Reese's Law
Bill: H.R.5313 | Sponsor: Rep. Kelly, Robin L. (D-IL)
Policy area: Commerce

Summary:
Reese's Law
This act requires the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) to establish a product safety standard with respect to batteries that pose an ingestion hazard (i.e., button cell or coin batteries) and consumer products containing the batteries.
Specifically, the batteries and consumer products with these batteries must include a warning label that clearly identifies the hazard of ingestion and instructs consumers to keep the batteries out of the reach of children, seek immediate medical attention if a battery is ingested, and follow any other consensus medical advice. Consumer products containing the batteries must also include a battery compartment that eliminates or adequately reduces the risk of injury from battery ingestion by children who are six years of age or younger.
Additionally, such batteries, if sold separately or included separately with a product, must comply with federal child-resistant packaging regulations.
The act exempts from these requirements (1) toy products that are in compliance with certain existing battery accessibility and labeling requirements, and (2) batteries that are in compliance with the marking and packaging provisions of the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) Safety Standard for Portable Lithium Primary Cells and Batteries.
The act also provides for compliance with the requirements by relying on a voluntary standard that is approved by the CPSC before it establishes the standard required by this act.

[117th Congress Public Law 171]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



[[Page 2093]]

                               REESE'S LAW

[[Page 136 STAT. 2094]]

Public Law 117-171
117th Congress

                                 An Act


 
To protect children and other consumers against hazards associated with 
 the accidental ingestion of button cell or coin batteries by requiring 
the Consumer Product Safety Commission to promulgate a consumer product 
safety standard to require child-resistant closures on consumer products 
   that use such batteries, and for other purposes. <<NOTE: Aug. 16, 
                         2022 -  [H.R. 5313]>> 

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled, <<NOTE: Reese's Law.>> 
SECTION 1. <<NOTE: 15 USC 2051 note.>>  SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as ``Reese's Law''.
SEC. 2. <<NOTE: 15 USC 2056e.>>  CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY STANDARD 
                    FOR BUTTON CELL OR COIN BATTERIES AND CONSUMER 
                    PRODUCTS CONTAINING SUCH BATTERIES.

    (a) <<NOTE: Deadline.>>  In General.--Not later than 1 year after 
the date of the enactment of this Act, the Commission shall, in 
accordance with section 553 of title 5, United States Code, promulgate a 
final consumer product safety standard for button cell or coin batteries 
and consumer products containing button cell or coin batteries that 
shall only contain--
            (1) a performance standard requiring the button cell or coin 
        battery compartments of a consumer product containing button 
        cell or coin batteries to be secured in a manner that would 
        eliminate or adequately reduce the risk of injury from button or 
        coin cell battery ingestion by children that are 6 years of age 
        or younger during reasonably foreseeable use or misuse 
        conditions; and
            (2) <<NOTE: Labeling. Requirements.>>  warning label 
        requirements--
                    (A) to be included on the packaging of button cell 
                or coin batteries and the packaging of a consumer 
                product containing button cell or coin batteries;
                    (B) to be included in any literature, such as a user 
                manual, that accompanies a consumer product containing 
                button cell or coin batteries; and
                    (C) to be included, as practicable--
                          (i) directly on a consumer product containing 
                      button cell or coin batteries in a manner that is 
                      visible to the consumer upon installation or 
                      replacement of the button cell or coin battery; or
                          (ii) in the case of a product for which the 
                      battery is not intended to be replaced or 
                      installed by the consumer, to be included directly 
                      on the consumer product in a manner that is 
                      visible to the consumer upon access to the battery 
                      compartment, except that if it

[[Page 136 STAT. 2095]]

                      is impracticable to label the product, this 
                      information shall be placed on the packaging or 
                      instructions.

    (b) Requirements for Warning Labels.--Warning labels required under 
subsection (a)(2) shall--
            (1) clearly identify the hazard of ingestion; and
            (2) instruct consumers, as practicable, to keep new and used 
        batteries out of the reach of children, to seek immediate 
        medical attention if a battery is ingested, and to follow any 
        other consensus medical advice.

    (c) Treatment of Standard for Enforcement Purposes.--A consumer 
product safety standard promulgated under subsection (a) shall be 
treated as a consumer product safety rule promulgated under section 9 of 
the Consumer Product Safety Act (15 U.S.C. 2058).
    (d) Exception for Reliance on Voluntary Standard.--
            (1) Before promulgation of standard by commission.--
        Subsection (a) <<NOTE: Determination.>>  shall not apply if the 
        Commission determines, before the Commission promulgates a final 
        consumer product safety standard under such subsection, that--
                    (A) with respect to any consumer product for which 
                there is a voluntary consumer product safety standard 
                that meets the requirements for a standard promulgated 
                under subsection (a) with respect to such product; and
                    (B) the voluntary standard described in subparagraph 
                (A)--
                          (i) is in effect at the time of the 
                      determination by the Commission; or
                          (ii) <<NOTE: Deadline.>>  will be in effect 
                      not later than the date that is 180 days after the 
                      date of the enactment of this Act.
            (2) Determination required to be published in federal 
        register.--Any determination made by the Commission under this 
        subsection shall be published in the Federal Register.

    (e) Treatment of Voluntary Standard for Enforcement Purposes.--
            (1) In general.--If the Commission makes a determination 
        under subsection (d) with respect to a voluntary standard, 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) beginning on the 
        date described in paragraph (2).
            (2) Date described.--The date described in this paragraph is 
        the later of--
                    (A) the date of the determination of the Commission 
                under subsection (d) with respect to the voluntary 
                standard described in paragraph (1); or
                    (B) the effective date contained in the voluntary 
                standard described in paragraph (1).

    (f) Revision of Voluntary Standard.--
            (1) Notice to commission.--If a voluntary standard with 
        respect to which the Commission has made a determination under 
        subsection (d) is subsequently revised, the organization that 
        revised the standard shall notify the Commission after the final 
        approval of the revision.
            (2) <<NOTE: Deadline. Notification. Determination.>>  
        Effective date of revision.--Beginning on the date that is 180 
        days after the Commission is notified of a revised voluntary 
        standard described in paragraph (1) (or such later

[[Page 136 STAT. 2096]]

        date as the Commission determines appropriate), such revised 
        voluntary standard in whole or in part shall be considered to be 
        a consumer product safety rule promulgated under section 9 of 
        the Consumer Product Safety Act (15 U.S.C. 2058), in place of 
        the prior version, unless, within 90 days after receiving the 
        notice, the Commission notifies the organization that the 
        revised voluntary standard, in whole or in part, does not 
        improve the safety of the consumer product covered by the 
        standard and that the Commission is retaining all or part of the 
        existing consumer product safety standard.

    (g) Future Rulemaking.--At any time after the promulgation of a 
final consumer product safety standard under subsection (a), a voluntary 
standard is treated as a consumer product safety rule under subsection 
(e), or a revised voluntary standard becomes enforceable as a consumer 
product safety rule under subsection (f), the Commission may initiate a 
rulemaking in accordance with section 553 of title 5, United States 
Code, to modify the requirements of the standard or revised standard. 
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).
SEC. 3. <<NOTE: 15 USC 2056e note.>>  CHILD-RESISTANT PACKAGING 
                    FOR BUTTON CELL OR COIN BATTERIES.

    (a) <<NOTE: Deadline. Determination.>>  Requirement.--Not later than 
180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, any button cell or 
coin battery sold, offered for sale, manufactured for sale, distributed 
in commerce, or imported into the United States, or included separately 
with a consumer product sold, offered for sale, manufactured for sale, 
distributed in commerce, or imported into the United States, shall be 
packaged in accordance with the standards provided in section 1700.15 of 
title 16, Code of Federal Regulations (or any successor regulation), as 
determined through testing in accordance with the method described in 
section 1700.20 of title 16, Code of Federal Regulations (or any 
successor regulation), or another test method for button cell or coin 
battery packaging specified, by rule, by the Commission.

    (b) Applicability.--The requirement of subsection (a) shall be 
treated as a standard for the special packaging of a household substance 
established under section 3(a) of the Poison Prevention Packaging Act of 
1970 (15 U.S.C. 1472(a)).
SEC. 4. <<NOTE: 15 USC 2056e note.>>  EXEMPTION FOR COMPLIANCE 
                    WITH EXISTING STANDARD.

    The standards promulgated under this Act shall not apply with 
respect to any toy product that is in compliance with the battery 
accessibility and labeling requirements of part 1250 of title 16, Code 
of Federal Regulations, and in reference to section 3(a), shall not 
apply with respect to button cell or coin batteries that are in 
compliance with the marking and packaging provisions of the ANSI Safety 
Standard for Portable Lithium Primary Cells and Batteries (ANSI C18.3M).
SEC. 5. <<NOTE: 15 USC 2056e note.>>  DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Button cell or coin battery.--The term ``button cell or 
        coin battery'' means--
                    (A) a single cell battery with a diameter greater 
                than the height of the battery; or

[[Page 136 STAT. 2097]]

                    (B) <<NOTE: Determination.>>  any other battery, 
                regardless of the technology used to produce an 
                electrical charge, that is determined by the Commission 
                to pose an ingestion hazard.
            (2) Commission.--The term ``Commission'' means the Consumer 
        Product Safety Commission.
            (3) Consumer product.--The term ``consumer product'' has the 
        meaning given such term in section 3(a) of the Consumer Product 
        Safety Act (15 U.S.C. 2052(a)).
            (4) Consumer product containing button cell or coin 
        batteries.--The term ``consumer product containing button cell 
        or coin batteries'' means a consumer product containing or 
        designed to use one or more button cell or coin batteries, 
        regardless of whether such batteries are intended to be replaced 
        by the consumer or are included with the product or sold 
        separately.
            (5) Toy product.--The term ``toy product'' means any object 
        designed, manufactured, or marketed as a plaything for children 
        under 14 years of age.
SEC. 6. <<NOTE: 15 USC 2056e note. Applicability.>>  EFFECTIVE 
                    DATE.

    The standard promulgated under section 2(a) and the requirements of 
section 3(a) shall only apply to a product that is manufactured or 
imported after the effective date of such standard or requirement.

    Approved August 16, 2022.

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY--H.R. 5313:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

HOUSE REPORTS: No. 117-440 (Comm. on Energy and Commerce).
CONGRESSIONAL RECORD, Vol. 168 (2022):
            July 26, considered in House.
            July 27, prior proceedings vacated; considered and passed 
                House.
            Aug. 2, considered and passed Senate.

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