Antitrust Law Daily Wrap Up, CONSUMER PROTECTION NEWS: FTC proposes changes to its Wool Products Labeling Rules, (Sep 17, 2013)

Yesterday, the FTC announced proposed changes to its Wool Products Labeling Rules as part of its systematic review of all current FTC rules and guides. The agency is requesting public comment on the amendments.

The Wool Products Labeling Rules require that labels on wool products disclose the manufacturer’s or marketer’s name, the country where the product was processed or manufactured, and information about the fiber content. The FTC first issued the Rules under the Wool Products Labeling Act of 1939, known as the Wool Act. The agency completed its last review of the Rules in 1998 and modified the Rules in 1998 and 2000. In 2006, the Wool Act was amended by the Wool Suit Fabric Labeling Fairness and International Standards Conforming Act, which provides that wool products identified as cashmere or as containing very fine wools are misbranded unless they have no more than the average fiber diameter specified in the Act.

In January 2012, the FTC sought comment on the Rules. In response to the comments received, the FTC now proposes changes designed to clarify and update the Rules, to make them more flexible, and to align them with the Commission’s proposed amendments to the Textile Rules. The proposed changes include incorporating the Wool Act’s new definitions for cashmere and very fine wools, clarifying descriptions of products containing virgin or new wool, and revising the Rules to allow certain hang-tags disclosing fiber trademarks and performance even if they do not disclose the product’s full fiber content.

The Commission vote approving the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking was 4-0.

Interested parties may file a comment online or on paper, by following the instructions in the Request for Comment part of the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking. Write “Wool Rules, 16 CFR Part 300, Project No. P124201” on your comment, and file your comment online here following the instructions on the web-based form. If you prefer to file your comment on paper, mail or deliver your comment to the following address: Federal Trade Commission, Office of the Secretary, Room H-113 (Annex Q), 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, D.C. 20580.

Comments must be received by November 25, 2013. All comments received will be posted here (FTC File No. P124201). The staff contact is Robert M. Frisby, Bureau of Consumer Protection, who can be reached at 202-326-2098.

News: ConsumerProtection FederalTradeCommissionNews