CPSC fireworks devices rule part 1507.

Scope and what happens on failure

Section 1507.1 states the scope: "This part 1507 prescribes requirements for those fireworks devices (other than firecrackers) not otherwise banned under the act. Any fireworks device (other than firecrackers) which fails to conform to applicable requirements is a banned hazardous substance and is prohibited from the channels of interstate commerce." It adds a limit: a device "not otherwise banned under the act shall not be a banned hazardous substance by virtue of the fact that there are no applicable requirements prescribed herein." Part 1500 supplies the other half. Section 1500.17(a)(9) bans fireworks devices, other than firecrackers, "including kits and components intended to produce such fireworks, not otherwise banned under the act, that do not comply with the applicable requirements of part 1507."

Two other fireworks bans in 1500.17(a) sit alongside this part. Devices intended to produce audible effects with a charge of more than 2 grains of pyrotechnic composition are banned under (a)(3), and firecrackers with a charge of more than 50 milligrams (0.772 grains) under (a)(8). Part 1507 is about the construction of what remains.

Prohibited chemicals

Section 1507.2 says fireworks devices "shall not contain" any of these: (a) arsenic sulfide, arsenates or arsenites; (b) boron; (c) chlorates, with three exceptions; (d) gallates or gallic acid; (e) magnesium, although magnesium/aluminum alloys called magnalium are permitted; (f) mercury salts; (g) phosphorus, red or white, except that red phosphorus is permissible in caps and party poppers; (h) picrates or picric acid; (i) thiocyanates; (j) titanium, except in particle size greater than 100-mesh; and (k) zirconium.

The chlorate exceptions are narrow: colored smoke mixtures in which an equal or greater amount of sodium bicarbonate is included; caps and party poppers; and small items such as ground spinners where the total powder content does not exceed 4 grams, of which not more than 15 percent (or 600 milligrams) is potassium, sodium or barium chlorate.

Fuses

A device that needs a fuse must "utilize only a fuse that has been treated or coated in such manner as to reduce the possibility of side ignition," and must "utilize only a fuse which will burn at least 3 seconds but not more than 9 seconds before ignition of the device" (1507.3(a)). Devices such as ground spinners with a restricted orifice and less than 6 grams of pyrotechnic composition are exempt from the side-ignition coating requirement, not from the burn time.

Paragraph (b) addresses attachment: the fuse "shall be securely attached so that it will support either the weight of the fireworks device plus 8 ounces of dead weight or double the weight of the device, whether is less, without separation from the fireworks device." The word "whether" appears in the published text where "whichever" is meant; this page quotes it as published.

Bases, leakage, burnout and handles

The base or bottom of a device operated standing upright "shall have the minimum horizontal dimensions or the diameter of the base equal to at least one-third of the height of the device including any base or cap affixed thereto" (1507.4). The pyrotechnic chamber must be sealed "in a manner that prevents leakage of the pyrotechnic composition during shipping, handling, and normal operation" (1507.5) and constructed to function normally "without burnout or blowout" (1507.6).

Hand-held devices labeled as such need a handle at least 4 inches long, firmly attached through transport, handling and full operation, or an integral section of the device at least four inches below the pyrotechnic chamber (1507.7(a)). Spikes provided with a device must protrude at least 2 inches from the base and have a blunt tip not less than 1/8 inch in diameter or 1/8 inch square (1507.7(b)).

Specific device types

Wheel devices must have drivers securely attached, and those operating in a fixed location must keep the axle attached (1507.8). Toy smoke devices must neither burst nor produce external flame apart from the fuse and first fire, may not look like banned fireworks such as M-80 salutes, silver salutes or cherry bombs, and may not use plastic as an exterior material where the composition contacts it (1507.9). Rockets with sticks need a straight, rigid stick that stays attached (1507.10). Party poppers "shall not contain more than 0.25 grains of pyrotechnic composition" (1507.11).

For multiple-tube mine and shell devices with any tube 1.5 inches (3.8 cm) or more in inside diameter, 1507.12 adds a tip test: the device is placed on a smooth surface inclined at 60 degrees from the horizontal, with a mechanical stop 1/16 inch high, and "shall not tip over when the plane is inclined at 60-degrees from the horizontal," repeated for each edge. Figure 1 to that section is an image and is not reproduced here.

Worked example

A small ground spinner has a fuse that burns 5 seconds before ignition, which sits inside the 3 to 9 second window. A hand-held sparkler-style device is sold with a 3.5 inch handle: that is under the 4 inch figure, so it does not meet 1507.7(a). A tall upright fountain is 9 inches high with a 2.5 inch base; one-third of 9 is 3 inches, so the base is too small under 1507.4. A party popper holding 0.3 grains is over the 0.25 grain limit. The checker above runs those comparisons; any one failing reading means the device does not meet the written value.

Limits of this page

The tool compares numbers you enter with numbers in the text. It cannot determine chemical content, whether a device is hand-held or is "so labeled," whether it falls under the firecracker rules in 1500.17, or whether state or local law forbids it. Federal law is only one layer, and many jurisdictions restrict consumer fireworks differently. The page is a reading of the CFR, not compliance advice.

Sources

Sources opened and read November 2, 2026.

• eCFR: 16 CFR part 1507, fireworks devices (current through October 29, 2026) (read November 2, 2026)