The Consumer Product Safety Act established CPSC as an independent  regulatory commission. CPSC’s Authorities Have the Potential to Be Effective, but Implementation Is Limited by Incomplete Information on Imported Products and Resource and Practical Constraints

Consensus exists that CPSC’s authorities have the potential to be effective  in preventing the entry of unsafe products into the United States. Consensus Exists That CPSC Has Broad Authority over Imported Products, but CPSC’s Assessment of Effectiveness Has Been Limited

There is consensus among those we interviewed that CPSC has broad  authority to prevent the entry of unsafe consumer products into the United  States, particularly in light of new authorities that strengthen its ability to  enforce mandatory standards and protect consumers from unsafe  products subject to voluntary standards at ports of entry. Despite this broad authority, CPSC has made limited progress in  measuring the effectiveness of its authorities to prevent the entry of  unsafe consumer products. However, CPSC has not developed formal systems for  assessing risks and focusing inspection activities with CBP. As a result,  CPSC’s efforts to access more complete import data to help it better target  incoming shipments have also been delayed. CPSC has not completed this plan, and it is unlikely to do  so until it updates information-sharing agreements with CBP. According to CPSC, the agency cannot  establish a greater presence at U.S. ports without having the requisite  analytical support. Authorities of Select Agencies Are Comparable to CPSC’s, but FDA and USDA’s Border Surveillance Activities and Overseas Presence Provide Useful Information for Strengthening CPSC’s Implementation of Its Authorities

CPSC’s regulatory authority to prevent the entry of unsafe imports is  generally comparable to that of certain other federal agencies with  substantial responsibility over the safety of products entering the United  States. These capabilities  enable these agencies to screen incoming shipments for a greater number  of risks than CPSC does. Without advance shipment data,  CPSC lacks information that other agencies have found useful in screening  incoming shipments for potential safety violations. FDA,  FSIS, and APHIS invest significant resources in information technology  systems that support border surveillance efforts. U.S. and other officials believe that  continued cooperation and coordination among governments and  regulators can improve policy consistency and enforcement and,  ultimately, the effectiveness of consumer product safety frameworks,  particularly since consumer safety enforcement challenges are shared by  most nations. Without a long-term plan, CPSC is not fully  prepared to use new authorities granted in CPSIA, nor is it able to  effectively address the safety of imported products through international  means or to appropriately allocate any potential increases in agency  resources. CPSC’s Strategic Plan does not reflect  its import safety work, its plans for international education and outreach  activities, its plans to use new authorities granted in CPSIA to prevent the  entry of unsafe products, or its plans to respond to mandates in CPSIA to  improve its risk assessment and coordination with CBP. In addition, CPSC’s agreements  with CBP are outdated, which hinders CPSC and CBP’s ability to target  imports under CPSC’s jurisdiction. These joint efforts are a key element for improving  CPSC’s ability to target shipments for screening and review at the ports  and to ensuring consistent enforcement of CPSC’s authorities across the  United States. FDA and USDA  officials have found that their efforts to educate overseas industry and  governments on U.S. safety standards and the particular risks being  screened for at the border could reduce the number of unsafe products  that reach U.S. consumers. To ensure that it has appropriate data and procedures to prevent entry  of unsafe products into the United States, we recommend that CPSC  update agreements with CBP to clarify each agency’s roles and to  resolve issues for obtaining access to advance shipment data; and  2. Furthermore, we recommend that CPSC’s Strategic Plan include a  comprehensive plan for the Office of International Programs and  Intergovernmental Affairs to work with foreign governments in bilateral  and multilateral environments to  1.  educate foreign manufacturers about U.S. product safety standards  and best practices, and  2.  coordinate on development of effective international frameworks for  consumer product safety. CNCA has similar  arrangements with other countries.
Why GAO Did This Study

The growing volume of consumer products imported into the United States has strained the resources of the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), challenging the agency to find new ways to ensure the safety of these products. The Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) mandated that GAO assess the effectiveness of CPSC's authorities over imported products. GAO's objectives were to (1) determine what is known about CPSC's effectiveness in using these authorities, (2) compare CPSC's authorities with those of selected U.S. agencies and international entities, and (3) evaluate CPSC's plans to prevent the entry of unsafe consumer products. To address these objectives, GAO analyzed CPSC and other agencies' and entities' authorities, reviewed literature on consumer product safety, and compared CPSC's planning efforts with criteria for effective planning practices.

What GAO Found

GAO found broad consensus that CPSC's authorities over imported consumer products have the potential to be effective. However, CPSC has made limited progress in measuring the effectiveness of its authorities, and CPSC's ability to implement these authorities has been constrained by competing priorities and limited resources, as well as by delays in implementing key provisions of CPSIA. CPSC's presence at U.S. ports is limited and, in order to identify potentially unsafe products, it must work closely with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), which faces pressure to quickly move shipments into commerce. CPSC does not have access to key CBP import data it could use to target incoming shipments for inspection, and it has not updated its agreements with CBP to clarify each agency's roles and responsibilities. CPSC's activities at U.S. ports could be strengthened by better targeting incoming shipments for inspection and by improving CPSC's coordination with CBP. Otherwise, CPSC may not be able to carry out key inspection activities efficiently or to effectively leverage its enforcement priorities with CBP. Select federal agencies and foreign governments provide lessons for strengthening CPSC's implementation of its authorities, particularly with respect to border surveillance and information sharing among countries. Both USDA and FDA have more robust border surveillance activities than CPSC because they obtain more data on incoming shipments, have more staff working at U.S. ports, use more developed programs to target risks, and use information technology systems that are integrated with other agency-based and CBP systems to effectively leverage their enforcement priorities with CBP. Other agencies have found that timely CBP import data integrated with other agency surveillance data is useful in screening incoming shipments for potential safety violations. In addition, officials at FDA and USDA have found that efforts to educate overseas industries and governments on U.S. safety standards could reduce the number of unsafe products that reach U.S. consumers. GAO also found broad consensus that continued coordination and information sharing among governments and multilateral organizations can improve the effectiveness of product safety frameworks. CPSC has increased its efforts to coordinate with these other entities, particularly China, but lacks a comprehensive plan for international engagement. CPSC has established annual plans, but lacks a long-term plan with key goals to prevent the entry of unsafe products. CPSC has not yet updated its agencywide Strategic Plan to reflect new authorities granted in CPSIA. This may inhibit CPSC's ability to appropriately allocate any potential increases in agency resources or to address the safety of imported products through international means. An updated Strategic Plan may also help to ensure that CPSC has the requisite compliance and analytical staff to support the full range of CPSC's international efforts.