The prefectural and municipal governments must endeavor to secure consumer affairs consultants and staff to engage in the administrative processes set forth in the items of Article 8, paragraph (1) or (2) and to improve the qualifications thereof, by adequately compensating consumer affairs consultants, training them, appointing and fostering full-time staff members, and taking other measures.

①The Prime Minister may provide the heads of local governments with the information on purchasers who require special care for consumer affairs and other information provided by Cabinet Office Order regarding the local residents of the local governments as long as the information is necessary for Ensuring Consumer Safety, when requested by the heads of local governments, pursuant to Cabinet Office Order provisions.

②The head of a local government may provide the head of another local government with information obtained in the course of administrative processes for consumer affairs consultations concerning the local residents of the local government, as long as the information is necessary for Ensuring Consumer Safety, when requested by the head of another local government, pursuant to the Cabinet Office Order provisions.

③The president of the National Consumer Affairs Center of Japan may provide the head of a local government with information obtained in the course of mediation for processing a complaint between an Enterprise and a Consumer and information obtained in the course of business for the consultation involving the complaint concerning the local residents of the local government, as long as the information is necessary for Ensuring Consumer Safety, when requested by the head of the local government, pursuant to the Cabinet Office Order provisions.

①Any organizations of the national and local governments engaging in the administrative processes for protecting and enhancing the interests of a Consumer (hereinafter referred to as "Relevant Institutions" in this Article) may organize a local council for ensuring the safety of consumers composed of Relevant Institutions for the purpose of effectively and smoothly implementing measures for Ensuring Consumer Safety in the territory of the local governments (hereinafter referred to as "Council").

②The Relevant Institutions that organize a Council pursuant to the preceding paragraph may add hospitals, educational institutions, consumer affairs support groups or consumer affairs supporters mentioned in Article 11-7, paragraph (1), and other relevant parties as the members of the Council, when such an addition is considered necessary.

①A Council is to exchange necessary information and discuss measures for Ensuring Consumer Safety, in order to achieve the aim described in the preceding Article.

②The members of a Council (referred to as "Members" in the following paragraph) are to adequately correspond with Consumers who require special care for consumer affairs, monitor the situation thereof, and take other necessary measures in order to Ensure Consumer Safety, in accordance with the results of the discussion mentioned in the preceding paragraph.

③If a Council finds it necessary to do so for exchanging information or having discussions as provided in paragraph (1), or other Members make a request regarding a Member's activities for Ensuring Consumer Safety or as provided by Cabinet Office Order, a Council may request Members to provide information on Consumers who require special care for consumer affairs, state an opinion, or cooperate as necessary.

④The general affairs of a Council are to be dealt with by the local government that constitutes the Council.

Any of those who engage or engaged in the administrative processes of a Council must not divulge confidential information learned in the course of those administrative processes.

Beyond what is provided for in the preceding three Articles, all necessary particulars for the organization and operation of a Council are to be provided by the Council.

①The heads of local governments may appoint consumer affairs support groups or consumer affairs supporters from private-sector entities or individuals that conduct activities for protecting or enhancing the interests of a Consumer.

②Consumer affairs support groups and consumer affairs supporters are to carry out the following activities:

③The heads of local governments must endeavor to hold training and take other necessary measures so that consumer affairs support groups and consumer affairs supporters will contribute to the activities set forth in the items of the preceding paragraph.

Any of the officers or personnel of consumer affairs support groups or consumer affairs supporters or those who were any of them must not divulge any confidential information learned in the course of the activities set forth in the items of paragraph (2) of the preceding Article.

The registration of a testing organization mentioned in Article 10-3, paragraph (1) (hereinafter referred to as "Registration") is to be conducted after a person planning to conduct the tasks for implementing a test (hereinafter referred to as "Testing Tasks") applies.

If a person who has applied for the Registration pursuant to the preceding Article (hereinafter referred to as "an Applicant for Registration" in paragraph (1) of the following Article) falls under one of the following items, the Prime Minister must not register the Applicant for Registration:

①If an Applicant for Registration satisfies all of the following requirements, the Prime Minister must register the Applicant for Registration. To do so, the necessary procedures for completing Registration are provided by Cabinet Office Order:

②Registration is to be completed when the following particulars are written in the registry of a Registered Testing Organization:

①A Registration becomes invalid if it is not updated within the timeframe of between five and ten years (inclusive) as provided by Cabinet Order.

②The provisions of the preceding three Articles apply mutatis mutandis to the update of a Registration as mentioned in the preceding paragraph.