CPSC Publishes Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPR) for a Safety Standard for Crib Mattresses

Pursuant to section 104 of the CPSIA, the Commission has proposed to issue a mandatory regulation, 16 CFR 1241, for crib mattresses, incorporating by reference ASTM F2933-19, to further reduce the risk of injury associated with the use of crib mattresses.

Although they are not included in the statutory list of durable infant or toddler products, the Commission proposes to amend part 1130 to include “crib mattresses” within the scope of ASTM F2933 as durable infant or toddler products considering: (1) they are intended for use, and may be reasonably expected to be used, by children under the age of 5 years; (2) they are products similar to the products listed in section 104 of the CPSIA; (3) they are used in conjunction with other durable infant or toddler products used for unattended infant sleep, such as cribs, bassinets, and play yards; and (4) CPSC cannot fully address the risk of injury associated with such infant sleep products without addressing the hazards associated with the use of crib mattresses in these infant sleep products.

Proposed modifications on this Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPR) address: 

1. Suffocation hazards associated with crib mattresses due to overly soft mattresses, by adding a test for mattress firmness
2. Entrapment hazards associated with full-size crib mattresses due to poor mattress fit from compression by sheets, by repeating the dimensional conformity test and measuring for corner gaps
3. Entrapment hazards associated with after-market, non-full-size crib mattresses, due to lack of dimensional requirements for rectangular-shaped products, by extending the dimensional requirements in ASTM F2933-19 to all non-full-size crib mattresses
4. Laceration hazards associated with coils and springs breaking and poking through mattresses, by adding a cyclic impact test for mattresses that use coils and springs; and
5. The risks of SIDS and suffocation related to infant positioning, soft bedding, and gap entrapment, by improving the labeling and instructional literature requirements to better communicate risks to consumers

Public comments on this NPR may be submitted until January 11, 2021. The effective date will be six months from the date of publication within the Federal Register.

References

[1] Copy of the Standard
[2] Notice of Proposed Rule 16 CFR 1241

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