(a) The Commission will consider an application for preemption on its merits, only if the application demonstrates all of the following:

(1) The State or local requirement has been enacted or issued in final form by an authorized official or instrumentality of the State or local government. For purposes of this section, a State or local requirement may be considered to have been enacted or issued in final form even though it is preempted by a Commission standard or regulation.

(2) The applicant is an official or instrumentality of a State or local government having authority to act for, or on behalf of, that government in applying for an exemption from preemption for the safety requirement referred to in the application.

(3) The State or local requirement is preempted under a Commission statutory preemption provision by a Commission statute, standard, or regulation. A State or local requirement is preempted if the following tests are met:

(i) There is a Commission statute, standard, or regulation in effect that is applicable to the product covered by the State or local requirement.

(ii) The Commission statute, standard, or regulation is designated as having a preemptive effect under a statutory preemption provision.

(iii) The State or local requirement is designed to protect against the same risk of injury or illness as that addressed by the Commission statute, standard, or regulation.

(iv) The State or local requirement is not identical to the Commission statute, standard, or regulation.

(b) State and local governments may contact the Commission's Office of the General Counsel to obtain informal advice on whether a State or local requirement meets the threshold requirements of paragraph (a) of this section.