The Consumer Safety Investigation Commission (hereinafter referred to as "Investigation Commission") is hereby established in the Consumer Affairs Agency.

The Investigation Commission manages the administrative processes set forth in the following items:

Members of the Investigation Commission exercise their authority independently.

①The Investigation Commission comprises a maximum of seven members.

②Temporary members may be appointed to the Investigation Commission if it is necessary to appoint the members in order to have them investigate and deliberate on a particular matter.

③Expert members may be appointed to the Investigation Commission if it is necessary to appoint these members in order to have them investigate a specialized matter.

①The Prime Minister appoints members and temporary members from among persons whom it is found will be able to reach scientific and fair judgments when carrying out the administrative processes under the jurisdiction of the Investigation Commission.

②The Prime Minister appoints expert members from among persons with extensive insight into the specialized matter in question.

①A member's term of office is two years; provided, however, that the term of office of a member that has been substituted into office is the remaining term of the predecessor.

②Members may be reappointed.

③A temporary member is to be dismissed at the end of the investigation and deliberation on the particular matter with regard to which that temporary member was appointed.

④An expert member is to be dismissed at the end of the investigation into the specialized matter with regard to which that expert member was appointed.

⑤Members, temporary members, and expert members serve under part-time contracts.

①The Investigation Commission employs a chairperson, whom the members elect from among themselves.

②The chairperson presides over the affairs of the Investigation Commission and represents the Investigation Commission.

③A member designated by the chairperson in advance acts as a proxy in handling the duties of the chairperson if the chairperson is unable to attend to them.

①If the Investigation Commission finds that the chairperson or a member, temporary member, or expert member is likely to be connected to the Cause or Source of an Actual or Potential Accident Involving Bodily Harm which is subject to an Investigation or Evaluation, or finds that the person is closely related to a person with such a connection, the Investigation Commission must not allow the chairperson, member, temporary member, or expert member to engage in the Investigation or Evaluation.

②A chairperson, member, or temporary member as referred to in the preceding paragraph must not attend any meeting of the Investigation Commission concerning the relevant Investigation or Evaluation.

①If the Investigation Commission finds it to be necessary to clarify the Cause or Source of an Actual or Potential Accident Involving Bodily Harm in order to prevent instances of bodily harm from occurring or increasing (meaning to prevent instances of harm from an Actual or Potential Accident Involving Bodily Harm from increasing or to prevent the same or a similar type of Actual or Potential Accident Involving Bodily Harm from occurring; hereinafter the same applies), it is to Investigate the Cause or Source of the actual or potential accident; provided, however, that this does not apply if the necessary results have been or are expected to be obtained from an Investigation or Monitoring by Another Administrative Organ or Entity into an Actual or Potential Accident Involving Bodily Harm through which the Investigation Commission considers the Cause or Source of the actual or potential accident can be clarified with a view to Ensuring Consumer Safety.

②The Investigation Commission may take the administrative measures set forth below to the extent that doing so is necessary to allow it to Investigate the Cause or Source of an actual or potential accident:

③If the Investigation Commission finds it necessary to do so, it may have the chairperson, a member, or an expert member take the administrative measures set forth in one of the items of the preceding paragraph.

④A person taking an administrative measure set forth in paragraph (2), item (ii) pursuant to the provisions of the preceding paragraph must carry identification and show it to the Person Involved in an Actual or Potential Accident Involving Bodily Harm, upon request.

⑤The authority to take an administrative measure under paragraph (2) or paragraph (3) must not be construed as having been granted for the purpose of a criminal investigation.

①If an Actual or Potential Accident Involving Bodily Harm has occurred and the Investigation Commission finds it to be necessary to clarify the Cause or Source of an Actual or Potential Accident Involving Bodily Harm in order to prevent instances of bodily harm from occurring or increasing, it must Evaluate the results of any Investigation or Monitoring by Another Administrative Organ or Entity as provided in the proviso to paragraph (1) of the preceding Article, once these results have been obtained.

②If, as a result of the Evaluation referred to in the preceding paragraph, the Investigation Commission finds it necessary to do so with a view to Ensuring Consumer Safety, it may state its opinion to the head of the administrative organ in charge of the administrative processes involved in the Investigation or Monitoring by the Other Administrative Organ or Entity, with regard to its clarification of the Cause or Source of the Actual or Potential Accident Involving Bodily Harm.

③If, as a result of the Evaluation referred to in paragraph (1), the Investigation Commission finds it necessary to implement an investigation in order to clarify the Cause or Source of an Actual or Potential Accident Involving Bodily Harm with a view to Ensuring Consumer Safety, the Investigation Commission is to Investigate the Cause or Source of that actual or potential accident.

④The head of an administrative organ in charge of the administrative processes involved in the Investigation or Monitoring by Another Administrative Organ or Entity referred to in paragraph (1) may hear the Investigation Commission's opinions with regard to the Investigation or Monitoring by the Other Administrative Organ or Entity.