The
Made in USA mark is a country of origin label indicating the product is "
all or virtually all" made in the U.S. The label is regulated by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).
U.S. goods must be disclosed on automobiles and textile, wool, and fur products. No law requires most other products sold in the U.S. to be marked or labeled Made in USA or have any other disclosure about their amount of U.S. content. However, manufacturers and marketers and Persons who choose to make claims about the amount of U.S. content in their products must comply with the FTC’s Made in USA policy.
A Made in USA claim can be expressed (for example, "American-made") or implied. In identifying implied claims, the Commission focuses on the overall impression of the advertising, label, or promotional material. Depending on the context, U.S. symbols or geographic references (for example, U.S. flags, outlines of U.S. maps, or references to U.S. locations of headquarters or factories) may convey a claim of U.S. origin either by themselves, or in conjunction with other phrases or images.
In 1996 the FTC [1] proposed that the requirement be stated as:
It will not be considered a deceptive practice for a marketer to make an unqualified U.S. origin claim if, at the time it makes the claim, the marketer possesses and relies upon competent and reliable evidence that: (1) U.S. manufacturing costs constitute 75% of the total manufacturing costs for the product; and (2) the product was last substantially transformed in the United States.
However, this was just a
proposal and Never became part of the final guidelines which were published in the Federal Register [2] in 1997.
Assembled in USA
A product that includes foreign components may be called "Assembled in USA" without qualification when its principal assembly takes place in the U.S. and the assembly is substantial. For the "assembly" claim to be valid, the product's "
last substantial transformation" also should have occurred in the U.S.
A "screwdriver" assembly in the U.S. of foreign components into a final product at the end of the manufacturing process
does Not usually qualify for the "Assembled in USA" claim. [..........]