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CPSC RIN: 3041-AC36 Publication ID: Fall 2010 
Title: Portable Generators 
Abstract: On December 5, 2006, the Commission voted 2-0 to issue an advance notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPRM) under the Consumer Product Safety Act (CPSA) concerning portable generators. The ANPRM discusses regulatory options that could reduce portable generator-related deaths and injuries, particularly those related to carbon monoxide poisoning. The ANPRM was published in the Federal Register on December 12, 2006. Staff reviewed public comments and is conducting technical activities. In FY 2006, staff awarded a contract to develop a prototype generator engine with reduced CO in the exhaust. Also in FY 2006, staff entered into an interagency agreement (IAG) with the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to conduct tests with a generator, in both off-the-shelf and prototype configurations, operating in an attached garage to measure how CO moves from the garage into the rest of the house. The results from these tests will be used by staff to evaluate the efficacy of the prototype in creating survivable conditions for occupants in the house. Under this IAG, NIST will also model the CO infiltration from the garage into various styles of homes and under different ambient conditions. In FY 2009, staff entered into a second IAG with NIST with the goal of developing CO emission performance requirements for a possible proposed regulation with criteria based on health effects. Because performance standards must be technology independent, this activity has been separated from the technology demonstration work being conducted under the first IAG which is intended to demonstrate the feasibility of a possible proposed rule. In 2010, staff plans to prepare a preliminary report with health effects analyses based on NIST's test results, as well as a summary of the prototype development and durability test program. These and other staff activities on the portable generator project will be used in the development of a briefing package for Commission consideration as to whether to issue a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM). 
Agency: Consumer Product Safety Commission(CPSC)  Priority: Substantive, Nonsignificant 
RIN Status: Previously published in the Unified Agenda Agenda Stage of Rulemaking: Long-Term Actions 
Major: Undetermined  Unfunded Mandates: Undetermined 
CFR Citation: Not Yet Determined     (To search for a specific CFR, visit the Code of Federal Regulations.)
Legal Authority: 15 USC 2051, Consumer Product Safety Act   
Legal Deadline:  None
Timetable:
Action Date FR Cite
Staff Sent ANPRM to Commission  06/29/2006    
Staff Sent Supplemental Material to Commission   10/12/2006    
Staff Briefed Commission  10/26/2006    
Commission Decision  10/26/2006    
Staff Sent Draft ANPRM to Commission  11/21/2006    
ANPRM Published   12/12/2006  71 FR 74472   
ANPRM Comment Period End  02/12/2007    
Staff to Send NPRM Briefing Package to Commission  To Be Determined    
Regulatory Flexibility Analysis Required: Undetermined  Government Levels Affected: Undetermined 
Federalism: Undetermined 
Included in the Regulatory Plan: No 
International Impacts: This regulatory action will be likely to have international trade and investment effects, or otherwise be of international interest.
RIN Data Printed in the FR: No 
Agency Contact:
Janet L. Buyer
Project Manager, Directorate for Engineering Sciences
Consumer Product Safety Commission
National Product Testing and Evaluation Center, 5 Research Place,
Rockville, MD 20850
Phone:301 987-2293
Email: jbuyer@cpsc.gov