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CPSC Releases Revised Draft Age Appropriate Guidelines for Consumer Products

By Sheila Millar on Posted in Product Safety, Regulations
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) announced potential changes to its 2002 Age Determination Guidelines Relating Children’s Ages to Toy Characteristics and Play Behavior (2002 Guidelines). The new draft guidance, titled Guidelines for Determining Age Appropriateness of Toys (Draft 2018 Guidelines), “addresses toys that have come onto the market since the last update and… Continue Reading

CPSC Nominations Update

By Sheila Millar on Posted in Product Safety, Regulations
President Trump resubmitted the nominations of Ann Marie Buerkle as chair and a second term as commissioner, and Dana Baiocco as commissioner (replacing Marietta Robinson (D)) of the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). The Senate received the nominations on January 8, 2018. On December 21, 2017, the United States Senate returned some 120 nominations to… Continue Reading

Trump Administration Sets Stage for Republican Majority at CPSC

By Sheila Millar and JC Walker on Posted in Product Safety, Regulations
Having previously nominated Acting Chairman Ann Marie Buerkle to serve as the permanent chair, and with Senate Commerce Committee hearings held on her confirmation on September 27, 2017, President Trump has nominated lawyer Dana Baiocco to serve a commissioner on the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). Baiocco would serve for a standard 7-year term… Continue Reading

FTC Streamlines its Fur, Textile and Wool Labeling Filing Process

By Sheila Millar on Posted in Labeling, Regulations
Continuing Acting Chair Maureen K. Ohlhausen’s regulatory reform agenda, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has updated its website at  RN.FTC.GOV to allow real-time electronic filings of requests to obtain, update, or cancel registered identification numbers (RN) under the Fur, Textile and Wool Labeling Rules. The new web-based process is intended to streamline applications from businesses… Continue Reading

First FTC Complaint Against Social Media Influencers Settles

By Sheila Millar and Tracy Marshall on Posted in Regulations
When two celebrity gamers endorsed an online lotto service, they didn’t gamble on the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) insistence they tell their fans they actually owned the business they were promoting. Now, Trevor Martin and Thomas Cassell, and their company, CSGO Lotto, Inc., have settled charges of deceptive advertising. This is the first case the… Continue Reading

Regulatory Reforms Afoot at the FTC: Now’s Your Chance to Weigh in

By Sheila Millar and Tracy Marshall on Posted in Regulations
As part of Acting Chair Maureen K. Ohlhausen’s regulatory reform initiative, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is asking for the public’s input on the Picture Tube, Textile, Energy Labeling, and CAN-SPAM Rules. The comments will inform the Commission’s decision on whether to update these rules. The Textile Rule obliges marketers of textiles to label their goods properly… Continue Reading

CPSC Staff Recommends Rejecting Organohalogen Petition

By Sheila Millar on Posted in Product Safety, Regulations
In 2015, a group of non-government organizations (NGOs) filed a petition with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), asking CPSC to categorically ban additive organohalogen flame retardants (OFRs) from the market in the U.S. in many significant consumer product categories. OFRs include a very broad set of diverse chemical compounds added to consumer products to… Continue Reading

Elliot Kaye Steps Down as CPSC Chair

By Sheila Millar on Posted in Regulations
In line with the chairs of other U.S. government agencies and commissions, U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) Chairman Elliot F. Kaye has resigned his seat as chairman, according to internal sources. Pursuant to the commissioners’ unanimous vote on January 19, 2017, Vice Chair Ann Marie Buerkle assumes the role of Acting Chair until a permanent… Continue Reading

Best Buy Agrees to Pay $3.8 Million for Selling Recalled Products

By Sheila Millar and JC Walker on Posted in Product Safety, Regulations
Mega-retailer Best Buy agreed to pay $3.8 million to settle allegations that the company distributed and sold recalled products, a violation of the Consumer Product Safety Act (CPSA) after the 2008 amendments. U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) staff alleged that the retailer sold more than 600 recalled units, including over 400 Canon cameras, to… Continue Reading

State Data Breach Notification Laws – Overview of Requirements for Responding to a Data Breach (Updated June 2016)

By Sheila Millar and Tracy Marshall on Posted in Data Security, Privacy, Regulations
We have updated our summary of state data breach notification laws in light of recent amendments to some of the laws since our last update in September 2015. Notably, Tennessee amended its data breach notification law, the Identity Theft Deterrence Act, effective July 1, 2016, by eliminating an encryption safe harbor and requiring that affected… Continue Reading

GDPR Publication Starts Countdown to May 2018 Compliance Date for New Privacy Rules

By Sheila Millar and Tracy Marshall on Posted in Legislation, Privacy, Regulations
The new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) (Regulation 2016/69, Apr. 27, 2016), approved by the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union, was formally published in the Official Journal of the European Union on May 4, 2016, and will replace the Data Protection Directive (Directive 95/46/EC) effective May 28, 2018. This new set… Continue Reading

California Adds Styrene to Proposition 65 List; Proposes NSRL

By Peter L. de la Cruz, Sheila Millar and Martha Marrapese on Posted in Product Safety, Regulations, Uncategorized
On April 22, 2016, California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) added styrene to the Proposition 65 list of carcinogens. OEHHA maintains a list of chemicals required under Proposition 65 (formally, the California Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act) that are “known to the state” to be reproductive toxicants or carcinogens based on… Continue Reading

FCC Adopts Broadband Privacy NPRM

By Sheila Millar and Tracy Marshall on Posted in Privacy, Regulations
At its Open Meeting yesterday, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) adopted a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) that would apply the privacy protections in Section 222 of the Communications Act to broadband Internet Service Providers (ISPs). The text of the NPRM, which reportedly seeks public comment on more than 500 questions relating to privacy and… Continue Reading

The FCC Continues Privacy Push with Draft Proposal Regulating ISP Customers’ Data

By Sheila Millar and Tracy Marshall on Posted in Data Security, Privacy, Regulations
On the heels of the Open Internet Order adopted by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) last year, FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler has circulated a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to fellow Commissioners that would apply the privacy protections of the Communications Act to broadband Internet access services. Wheeler’s proposal will be voted on at the… Continue Reading

FCC Settles Probe into Verizon’s Use of “Supercookies”

By Sheila Millar and Tracy Marshall on Posted in Privacy, Regulations
On March 7, 2016, the Enforcement Bureau of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) entered into a Consent Decree with Verizon Wireless relating to the company’s use of Unique Identifier Headers (UIDH) for targeted advertising purposes.  UIDH are commonly referred to as “supercookies” because they cannot be deleted.  This concludes the FCC’s investigation into whether Verizon… Continue Reading

Supreme Court Refuses to Moot TCPA Class Action, Leaving Business Open to More Suits

By Sheila Millar and Tracy Marshall on Posted in Advertising, Litigation, Regulations
The Supreme Court yesterday denied an attempt by a defendant to moot a class action under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), 48 Stat. 1064, Pub. L. 102–243 (Dec. 20, 1991) (codified at 47 U.S.C. § 227), on the basis of an unaccepted settlement offer to the named plaintiff. The case, Campbell-Ewald Co. v. Gomez,… Continue Reading

Vermont Chemical Reporting Rule Moves Forward, but with Delay

By Sheila Millar on Posted in Product Safety, Regulations
The Vermont Department of Health won approval for its new, burdensome children’s product green chemistry reporting program from the state’s Legislative Committee on Administrative Rules on November 19, 2015. The final version of the Toxic Substances in Children’s Products Rule took effect on December 10, 2015, and follows from the state’s 2014 green chemistry bill,… Continue Reading

Vermont Department Issues Final Proposal on Children’s Product Chemical Disclosure

By Sheila Millar on Posted in Product Safety, Regulations
The Vermont Department of Health has released the final proposed version of its Toxic Substances in Children’s Products Rule (although it is not yet available on the Department’s website) adopted under state’s 2014 green chemistry law, Act 188. The rule, largely unchanged from the proposal, is now scheduled to go before the state’s Legislative Committee… Continue Reading

FTC Issues Antitrust Enforcement Policy Statement

By Sheila Millar and Peter L. de la Cruz on Posted in Antitrust, Regulations
In a 4–1 vote, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has issued its long-awaited Statement of Enforcement Principles outlining the Commission’s approach to “unfair methods of competition” prohibited by Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act (FTCA) but not necessarily by the Sherman or Clayton Act. The statement is brief, and those awaiting the type… Continue Reading

Tips for Writing Social Media Policies

By Sheila Millar and Tracy Marshall on Posted in Advertising, Data Security, Privacy, Regulations, Sweepstakes & Promotions
As many marketers spend a large and growing share of the ad spend on social media, basic principles of truthful advertising must be kept in mind and applied in the new and varied media.  After all, the platforms may change, but the underlying requirements do not.  Thus, for responsible marketers, a robust social media policy… Continue Reading

FTC Brings First Action Against Retail Tracking Company

By Sheila Millar and Tracy Marshall on Posted in Privacy, Regulations
On April 23, 2015, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced that retail tracking company Nomi Technologies has agreed to settle FTC charges that it misled consumers. The FTC alleged that the company, which develops technology to allow retailers to track consumers’ movements through their stores, misled consumers by failing to uphold promises to provide a mechanism… Continue Reading
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