If any article or substance sold in commerce is defined as a banned hazardous substance (whether or not it was such at the time of its sale) and the Commission determines (after affording interested persons, including consumers and consumer organizations, an opportunity for a hearing) that notification is required to adequately protect the public from such article or substance, the Commission may order the manufacturer or any distributor or dealer of the article or substance to take any one or more of the following actions:
An order under this subsection shall specify the form and content of any notice required to be given under the order.
If any article or substance sold in commerce is defined as a banned hazardous substance (whether or not it was such at the time of its sale) and the Commission determines (after affording interested persons, including consumers and consumer organizations, an opportunity for a hearing) that action under this subsection is in the public interest, the Commission may order the manufacturer, distributor, or dealer to take whichever of the following actions the person to whom the order is directed elects:
whichever first occurs).
An order under this subsection may also require the person to whom it applies to submit a plan, satisfactory to the Commission, for taking the action which such person has elected to take. The Commission shall specify in the order the persons to whom refunds must be made if the person to whom the order is directed elects to take the action described in paragraph (3). If an order under this subsection is directed to more than one person, the Commission shall specify which person has the election under this subsection. An order under this subsection may prohibit the person to whom it applies from manufacturing for sale, offering for sale, distributing in commerce, or importing into the customs territory of the United States (as defined in general note 2 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States), or from doing any combination of such actions, with respect to the article or substance with respect to which the order was issued.
An order under this paragraph shall specify the form and content of any notice required to be given under the order.
An order under this paragraph may also require the person to whom it applies to submit a plan, satisfactory to the Commission, for taking the action which such person has elected to take. The Commission shall specify in the order the person to whom refunds must be made if the person to whom the order is directed elects to take the action described in subparagraph (C). If an order under this paragraph is directed to more than one person, the Commission shall specify which person has the election under this paragraph. An order under this paragraph may prohibit the person to whom it applies from manufacturing for sale, offering for sale, distributing in commerce, or importing into the customs territory of the United States (as defined in general note 2 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States), or from doing any combination of such actions, with respect to the toy or article with respect to which the order was issued.
An order under subsection (a), (b), or (c) may be issued only after an opportunity for a hearing in accordance with section 554 of title 5, except that, if the Commission determines that any person who wishes to participate in such hearing is a part of a class of participants who share an identity of interest, the Commission may limit such person's participation in such hearing to participation through a single representative designated by such class (or by the Commission if such class fails to designate such a representative).
For purposes of this section (1) the term "manufacturer" includes an importer for resale, and (2) a dealer who sells at wholesale an article or substance shall with respect to that sale be considered the distributor of that article or substance.
Nothing in this section shall be construed to require the Commission, in determining that an article or substance distributed in commerce presents a substantial product hazard and that notification or other action under this section should be taken, to prepare a comparison of the costs that would be incurred in providing notification or taking other action under this section with the benefits from such notification or action.
15 U.S.C. § 1274
EDITORIAL NOTES
REFERENCES IN TEXTThe Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States, referred to in subsecs. (b) and (c)(2), is not set out in the Code. See Publication of Harmonized Tariff Schedule note set out under section 1202 of Title 19, Customs Duties.
AMENDMENTS2008-Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 110-314 substituted "Commission may order" for "Consumer Product Safety Commission may order" in introductory provisions. 1990-Subsec. (g). Pub. L. 101-608 added subsec. (g). 1988-Subsecs. (b), (c)(2). Pub. L. 100-418 substituted "general note 2 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States" for "general headnote 2 to the Tariff Schedules of the United States". 1984-Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 98-491, §2(a)(2), added subsec. (c). Former subsec. (c) redesignated (d).Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 98-491, §2(a)(1), redesignated subsec. (c) as (d). Former subsec. (d) redesignated (e). Subsec. (d)(1). Pub. L. 98-491, §2(b), inserted "or (c)" after "subsection (b)".Subsec. (d)(2). Pub. L. 98-491, §2(c), (d), substituted "a toy, article" for "an article", "toy, article" for "article" in two places, and "subsection (a), (b), or (c)" for "subsection (a) or (b)".Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 98-491, §2(a)(2), (d), redesignated subsec. (d) as (e) and substituted "subsection (a), (b), or (c)" for "subsection (a) or (b)". Former subsec. (e) redesignated (f). Subsec. (f). Pub. L. 98-491, §2(a)(1), redesignated subsec. (e) as (f).1983-Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 97-414 added subsec. (e). 1981- Pub. L. 97-35 revised section generally and substituted provisions authorizing the Commission to require the manufacturers, distributors, or dealers as the case may be to notify the public that the article or substance was a banned hazardous one, and to repair, replace or refund the purchase price, when the Commission determines after providing the manufacturer, distributor, or dealer an opportunity for a hearing that banned hazardous substances were sold for provisions requiring the manufacturer, distributor or dealer to repurchase the banned hazardous article or substance.
STATUTORY NOTES AND RELATED SUBSIDIARIES
EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1988 AMENDMENT Amendment by Pub. L. 100-418 effective Jan. 1, 1989, and applicable with respect to articles entered on or after such date, see section 1217(b)(1) of Pub. L. 100-418 set out as an Effective Date note under section 3001 of Title 19, Customs Duties.
EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1981 AMENDMENT Amendment by Pub. L. 97-35 effective Aug. 13, 1981, see section 1215 of Pub. L. 97-35 set out as a note under section 2052 of this title.
EFFECTIVE DATESection effective on sixtieth day following Nov. 6, 1969, see section 5 of Pub. L. 91-113 set out as an Effective Date of 1969 Amendment note under section 1261 of this title.