The United States Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) staff presented at several sessions during the International Consumer Product Health and Safety Organization’s (ICPHSO) annual meeting and training symposium in Orlando, Florida from February 19, 2024 to February 22, 2024, including providing a general agency update and compliance overview. Chair Alexander Hoehn-Saric also presented as a keynote speaker. Over the course of these sessions and particularly during Chair Hoehn-Saric’s keynote, several themes emerged relating to the CPSC’s vision for the future, including budget uncertainty, the agency’s shifting enforcement strategy, and the CPSC’s growing expectations of online marketplaces.

Budget Uncertainty

Chair Hoehn-Saric called the CPSC a “small but mighty agency,” noting that it regulates “over 15,000 categories of consumer products” but has a “far smaller budget than any other federal consumer agency.” He also emphasized that, despite being over four and a half months into FY 2024,[1] Congress has yet to actually appropriate funds. Lacking clarity on its budget, the fear that the final appropriation will be less than last year weighs heavy on the agency and may slow its efforts. Ultimately, Hoehn-Saric said the agency “must do more with less” while continuing to “put consumers first.”

Acknowledgment of a “Shifting Landscape”

Various speakers from the CPSC acknowledged the “shifting landscape” for industry and consumers alike, citing several recent statistics that mark its recent activity:

• The CPSC has focused on finding and stopping import hazards at ports, performing 66,603 import examinations and intercepting 13.7 million violative products.
• The CPSC issued over $52 million in civil penalties during FY 2023. Indeed, since January 1, 2021, the CPSC has settled eleven civil penalty matters for over $100 million.
• In FY 2023, the CPSC announced 373 voluntary recalls, noting a goal of making recalls as simple as possible for consumers to get notice and take action.
• The CPSC issued 26 unilateral warnings to the public—more than the previous five years combined and mostly related to products from foreign manufacturers on online marketplaces after those manufacturers either were not responsive or refused to agree to the CPSC’s terms.
• The CPSC’s ESAFE (Ecommerce, Surveillance, Analysis, Field, and Enforcement) Team removed 59,800 units from ecommerce.

The Onus Is on Online Marketplaces

Chair Hoehn-Saric spent much of his keynote detailing the CPSC’s expectations of online marketplaces as the interest in ecommerce continues to grow. Hoehn-Saric stated this is a critical time for online marketplaces to act as “responsible gatekeepers” and “promote a culture of safety” to hold sellers accountable and empower consumers, calling this “Product Safety By Design.”

Hoehn-Saric stated that product safety “starts at the top but shouldn’t end there,” noting that online marketplaces should have a Chief Product Safety Officer but also involve all employees and encourage participation in solving product safety issues. By way of example, he pointed to manufacturers of online goods disappearing when product safety issues arise, but their listings later reappear under different names in a “game of online whack-a-mole.” In the CPSC’s view, such sellers should be sanctioned, banned, and prevented from reappearing by the online marketplaces where they are listed, stating that those websites have the “tools and resources to make this happen.”

In addition to keeping bad actors off their platforms, Hoehn-Saric said that online marketplaces should ensure that clear warnings are not lost or overlooked online by prominently displaying warnings and instructions of how to safely use products. Further, online marketplaces should do more than simply sending an email to communicate recall notices direct to consumers, suggesting the use of options like text messages, push notifications, and application banners. While Hoehn-Saric acknowledged that the CPSC is “not in a position to mandate many of these practices,” it is hopeful that online marketplaces will take notice.

Whatever Congress ultimately decides on the CPSC’s budget, the message that the agency intends to “do more with less” is very clear. The CPSC is also “heartened” by congressional interest in the agency and its agenda, likely including the recently proposed Consumer Advocacy and Protection Act legislation that seeks to remove the cap on civil penalties that the CPSC can impose. As the agency remains active, industry must stay nimble and informed.

[1] The CPSC’s fiscal year runs from October 1 to September 30.