[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 16, Volume 1]
[Revised as of January 1, 2002]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 16CFR260.8]

[Page 207-208]
 
                     TITLE 16--COMMERCIAL PRACTICES
 
                   CHAPTER I--FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION
 
PART 260--GUIDES FOR THE USE OF ENVIRONMENTAL MARKETING CLAIMS--Table of Contents
 
Sec. 260.8  Environmental assessment.

    (a) National Environmental Policy Act. In accordance with section 
1.83 of

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the FTC's Procedures and Rules of Practice \7\ and section 1501.3 of the 
Council on Environmental Quality's regulations for implementing the 
procedural provisions of National Environmental Policy Act, 42 U.S.C. 
4321 et seq. (1969), \8\ the Commission prepared an environmental 
assessment when the guides were issued in July 1992 for purposes of 
providing sufficient evidence and analysis to determine whether issuing 
the Guides for the Use of Environmental Marketing Claims required 
preparation of an environmental impact statement or a finding of no 
significant impact. After careful study, the Commission concluded that 
issuance of the Guides would not have a significant impact on the 
environment and that any such impact ``would be so uncertain that 
environmental analysis would be based on speculation.'' \9\ The 
Commission concluded that an environmental impact statement was 
therefore not required. The Commission based its conclusions on the 
findings in the environmental assessment that issuance of the guides 
would have no quantifiable environmental impact because the guides are 
voluntary in nature, do not preempt inconsistent state laws, are based 
on the FTC's deception policy, and, when used in conjunction with the 
Commission's policy of case-by-case enforcement, are intended to aid 
compliance with section 5(a) of the FTC Act as that Act applies to 
environmental marketing claims.
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    \7\ 16 CFR 1.83.
    \8\ 40 CFR 1501.3.
    \9\ 16 CFR 1.83(a).
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    (b) The Commission has concluded that the modifications to the 
guides in this part will not have a significant effect on the 
environment, for the same reasons that the issuance of the original 
guides in 1992 and the modifications to the guides in 1996 were deemed 
not to have a significant effect on the environment. Therefore, the 
Commission concludes that an environmental impact statement is not 
required in conjunction with the issuance of the 1998 modifications to 
the Guides for the Use of Environmental Marketing Claims.

[63 FR 24251, May 1, 1998, as amended at 63 FR 24248, May 1, 1998]

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