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U.S. Code as of:
01/19/04
Section 1261. Definitions
For the purposes of this chapter -
(a) The term "territory" means any territory or possession of the
United States, including the District of Columbia and the
Commonwealth of Puerto Rico but excluding the Canal Zone.
(b) The term "interstate commerce" means (1) commerce between any
State or territory and any place outside thereof, and (2) commerce
within the District of Columbia or within any territory not
organized with a legislative body.
(c) Omitted
(d) The term "Commission" means the Consumer Product Safety
Commission.
(e) The term "person" includes an individual, partnership,
corporation, and association.
(f) The term "hazardous substance" means:
(1)(A) Any substance or mixture of substances which (i) is
toxic, (ii) is corrosive, (iii) is an irritant, (iv) is a strong
sensitizer, (v) is flammable or combustible, or (vi) generates
pressure through decomposition, heat, or other means, if such
substances or mixture of substances may cause substantial
personal injury or substantial illness during or as a proximate
result of any customary or reasonably foreseeable handling or
use, including reasonably foreseeable ingestion by children.
(B) Any substances which the Commission by regulation finds,
pursuant to the provisions of section 1262(a) of this title, meet
the requirements of subparagraph (1)(A) of this paragraph.
(C) Any radioactive substance, if, with respect to such
substance as used in a particular class of article or as
packaged, the Commission determines by regulation that the
substance is sufficiently hazardous to require labeling in
accordance with this chapter in order to protect the public
health.
(D) Any toy or other article intended for use by children which
the Commission by regulation determines, in accordance with
section 1262(e) of this title, presents an electrical,
mechanical, or thermal hazard.
(E) Any solder which has a lead content in excess of 0.2
percent.
(2) The term "hazardous substance" shall not apply to
pesticides subject to the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and
Rodenticide Act [7 U.S.C. 136 et seq.], nor to foods, drugs and
cosmetics subject to the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act [21
U.S.C. 301 et seq.], nor to substances intended for use as fuels
when stored in containers and used in the heating, cooking, or
refrigeration system of a house, nor to tobacco and tobacco
products, but such term shall apply to any article which is not
itself a pesticide within the meaning of the Federal Insecticide,
Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act but which is a hazardous substance
within the meaning of paragraph (1) of this subsection by reason
of bearing or containing such a pesticide.
(3) The term "hazardous substance" shall not include any source
material, special nuclear material, or byproduct material as
defined in the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended [42 U.S.C.
2011 et seq.], and regulations issued pursuant thereto by the
Atomic Energy Commission.
(g) The term "toxic" shall apply to any substance (other than a
radioactive substance) which has the capacity to produce personal
injury or illness to man through ingestion, inhalation, or
absorption through any body surface.
(h)(1) The term "highly toxic" means any substance which falls
within any of the following categories: (a) Produces death within
fourteen days in half or more than half of a group of ten or more
laboratory white rats each weighing between two hundred and three
hundred grams, at a single dose of fifty milligrams or less per
kilogram of body weight, when orally administered; or (b) produces
death within fourteen days in half or more than half of a group of
ten or more laboratory white rats each weighing between two hundred
and three hundred grams, when inhaled continuously for a period of
one hour or less at an atmospheric concentration of two hundred
parts per million by volume or less of gas or vapor or two
milligrams per liter by volume or less of mist or dust, provided
such concentration is likely to be encountered by man when the
substance is used in any reasonably foreseeable manner; or (c)
produces death within fourteen days in half or more than half of a
group of ten or more rabbits tested in a dosage of two hundred
milligrams or less per kilogram of body weight, when administered
by continuous contact with the bare skin for twenty-four hours or
less.
(2) If the Commission finds that available data on human
experience with any substance indicate results different from those
obtained on animals in the above-named dosages or concentrations,
the human data shall take precedence.
(i) The term "corrosive" means any substance which in contact
with living tissue will cause destruction of tissue by chemical
action; but shall not refer to action on inanimate surfaces.
(j) The term "irritant" means any substance not corrosive within
the meaning of subparagraph (i) of this section which on immediate,
prolonged, or repeated contact with normal living tissue will
induce a local inflammatory reaction.
(k) The term "strong sensitizer" means a substance which will
cause on normal living tissue through an allergic or photodynamic
process a hypersensitivity which becomes evident on reapplication
of the same substance and which is designated as such by the
Commission. Before designating any substance as a strong
sensitizer, the Commission, upon consideration of the frequency of
occurrence and severity of the reaction, shall find that the
substance has a significant potential for causing hypersensitivity.
(l)(1) The terms "extremely flammable", "flammable", and
"combustible" as applied to any substance, liquid, solid, or the
content of a self-pressurized container shall be defined by
regulations issued by the Commission.
(2) The test methods found by the Commission to be generally
applicable for defining the flammability or combustibility
characteristics of any such substance shall also be specified in
such regulations.
(3) In establishing definitions and test methods related to
flammability and combustibility, the Commission shall consider the
existing definitions and test methods of other Federal agencies
involved in the regulation of flammable and combustible substances
in storage, transportation and use; and to the extent possible,
shall establish compatible definitions and test methods.
(4) Until such time as the Commission issues a regulation under
paragraph (1) defining the term "combustible" as applied to
liquids, such term shall apply to any liquid which has a flash
point above eighty degrees Fahrenheit to and including one hundred
and fifty degrees, as determined by the Tagliabue Open Cup Tester.
(m) The term "radioactive substance" means a substance which
emits ionizing radiation.
(n) The term "label" means a display of written, printed, or
graphic matter upon the immediate container of any substance or, in
the case of an article which is unpackaged or is not packaged in an
immediate container intended or suitable for delivery to the
ultimate consumer, a display of such matter directly upon the
article involved or upon a tag or other suitable material affixed
thereto; and a requirement made by or under authority of this
chapter that any word, statement, or other information appear on
the label shall not be considered to be complied with unless such
word, statement, or other information also appears (1) on the
outside container or wrapper, if any there be, unless it is easily
legible through the outside container or wrapper and (2) on all
accompanying literature where there are directions for use, written
or otherwise.
(o) The term "immediate container" does not include package
liners.
(p) The term "misbranded hazardous substance" means a hazardous
substance (including a toy, or other article intended for use by
children, which is a hazardous substance, or which bears or
contains a hazardous substance in such manner as to be susceptible
of access by a child to whom such toy or other article is
entrusted) intended, or packaged in a form suitable, for use in the
household or by children, if the packaging or labeling of such
substance is in violation of an applicable regulation issued
pursuant to section 1472 or 1473 of this title or if such
substance, except as otherwise provided by or pursuant to section
1262 of this title, fails to bear a label -
(1) which states conspicuously (A) the name and place of
business of the manufacturer, packer, distributor or seller; (B)
the common or usual name or the chemical name (if there be no
common or usual name) of the hazardous substance or of each
component which contributes substantially to its hazard, unless
the Commission by regulation permits or requires the use of a
recognized generic name; (C) the signal word "DANGER" on
substances which are extremely flammable, corrosive, or highly
toxic; (D) the signal word "WARNING" or "CAUTION" on all other
hazardous substances; (E) an affirmative statement of the
principal hazard or hazards, such as "Flammable", "Combustible",
"Vapor Harmful", "Causes Burns", "Absorbed Through Skin", or
similar wording descriptive of the hazard; (F) precautionary
measures describing the action to be followed or avoided, except
when modified by regulation of the Commission pursuant to section
1262 of this title; (G) instruction, when necessary or
appropriate, for first-aid treatment; (H) the word "poison" for
any hazardous substance which is defined as "highly toxic" by
subsection (h) of this section; (I) instructions for handling and
storage of packages which require special care in handling or
storage; and (J) the statement (i) "Keep out of the reach of
children" or its practical equivalent, or, (ii) if the article is
intended for use by children and is not a banned hazardous
substance, adequate directions for the protection of children
from the hazard, and
(2) on which any statements required under subparagraph (1) of
this paragraph are located prominently and are in the English
language in conspicuous and legible type in contrast by
typography, layout, or color with other printed matter on the
label.
The term "misbranded hazardous substance" also includes a household
substance as defined in section 1471(2)(d) of this title if it is a
substance described in paragraph (1) of subsection (f) of this
section and its packaging or labeling is in violation of an
applicable regulation issued pursuant to section 1472 or 1473 of
this title.
(q)(1) The term "banned hazardous substance" means (A) any toy,
or other article intended for use by children, which is a hazardous
substance, or which bears or contains a hazardous substance in such
manner as to be susceptible of access by a child to whom such toy
or other article is entrusted; or (B) any hazardous substance
intended, or packaged in a form suitable, for use in the household,
which the Commission by regulation classifies as a "banned
hazardous substance" on the basis of a finding that,
notwithstanding such cautionary labeling as is or may be required
under this chapter for that substance, the degree or nature of the
hazard involved in the presence or use of such substance in
households is such that the objective of the protection of the
public health and safety can be adequately served only by keeping
such substance, when so intended or packaged, out of the channels
of interstate commerce: Provided, That the Commission, by
regulation, (i) shall exempt from clause (A) of this paragraph
articles, such as chemical sets, which by reason of their
functional purpose require the inclusion of the hazardous substance
involved or necessarily present an electrical, mechanical, or
thermal hazard, and which bear labeling giving adequate directions
and warnings for safe use and are intended for use by children who
have attained sufficient maturity, and may reasonably be expected,
to read and heed such directions and warnings, and (ii) shall
exempt from clause (A), and provide for the labeling of, common
fireworks (including toy paper caps, cone fountains, cylinder
fountains, whistles without report, and sparklers) to the extent
that it determines that such articles can be adequately labeled to
protect the purchasers and users thereof.
(2) Proceedings for the issuance, amendment, or repeal of
regulations pursuant to clause (B) of paragraph (1) of this
subsection shall be governed by the provisions of sections 371(e),
(f), and (g) of title 21: Provided, That if the Commission finds
that the distribution for household use of the hazardous substance
involved presents an imminent hazard to the public health, it may
by order published in the Federal Register give notice of such
finding, and thereupon such substance when intended or offered for
household use, or when so packaged as to be suitable for such use,
shall be deemed to be a "banned hazardous substance" pending the
completion of proceedings relating to the issuance of such
regulations.
(r) An article may be determined to present an electrical hazard
if, in normal use or when subjected to reasonably foreseeable
damage or abuse, its design or manufacture may cause personal
injury or illness by electric shock.
(s) An article may be determined to present a mechanical hazard
if, in normal use or when subjected to reasonably foreseeable
damage or abuse, its design or manufacture presents an unreasonable
risk of personal injury or illness (1) from fracture,
fragmentation, or disassembly of the article, (2) from propulsion
of the article (or any part or accessory thereof), (3) from points
or other protrusions, surfaces, edges, openings, or closures, (4)
from moving parts, (5) from lack of insufficiency of controls to
reduce or stop motion, (6) as a result of self-adhering
characteristics of the article, (7) because the article (or any
part or accessory thereof) may be aspirated or ingested, (8)
because of instability, or (9) because of any other aspect of the
article's design or manufacture.
(t) An article may be determined to present a thermal hazard if,
in normal use or when subjected to reasonably foreseeable damage or
abuse, its design or manufacture presents an unreasonable risk of
personal injury or illness because of heat as from heated parts,
substances, or surfaces.
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