House Passes Appropriations Bill That Would Undermine Consumer Protections

The House of Representatives voted along largely party lines earlier this month to approve a Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act (H.R. 5485), which rolls back important consumer protections and undermines the ability of crucial agencies to fulfill their missions of protecting consumers and investors.

In a letter to members of the House Representatives in advance of the vote, CFA urged opposition to the funding bill on the grounds that it would threaten the viability of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and underfund both the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.  The letter urged opposition to provisions that would weaken the Consumer Product Safety Commission’s (CPSC) ability to protect consumers from recreational off-highway vehicles (ROVs) and that would hamper the CPSC’s ability to improve voluntary recalls. The letter also urged opposition to amendments that weakened privacy, and urged support for amendments that ensured FCC jurisdiction over net neutrality and increased funding for the Federal Trade Commission.  The letter urged support for amendments to strip out harmful provisions and strengthen consumer protections, and opposition to anti-consumer amendments and policy riders.

Ultimately, the bill was adopted without significant pro-consumer amendments, triggering a veto threat from the White House. “The Financial Services and General Government (FSGG) Appropriations Act of 2017, H.R. 5485 thwarts critical consumer protections and puts consumers at risk through riders in the text as well as through offered amendments,” said CFA Legislative Director and General Counsel Rachel Weintraub.

 

Senate Bills Seek to Delay Important Menu Labeling Law

Food Safety and health groups sent a letter to members of Congress last month urging them to oppose any further attempts to weaken or delay implementation of the national menu labeling law in the FY2017 Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act (S. 2956) and to oppose the so-called “Common Sense Nutrition Disclosure Act” (S. 2217). The bill has not yet been brought to the floor for a vote.

Opponents of menu labeling have sought to use appropriations riders to further delay and water down the law. “The FY2016 Omnibus Appropriations Act already provided restaurants and other food service establishments an additional year to implement menu labeling, which is now scheduled to go into effect May 5, 2017, over seven years after passage of the law,” the groups stated. “There is no need for further delay.”

1. 2217 would weaken and repeal key parts of national menu labeling policy, including establishment setting arbitrary serving sizes; exempt food establishments from providing calorie information inside their restaurants even if 49 percent of orders are placed from in-store menus or menu boards; deny customers calorie information where they need it most, at the point of decision making; and hamper state and local control by preventing states and localities from petitioning the FDA to permit variations from the federal nutrition labeling approach.

“This legislation would operate to deny Americans the information they need to make informed dietary choices.” said CFA’s Director of Food Policy Thomas Gremillion. “Obstructing common sense consumer protections is not the path to overcoming the obesity epidemic.”

 

 

Safety Advocates Applaud CPSC’s Hoverboard Recall

The US Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) announced a recall last week for over 500,000 self-balancing scooters, better known as hoverboards. The recall was announced after CPSC received reports of at least 99 incidents where the battery packs in the devices overheated, caught fire, or exploded—burning consumers and damaging property.

CPSC worked for many months to determine the safety issues related to hoverboards, alongside consumer advocates who urged the agency to take action. The products have been banned by a number of universities, airlines, and other entities. The recall affects ten companies including eight manufacturers and two retailers.

In response to the recall, Consumer Federation of America released a joint statement with other consumer safety groups, including Kids in Danger, Consumers Union, US PIRG, and National Center for Health Research applauding the CPSC’s decision. “The announcement today clarifies that these half a million hoverboards have a design flaw that puts consumers at risk. Consumers should stop using these products immediately and contact the appropriate company to take advantage of this recall,” wrote the groups. “If your hoverboard is not on the list, you are not necessarily in the clear.  The Chairman of the CPSC recommends that even for those hoverboards not recalled today, consumers should contact the manufacturer or retailer and request a refund.”

Consumers interested in purchasing a hoverboard are encouraged to only buy one which conforms to the UL 2272 standard for battery pack and electrical systems. In the meantime, ASTM International is working on developing a standard to address the fall hazard and other hazards posed by hoverboards. CFA will participate in that process in order to ensure a robust, consumer-protective standard.

 

Off-Highway Vehicle Deaths Increased in First Half of 2016

Off-highway vehicle deaths rose in the first half of 2016, compared with the same period last year, according to data compiled by CFA. With use of these vehicles heightened during summer, CFA issued a consumer alert earlier this month urging caution and safe riding practices on off-highway vehicles (OHVs).

OHVs consist of three main types of vehicles: all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), recreational off-highway vehicles (ROVs), and utility task vehicles (UTVs). As of June 28, 2016, CFA and its OHV safety coalition had documented 249 OHV fatalities, a 10 percent increase over the 226 OHV fatalities identified by that same date in 2015. The ultimate fatality total in 2015 was 506, most of which occurred on roadways. While overall fatalities have increased, child fatalities have decreased by 20 percent since the same time last year. In 2016, thus far, CFA’s coalition has documented the deaths of 42 children aged 15 years or younger; 26 of those 42 child deaths involved children 12 years or younger.

CFA derives its data from news reports, game or natural resource crash investigations, state crash investigations, as well as from data from the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Because of gaps in the data, CFA data is likely an underestimate of actual fatalities.

CFA Legislative Director Rachel Weintraub warns consumers not to operate OHVs on roads and to wear a helmet even if their state, county, or city allows OHVs on roads or doesn’t require helmet use.  “That CFA’s data is indicating a 10 percent increase in fatalities this year raises concerns about policies expanding on-road access and a failure to address changes in product design that could decrease fatalities substantially,” added CFA Senior Policy Analyst Michael Best.