Electrical Appliance Standards Act
Latest action. Referred to House Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce.
Electrical Appliance Standards Act - States that no manufacturer, distributor, wholesaler, or retailer of electrical appliances shall sell or offer for sale in, or in any manner affecting, interstate commerce any electrical appliance after the effective date of a standard promulgated by the Federal Trade Commission under this Act applicable to that standard unless the appliance is labelled in accordance with the requirements of that standard as to the comparative efficiency with which that appliance utilizes electrical power. States that no manufacturer, distributor, wholesaler, or retailer of electrical appliances shall advertise or cause to be advertised any such appliance for sale through any communications medium unless that advertisement contains a statement of the comparative efficiency with which that appliance utilizes electrical power in accordance with the requirements of such standard. Provides that the Federal Trade Commission shall by rule on the record after opportunity for an agency hearing promulgate standards for labelling electrical appliances with respect to their efficiency in utilizing electrical power relative to the efficiency of other electrical appliances of the same type. States that the Act of selling or offering for sale (including causing an advertisement to be published or broadcast) any electrical appliance in violation of the provisions of this Act constitutes an unfair or deceptive Act or practice in commerce in violation of the provisions of the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 45(A)(1)) States that any person who knowingly violates this Act shall be subject to a civil penalty not to exceed $2,000 for each such violation. States that any person who knowingly and willfully violated this Act shall be fined not more than $50,000 or be imprisoned for not more than one year, or both. States that the United States District courts shall have jurisdiction to restrain any violation of this Act, or to restrain any person from advertising or distributing in commerce an electrical appliance which does not comply with the requirements of any applicable standard promulgated by the Commission under this Act. States that any person may commence a civil action on his own behalf: (1) against any manufacturer, distributor, wholesaler, or retailer of electrical appliances who is alleged to be in violation of the provisions of this Act, or (2) against any Federal agency, where there is an alleged failure of the appropriate agency to perform any act or duty under this Act which is not discretionary.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in House" stage on December 4, 1973. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on December 4, 1973: Referred to House Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 93rd Congress (1973-74), 651 of the 23,396 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 2.8 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
PIERRE DU PONT (R-DE) introduced it on December 4, 1973. No cosponsors are recorded.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on December 4, 1973, 19320 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 19320 days ago, on December 4, 1973.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 93rd Congress has not finished by January 3, 1975 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers