Portable Fuel Container Safety Act of 2019

To require compliant flame mitigation devices to be used on portable fuel containers for flammable liquid fuels, and for other purposes. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Portable Fuel Container Safety Act of 2019 2. Performance standards to protect against portable fuel container explosions near open flames or other ignition sources (a) Rule on safety performance standards required Not later than 30 months after the date of enactment of this section, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (referred to in this Act as the Commission (b) Rulemaking; consumer product safety standard A rule under subsection (a)— (1) shall be promulgated in accordance with section 553 of title 5, United States Code; and (2) shall be treated as a consumer product safety rule promulgated under section 9 of the Consumer Product Safety Act ( 15 U.S.C. 2058 (c) Exception (1) Voluntary standard Subsection (a) shall not apply if the Commission determines that— (A) there is a voluntary standard for flame mitigation devices in portable fuel containers that impedes the propagation of flame into the container, or a combination of more than one voluntary standard which taken together serve such purpose for the full scope of this Act; (B) the voluntary standard or combination of voluntary standards described in subparagraph (A) is or will be in effect not later than 18 months after the date of enactment of this Act; and (C) the voluntary standard or combination of voluntary standards described in subparagraph (A) is developed by ASTM International or such other standard development organization that the Commission determines to have met the intent of this Act. (2) Determination required to be published in the Federal Register Any determination made by the Commission under this subsection shall be published in the Federal Register. (d) Treatment of voluntary standard for purpose of enforcement If the Commission determines that a voluntary standard meets the conditions described in subsection (c), the requirements of such voluntary standard shall be treated as a consumer product safety rule promulgated under section 9 of the Consumer Product Safety Act ( 15 U.S.C. 2058 (1) 180 days after publication of the Commission’s determination under subsection (c); or (2) the effective date contained in the voluntary standard. (e) Revision of voluntary standard (1) Notice to Commission If the requirements of a voluntary standard that meet the conditions of subsection (c) are subsequently revised, the organization that revised the standard shall notify the Commission after the final approval of the revision. (2) Effective date of revision Not later than 180 days after the Commission is notified of a revised voluntary standard described in paragraph (1) (or such later date as the Commission determines appropriate), such revised voluntary standard shall become enforceable as a consumer product safety rule promulgated under section 9 of the Consumer Product Safety Act ( 15 U.S.C. 2058 (f) Future rulemaking The Commission, at any time after publication of the consumer product safety rule required by subsection (a), a voluntary standard is treated as a consumer product safety rule under subsection (d), or a revision is enforceable as a consumer product safety rule under subsection (e) may initiate a rulemaking in accordance with section 553 of title 5, United States Code, to modify the requirements or to include any additional provision that the Commission determines is reasonably necessary to protect public health or safety. Any rule promulgated under this subsection shall be treated as a consumer product safety rule promulgated under section 9 of the Consumer Product Safety Act ( 15 U.S.C. 2058 (g) Action required (1) Education campaign Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Commission shall undertake a campaign to educate consumers about the dangers associated with using or storing portable fuel containers for flammable liquids near an open flame or any other source of ignition. (2) Summary of actions Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the Commission shall submit to Congress a summary of actions taken by the Commission in such campaign. (h) Portable fuel container defined In this section, the term portable fuel container (1) intended for flammable liquid fuels with a flash point less than 140 degrees Fahrenheit, including gasoline, kerosene, diesel, ethanol, methanol, denatured alcohol, or biofuels; (2) that is a consumer product with a capacity of 5 gallons or less; and (3) that the manufacturer knows or reasonably should know is used by consumers for receiving, transporting, storing, and dispensing flammable liquid fuels. (i) Rule of construction This section may not be interpreted to conflict with the Children’s Gasoline Burn Prevention Act ( Public Law 110–278 3. Children’s Gasoline Burn Prevention Act (a) Amendment Section 2(c) of the Children’s Gasoline Burn Prevention Act ( 15 U.S.C. 2056 Public Law 110–278 for use by consumers and any receptacle for gasoline, kerosene, or diesel fuel, including any spout, cap, and other closure mechanism and component of such receptacle or any retrofit or aftermarket spout or component intended or reasonably anticipated to be for use with such receptacle, produced or distributed for sale to or use by consumers for transport of, or refueling of internal combustion engines with, gasoline, kerosene, or diesel fuel (b) Applicability The amendment made by subsection (a) shall take effect 6 months after the date of enactment of this section.

Summary: Portable Fuel Container Safety Act of 2019 This bill directs the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) to require fuel containers to include devices that impede flames from entering the container. This requirement applies to flammable, liquid fuel containers of fewer than five gallons that are intended for transport. CPSC may either promulgate a rule or adopt an existing standard. Additionally, CPSC must educate consumers about dangers associated with using or storing such containers near an open flame or a source of ignition. The bill also requires child resistant caps on kerosene and diesel fuel containers. Currently, this only applies to gasoline containers.