[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 15, Volume 1]
[Revised as of January 1, 2002]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 15CFR16.2]

[Page 174-175]
 
                  TITLE 15--COMMERCE AND FOREIGN TRADE
 
PART 16--PROCEDURES FOR A VOLUNTARY CONSUMER PRODUCT INFORMATION LABELING PROGRAM--Table of Contents
 
Sec. 16.2  Description and goal of program.

    (a) The Department's Voluntary Consumer Product Information Labeling 
Program makes available to consumers, at the point of sale, information 
on consumer product performance in an understandable and useful form so 
as to facilitate accurate consumer purchasing decisions and enhance 
consumer satisfaction. It also educates consumers, distributors and 
retailers in the use of the product performance information displayed 
and provides manufacturers and other persons who participate in the 
program with an opportunity to convey to the public the particular 
advantages of their products. These objectives are accomplished by:
    (1) Selecting or developing standardized test methods by which 
selected product performance characteristics can be measured;
    (2) Developing labeling methods by which information concerning 
product performance can be transmitted in useful form to consumers at 
the point of sale;
    (3) Encouraging manufacturers and other participants in the program 
voluntarily to test and label their products according to the selected 
or developed methods; and
    (4) Encouraging consumers through various informational and 
educational programs to utilize the product performance information 
provided.
    (b) The program involves voluntary labeling by enrolled participants 
of selected categories of consumer products with information concerning 
selected performance characteristics of those products. The performance 
characteristics selected are those that are of demonstrable importance 
to consumers, that consumers cannot evaluate through mere inspection of 
the product, and that can be measured objectively and reported 
understandably to consumers. The consumer products covered include those 
for which incorrect purchase decision can result in financial loss, 
dissatisfaction, or inconvenience. The program seeks to avoid the 
duplication of other Federal programs under which performance 
characteristics are labeled by exempting those performance 
characteristics from this program. However, where the Federal agency 
concerned agrees, the Department of Commerce may include information 
about those performance characteristics in CPILP labels if, by doing so, 
product comparison at the point of sale is simplified for consumers, and 
the complexity of product labeling is reduced for the manufacturers by 
enabling them to comply with the labeling requirements of other Federal 
agencies through participation in CPILP.
    (c) For selected categories of consumer products, the program 
includes advertising guidelines covering situations where quantitative 
performance values are stated in advertising or where qualitative 
comparisons are

[[Page 175]]

made of the performance of different products.

[42 FR 26648, May 25, 1977, as amended at 43 FR 8255, Mar. 1, 1978]