Let's start by saying that both versions will improve our very broken product safety system. Both give more resources to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, and both reduce children's exposure to lead in toys and other children's products.
But the House bill is stronger in a few key ways. It gives the CPSC the authority to immediately cease the distribution of recalled products when it determines they pose a significant risk to public safety. The Senate bill has no such emergency provision. The House bill also contains strong conflict-of-interest provisions like an outright ban on industry-paid travel by CPSC members and employees and inspection of proprietary testing laboratories. Finally, it requires the agency to run television and radio ads so that people will know when unsafe products have been recalled. Currently, most recalled products stay in circulation, and most people don't go check the items in their home against agency lists.
On the other hand, the Senate version contains some necessary provisions that are not in the House version. For example, on May 28th, the National Association of Attorneys General filed this comment, asking the conference committee to clarify that it does not intend to limit existing state powers to adopt safety regulations for a state's citizens.
Say the AGs:
...we believe that in enacting H.R. 4040 Congress intends that the new federal enforcement powers will supplement existing state enforcement authorities, not displace them. Section 20(d) of the Senate version of H.R. 4040 makes it clear that the new federal enforcement tools are meant to coexist with current state authority:
"Nothing in this section shall prevent the attorney general of a State from exercising the powers conferred on the attorney general, or other authorized State officer, by the laws of such State. Nothing in this section shall prohibit the attorney general of a State, or other authorized State officer, from proceeding in State or Federal court on the basis of an alleged violation of any civil or criminal statute of that State."
Without this clarifying language, the new law could inadvertently impede the ability of state officials to protect the safety of our children. We therefore urge Congress to include this important provision in the final version of the bill.
The Senate bill also makes all toy companies abide by a toy safety and testing standard that is currently only optional. Although this existing standard was created with toy company input and is already in use by most companies, the House version of the bill would only require the agency to study it. As millions of toys continue to be recalled, this toy testing standard should be applied to all toy companies now—this would be safer for consumers and more fair to the toy companies that are already abiding by it.
And finally, only the Senate bill actually requires the immediate creation of a public, online database of reported safety problems. We believe that you have a right to information about new product hazards so that you can be an informed purchaser, and so the information that other consumers already know and have experienced can be shared with others.
Some of these differences have already been resolved by the conferees, but the application of safety standards to all toys, the public database of safety problems, and the question of state authority remain on the table. That's why we need your help! Take a moment to make that phone call.
One night, he and his wife Carolyn heard screams from their 14-month old daughter, Abigail’s, room. Her crib had partially collapsed. Andrew contacted the manufacturer—they told him it was an isolated incident. He reported the incident to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, and 48 days later the crib was recalled after 85 reported incidents.
Shelby Esses’ son fell into a coma after ingesting Aqua Dots. While he was comatose, Shelby asked her family to scour store shelves searching for the ingredients in Aqua Dots. She also asked the manufacturer for the ingredients list, informing them of her son’s illness. As the company did their own research, Shelby’s hospital found that the ingredients metabolized into a chemical similar to the date rape drug, and a few days later the product was recalled. Thankfully, her son recovered completely.
Colton Burkhart, who swallowed a lead medallion from a vending machine, continues to struggle with the effects of lead poisoning. His experience resulted in the largest recall in U.S. history – 150 million vending machine trinkets. Even after chelation therapy and constant supervision, his lead levels are still high and if he breaks a bone or has a growth spurt his lead levels will rise.
Tate Leisy told his son’s harrowing ordeal after swallowing magnets from their Magnetix toy. Tate did not know the magnets has fallen out from the toy and watched his son, Tegan, suffer in the hospital for several days. Tegan needed emergency surgery. Doctors found 11 holes in his stomach along with 6-8 magnets. They removed 6 inches of his intestines.
Lavina Bowman’s son, Devlin, suffered a similar experience. Devlin swallowed magnets from his sister’s Polly Pockets dolls. Suddenly screaming in pain, they rushed him to the hospital, where he was sent by ambulance to another hospital over 180 miles away for emergency surgery.
The powerful little magnets in so many children’s toys are very, very dangerous. Millions of toys were ultimately recalled before Christmas because the magnets fell out and could be picked up and swallowed by toddlers. More toys have been recalled after the holidays for lead and other hazards. Unfortunately, most recalled products are never returned to the manufacturer and remain in circulation. That’s why recalls are not enough. Products should be safe for kids before they get to our store shelves.
After telling their stories to the press and others who gathered to listen, each family visited with the Senate offices from each of their states, sometimes meeting personally with their Senator. Legislation to significantly improve product safety (S. 2045) is now in the Senate, and will soon get a vote. These families made a huge contribution, and we hope to be celebrating a victory for safety very soon.
Joining Consumers Union at the event were bill sponsor Senator Pryor and our partners in support of this legislation, Consumer Federation of America, Kids in Danger, Union of Concerned Scientists, U.S. Public Interest Research Group and Public Citizen.
But who is she really?
She penned an op-ed [purchase required] in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch opposing tougher restrictions on power-plant emissions for “Americans for Balanced Energy Choices,” a nonprofit funded by utilities, railroads and mining companies.
Charnley argued:
Despite the significant investments in technology and the dramatic reductions that will occur as a result of the EPA’s national rule, Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich and the state EPA want much stricter mercury regulations for Illinois power plants. These regulations would likely place Illinois businesses and jobs at the competitive disadvantage compared with states that conform to the federal rule.
In her view, stronger mercury emissions standards hurt business.
She also co-authored a study on human testing of pesticides funded in part by…you guessed it, pesticide makers!
And she was a tobacco industry consultant from the early 90s through 2001.
Everyone has to make a living, but the next CPSC leader must demonstrate that the agency is independent and free of conflicts.
Leisure Guy argues convincingly that the White House has used the CPSC to put business interests over the public interest.
We need someone we can count on to run the CPSC, someone who understands what it means to protect the public from “unreasonable risks of serious injury or death from more than 15,000 types of consumer products.” We need some better options. Do you know someone who should be the next CPSC chairman? Tell us!
Consumers Union, the nonprofit publisher of Consumer Reports, asks that you publicly support real food safety and product safety reform. We must reduce the lead and other dangerous substances in toys, holiday decorations, and every other product that Americans buy. The increased volume of food and toy imports are posing new challenges. Whether it is a holiday side dish, an electrical cord, a tree ornament, a crib, or a doll, it should be safe and comply with US safety standards.
We have long known the dangers of lead, and yet it appears at high levels in toys our toddlers put in their mouths. We have long understood that major manufacturing has now moved overseas. That does not relieve companies of responsibility for the safety of the products that come back to our shores and our shelves.
We ask that you agree with us on the following key reforms. Even if you do not agree, we ask that you post your position publicly on your campaign website so that voters will know how you recommend we solve this serious, national problem.
-- Stronger standards. The Consumer Product Safety Commission's current lead standards too lax and are out of date. The level of lead allowed in products should be reviewed and reduced. There is no safe level of lead and small children are the most vulnerable to lead's toxic effects.
-- Increased inspection. The CPSC has only half the staff it had when it opened in 1973. Both FDA and CPSC inspect less than 1 percent of imports. They must have more inspectors and product testers to police the market and ensure that all products meet our safety standards.
-- Real enforcement power. All agencies with enforcement authority should have the power to levy meaningful civil penalties for manufacturers, importers, distributors and retailers who fail to comply with regulations and criminal penalties for the executives of those companies who knowingly jeopardize public safety.
-- Independent certification. Independent, government accredited laboratories must ensure that imports meet U.S. safety standards. Products should be required to be tested --before they wind up on our shelves. And US inspectors should be able to visit, and where necessary license foreign production facilities that want to export to US markets.
-- Greater retailer responsibility. Retailers must be required to remove all recalled products from shelves promptly, post prominent recall notices, and continue to check products for safety. It should be against the law to sell all recalled products. The retailer is the last stop before a product is bought and must play a role in assuring its safety.
-- Recall authority. Food recalls today are "voluntary" so the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has to negotiate its recall requests with companies. FDA and USDA should have mandatory recall authority so that they can insure the quick removal of unsafe food from the shelves.
-- Greater public disclosure. The public has a right to know about any reports of unsafe products on the market. All government agencies should be required to publicly disclose information about safety investigations and reports of adverse events.
-- Country of Origin information. Consumers have a right to know where the food and products we buy are from. A product traceability program for consumer products, including their components and ingredients, needs to be put in place. And food, as well as consumer products, should be labeled with country of origin.
Thank you in advance for your consideration and quick response. To contact Consumers Union with your position, please email me, Don Mays at action [at] consumer.org. Please provide the link where you post your position to your campaign website.
Don Mays
Senior Director, Product Safety for Consumer Reports and
NotInMyCart.org
A project of Consumers Union
101 Truman Ave.
Yonkers, NY 10703
"Lead in old paint is a problem, and lead in toys is also a problem. Both can harm children, and which one is the worst for a particular child depends on whether the child has lead toys, or lives in an old house, or both. Addressing lead in toys does not prevent anyone from addressing lead in house paint.
Both problems should be addressed, and so should lack of medical care for uninsured children and a lot of other problems. Do we only address one problem at a time that affect kids and ignore all the other ones because they are not the “worst” problem? Obviously not. Lead in toys is an easy problem to solve, and we should solve it, not ignore it because some other problem might be worse for some children."
Thanks, Brett, for the chance to talk to your audience of concerned parents and thanks for everything you are doing to get the word out!
]]>Consumers Union has 12 shopping tips that will help families enjoy a safe and merry holiday:
1. Do not buy metal jewelry – especially cheap metal jewelry – for young children. About 20 percent of children’s metal jewelry has high levels of lead lurking beneath the surface coating. A child who mouths or accidentally swallows a piece of lead-laden jewelry can suffer lead poisoning.
2. You can test toys for lead by using a home lead test kit. Although they are not always accurate, a positive test result indicates a high likelihood that the product you’re testing has lead. Consumer Reports recommends the Lead Check and the Lead Inspector, which performed best in our tests.
3. Be careful of toys with magnets. Many toys have small magnets that can fall out and, if swallowed, can cause serious health problems that are hard to diagnose. Don’t buy toys with magnetic parts that are small enough to be swallowed.
4. If you find loose, small magnets anywhere around the house, track down the source. Immediately take the product and any of its other magnetic components away from your child and contact the manufacturer and the Consumer Product Safety Commission at www.CPSC.gov.
5. Avoid no-name products and be careful of toys purchased at dollar stores, street fairs, vending machines, thrift stores, or yard sales.
6. When purchasing arts and crafts materials, stay away from permanent paints and markers. Look for water-based paints and glues. For a child under three years old, purchase age-appropriate material that your child can’t swallow rather than small foam pieces or small pom-pom balls.
7. Look for the age grading on toy packages and purchase only age-appropriate toys for your child. The age grading not only relates to play value but also to safety.
8. Some toys may be inappropriate for your toddlers and babies. Toys labeled for children 3 and over may have small parts that can be a choking hazard for children under 3 years old. If you have children under 3 don’t buy a toy with this warning label.
9. Do your own safety check to determine if your child’s toys are choking hazards for young children. If his or her toy fits through a toilet-paper tube, it is a potential choking hazard. The government-approved test for choking hazards is done with a smaller tube. The more stringent toilet-paper tube test helps you keep questionable toys out of your child’s hands and mouth.
10. Beware of toys that can be broken into smaller pieces such as chalk, crayons, or caps from markers. They can pose choking hazards to toddlers and babies.
11. Small balls, tricycles, and balloons are the leading causes of death attributed to toys. Balls less than 1-3/4 inches in diameter can pose a choking hazard to young children. Balloons were associated with more than 110 deaths since 1973. Children can suffocate while trying to blow up a balloon or while chewing on or sucking a balloon.
12. Before you shop, check recent toy recalls at www.recalls.gov and at www.notinmycart.org. You can also sign up for automatic recall notifications at www.cpsc.gov.]]>
It is time to do something about this, which is why Consumers Union has launched the “Twelve Days of Safe Shopping” campaign.
Bloggers all over the net are already talking about it:
All I Want for Christmas Is a Toy That Won’t Kill My Kids
All I Want for Christmas Is… Safe Toys
Alternative Gift Ideas to Hazardous Toys
A Plan for Buying Safe Toys - What’s Yours?
A Toy That is Safe. What More Could a Mom Ask For?
Back to Playing With Wooden Spoons
But Those Toys are Too Expensive, So I’m Just Going to Buy DVDs
Christmas is Com…(Shut Yo’ Mouth)
Denying James to an Autistic Boy
Don’t Put Me in This Position Again
Get the Lead Out and Throw the Toys Out
Get the Lead Out: Safe Holiday Shopping
Go On. Just Try to Get the Lead Out.
Hippy Dippy Becomes Mainstream
Holiday Shopping and the Toy Recalls
Lead-Laden Toys Were Scary Enough
Lead Painted Toys: Whatcha Gonna Do?
League of Maternal Justice and Parent Bloggers Network - Blog Campaign Against Toxic Toys
Merry Christmas! Have a Rock and Some Sticks
Motherbumper Doesn’t Like Getting Mad…
Parents Magazine Just Doesn’t Get It
Sorry Toys, You Are Under Arrest
The Island of Misfit Toy Testers
Three, No, Four Reasons Why I’m Glad My Kids Are Too Old for Toys
Toy Recall: Coating Metabolizes to GHB
What Are You Doing About the Toy Recall?
Would You Let Your Kid Take the Date Rape Drug?
Please help us spread the word, sign up or grab a widget and blog about this important effort.
According to last week's International Herald Tribune:
Representative Michael Burgess, a Republican, won his Texas seat five years ago as a free-trade proponent and has been a reliable vote for each of the seven market-opening agreements sent to Congress since then.No more. When U.S. companies this year recalled millions of Chinese-made toys and a local news station reported that imported flip-flops caused painful foot rashes, Burgess changed his stance.
"In my household, if it's made in China, it does not come home," Burgess, a 56-year-old lawmaker, told Mattel's chief executive, Robert Eckert at a recent hearing.
"It's one thing to talk about free trade," Burgess said in an interview. "It's a whole different issue when it comes to safety."
No matter where you fall on the free trade spectrum, you want to know that the toys your toddlers slobber over are free of lead. And I'm betting it wouldn't be enough just to label the toys as "made with lead" and let the market decide.
Senator Mark Pryor, a Democrat who voted against his party and for the Central American Free Trade Agreement in 2005, has offered some solutions that other lawmakers are getting behind. His bill would require independent safety inspections of all imported toys, allow all 50 U.S. state attorneys general to enforce product-safety laws, increase penalties for selling unsafe products, and give you more information that companies have about the safety of their products.
We'll keep you up to date as this good proposal moves through the process.
]]>They continue to find more items with lead-laden paint, particularly those plastic buckets we buy for our kids to use Trick-or-Treating. That's not so great.
Yesterday, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission recalled 142,000 plastic buckets with a green witch design because the green paint contains excessive levels of lead. Before that, the agency called for the return of 55,000 white skull pails, also designed for kids to carry on their Halloween trick-or-treat outings. And on October 14th, Dollar General and the CPSC pulled down 63,000 green, skull shaped drinking cups due to excess lead in the paint used for the eyes.
So what should you do in the few days before Halloween? Well, you can use the best home lead test kits to check the items your kids will use on Halloween. Or your kids can trick-or-treat using items unlikely to be encumbered by lead-laden paint, like paper grocery bags.
And of course, you should take a moment to help us pass real safety reforms that will stop the unsafe imports from reaching our store shelves in the first place. Just click on "Take Action" above. If you have already sent your letter to Congress, tell your friends and family to visit www.notinmycart.org so they can help out, too!
Spelling correction made, 10/29/2007--thanks to our good readers for pointing it out! :)
]]>The chairman of the Consumer Product Safety Commission says a Senate bill that would more than double the agency's budget and expand its authority would be too difficult for the agency to implement and "put the American people at greater risk."
"It is my and the CPSC staff's assessment that many of our existing public safety activities would have to be severely curtailed or would cease entirely in order to attempt to fulfill all of the bill's proposed statutory directives," acting chairman Nancy Nord wrote Wednesday in a letter to Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Daniel K. Inouye (D-Hawaii). The Senate Commerce subcommittee on consumer affairs is expected to take up the bill next week.
The agency didn't comment in the article on the fact that the new legislation will more than double its budget and raise its staff to meet the new requirements (and better handle the old ones). And the new authority will make it easier and less time consuming to quickly respond when dangerous products are found in the market--whether found by consumers, industry, or whistleblowers.
Agency officials claim that the new law would bring the CSPC too much information about unsafe products. Higher penalties for companies and protection for whistleblowers will mean that more potentially unsafe products will be reported.
Acting Chairman Nancy Nord told the Post that a lower penalty would reduce the incentive for companies to report unsafe products, and ensure that only the worst unsafe products come before the agency. But that means that she believes that lots of potentially unsafe products should not be reported. Industry, with a reduced and manageable penalty, could afford to let some unsafe products go unreported and just pay the fine as a cost of doing business.
Do you want penalties to be set at a level that encourages companies and whistleblowers to report anything they think might be a problem, or just some things?
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