H-4146

AN ACT Relating to fire retardant requirements for mattresses, upholstered furniture and filling materials for upholstered furniture, and polyurethane foam; adding a new chapter to Title 70 RCW; and providing an effective date.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. For the purposes of this chapter:

(1) "Fire retardant" means a product that meets the standards adopted by rule by the director of fire protection.

(2) "Upholstered furniture" means any furniture, including children's furniture, movable or stationary, that is made or sold with cushions or pillows, loose or attached, or is itself stuffed or filled in whole or in part with any material, is or can be stuffed or filled in whole or in part with any substance or material, hidden or concealed by fabric or any other covering, including cushions or pillows belonging to or forming a part thereof, together with the structural units, the filling material and its container and its covering that can be used as a support for the body of a human being, or his or her limbs or feet when sitting or resting in an upright or reclining position.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. (1) All mattresses sold or offered for sale, or manufactured for sale, for use in the state of Washington, including any mattress sold or offered for sale, or manufactured for sale, for use in a hotel, motel, or place of public accommodation in the state, shall be fire retardant. Mattresses shall meet the standards established by the director of fire protection, which standards shall meet the standards required in 16 C.F.R. Sec. 1632, as existing on the effective date of this act. Each mattress may have a label attached to its top stating, "Notice. This mattress is designed to resist combustion which may result from a smoldering cigarette."

(2) All upholstered furniture sold or offered for sale by a manufacturer or wholesaler for use in the state, including any upholstered furniture sold or offered for sale for use in a hotel, motel, or other place of public accommodation in this state, and reupholstered furniture sold, offered for sale, or reupholstered for a customer, to which filling materials are added, shall be fire retardant and shall have a label attached to the surface area of the article, in plain view, stating the following: "NOTICE: ONLY THE RESILIENT FILLING MATERIALS CONTAINED IN THIS ARTICLE MEET CALIFORNIA BUREAU OF HOME FURNISHINGS FLAMMABILITY REQUIREMENTS -- TECHNICAL BULLETIN NO. 117. CARE SHOULD BE EXERCISED NEAR OPEN FLAMES OR WITH BURNING CIGARETTES." The minimum size of the label shall be two inches by three inches and the minimum size of the type shall be one-eighth inch in height. All type shall be in capital letters.

(3) All flexible polyurethane foam in the form of slabs, blocks, or sheets, or that is shredded, either loose or packaged, except polyurethane foam sold for use as carpet underlayment and polyurethane foam that cannot reasonably be expected to be used in or as an article of furniture or a mattress, that is sold or offered for sale to the general public at retail outlets in the state of Washington for commercial or nonmanufacturing purposes, shall be fire retardant and shall meet the standards established by the director of fire protection. Those established standards shall meet or exceed the test requirements set forth in section A, part I, section A, part II, and section B, part II of the California bureau of home furnishings technical bulletin No. 117, "Requirements, test procedures and apparatus for testing the flame retardants of filling materials used in upholstered furniture," January 1980.

(4) All filling material contained in any article of upholstered furniture, and all filling material added to reupholstered furniture, shall meet the standards established by the director of fire protection. Those established standards shall meet or exceed the test requirements set forth in California bureau of home furnishings technical bulletin No. 117, "Requirements, test procedures and apparatus for testing the flame retardants of filling materials used in upholstered furniture," January 1980. Filling materials labelled as "flame resistant," "flame retardant," or words of similar import shall be tested in accordance with and shall meet the "fire retardant" standard adopted by the director.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. (1) The director of fire protection may, in his or her discretion, exempt items of upholstered furniture that are deemed not to pose a serious life hazard without the fire retardant requirements of this chapter.

(2) Articles exempted from fire retardant requirements of this chapter shall have a label attached to the surface area of the article, in plain view, stating the following: "NOTICE: THIS ARTICLE DOES NOT MEET CALIFORNIA BUREAU OF HOME FURNISHINGS FLAMMABILITY REQUIREMENTS -- TECHNICAL BULLETIN NO. 117. CARE SHOULD BE EXERCISED NEAR OPEN FLAMES OR WITH BURNING CIGARETTES." The minimum size of the label shall be two inches by three inches and the minimum size of the type shall be one-eighth inch in height. All type shall be in capital letters.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. The director of the department of community development shall adopt rules to carry out the purposes of this chapter.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 5. Sections 1 through 4 of this act shall constitute a new chapter in Title 70 RCW.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 6. This act shall take effect January 1, 1993.