Guides for the Mirror Industry

The Guides for the Mirror Industry were promulgated in 1962 to prevent deception in the sale and marketing of mirrors for decorative and utilitarian uses with respect to the material content of the glass from which mirrors were made and the method by which the backing was affixed to mirrors. When the Mirror Guides were adopted, the process used to manufacture glass for mirrors was not uniform and there were no industry standards that regulated quality, reflectivity, or durability of mirrors. Since that time, the glass industry, and as a result the mirror industry, have undergone significant changes. First, mirrors are no longer made from ``plate glass'' or ``sheet glass,'' both of which produced mirrors with a high level of distortion. Today, all commercial glass manufacturers use the Pilkington process to manufacture float glass. This process produces high quality glass that is almost distortion-free. Second, industry standards have been promulgated that govern the quality, acceptable levels of distortion, reflectivity and durability of glass suitable for use in mirrors. Third, the process used to affix copper backing to mirrors has undergone significant technological improvement that lessens, if not eliminates, the potential for deception as to the type of backing used. Finally, due to technological changes, industry participants consider much of the terminology used in the Mirror Guides to be obsolete. These facts appear to make the Mirror Guides obsolete and unnecessary. Because of these changes, the Commission has determined that it is in the public interest to rescind the Guides for the Mirror Industry.