U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, has joined other members of Congress in filing an amicus brief to defend the independence of the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). The group includes Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.), and 23 additional lawmakers.
“For 53 years, the bipartisan, independent CPSC has put consumer safety first,” said Sen. Cantwell. “Now, President Trump has put politics first by illegally firing the three Democratic CPSC Commissioners. By injecting politics where it doesn’t belong, the President is undermining the safety of children, seniors, and everyone else. I’m proud to stand with Congressional Democrats in pushing back against this illegal and partisan power grab.”
The amicus brief presents four main arguments supporting limits on presidential authority over CPSC Commissioners. It asserts that Congress has long had the power to set conditions for removing federal officials and that courts have supported this authority. It also points out that since a key Supreme Court decision in Humphrey’s Executor about 90 years ago upheld removal protections for commissioners of independent agencies, more than 30 such agencies have been created without significant opposition from presidents or courts.
The brief further states that legal precedent supports Congress’s ability to create independent agencies with removal protections for their leaders. It argues that keeping the CPSC free from political pressure is essential for its mission to protect consumers. According to the brief, this independence shows “Congress’s intent to ensure the integrity and vigilance of the CPSC by safeguarding the CPSC’s independence through removal protections for its members.”
Senator Cantwell has previously criticized efforts to change or reduce the role of the CPSC. In May 2025, she questioned Acting Chairman Peter Feldman about proposals to eliminate the agency and transfer its functions to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Earlier that month, she and several colleagues urged President Trump to reverse his decision removing Democratic Commissioners Alexander Hoehn-Saric, Richard Trumka Jr., and Mary Boyle.
Other signatories include Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.), Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisc.), Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.). Representatives Frank Pallone (D-N.J.), Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.), Sanford D. Bishop, Jr. (D-Ga.), Robin K. Kelly (D-Ill.), Kevin Mullin (D-Calif.), Doris Matsui (D-Calif.), Diana DeGette (D-Colo.), Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.), Yvette Clarke (D-N.Y.), Jennifer McClellan (D-Va.), Kathy Castor (D-Fla.) and Norma Torres (D-Calif.) also joined.
The full text of the amicus brief can be accessed online.
