HF 987

1st Engrossment - 84th Legislature (2005 - 2006) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

  1.1                          A bill for an act
  1.2             relating to child safety; prohibiting the sale and 
  1.3             commercial use of certain cribs; providing 
  1.4             enforcement; proposing coding for new law in Minnesota 
  1.5             Statutes, chapters 245A; 325F. 
  1.6   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:  
  1.7      Section 1.  [245A.146] [CRIB USE IN LICENSED CHILD CARE 
  1.8   SETTINGS.] 
  1.9      Subdivision 1.  [CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY WEB LINK.] The 
  1.10  commissioner shall maintain a link from the licensing division 
  1.11  Web site to the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission 
  1.12  Web site that addresses crib safety information. 
  1.13     Subd. 2.  [DOCUMENTATION REQUIREMENT FOR LICENSE 
  1.14  HOLDERS.] (a) Effective January 1, 2006, all licensed child care 
  1.15  providers must maintain the following documentation for every 
  1.16  crib used by or that is accessible to any child in care: 
  1.17     (1) the crib's brand name; and 
  1.18     (2) the crib's model number. 
  1.19     (b) Any crib for which the license holder does not have the 
  1.20  documentation required under paragraph (a) must not be used by 
  1.21  or be accessible to children in care. 
  1.22     Subd. 3.  [LICENSE HOLDER CERTIFICATION OF CRIBS.] (a) 
  1.23  Annually, from the date printed on the license, all license 
  1.24  holders shall check all their cribs' brand names and model 
  1.25  numbers against the United States Consumer Product Safety 
  2.1   Commission Web site listing of unsafe cribs. 
  2.2      (b) The license holder shall maintain written documentation 
  2.3   to be reviewed on site for each crib showing that the review 
  2.4   required in paragraph (a) has been completed, and which of the 
  2.5   following conditions applies: 
  2.6      (1) the crib was not identified as unsafe on the United 
  2.7   States Consumer Product Safety Commission Web site; 
  2.8      (2) the crib was identified as unsafe on the United States 
  2.9   Consumer Product Safety Commission Web site, but the license 
  2.10  holder has taken the action directed by the United States 
  2.11  Consumer Product Safety Commission to make the crib safe; or 
  2.12     (3) the crib was identified as unsafe on the United States 
  2.13  Consumer Product Safety Commission Web site, and the license 
  2.14  holder has removed the crib so that it is no longer used by or 
  2.15  accessible to children in care.  
  2.16     (c) Documentation of the review completed under this 
  2.17  subdivision shall be maintained by the license holder on site 
  2.18  and made available to parents of children in care and the 
  2.19  commissioner. 
  2.20     Subd. 4.  [CRIB SAFETY STANDARDS AND INSPECTION.] (a) On at 
  2.21  least a monthly basis, the license holder shall perform safety 
  2.22  inspections of every crib used by or that is accessible to any 
  2.23  child in care, and must document the following: 
  2.24     (1) no corner posts extend more than 1/16 of an inch; 
  2.25     (2) no spaces between side slats exceed 2.375 inches; 
  2.26     (3) no mattress supports can be easily dislodged from any 
  2.27  point of the crib; 
  2.28     (4) no cutout designs are present on end panels; 
  2.29     (5) no heights of the rail and end panel are less than 26 
  2.30  inches when measured from the top of the rail or panel in the 
  2.31  highest position to the top of the mattress support in its 
  2.32  lowest position; 
  2.33     (6) no heights of the rail and end panel are less than nine 
  2.34  inches when measured from the top of the rail or panel in its 
  2.35  lowest position to the top of the mattress support in its 
  2.36  highest position; 
  3.1      (7) no screws, bolts, or hardware are loose or not secured, 
  3.2   and there is no use of woodscrews in components that are 
  3.3   designed to be assembled and disassembled by the crib owner; 
  3.4      (8) no sharp edges, points, or rough surfaces are present; 
  3.5      (9) no wood surfaces are rough, splintered, split, or 
  3.6   cracked; 
  3.7      (10) there are no tears in mesh of fabric sides in 
  3.8   non-full-size cribs; 
  3.9      (11) no mattress pads in non-full-size mesh or fabric cribs 
  3.10  exceed one inch; and 
  3.11     (12) no gaps between the mattress and any sides of the crib 
  3.12  are present. 
  3.13     (b) Upon discovery of any unsafe condition identified by 
  3.14  the license holder during the safety inspection required under 
  3.15  paragraph (a), the license holder shall immediately remove the 
  3.16  crib so that it is no longer used by or accessible to children 
  3.17  in care until necessary repairs are completed or the crib is 
  3.18  destroyed. 
  3.19     (c) Documentation of the inspections and actions taken with 
  3.20  unsafe cribs required in paragraphs (a) and (b) shall be 
  3.21  maintained on site by the license holder and made available to 
  3.22  parents of children in care and the commissioner. 
  3.23     Subd. 5.  [COMMISSIONER INSPECTION.] During routine 
  3.24  licensing inspections, and when investigating complaints 
  3.25  regarding alleged violations of this section, the commissioner 
  3.26  shall review the provider's documentation required under 
  3.27  subdivisions 3 and 4. 
  3.28     Subd. 6.  [FAILURE TO COMPLY.] The commissioner may issue a 
  3.29  licensing action under section 245A.06 or 245A.07 if a license 
  3.30  holder fails to comply with the requirements of this section. 
  3.31     Sec. 2.  [325F.171] [CRIB SAFETY.] 
  3.32     Subdivision 1.  [DEFINITIONS.] (a) "Commercial user" means 
  3.33  any person who deals in cribs or who otherwise by one's 
  3.34  occupation holds oneself out as having knowledge or skill 
  3.35  peculiar to cribs, or any person who is in the business of 
  3.36  remanufacturing, retrofitting, selling, leasing, subletting, or 
  4.1   otherwise placing cribs in the stream of commerce. 
  4.2      (b) "Infant" means any person less than 35 inches tall and 
  4.3   less than three years of age. 
  4.4      (c) "Crib" means a bed or containment designed to 
  4.5   accommodate an infant. 
  4.6      (d) "Full-size crib" means a full-size crib as defined in 
  4.7   the Code of Federal Regulations, title 16, section 1508.3, 
  4.8   regarding the requirements for full-size cribs. 
  4.9      (e) "Non-full-size crib" means a non-full-size crib as 
  4.10  defined in the Code of Federal Regulations, title 16, section 
  4.11  1509.2, regarding the requirements for non-full-size cribs. 
  4.12     (f) "Place in the stream of commerce" means to sell, offer 
  4.13  for sale, give away, offer to give away, or allow to use. 
  4.14     Subd. 2.  [UNSAFE CRIBS PROHIBITED.] (a) No commercial user 
  4.15  may remanufacture, retrofit, sell, contract to sell or resell, 
  4.16  lease, sublet, or otherwise place any unsafe crib in the stream 
  4.17  of commerce on or after January 1, 2006. 
  4.18     (b) On or after January 1, 2006, no person operating a 
  4.19  hotel, motel, or lodging establishment shall provide any unsafe 
  4.20  crib to any guest, either with or without charge, for use during 
  4.21  the guest's stay.  For the purposes of this paragraph, "hotel," 
  4.22  "motel," and "lodging establishment" have the meanings given 
  4.23  them in section 157.15. 
  4.24     (c) A crib is presumed to be unsafe for purposes of this 
  4.25  section if it does not conform to the standards endorsed or 
  4.26  established by the United States Consumer Product Safety 
  4.27  Commission, including but not limited to the Code of Federal 
  4.28  Regulations, title 16, and ASTM International, as follows: 
  4.29     (1) Code of Federal Regulations, title 16, part 1508, and 
  4.30  any regulations adopted to amend or supplement the regulations; 
  4.31     (2) Code of Federal Regulations, title 16, part 1509, and 
  4.32  any regulations adopted to amend or supplement the regulations; 
  4.33     (3) Code of Federal Regulations, title 16, part 1303, and 
  4.34  any regulations adopted to amend or supplement the regulations; 
  4.35     (4) the following standards and specifications of ASTM 
  4.36  International for corner posts of baby cribs and structural 
  5.1   integrity of baby cribs: 
  5.2      (i) ASTM F 966 (corner post standard); 
  5.3      (ii) ASTM F 1169 (structural integrity of full-size baby 
  5.4   cribs); 
  5.5      (iii) ASTM F 1822 (non-full-size cribs).  
  5.6      (d) A crib is exempt from the provisions of this section if 
  5.7   it is not intended for use by an infant; and at the time of 
  5.8   selling, contracting to resell, leasing, subletting or otherwise 
  5.9   placing the crib in the stream of commerce, the commercial user 
  5.10  attaches a written notice to the crib declaring that it is not 
  5.11  intended to be used for an infant and is unsafe for use by an 
  5.12  infant.  A commercial user who complies with this paragraph is 
  5.13  not liable for use of the crib contrary to the notice provided. 
  5.14     Subd. 3.  [RETROFITS.] (a) An unsafe crib, as determined 
  5.15  under subdivision 2, may be retrofitted if the retrofit has been 
  5.16  approved by the United States Consumer Product Safety 
  5.17  Commission.  A retrofitted crib may be sold if it is accompanied 
  5.18  at the time of sale by a notice stating that it is safe to use 
  5.19  for a child under three years of age.  The commercial user is 
  5.20  responsible for ensuring that the notice is present with the 
  5.21  retrofitted crib at the time of sale.  The notice must include: 
  5.22     (1) a description of the original problem that made the 
  5.23  crib unsafe; 
  5.24     (2) a description of the retrofit that explains how the 
  5.25  original problem was eliminated and declares that the crib is 
  5.26  now safe to use for a child under three years of age; and 
  5.27     (3) the name and address of the commercial user who 
  5.28  accomplished the retrofit certifying that the work was done 
  5.29  along with the name and model number of the crib. 
  5.30     (b) A retrofit is exempt from this section if: 
  5.31     (1) the retrofit is for a crib that requires assembly by 
  5.32  the consumer, the approved retrofit is provided with the product 
  5.33  by the commercial user, and the retrofit is accompanied at the 
  5.34  time of sale by instructions explaining how to apply the 
  5.35  retrofit; or 
  5.36     (2) the seller of a previously unsold product accomplishes 
  6.1   the retrofit prior to sale. 
  6.2      Subd. 4.  [EXCEPTION.] A commercial user does not violate 
  6.3   this section if the crib placed in the stream of commerce by the 
  6.4   commercial user was not included on the consumer product safety 
  6.5   commission's list during the entire 14-day period before this 
  6.6   placement. 
  6.7      Sec. 3.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
  6.8      Sections 1 and 2 are effective January 1, 2006.