Yeles, May 29th, 2023

FLAMMABILITY AND PARTY STRINGS

The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is the Federal institution in the USA
that controls consumer products sold in the USA, both created inside the country or
imported from overseas. They work to save lives and keep families safe by reducing
the unreasonable risk of injuries and deaths associated with consumer products. CPSC
does this by:

 Issuing and enforcing mandatory standards or banning consumer products if no

feasible standard would adequately protect the public.
 Obtaining the recall of products and arranging for a repair, replacement or
refund for recalled products.
 Researching potential product hazards.
 Developing voluntary standards with standards organizations, manufacturers
and businesses.
 Informing and educating consumers directly and through traditional, online,
and social media and by working with foreign, state and local governments and
private organizations.
 Educating manufacturers worldwide about our regulations, supply chain
integrity and development of safe products.

CPSC implement this through the Federal Hazardous Substances Act (FHSA) that
requires precautionary labeling on the immediate container of hazardous household
products to help consumers safely store and use those products and to give them
information about immediate first aid steps to take if an accident happens.

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FHSA also allows the Consumer Product Safety Commission to ban certain products
that are so dangerous, or the nature of the hazard is such that the labeling the act
requires is not adequate to protect consumers.

The FHSA is in Title 15 of the United States Code, starting at section 1261. These are
rules that tell you the requirements of the act (prohibited products), how to determine
whether a product requires labeling, and what labeling is required for specific
products,

Specifically, in section 1261:

1261 f,1: USC describes a hazardous substance as any substance or mixture of

substances which is flammable or combustible or generates pressure through
decomposition, heat or other means, if such substance 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.

1261 l, states the test needed to determine a flammable product

1261 q, 1, the US Code (2013) clearly states a banned hazardous substance as toy
intented for use of 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 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 labelling as is or may be required under this chapter
for that substance, the degree or the 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 the interstate commerce.

In part 1263,a, it is described a prohibited act as the introduction or delivery for

introduction into interstate commerce of any misbranded hazardous substance or
banned hazardous substance.

In 1263,c, there is a list of all civil penalties linked to infractions of the rule and 1264
covers criminal responsibilities and penalties.

Because the Commission may add new rules from time to time, we recommend that
you periodically check for new or revised rules in the Code of Federal Regulations. You
can obtain the regulations issued under the Federal Hazardous Substances Act, 16
C.F.R. Part 1500, and any other regulations referenced in this summary from the
Commission’s Web Site at: https://www.cpsc.gov.

 Regarding Party Strings, FHSA requires that these products:

 Are not dangerous for children (no prohibited act)

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  Are correctly labelled. For instance, if they are flammable, the product label
must clearly indicate it.
So, the risk a company may face if Party Strings are flammable is:
1. Producing or purchasing Party Strings that are flammable that are oriented to
be sold and be distributed, being this product prohibited under USC and FHSA.
2. Incorrect labelling: If not correctly labelled (a flammable product where its label
does not include flammability texts and pictograms), this product is not
classified to be sold and must be recalled by CPSC.
In the case, we have now, Crazy String is a flammable product that:
 Is flammable and is considered as hazardous substance and banned when sold
to children (see Code of Federal Regulations from Part 1261; see attachment).
 Is not correctly labelled because it does not have any text warning as
“flammable” or “extremely flammable” and the flame pictogram as seen in the
picture below:

CPSC must recall this product if a report for unsafe product is presented, and the
company may face civil and criminal responsibilities. As said, this product is not
allowed to be sold in the USA for incorrect labelling and flammability nature
(hazardous product, prohibited act under FHSA).
The producer or distributor is held responsible for any harm caused to children or any
other person. This may cause civil and criminal prosecution (FHSA part 1263 and 1264).