standard for FourWheel All-Terrain Vehicles Equipment 

Configuration, and Performance 

Requirements, developed by the 

Specialty Vehicle Institute of America 

(American National Standard ANSI/ 

SVIA 1–2007). We did so on November 

14, 2008. 73 FR 67385. ANSI/SVIA later 

issued a 2010 edition of its standard. In 

accordance with the CPSIA, we are 

amending the Commission’s mandatory 

ATV standard to reference the 2010 

edition of the ANSI/SVIA standard.1

DATES: The rule will become effective 

on April 30, 2012, and will apply to 

products manufactured or imported on 

or after that date. The incorporation by 

reference of the publication listed in 

this rule is approved by the Director of 

the Federal Register as of April 30, 2012. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Justin Jirgl, Office of Compliance and 

Field Operations, Consumer Product 

Safety Commission, 4330 East West 

Highway, Bethesda, MD 20814; 

telephone (301) 504–7814; 

jjirgl@cpsc.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

A. Background 

The Consumer Product Safety 

Improvement Act of 2008 (‘‘CPSIA’’) 

directed the Commission to ‘‘publish in 

the Federal Register as a mandatory 

consumer product safety standard the 

American National Standard for Four 

Wheel All-Terrain Vehicles Equipment 

Configuration, and Performance 

Requirements developed by the 

Specialty Vehicle Institute of America 

(American National Standard ANSI/ 

SVIA 1–2007).’’ 15 U.S.C. 2089(a)(1), as 

added by section 232 of the CPSIA. 

Accordingly, on November 14, 2008, we 

published a final rule mandating ANSI/ 

SVIA 1–2007 as a consumer product 

safety standard. 73 FR 67385. The final 

rule is codified at 16 CFR part 1420. 

B. The Amendment 

1. Procedure 

Section 42(b) of the Consumer 

Product Safety Act (‘‘CPSA’’) provides 

that, if ANSI/SVIA 1–2007 is revised 

after we have published a Federal 

Register notice mandating the standard 

as a consumer product safety standard, 

ANSI must notify us of the revision, and 

we have 120 days after receiving that 

notification to issue a notice of 

proposed rulemaking to amend our 

mandatory ATV standard ‘‘to include 

any such revision that the Commission 

determines is reasonably related to the 

safe performance of [ATVs] and notify 

the Institute of any provision it has 

determined not to be so related.’’ 15 

U.S.C. 2089(b)(1) and (2). Thereafter, we 

have 180 days after publication of the 

proposed amendment to publish a final 

amendment to revise the ATV standard. 

Id. 

2. Changes From 2007 Edition 

On March 16, 2011, ANSI notified us 

that, in December 2010, ANSI approved 

a revised version of the ANSI/SVIA 

standard for four-wheel ATVs, ANSI/ 

SVIA 1–2010. We reviewed the changes 

from the 2007 version. Many changes 

are minor revisions to the wording in 

the standard. We considered the 

substantive changes to be: (1) 

Elimination from the scope section of a 

provision calling for expiration of the 

definition and requirements for the Y– 

12+ youth ATV age category on July 28, 

2011; (2) a change in how to calculate 

the speed for the braking test of youth 

ATVs; (3) a change in the force applied 

to passenger handholds during testing; 

(4) the addition of a requirement that 

youth ATVs shall not have a power 

take-off mechanism; (5) the addition of 

a requirement that youth ATVs shall not 

have a foldable, removable, or 

retractable structure in the ATV foot 

environment; (6) additional specificity 

concerning the location and method of 

operation of the brake control; (7) 

tightening the parking brake 

performance requirement, by requiring 

the transmission to be in ‘‘neutral’’ 

during testing, rather than in ‘‘neutral’’ 

or ‘‘park’’; and (8) the requirement that 

tire pressure information be on the 

label, when the previous requirement 

could be interpreted to allow tire 

pressure information to be on the label, 


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