FTC Care Labeling Roundtable

Due to the government shutdown, the FTC postponed its planned October 1 roundtable. Commission staff tentatively plans to hold the roundtable on Friday, March 28, 2014, subject to Commission approval. The roundtable, which is free and open to the public, will examine the Commission’s proposed amendments to the Rule set forth in its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) published on September 20, 2012.

The roundtable will focus on the proposed amendment permitting a wetcleaning instruction and comments urging the Commission to require a wetcleaning instruction. The wetcleaning discussion also will address: (1) the cost of substantiating wetcleaning instructions; (2) the availability of wetcleaning services; (3) consumer awareness of wetcleaning; and (4) the content of labels providing a wetcleaning instruction (e.g., instructing “professionally wetclean” versus “wetclean”).

The roundtable also will explore issues relating to the use of care symbols and the Commission’s proposal to clarify the Rule’s reasonable basis requirements. These discussions will address: (1) the differences between ASTM and ISO symbols and between the 2005 and 2012 ISO symbols; (2) whether to require that labels identify ISO symbols if used to comply with the Rule; (3) the change in the meaning of the circle P symbol in the ASTM system; (4) the absence of ASTM and ISO symbols for solvents other than perchloroethylene (perc) and petroleum; (5) consumer understanding of symbols; and (6) how to clarify the Rule’s reasonable basis requirements.

In addition, the roundtable will provide participants with an opportunity to discuss other issues raised by comments filed in response to the NPRM.

The roundtable will be held from 9:15 a.m. to 3:45 p.m. at the FTC’s satellite building conference center, located at 601 New Jersey Avenue, N.W., Washington, DC. The roundtable is open to the public, and there is no fee for attendance. For admittance to the Conference Center, all attendees must show valid government-issued photo identification, such as a driver’s license. Pre-registration is not necessary to attend, but is encouraged so that staff may better plan this event. To pre-register, please e-mail your name and affiliation to carelabelingroundtable@ftc.gov.