Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 170 / Thursday, September 3, 2009 / Proposed Rules 45719 

§ 1500.86 [Amended] 

3. Section 1500.86 is amended by 

removing and reserving paragraph (a)(4). 

Dated: August 25, 2009. 

Todd Stevenson, 

Secretary, U.S. Consumer Product Safety 

Commission. 

[FR Doc. E9–20945 Filed 9–2–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6355–01–P 

CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY 

COMMISSION 

16 CFR Part 1215 

[CPSC Docket No. CPSC–2009–0064] 

Safety Standard for Infant Bath Seats 

AGENCY: Consumer Product Safety 

Commission. 

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking. 

SUMMARY: Section 104(b) of the 

Consumer Product Safety Improvement 

Act of 2008 (‘‘CPSIA’’) requires the 

United States Consumer Product Safety 

Commission (‘‘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 Commission is 

proposing a safety standard for infant 

bath seats in response to the direction 

under section 104(b) of the CPSIA. 

DATES: Written comments must be 

received by November 17, 2009. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, 

identified by Docket No. CPSC–2009– 

0064, by any of the following methods: 

Electronic Submissions 

Submit electronic comments in the 

following way: 

Federal eRulemaking Portal: http:// 

www.regulations.gov. Follow the 

instructions for submitting comments. 

To ensure timely processing of 

comments, the Commission is no longer 

accepting comments submitted by 

electronic mail (e-mail) except through 

http://www.regulations.gov. 

Written Submissions 

Submit written submissions in the 

following way: 

Mail/Hand delivery/Courier (for 

paper, disk, or CD–ROM submissions), 

preferably in five copies, to: Office of the 

Secretary, Consumer Product Safety 

Commission, Room 502, 4330 East West 

Highway, Bethesda, MD 20814; 

telephone (301) 504–7923. 

Instructions: All submissions received 

must include the agency name and 

docket number for this rulemaking. All 

comments received may be posted 

without change, including any personal 

identifiers, contact information, or other 

personal information provided, to 

http://www.regulations.gov. Do not 

submit confidential business 

information, trade secret information, or 

other sensitive or protected information 

electronically. Such information should 

be submitted in writing. 

Docket: For access to the docket to 

read background documents or 

comments received, go to http:// 

www.regulations.gov. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Patricia Edwards, Project Manager, 

Directorate for Engineering Sciences, 

Consumer Product Safety Commission, 

4330 East West Highway, Bethesda, MD 

20814; telephone (301) 504–7577; 

pedwards@cpsc.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

A. Background and Statutory Authority 

1. The Consumer Product Safety 

Improvement Act 

The Consumer Product Safety 

Improvement Act of 2008 (‘‘CPSIA,’’ 

Pub. L. 110–314) 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. Section 104(b)(2) of the CPSIA 

directs the Commission to begin 

rulemaking for two standards by August 

14, 2009. In this document the 

Commission proposes a safety standard 

for bath seats. The proposed standard is 

substantially the same as a voluntary 

standard developed by ASTM 

International (formerly known as the 

American Society for Testing and 

Materials), ASTM F 1967–08a, 

‘‘Standard Consumer Safety 

Specifications for Infant Bath Seats,’’ 

but the Commission is proposing some 

modifications to strengthen the 

standard. 

2. Previous Commission Rulemaking 

Concerning Bath Seats 

The Commission has been engaged in 

regulatory efforts for infant bath seats 

for several years. In July 2000, several 

consumer organizations petitioned the 

Commission to ban bath seats under the 

Federal Hazardous Substances Act 

(‘‘FHSA’’). The consumer organizations 

asserted that bath seats presented an 

unreasonable risk of injury and death 

due to drowning. On August 1, 2001, 

the Commission published an advance 

notice of proposed rulemaking 

(‘‘ANPR’’) in the Federal Register 

initiating a rulemaking proceeding on 

bath seats (66 FR 39692). The 

Commission issued a notice of proposed 

rulemaking that was published in the 

Federal Register on December 29, 2003 

(68 FR 74878) proposing requirements 

for stability, leg openings, and warnings. 

Elsewhere in this issue of the Federal 

Register, the Commission has issued a 

notice that the Commission has 

terminated the bath seat rulemaking 

proceeding that it began under the 

FHSA because it has been superseded 

by this rulemaking required under 

section 104(b) of the CPSIA. 

B. The Product 

Infant bath seats are used in a tub or 

sink to support a seated infant while he 

or she is being bathed. They are 

marketed for use with infants between 

the age of approximately 5 months (the 

time at which infants can sit up 

unassisted) to the age of approximately 

10 months (the time at which infants 

begin pulling themselves up to a 

standing position). Currently, there are 

three manufacturers and one importer of 

bath seats active in the United States. 

All are members of the Juvenile 

Products Manufacturers Association 

(‘‘JPMA’’), which is the major United 

States trade association representing 

juvenile product manufacturers and 

importers. All produce a variety of 

children’s products in addition to bath 

seats. 

The exact number of bath seats 

currently sold or in use is not known. 

A 2005 survey by the American Baby 

Group indicated annual sales of bath 

seats of about 1.5 million and about 1.7 

million bath seats in use. In 2000, JPMA 

estimated annual sales of bath seats at 

about one million and estimated up to 

2 million bath seats in use for infants 

under one year of age. 

C. ASTM Voluntary Standard 

ASTM F 1967, Standard Consumer 

Safety Specification for Infant Bath 

Seats, was first published in 1999. 

Between 2003 and 2007, the ASTM 

standard was subsequently revised 

several times to include requirements 

that the Commission proposed in its 

2003 NPR and to exclude tub-like 

products. 

In response to changes in the ASTM 

standard, product design changed 

significantly. The new designs use an 

arm that clamps onto the side of the 


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bath tub rather than relying on suction 

cups for stability. The current voluntary 

standard for bath seats, ASTM F 1967– 

08a, was published in December 2008. 

The current version contains the same 

labeling, stability and leg opening 

requirements as the 2007 version. 

JPMA provides certification programs 

for juvenile products, including bath 

seats. Manufacturers submit their 

products to an independent test 

laboratory to test the product for 

conformance to the ASTM standard. 

Currently only one bath seat model is 

certified to ASTM F 1967–08a. 

The current ASTM standard includes 

performance requirements specific to 

bath seats to address the hazards of the 

bath seat tipping over or the child 

becoming entrapped and/or submerged 

in the leg openings. The standard also 

contains labeling requirements to 

address the child coming out of the bath 

seat. 

General requirements in the current 

ASTM standard, none of which the 

Commission is proposing to modify, 

include: 

• Requiring compliance with CPSC’s 

standards concerning sharp points and 

edges, small parts, and lead paint (16 

CFR parts 1303, 1500.48, 1500.49, 

1500.50, 1500.51, and 1501); 

• Requirements for latching and 

locking mechanisms; 

• Requirements to prevent scissoring, 

shearing and pinching; 

• Entrapment testing for accessible 

holes and openings; 

• Torque/tension test for graspable 

components; and 

• A requirement that warning labels 

be permanent. 

The ASTM Standard’s requirements 

specifically related to hazards posed by 

bath seats (some of which the 

Commission is proposing to modify as 

discussed in part E of this preamble) 

include: 

• Test for stability performed on a test 

platform containing both a slip resistant 

surface and a smooth surface to test 

whether the bath seat may tip over 

during use; 

• Requirements for restraint systems 

requiring passive crotch restraint to 

prevent a child from sliding through 

front or sides of the seat; 

• Static load test to test whether the 

bath seat may break or become damaged 

during use; 

• A requirement that suction cups (if 

used) adhere to the bath seat and the 

surface; 

• A leg opening requirement to 

prevent children from sliding through 

these openings; 

• A leg opening requirement 

restricting the expansiveness of the 

seating area to prevent the child from 

slumping and becoming entrapped in a 

reclined position; and 

• Requirements for warning labels 

and instruction manual. 

D. Incident Data 

From 1983 through 2008, there were 

295 non-fatal bath seat incidents 

reported to CPSC staff. A submersion 

hazard was identified in 151 of these 

non-fatal incidents of which 116 were 

actual submersion incidents. 

(Submersion is defined as the act of 

placing, or the condition of being, under 

water. A submersion hazard indicates 

that submersion is possible, as a direct 

result of the incident. An actual 

submersion is when the victim actually 

became submerged as a result of the 

incident.) The remaining 143 reports 

were non-submersion hazards such as 

lacerations, limb entrapments, etc. 

There have been 171 reported fatalities 

involving bath seats for this same time 

frame, although more fatalities may 

have occurred because fatality reporting 

is not considered to be complete for 

2006, 2007, and 2008. All of these 

fatalities were submersions. None of the 

identifiable products involved in the 

fatal bath seat incidents were certified to 

meet ASTM F 1967–08a or its 

predecessor, ASTM F 1967–07. Two of 

the non-fatal incidents involved 

products certified to ASTM F 1967–07, 

neither of which were submersion 

hazards, thus were not life threatening. 

Of the 171 fatal incidents, 20 involved 

products that were identified as being 

certified to the 2004 version of the 

ASTM standard. Two of the 20 were due 

to the arm of the bath seat disengaging 

from the bath tub and 17 were due to 

other causes such as the child slumped 

over the side of the bath seat (four 

incidents), children found out of the 

bath seat in the water (seven incidents), 

miscellaneous causes, such as 

consumers not attaching the clamp to 

the tub side (four incidents), and 

overflowing bathtubs (two incidents). 

There was also an unknown cause for 

one incident. 

Fifty-one of the non-fatal incidents 

involved bath seats certified to the 2004 

version of the ASTM voluntary 

standard. Fifteen of these non-fatal 

incidents involved a bath seat that was 

the subject of a safety alert issued in 

2005 due to component failures 

occurring when the bath seat was 

installed on non-traditional tubs. Of the 

remaining 36 incidents, five were 

considered submersion hazards, and 

thus could have resulted in a fatality 

had a caregiver not been present. These 

five include three arm disengagements, 

one entrapment where the child’s torso 

slipped completely into one leg 

opening, and one case where a child 

was found out of the bath seat in the 

water. In addition, there has been 

another recent torso entrapment 

incident reported to CPSC staff in 2009. 

E. Assessment of Voluntary Standard 

ASTM F 1967–08a and Description of 

Proposed Changes and the Proposed 

Rule 

1. Section 104(b) of the CPSIA: 

Consultation and CPSC Staff Review 

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. This 

consultation process began in October 

2008 during the ASTM subcommittee 

meeting regarding the ASTM infant bath 

seat voluntary standard. Consultations 

between Commission staff and members 

of this subcommittee are still ongoing. 

The Commission has reviewed the 

incident data and the ASTM F 1967–08a 

standard and conducted testing on bath 

seats to assess the ASTM standard. 

CPSC staff tested three products to the 

current version of ASTM F 1967–08a: 

Two bath seats that use only suction 

cups to provide stability and a third that 

primarily uses a clamping mechanism 

located on an arm that secures the bath 

seat to the side of the tub. The bath seat 

with the arm was labeled as being 

certified by JPMA to the ASTM 

standard. 

Initial testing results indicated that all 

three products failed the stability test 

requirements in ASTM F 1967–08a. The 

two non-certified seats that use only 

suction cups for stability could not affix 

themselves to the slip-resistant surface, 

and thus failed. 

During the testing of the JPMA 

certified bath seat, the arm rest of the 

clamping mechanism lifted up from the 

top surface of the side of the tub. The 

clamp did not disengage from the tub, 

but the arm rest contact points were no 

longer in contact with the tub surface. 

The bath seat remained in a tilted 

position from the installed and 

presumed ‘‘manufacturer’s intended use 

position.’’ A strict interpretation of the 

pass-fail criteria suggests that this bath 

seat, as tested by CPSC staff, also does 

not meet the standard, but the clamp, 

while not in the initial position, 

remained clamped to the side of the 

bath tub. Thus, one could assert that, 

because the product did not tip over and 

did not disengage from the platform, the 

product complied with the standard. 

This result indicates that the pass/fail 

criteria are ambiguous and could result 


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in passing a bath seat that could 

nevertheless pose a stability hazard to 

an infant. 

The current ASTM standard requires 

that a soapy test solution ‘‘thoroughly 

saturate the coverage area’’ which is 

defined in the ASTM standard as any 

internal surface of the tub well or tub 

bottom that makes contact with the 

product. Staff found that spraying the 

soap solution on the top and outer 

surface contact points as well as the 

interior surfaces affected the final 

position of the bath seat and therefore 

could affect the results of the test. 

Consistent with section 104(b) of the 

CPSIA, the Commission, through this 

proposed rule, would establish a new 16 

CFR part 1215, ‘‘Safety Standard for 

Bath Seats.’’ The new part would 

incorporate by reference the 

requirements for bath seats in ASTM F 

1967–08a with certain changes to 

specific provisions to strengthen the 

ASTM standard as discussed below. 

2. Proposed Changes to the ASTM 

Standard’s Requirements 

While most of the requirements of the 

current ASTM standard are sufficient to 

reduce the risk of injury posed by bath 

seats, the Commission concludes that 

several provisions should be modified 

to make them more stringent and further 

reduce the risk of injury and to clarify 

the test procedures. 

To best understand the proposed 

standard, it is helpful to view the 

current ASTM F 1967–08a standard for 

bath seats at the same time as the 

Commission’s proposed modifications. 

The ASTM standard is available for 

viewing for this purpose during the 

comment period through this link: 

http://www.astm.org/cpsc.htm. 

a. Definition of Bath Seat (Proposed 

§ 1215.2(b)(1)) 

The Commission’s 2003 NPR defined 

a bath seat as an article that is used in 

a bath tub, sink, or similar bathing 

enclosure and that provides support, at 

a minimum, to the front and back of a 

seated infant during bathing by a 

caregiver. The Commission believes that 

this definition is preferable to that used 

by ASTM which does not define the 

type of support because the proposed 

definition better clarifies what is (or is 

not) a bath seat. 

b. Stability Requirement 

Limiting the tilt of the bath seat 

(proposed § 1215.2(b)(2), (6) and (7)). As 

discussed above, during testing the 

Commission staff found that the 

clamping mechanism on one bath seat 

lifted from the side of the tub and 

continued to tip backward when force 

was applied, but it did not tip over. To 

prevent possible misinterpretation of 

the ASTM standard’s pass/fail criteria, 

the Commission proposes a requirement 

that limits the allowable tilt angle of the 

bath seat during the stability test. This 

proposed modification would be added 

to sections 6.1, between sections 7.4.2.2 

and 7.4.2.3, and between sections 

7.4.2.3 and 7.4.2.4 of the ASTM 

standard. The Commission proposes 

that a bath seat capable of tilting 12 

degrees or more during testing be 

considered a failure. This limit was 

determined after measuring, and 

allowing for the flexibility of, current 

products. Staff also considered other 

ASTM standards such as those for infant 

bouncer seats and toys. These use a 10 

degree table or tilt when testing 

stability. The Commission is proposing 

a tilt angle just above that level. 

Test solution application (proposed 

§ 1215.2(b)(4)). The Commission 

recognizes that the outside of a tub may 

become wet, and this may affect the 

ability of a bath seat’s attachment arm 

to remain stable. Thus, the Commission 

proposes that a test solution be applied 

to all areas where the product may make 

contact while in use. 

Measuring water levels (proposed 

§ 1215.2(b)(5)). When testing the 

stability of bath seats, Commission staff 

noted that it can be difficult to obtain 

accurate water level measurements 

because the unoccupied bath seat may 

float when the test platform is flooded. 

To address this, the Commission 

proposes to add a clarifying statement: 

‘‘For the purpose of measuring the water 

level, the product’s seating surface can 

be temporarily weighed down to 

prevent the seat from floating.’’ 

c. Leg opening requirement (Proposed 

§ 1215.2(b)(8) through (10)) 

In recent incident reports, children 

have fit both legs and their hips through 

a single leg hole of a bath seat that 

complies with the current ASTM 

standard. The torso probe specified in 

the current ASTM standard used to test 

the size of the leg openings is not 

sufficiently analogous to the human 

infant. This has resulted in a child’s 

torso fitting through a leg hole when the 

ASTM torso probe does not. Because 

modeling the pliable features of a 

child’s torso is not practical, the 

Commission proposes decreasing the 

size of the current rigid wood torso 

probe specified in the ASTM standard 

and specifying a larger radius on the 

corners. The proposal would decrease 

the length of the vertical and horizontal 

axes of the current probe by 

approximately 5% and round the 

corners more resulting in a 1.45′′ radius 

rather than the current 1′′ radius. This 

proposed change is accomplished 

through modifications to Figure 4 in the 

ASTM standard that shows the torso 

probe. The Commission believes that 

changes in the test probe would not 

restrict the utility of the product, but 

would still allow many possible designs 

for bath seats, even that which would 

accommodate large children. 

An additional proposed change (at 

proposed § 1215.2(b)(8) and (9)) related 

to the torso probe concerns the ASTM 

standard’s instruction in section 7.7.1 

and 7.7.2 of the ASTM standard to 

insert the test probe ‘‘* * * in the most 

adverse orientation into each opening.’’ 

This language is open to interpretation 

as it may not always be intuitive what 

‘the most’ adverse position is. Therefore, 

the Commission proposes changing this 

wording to say that the probe needs to 

be inserted ‘‘in all orientations to 

determine if any position can create a 

slip through and/or entrapment 

hazard.’’ 

d. Editorial and clarifying changes 

(proposed § 1215.2(b)(3) and (5)) 

Other proposed changes clarify the 

order of steps to be performed when 

conducting the stability test. For 

clarification of testing procedures, the 

Commission proposes re-ordering the 

steps specified in the ASTM standard 

for preparing the test surface and 

installing the bath seat. This change 

would clarify that the test platform 

should be flooded before installing the 

bath seat. 

F. Request for Comments 

The issuance of this proposed rule 

begins a rulemaking proceeding under 

section 104(b) of the CPSIA to issue a 

consumer product safety standard for 

infant bath seats. All interested persons 

are invited to submit comments on any 

aspect of the proposed rule. Comments 

should be submitted in accordance with 

the instructions in the ADDRESSES

section at the beginning of this notice. 

G. Effective Date 

The Administrative Procedure Act 

(‘‘APA’’) generally requires that the 

effective date of a rule be at least 30 

days after publication of the final rule. 

Id. 553(d). To allow time for bath seats 

to come into compliance, the 

Commission proposes that the standard 

would become effective six months after 

publication of a final rule. 

H. Regulatory Flexibility Act 

The Regulatory Flexibility Act 

(‘‘RFA’’) generally requires that agencies 

review proposed rules for their potential 

economic impact on small entities, 


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45722 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 170 / Thursday, September 3, 2009 / Proposed Rules 

including small businesses. 5 U.S.C. 

603. 

Four firms currently market infant 

bath seats in the United States: A large 

domestic manufacturer, a small foreign 

manufacturer, a small domestic 

manufacturer, and a small domestic 

importer. All of these companies’ bath 

seats are expected to require 

modifications to meet the proposed 

standard. 

Modifying existing bath seats to meet 

the proposed standard would result in 

one-time product development costs 

and possible increased costs of 

production that could amount to 

approximately $5 to $10 per bath seat. 

A price increase associated with these 

modifications will likely reduce the 

quantity of bath seats demanded and 

hence unit sales. Alternatively, it is 

possible that manufacturers may not be 

able to (or may choose not to) produce 

a commercially viable bath seat that 

meets the proposed standard. For the 

small domestic manufacturer, the 

impact of discontinuing baby bath seat 

production is unlikely to be large since 

bath seats make up only a small portion 

of its juvenile products. 

Since importers do not manufacture 

bath seats, the effect of the regulation on 

them would be felt indirectly, requiring 

a shift in suppliers rather than the 

design and production of a different 

product. The impact on the small 

domestic importer is expected to be 

small. The small domestic importer 

would most likely respond by 

discontinuing the import of its noncomplying bath seat, either replacing 

the bath seat with a complying product 

or another juvenile product. 

Hence, even if the cost of developing 

a compliant product proves to be a 

barrier for individual small firms, the 

loss of bath seats as a product category 

is expected to be minor and would 

likely be mitigated by increased sales of 

competing products, such as multi-stage 

infant bathtubs, or entirely different 

juvenile products. 

I. Environmental Considerations 

The Commission’s regulations 

provide a categorical exemption for the 

Commission’s rules from any 

requirement to prepare an 

environmental assessment or an 

environmental impact statement as they 

‘‘have little or no potential for affecting 

the human environment.’’ 16 CFR 

1021.5(c)(2). This proposed rule falls 

within the categorical exemption. 

J. Paperwork Reduction Act 

The Commission is not proposing any 

collections of information in this 

rulemaking. Therefore, the Paperwork 

Reduction Act, 44 U.S.C. 3501–3520, 

does not apply. 

List of Subjects in 16 CFR Part 1215 

Consumer protection, Imports, infants 

and children, Labeling, Law 

enforcement, and Toys. 

Therefore, the Commission proposes 

to amend Title 16 of the Code of Federal 

Regulations by adding part 1215 to read 

as follows: 

PART 1215—SAFETY STANDARD FOR 

BATH SEATS 

Sec. 

1215.1 Scope, application and effective 

date. 

1215.2 Requirements for bath seats. 

Authority: The Consumer Product Safety 

Improvement Act of 2008, Pub. L. 110–314, 

104, 122 Stat. 3016 (August 14, 2008). 

§ 1215.1 Scope. 

This part 1215 establishes a consumer 

product safety standard for bath seats 

manufactured or imported on or after 

(date 6 months after date of publication 

of a final rule in the Federal Register). 

§ 1215.2 Requirements for bath seats. 

(a) Except as provided in paragraph 

(b) of this section, each bath seat shall 

comply with all applicable provisions of 

ASTM F 1967–08a, Standard Consumer 

Safety Specification for Infant Bath 

Seats, approved November 1, 2008. 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 

from ASTM International, 100 Bar 

Harbor Drive, P.O. Box 0700, West 

Conshohocken, PA 19428; http:// 

www.astm.org. You may inspect a copy 

at the Office of the Secretary, U.S. 

Consumer Product Safety Commission, 

Room 502, 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) The following provisions replace, 

or are added to, the indicated sections 

of the ASTM F 1967–08a standard. 

(1) Instead of section 3.1.1: ‘‘Bath 

seat, n—an article that is used in a bath 

tub, sink, or similar bathing enclosure 

and that provides support, at a 

minimum, to the front and back of a 

seated infant during bathing by a 

caregiver. This does not include 

products that are designed or intended 

to retain water for bathing.’’ 

(2) Instead of section 6.1: ‘‘Stability— 

For bath seats which provide support 

for an occupant’s back and support for 

the sides or front of the occupant, or 

both, the geometry and construction of 

the product shall not allow for any parts 

of the product to become separated from 

it, shall not sustain permanent damage, 

and shall not allow the product to tip 

over after being tested in accordance 

with 7.4. In addition, if any attachment 

point disengages from (is no longer in 

contact with) the test platform and then 

fails to return to its manufacturer’s 

intended use position after being tested 

in accordance with 7.4, it fails the 

requirement. This test shall be 

conducted after the Mechanisms 

Durability test in 7.1.3. If any time 

during the application of force, the seat 

is no longer in the initial ‘intended use 

position’ and is tilted at an angle of 12 

degrees or more from its initial starting 

position, it shall be considered a 

failure.’’ 

(3) Instead of section 7.4.1.2: ‘‘Prepare 

the test surface as follows:’’ 

(4) Instead of section 7.4.1.4: ‘‘Using 

a spray bottle containing a 1:25 mixture 

of test solution (see table Z) to distilled 

water, immediately before each test run, 

thoroughly saturate all test platform 

surfaces above the water line where the 

product makes contact and where 

contact might be expected.’’ 

(5) Instead of section 7.4.1.5: ‘‘Flood 

the test platform with clear water that is 

at an initial temperature of 100 to 105ß 

F (37.8 to 10.6ß C) and a depth of 2 in. 

(51 mm) above the highest point of the 

occupant seating surface. Install the 

product according to the manufacturer’s 

instructions onto the test platform 

specified in 7.4.3. For the purpose of 

measuring the water level, the product’s 

seating surface can be temporarily 

weighed down to prevent the seat from 

floating.’’ 

(6) Between section 7.4.2.2 and 

section 7.4.2.3: ‘‘Rigidly install an 

inclinometer to the test bar above the 

location where force is to be applied. 

The weight of the inclinometer and the 

fastening method shall be less than or 

equal to 2.2 pounds. The inclinometer 

shall have a measurement tolerance of 

less than or equal to 0.5 degrees. 

Measure and record the pre-test angle of 

the test bar.’’ 

(7) Between section 7.4.2.3 and 

section 7.4.2.4: ‘‘Measure and record the 

maximum angle of the test bar during 

the application of the 17.0 lbf load. 

Calculate the absolute value of the 

Change in Angle in degrees. Change in 

Angle = (Angle measured during test)— 

(Angle measured pre-test).’’ 

(8) Instead of section 7.7.1: ‘‘With the 

bath seat in each of the manufacturer’s 

recommended use position(s), insert the 

tapered end of the Bath Seat Torso 


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Probe (see Fig. 4a) in all orientations 

into each opening. The probe should be 

inserted from the direction of the 

occupant seating surface. Gradually 

apply a force of 15 lbf (67 N) in the 

direction of the major axis of the probe 

within a period of 5s. Maintain this 

force for an additional 10s (see Fig. 5).’’ 

(9) Instead of section 7.7.2: ‘‘With the 

bath seat in each of the manufacturer’s 

recommended use position(s), insert the 

tapered end of the Bath Seat Shoulder 

Probe (see Fig. 6) in all orientations into 

each opening. The probe should be 

inserted from the direction of the 

occupant seating surface. Gradually 

apply a force of 15 lbf (67 N) in the 

direction of the major axis of the probe 

within a period of 5s. Maintain this 

force for an additional 10s (see Fig. 7). 

Release and apply a force of 10 lbf (44 

N) to the top 1.0-in. (25-mm) perimeter 

of the probe in a direction vertically 

downward toward the seating surface 

over a period of 5s. Maintain this force 

for an additional 10s (see Fig. 8).’’ 

(10) Instead of Figure 4: 

Dated: August 25, 2009. 

Todd Stevenson, 

Secretary, U.S. Consumer Product Safety 

Commission. 

[FR Doc. E9–20948 Filed 9–2–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6355–01–P 

CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY 

COMMISSION 

16 CFR Part 1500 

Infant Bath Seats: Termination of 

Rulemaking 

AGENCY: Consumer Product Safety 

Commission. 

ACTION: Termination of rulemaking. 

SUMMARY: In the Federal Register of 

December 29, 2003 (68 FR 74878), the 

Consumer Product Safety Commission 

(‘‘Commission’’) published a notice of 

proposed rulemaking under the Federal 

Hazardous Substances Act (‘‘FHSA’’) to 

reduce the unreasonable risk of injury 

associated with bath seats. On August 

14, 2008, the Consumer Product Safety 

Improvement Act of 2008 (‘‘CPSIA’’) 

was enacted. Section 104(b) of the 

CPSIA requires the Commission to 

promulgate consumer product safety 

standards for durable infant or toddler 

products, which are to be ‘‘substantially 

the same as’’ applicable voluntary 

standards (or more stringent 

requirements if they would further 

reduce the risk of injury associated with 

the product). Elsewhere in this issue of 

the Federal Register, the Commission is 

proposing a safety standard for infant 

bath seats in response to section 104(b) 

of the CPSIA. The rulemaking initiated 

under the FHSA is superseded by 

section 104(b) of the CPSIA. 

Accordingly, the Commission has 

terminated the infant bath seat 

rulemaking initiated under the FHSA. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Patricia Edwards, Project Manager, 

Directorate for Engineering Sciences, 

Consumer Product Safety Commission, 

4330 East West Highway, Bethesda, MD 

20814; telephone (301) 504–7577; 

pedwards@cpsc.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

A. The Product 

Infant bath seats are used in a tub or 

sink to support a seated infant while he 

or she is being bathed. They are 

marketed for use with infants from the 

time they can sit up unassisted (about 

5 months) to the time they begin pulling 

themselves up to a standing position 

(about 10 months). 

B. Rulemaking Pursuant to the Federal 

Hazardous Substances Act (FHSA) 

In response to a petition from the 

Consumer Federation of America and 

others in 2000, in the Federal Register 


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