CPSIA – Countdown to Crisis, Nine Days To Go

I know of no indication of a CPSC decision on the testing and certification stay scheduled for January 31, yesterday. You and I and your business and my business can wait to see the puff of white smoke from the CPSC chimney when they are good and ready for you to see it.

I am tempted to speculate on how this persistent state of indecision arose. After all, some of the Democrats on the Commission were adamant in the last go-round that this stay would not be extended. As I recall, Bob Adler expressed deep dislike for stays and promised that this was “it”. One wonders if someone has blocked action on this issue. After all, the Commission is so collegial.

Inaction in the next nine days means that the stay will lift of its own accord.

I suggest that you go into crisis mode. With the law governing your business and your market possibly going to change unfairly and dramatically in the next few days despite the incomplete state of regulations governing mandatory testing, exposing you to possible jail time, you better get working. Or praying.

Hope you aren’t in Chicago, like me – we are expecting the worst snow storm in 44 years today. I guess we’ll begin our panic attack in a day or two.

When will the CPSC take action? Who knows. Take your time, guys! After all, they must really be under the gun. Who could have seen this coming? In December 2009, they gave themselves 14 months to resolve the component testing rule and the absurdly nicknamed “15 Month Rule”, and couldn’t get it done. They couldn’t even respond to the comments they solicited on those shocking and uncomprehending rules. So busy! The last time the stay was about to expire, knowing that they couldn’t or wouldn’t get their work done, they at least had the decency to give ten weeks notice of the stay extension. Not this time.

Maybe they are punishing us because we’ve been bad. Maybe this is the way the CPSC sends us to our rooms. When can we come out of our rooms, CPSC Commission? We promise to be good!

The sick game that the Dems are playing is that the law is fine, and that there is just some sort of hang-up. A snafu. Darn those hang-ups! In fact, the law was misconceived from the start, was never workable, could not be “fixed” by regulatory action – and the Democrats on the Commission were appointed to never admit it. This is Henry Waxman’s signature legislation – Dems are not allowed to criticize it. So today we continue to suffer at their hands. They don’t care about you, your market or even the kids that your business serves. This is all politics – they are just looking up the line, and protecting their political overlords who insisted on this defective law.

Enjoy! As long as the Dems are in control in Bethesda, expect more of the same.

When’s the next election, anyhow?

Read more here:
CPSIA – Countdown to Crisis, Nine Days To Go

CPSIA – WSJ Profiles RW in Article on Business Backlash

POLITICS
OCTOBER 12, 2010

Business Backlash Grows

By ELIZABETH WILLIAMSON

VERNON HILLS, Ill.—Rick Woldenberg runs an educational-products company from a suburban Chicago office stacked with brightly colored toys. He supported President Barack Obama in 2008. But he has turned on Democrats this year.

Sally Ryan for The Wall Street Journal

Rick Woldenberg, chairman of Learning Resources in Chicago, backed President Barack Obama in 2008 but is now raising money for Republicans.

Mr. Woldenberg is angry that Congress and the Obama administration won’t revise expansive new rules on lead testing in children’s products that he says will kill his business, Learning Resources Inc. So he is raising money for Republicans among Chicago business owners to help the GOP—so much money that he is rattling the incumbent in what has been one of the safest Democratic seats in Mr. Obama’s home state.

“If Democrats are going to put me out of business, I’m going to put them out of business first,” he said.

Disaffected business owners like Mr. Woldenberg have emerged as a potent force in the 2010 campaign. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which plans to spend $75 million in this election cycle, says it has exceeded its targets for raising money from small businesses every quarter this year, despite the poor economy. More small-business candidates are running for public office than at any time in a generation, say officials at the National Federation of Independent Business, the capital’s chief small-business lobby.

Business contributions are fueling campaign efforts by conservative and business groups, which are gearing up to spend as much as $300 million to help Republicans this fall.

Mr. Obama and Congressional Democrats have wooed small-business owners with a series of tax breaks and a $30 billion lending program that was the centerpiece of a Small Business Jobs Act Mr. Obama signed last week at a White House ceremony attended by a group of supportive entrepreneurs.

But many small-business owners still fault Mr. Obama and Congressional Democrats for what they see as a costly explosion of new rules and regulations.

“I think Obama ran as more of a moderate, and business people here are now realizing that this huge expansion of government is not sustainable,” said Leo Dombrowski, an attorney at Wildman, Harrold, Allen & Dixon LLP in Chicago, whose clients are fighting new environmental rules.

Mr. Woldenberg has helped raise more than $470,000 for Joel Pollak, a 32-year old Harvard Law School graduate who is challenging Rep. Jan Schakowsky in Chicago’s 9th district, a friend of Mr. Obama who is an author and ardent defender of the new children’s-product lead law. That’s 20 times more than any Republican has ever raised for a run against Ms. Schakowsky, who won 75% of the vote in the last election and is vying for a 7th term.

“This is a war,” he said. “Individuals can make a difference, and I want my kids to see it.”

Over the past few months, Mr. Pollak said, he and Mr. Woldenberg have been trying to tap into “donors residing outside the district with a strong business or personal motivation.” The Pollak campaign scored a fundraising appearance by Republican economic policy star Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin. Mr. Pollak took the podium and pointed out Schakowsky campaign manager Alex Armour, who was in the crowd videotaping the event.

Ms. Schakowsky is polling at slightly more than 60%, according to her internal polls, a solid lead but narrower than in the past. The campaign has hired four field staffers for the first time, and is sending less money to Democrats in closer races.

“I’m not worried about it, but I’m taking it seriously,” she said. Ms. Schakowsky said Mr. Woldenberg’s success as a fundraiser, is proof that “very cynical … special interests are highly engaged in the campaign.”

As for the lead law, she said she was proud of it. “The goal is to save children from toys that are toxic.”

Mr. Woldenberg’s efforts include addressing 130 people in a Holiday Inn ballroom in suburban Skokie, Ill., during Mr. Pollak’s “Chicagoland Business Breakfast” in late September.

He held up a “box of rocks,” the company’s igneous rock collection kit, and read its new consumer warning.

“Caution: federal law requires us to advise that the rocks in this educational product may contain lead and might be harmful if swallowed,’” he read, to laughter.

“This is humiliating,” he said, ticking off the costs of the law. “I’m hoping Joel can help us.”

Two dozen attendees took the microphone, voicing concerns with health-care, tax, environmental and workplace rules. They included Jay Stieber, vice president of restaurant chain Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises Inc., and chairman of the Illinois Restaurant Association, who has his headquarters in the 9th district. He and his family have contributed the maximum $4,800 to Mr. Pollak.

“The hospitality industry is the biggest employer in Illinois, and my partners and I have been lifelong Democrats,” he said, but changed sides because “I can’t stand here and tell you what health-care is going to cost.”

Write to Elizabeth Williamson at elizabeth.williamson@wsj.com

Read more here:
CPSIA – WSJ Profiles RW in Article on Business Backlash

GUEST BLOG – Jolie Fay’s Story

I was not sure what all to tell. Narrowing down the story to a blog, or even a short conversation has been a challenge.

Do I mention that we are not “unintended consequences” but rather, “collateral damage”?

Do I bring up the seniors I help who are so old they do chair Tia-chi, who can afford lunch only when they can make it to the senior center, but have made wooden trucks for 40 years?

Do I bring up the fact that with NO notice to this cottage industry we are forced in the middle of the supply chain to test our products because large toy companies were breaking an already existing law?

Too much…too much to tell, so this is what I wrote. Just my story.

In November 2008 I learned about the CPSIA.

I thought that was the beginning of my journey with this law, but I realize now that my journey began when I was seven years old and participating in my first craft show with my mom. I was selling anything I could make, mostly small animals I had made from pom-poms, felt, glue and little googley eyes. Before age 12, I added to my “line” a small army of “pet rocks,” cats cradle kits, quilt patches, purses, and many, many other kids’ crafts.

When planning my family, I decided to start a business that would allow me to stay at home with my children. I started with what I knew, crafty-ness, sewing skills and some of my favorite memories of my childhood, reinvented. One thing lead to another, and before my daughter was a year old I had a business that would eventually help us buy a house in San Francisco.

Time passed, my business grew and so did my family. It was amazing being there to watch both of my daughters take their VERY first steps on their own, to be the one they turned to when they got hurt, to be their mother. I loved being there, and I knew I would not be in that situation without the money from my little on-line business.

We sold our house in San Francisco and moved to Portland, Oregon in March 2008. At the time, my business was strong. My line was growing and investing in my business seemed like the right move. My husband agreed and we invested a large portion of the profits from selling our house into my business.

I bought supplies and began production. When I bought the supplies, what I was making was legal to sell, but in August 2008, unbeknownst to me at the time, my life was taking a U-turn.

By November 2008 we felt the effects of the sluggish economy, but my business was still surviving and I felt optimistic about our future

Then I got the email: “if you make ANY products for kids, this law [CPSIA] affects you!”

I have to admit I ignored the first 20 or so emails, because I could not believe that my little sew-in-my-basement business was being forced into the same regulations as Mattel without any warning. As the days went on, and the number of emails I received grew, I realized my dream was crashing around me.

I called the lab, got the quote and did the math. CPSIA-mandated testing costs for my little product line was over $27,000 for just over $30,000 worth of product. I cannot express the horrible feeling I had when I realized that I had made a mistake that was going to cost my family all of our money. In the business world, companies recover. In my case, I WAS the company and what family can recover from a loss that huge? I was not only losing my investment, but I was also losing my source of income.

With the February 10, 2009 deadline to comply with the new lead standard only weeks away, the panic took over and I was fighting with everything I had to reach someone who would help make this nightmare go away.

I found a group of people nearby who were renting an XRF scanner, and I rented it for 24 hours. I tested every single item, every color way, every button style, every fabric piece, every color and style of trim…I tested in my tiny basement, next to my washer and dryer, for 15 hours. I was driven by a fear that I cannot describe. I needed to know that when I called every person in DC that I could think of, I could be certain that I had a product that was safe in March 2008 and continued to be safe, even though I did not have $27,000 to test my products to prove it.

I would wake up at 5am Portland time, to begin calling everyone imaginable in Washington, DC — any number I could find. I had never been politically active before and had NO IDEA how things worked. I genuinely believed that some Congressman would take my call and realize that a mistake had been made. I would start to tell my story, pacing between my washing machine and computer, crying to these aids who would reply “Thank you for your call. I will pass your message on.” I could just feel the rolling of their eyes and bored posture as I was begging them to let me talk to someone who could help me.

By 8 am, when my girls were up, I would be so emotionally drained and my spirit was crushed. I did this for weeks and it was truly one of the most painful times of my life.

The days passed, the fight went on. I would ask these aides and CPSC staffers “what do I do? Should I just throw it all away?” and their response would be “I cannot tell you what to do.” I was begging for help and they would only give me “I cannot tell you what to do.”.

Eventually the CPSC did issue some rulings that prevented my having to throw all my products in the garbage. However, these rulings were to few and too infrequent. CPSIA is going to doom my business. The testing costs, the paperwork, the liability and for what? Will my products be
any safer? No, instead there will be no products.

I have invested thousands of hours in trying to get the CPSIA changed to allow crafters – young and old – to continue their craft. The time I spent trying to bring common sense to the CPSIA was time I was not investing in my business. I was afraid to let up the fight because I was not seeing anyone else fighting for ME.

Where was my Senator, who told the crowd “folks, we did this for safety”?

Where was the ombudsman to help guide the way at the CPSC? (Surprise! There STILL is not a position at the CPSC to help the crafters, the stay-at-home moms who use skill and time to help feed their kids).

Where were the Congressmen who represent me and the seniors who have made SAFE children’s products for 50 years, and who can barely afford lunch and would NEVER be able to afford testing?

Who is looking out for the children who will learn from their mothers how to nurture their entrepreneurial spirit?

Last July I hit bottom. I had to turn my children over to daycare workers and join the work force just to keep us in our tiny rented house. My little business that helped us buy a home, that kept me at home with my kids to help them learn and grow, was no longer a safe investment of my time.

This is happening all across the county; women just like me, who are making safe kids’ products, are being forced to end their stay-at-home businesses. Mothers who want to obey the law, who are afraid of the consequences of NOT obeying the law, are making the choice to give up their dream to keep their children warm and fed.

We need a law that does not make us criminals. We MUST have a law that does not criminalize the old, young, and poor because they make safe products that they cannot afford to test.

On the second day of after-school care, I went to pick up my 5 year old daughter from school and the “teacher” pulled us aside as we were leaving. She said, “Jane had a tough day today, she did not want to be here. She wanted to be with her mom.” The “teacher” continued, “I am a grandmother and I know how to deal with this, so I took her by the hand and walked her to the mirror and said, ‘Jane, look at your face. Look at how UGLY you look when you cry.’”

I blame every one of the Energy and Commerce legislative staffers for the emotional injury to my daughter that day. She should be home with me, being raised by a mother who believes in the American spirit of hard work, integrity, and honesty.

She should be home with me while I continue my business of making safe children’s products.

She should be home with me, making pet rocks (illegal to sell today) and having fun making pom-pom animals with her mother – like the ones we used to sell at the local Saturday market.

My daughter is the CPSIA casualty of the week.

Blog post written by Jolie Fay, founder of Skipping Hippos clothing (www.skippinghippos.com) in Portland, OR and a
Board Member of the Handmade Toy Alliance

Read more here:
GUEST BLOG – Jolie Fay’s Story

CPSIA – It’s Election Season – What are You Doing About it?

We have suffered through two years of savage persecution by an unmoved federal government seemingly bent on our destruction. Now this Democratic Congress is coming up for reelection. What are you going to do???

In my case, I am committed to put my money where my mouth is. I am not content with mere grumbling in a blog – I am getting involved in several races and intend to raise money for candidates who will support a sharp revision of the CPSIA and rein in the expansion of our lardy and intrusive federal government. The goal is to take away the House Energy and Commerce Committee gavel from the bullying and anti-business Henry Waxman. He has proven time and again that he and his staff don’t care about our problems nor are they interested in understanding how our problems will become everyone’s problems in due course. In casting our industry overboard for a misguided legislative scheme designed by consumer groups, he picked sides. Now we get to pick sides ourselves.

Last week, we were pleased to host Joel Pollak, Republican candidate in Illinois’ 9th Congressional district (www.pollakforcongress.com) at our company. We had a spirited Q&A session that left everyone impressed with Joel’s intellect and integrity. Joel is a breath of fresh air, especially in the 9th district, lately represented by Jan Schakowsky, Vice Chair of the Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade and Consumer Protection. Ms. Schakowsky is one of the staunchest defenders of the CPSIA and through her actions, has declared herself an enemy of your companies and everything you do. We support Mr. Pollak in his effort to unseat her. More to the point, we are going to do everything in our power to help Mr. Pollak bring his issues to his constituents and put Ms. Schakowsky to the test.

You can do this, too. In your local district or statewide election, your energy and sense of purpose can be a difference-maker. Host a coffee, volunteer some time, ask the candidate to make an appearance. If you are able to raise funds for the campaign, all the better. If you are not happy with the direction of your country or your government, exercise your Constitutional rights and get involved.

We will never take the gavel away from Henry Waxman through worry, frustration or prayer. We are only going to help ourselves by working hard for candidates who understand our issues and will stand up for the free enterprise system. There is a lot at stake here – the future of your company, the jobs you provide your valued associates, the economic well-being of your customers and suppliers and their employees, not to mention the kids, the families and the schools who depend on your products and use them safely every day. All of those people are counting on you to defend them.

Don’t sit still – it’s time to act. The election is only about four months away. Election day could be a real triumph after years of dire straits and frustrations. There’s still time to fix the CPSC and this law – but we all must do our part. A new Congress is a good place to start.

I hope you will use this space with suggestions on how we can all help our chosen candidates. I will publish the best ideas in future blogposts as well as comments to individual blogs.

Read more here:
CPSIA – It’s Election Season – What are You Doing About it?

CPSIA – McDonald’s Fallout Continues

The spectacle of the McDonald’s cadmium “scare” continued to unfold today.

Let’s not forget that this recall was “urged” by the CPSC although the CPSC admits in writing that the glasses are “non-toxic”. In other words, the glasses are safe. As the manufacturer notes: “‘It could have been any glass company,’ said Ron Biagi, an executive with Arc International, which made the glasses. ‘We all do the same thing using materials from the same suppliers.’” McDonald’s clearly had no choice in the matter, suffering a terrible loss of prestige no matter what the outcome. So the CPSC, Rep. Jackie Speier, one anonymous tipster and a hyperbolic press forced a highly wasteful and destructive recall.

The tumult, chaos and confusion thoughtlessly spawned by the CPSC continues to unfurl in almost predictable fashion: “But the returns [to McDonald's] are just the beginning of the next chapter in the cadmium debate, with the CPSC poised to set new limits on the metal even as it downplays the McDonald’s recall and environmental advocates aim to use the episode to build momentum for reform of federal toxics law.”

A terrible move deserves an even worse follow-up.

What’s the cause for alarm here? The glasses are safe, so says the CPSC . . . as it dramatically lowers the standard for cadmium. Yeah, nobody’s worried.

The consumer group talking heads can’t resist chiming in: “Don Mays, senior director of product safety for Consumer Reports, said cadmium was being used in some manufactured goods to replace lead, which has been eliminated from many products in response to heavy regulation and widespread health concerns. Many of those goods were once commonly associated with lead, like paint and inexpensive jewelry. ‘We’re just starting to see this,’ Mr. Mays said. ‘It’s starting to creep into a lot of consumer products that never had it before.’”

Does anyone care that the CPSC SAYS THIS ISN’T TRUE? “After an Associated Press investigation first uncovered the high cadmium levels in some children’s jewelry, CPSC Chairwoman Inez Tenenbaum publicly warned manufacturers in Hong Kong not to replace lead with cadmium or other toxic metals. Tenenbaum told senators in April that ‘we really don’t think’ companies are deliberately swapping out lead for other hazardous chemicals, ‘but we think they’re being careless and not realizing that you cannot use these metals in children’s products.’” [Emphasis added]

Some in the press aren’t persuaded. After all, urban myths are true . . . aren’t they? “[David Lazarus of the LA Times] notes that Cadmium has probably stayed off the radar for so long because people weren’t widely aware of its use. The focus has primarily been on the danger of lead products, and lead product replacements weren’t a primary concern. Chinese manufacturers began using Cadmium insted [sic] of lead to get the same vivid pigments in product colors.” Right. David Lazarus knows all about this.

And then there are our Democratic leaders in Congress. It’s election season so there’s little incentive to be a calming influence. “Congresswoman Jackie Spear [sic], who first received the anonymous tip about the Shrek cups, doubts Europe is the Cadmium culprit due to its strict manufacturing rules. Spear [sic] suspects either a subcontractor or ingredient provider in China; China is one of the leading Cadmium producers in the world. . . . Spear [sic] says she has legislation in the works that would expand the Cadmium ban in U.S., specifying removing its use in any product for children.”

And the basis for Rep. Speier’s hunch is . . . what, exactly? The glasses were made in a U.S. factory: “In contrast to the Chinese-made children’s jewelry recalled earlier in the year, the drinking glasses were manufactured in the United States, by the Millville, N.J.-based company ARC International. Ron Biagi, vice president for North American sales at ARC, said he was surprised by the recall and vouched for the safety of the glasses. While environmental and consumer groups pointed to the importance of identifying the producer of the cadmium-tainted enamel used on the McDonald’s glasses, Biagi declined to name ARC’s supplier. ‘It’s not fair for me to pull them in,’ he said.” OMG, somebody decent is left in the world! I had about given up hope.

Having set off the blaze, CPSC Director of Public Affairs Scott Wolfson again spewed more of his patented mixed signals sure to sow seeds of doubt: “‘What’s so important is for parents to understand the difference. … Children are not at an acute risk; the glasses are not toxic,’ Wolfson said, adding that ‘there are no signs we’re looking at a wave here of cadmium becoming the next lead.’” Which is why, Scott, you and your agency acted so promptly to push for a recall of this non-toxic product made of common materials in wide distribution in this country for years without any detectable adverse health effect? Which is why you told America to stop using the oh-so-safe glasses “immediately” in your OnSafety blog? Do I have this wrong? Clear as mud. Very believable, too.

There are terms for this that are too crass for a family publication like my blog. Let your imagination run. How will all this resolve itself? Of course, not very well. Justified by fear of “bone softening” (that sounds HORRIBLE, doesn’t it?) and other bizarre maladies that supposedly COULD befall us from unspecified exposure to cadmium, we will get many new and ineffective regulations imposing yet more devastating costs and devastating risk on the children’s product industry.

While hatred of government is a necessary by-product of the massive self-inflicted injury of the CPSIA, we will more pertinently be faced with the difficult challenge of protecting our life’s work – our businesses. The livelihoods of our friends and associates at our company, the economic well-being of our customers and suppliers (often our close friends, too) and in our case, the economic future prospects of the kids who are being educated with our products, all hang in the balance. I don’t know what stops this freight train before it tragically collides with reality. Certainly not leadership or a show of character from our government.

I hate to close these essays sounding like a Tea Bagger (not that I resent the label). I don’t wish to be marginalized for having strong views about an abdication of leadership and judgment by our government leaders. Say what you will, the McDonald’s fiasco was fomented by politicians with agendas. Many companies and people – and our economy – will be severely damaged as a result.

There’s nothing to be proud of here.

Read more here:
CPSIA – McDonald’s Fallout Continues

CPSIA – The Incoherent Theory of the "Common Toy Box"

Rachel Weintraub, fear monger extraordinaire, gave a vigorous defense of certain popular urban myths about lead in this week’s CPSIA hearing. Among her most cherished distortions is that old standard, the “common toy box”. I have discussed this in the past (here and here) and with your indulgence, will again take on Ms. Weintraub and her assertion of this idea.

To remind you, the “common toy box” is the principal justification for the age limit in the definition of “Children’s Product”, namely 12 years old and younger. This definition means that the lead limits apply to ALL products intended for children up to 12 years of age. The justification for this super conservative posture? We hear it all the time from the Waxmanis – the common toy box, of course.

Ms. Weintraub asserts that a common toy box is present in every house, and therefore a young child might gain unfortunate access to an older child’s toys. Given her assertion (that she says “everyone” would agree with) that there is “no safe level for lead”, the possible exposure of young children to the toys of their older brethren is an intolerable risk. Or as she puts it, “could be deadly”.

Rachel explains her method of solving this problem in her house, which she seems to think is reasonable:

“Children play with products that are in the household. As I mentioned, I have three children. I have [an] almost six, almost four and one year old. My children are very aware of what choking hazards are. They have toys that stay in their room. But there’s an important difference between a choking hazard and lead, and that is not only can I not identify whether the product has lead, they certainly can’t either. So we need to have laws that protect children in concrete reasonable ways that reflect how children actually interact with toys.”

Case closed?

I must defer here. Ms. Weintraub’s argument is incoherent and particularly inapplicable here.

First, the risk from lead stems from ingestion. Rachel’s focus here is on mouthing, and for simplicity, I will ignore ingestion by breathing (relevant only to lead-in-paint). Ms. Weintraub correctly notes that young children will mouth toys and other children’s products inappropriately. Children under 36 months of age are so prone to inappropriate mouthing that small parts are illegal in products suitable for them. The CPSC has long had guidelines for manufacturers to help them objectively determine which toys are suitable for children under three years of age.

By carefully controlling access to these possibly dangerous toys, Rachel is being a good parent. She is to be commended. Interestingly, Rachel’s argument also concedes that parenting has a role in safety with children’s products. It would not be responsible parenting for anyone, including Rachel, to rely on the government for making these judgments. She still has to monitor and supervise her children.

Interestingly, Congress is also on record on this topic. Small parts are a known hazard, and as noted, have long been illegal for kids under three years of age. That is not in dispute and in fact, became law (rather than simply the voluntary F963 standard) under the CPSIA. The Child Safety Protection Act of 1994 instituted mandatory safety labels for products suitable for kids aged four to six years of age (they were previously voluntary) for (among other things) small parts. Why? Congress recognized that items most likely to be in the “common toy box” and most attractive to children under 36 months of age are those toys intended for kids in the 4-6 age range. The mandatory safety labels were intended to put parents on notice to handle these products with special care. Congress did not make these products illegal notwithstanding the slight risk of inappropriate mouthing.

Congress took another swipe at this issue in the CPSIA itself. In adopting the “primarily intended for” standard in the definition of :Children’s Product”, Congress acknowledged that while other items in the household might contain lead and might be used by children, those products did not pose the same risk as products that would be attractive to young kids possibly prone to inappropriate mouthing. Put another way, Congress recognized that the level of risk did not justify regulating these other items. [This is the source of the tortured reasoning of the pen exemption decision.]

Human factors experts at the CPSC have never developed evidence that items for older children (six and over) are any more attractive than adult products to the younger children who because of their mouthing behavior and developmental state are most at risk. Hence, there has never previously been a perceived need for such restrictive rules to protect against mouthing.

Either mouthing is a big issue, or it is not. Rachel’s good parenting on small parts is simply an anti-mouthing strategy. There is no other reason to restrict small parts in her household. Having recognized the risk of inappropriate mouthing, Rachel and parents like her can fully be expected to closely monitor the mouthing behavior of their kids. To claim otherwise is disingenuous. When their kids suck on zippers, moms like Rachel will take it out of their mouths before “poisoning” can occur. [You would have to suck on a brass zipper for years before your blood lead levels would change measurably.] Likewise, if the kids start eating out of the dog’s bowl or licking doorknobs or whatever absurd childhood activity is posited, moms with Rachel’s philosophy of parenting will swoop down. Either they are attentive or they are not. Thus, Rachel’s kids are just as secure against lead as against small parts.

Even more interesting to me is the notion that Rachel is holding up her behavior as the “standard”. I think this is an interesting (but rational) concession on her part. Rachel is apparently a thoughtful parent and interested in her kids’ welfare. She acknowledges her personal responsibility to maintain a safe household for the kids’ benefit. So apparently in Rachel’s model, parents can think and can be held to a standard of exercising good judgment and individual responsibility. The government is not responsible for everything, it appears.

If we are to be sent down the river because of Rachel and the fantastic “common toy box”, I think the incoherence of her argument deserves careful exploration. Either common toy boxes causes tinjuries, or they don’t. Her parenting model does not leave much room for risk. Where’s the actual injury data to support her assertion of this dreaded risk? I think her words alone should NOT suffice. After all, of the 14 common toy box recalls in the history of the CPSC, none related to the CONTENTS of a common toy box.

Urban myths should not be the basis of law.

Read more here:
CPSIA – The Incoherent Theory of the "Common Toy Box"

CPSIA – ICPHSO Update – Remarks of Gib Mullan, Head of CPSC Enforcement

Gib Mullan’s remarks on enforcement:

• Import surveillance staff is now up to 18 people.
• Using Commercial Targeting Analysis Center (CTAC) to stop things at the port. Can see what’s coming in before it arrives.
• Is working with the International Trade Commission, the folks responsible for HTS Codes (Harmonized Tariff Schedule). The CPSC is trying to “piggyback” on HTS code to identify the products of interest to the agency. Making “significant headway”.
• Imports samples rising at a rapid rate. Only about half of the samples fail.
• Use of XRF is one of the agency’s “secrets for success”. Will use for cadmium, too. Only one-tenth of items scanned are being sampled. This implies that less than 5% of items scanned fail. Most items are not inspected, which is just a numbers game.
• Field Investigation Division is back to a “growth mode”, in 55 locations with 89 investigators. Expanding to Internet surveillance. They have seen a surge in eBay sales of recalled items after recalls are announced. Interesting!
• Created email address for the public to report sales of recalled products. Now everyone can be on a cop on the beat, how wonderful. Hope I can still trust my kids. . . .
• Retailer reports are rising. Participants in this program include WalMart, Sears, Amazon and others. 20,000 reports a year. Also reports by email and on the hot line 800 number are jumping. The total number of reports is cresting at 50,000 per year. All of this is BEFORE the public database. [Soon a system will be fully constructed that will make doing business in the U.S. children's product industry impossible, something to look forward to (this is my thought, not Gib's remarks).]
• Field “blitzes” are increasing. Examples are pool and spas, drywall, drawstrings, cribs. This is a new activity although blitzes at the port are old hat, in my experience.
• Defect Investigations Division has 19 compliance officers.
• Recalls in 2009 DECLINED from 563 to 466. Number of units went up to an all-time high, 229 million units. Lots of big recalls in 2009. Should we feel safer now? I wonder . . . . Gib himself questions whether this is “good or bad”.
• Fast Track recalls are pretty steady. “Fast tracks” are recalls initiated by companies and brought to the CPSC’s attention by the company itself. CPSC-initiated recalls are steady in the 50-60 range. Cases stemming from regulatory violations declined from 167 to 47.
• Early warning system relating to cribs, bassinets and play yards is resulting in faster recalls. [No info on the availability of cribs and so on was provided, or the cost of those goods now.]
• Joint recalls with Canada was done first on February 19, 2009 (that fills in a hole!). Total of 13 joint recalls in 2009 and 16 in 2010 to date. Expects more joint recalls in the future, broadening to other countries. Gib thinks this makes it simpler for companies going through recalls. Again, not sure how I feel about this but am not opposed in principle.
• Regulatory Enforcement Division has 18 Compliance Officers now. This includes Chemical, Children’s, Flammability and Mechanical hazards. Letters of Advice (“LOAs”) fell a bit in 2009 by perhaps 12%. Only a small percentage result in recalls. In 2009, found 338 lead content violations and 118 lead in paint violations, mainly at the port. Recalls have come down considerably, almost to zero. Stops at the port are higher than that, but don’t result in recalls necessarily. Those are declining, too.
• Compliance Division now has 14 of its own attorneys
• Civil penalties rose a lot in 2009. Gib specifically noted that he was not being “gleeful” about penalties but simply noting that penalties are a more serious risk now. I am okay with this tone, it is common sense. Penalties totalled nearly $9 million. I just hope that penalties moderate and become more purposeful, rather than political.
• Made a STRONG point about fraudulent testing. The CPSC caught fraud in lighter testing and it led to criminal charges. They are working on another case now. This is great news as far as I am concerned. Cheating is a REAL problem (an actual problem, not an imaginary problem). The CPSC should find the bad guys and punish them. The resources of the agency are well-served if focused on removing these unscrupulous people from the market.
• The agency is forging new alliances with the State AGs. They have a monthly conference call with this group. This is the CPSC’s proactive effort to reign in the State AGs by making them part of the process. If this works, great. Again, we need to watch out for the lowest common denominator risk.
• Working with China on implementing “best practices”. Getting better, faster. China recalls went DOWN in 2009 and he anticipates improved safety in Chinese products. This, too, is a good use of agency resources. If we really are getting better, faster, Gib and his team should take a bow. Safety benefits everyone. Next up, consideration of the relationship between these initiatives and cost. Safety is an inherently economic subject. We need recognition of this basic fact.

I have omitted all reference to drywall here. This is a one-of-a-kind problem that seems unrelated to the CPSIA as far as I can tell. Likewise, I have not attempted to summarize the issues relating to ATVs and other tangential product/safety issues brought up by Gib. [He did say that repairs to the Rhino seem to be working well, btw.]

To Gib’s credit, I found his presentation quite balanced with no particular effort to frighten. I appreciate the choice of tone for what could be a quite intimidating topic.

Gib’s presentation was one of the few I can recall in the last two years on the topic of enforcement that did not materially raise my blood pressure or make me think dark thoughts about the future. Let’s hope that the CPSC can build on this base to restore trust among the business community. Safety and fear mongering is an unholy alliance. The CPSC needs the cooperation and trust of the manufacturing base.

Read more here:
CPSIA – ICPHSO Update – Remarks of Gib Mullan, Head of CPSC Enforcement

CPSIA – CPSIA Casualty of the Week January 7

The Alliance for Children’s Product Safety’s “CPSIA Casualty of the Week” highlights how the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) is disrupting the U.S. marketplace in order to draw attention to the problems faced by small businesses, public institutions, consumers and others trying to comply with senseless and often contradictory provisions of the law. These provisions do nothing to improve product safety, but are driving small businesses out of the market.

Congress and the CPSC need to address the problems with CPSIA implementation to help small businesses by restoring “common sense” to our nation’s product safety laws.

CPSIA Casualty of the Week for January 11, 2010

NEW SAFETY LAW CLEANING OUT “THE KIDS CLOSET”

Kitty Boyce worked for 18 years to build her resale shop, The Kids Closet, located in Rochester, IL, into a well-known resale shop. With its colorful signage, brightly decorated interior and whimsical whale logo, The Kids Closet built its reputation on offering customers quality second-hand children’s products at great values.

Shortly after being voted the “Number One Place to Shop Resale” by the Illinois Times, Kitty announced that because of CPSIA she was converting her store to sell predominately teen and adult clothing, home accessories and furniture, and changing its name to Remarkable Resale. The loss of revenue in her shop due to the changes in inventory forced her to lay off several employees.

“CPSIA has been devastating for us,” said Kitty. “We just decided to get rid of all the toys and furniture. It’s just not worth the risk.”

While the Consumer Product Safety Commission has temporarily stayed requirements for testing and certifying products, all resale shops still must comply with the new lead and phthalate standards. Realistically, resale shops cannot be 100 percent certain that the used items meet the new requirements.

Due to the over-reaching law, Kitty Boyce’s dedicated attempts to provide children and families with reasonably priced, gently used baby equipment, furniture and toys have been shut down. For Kitty and others, the risk of enforcement action by state attorneys general or private groups is too great. The result is that during one of the worst economies in decades, resale shops around the country are avoiding selling winter clothing for kids and other children’s products.

This winter, ask Congress how denying a perfectly safe used winter coat to a child whose parents can’t afford to buy a new one is protecting that child’s health.

For more information about Kitty Boyce, visit http://www.thekidscloset.net/closet.htm

For additional information on the Alliance for Children’s Product Safety and CPSIA, and to view previous “Casualties of the Week, visit http://www.AmendTheCPSIA.com/.

Read more here:
CPSIA – CPSIA Casualty of the Week January 7

CPSIA – Must Read in the Denver Post

Let me say, here and now, that if I am chosen for next year’s committee, THIS GUY gets my vote for Nobel Peace Prize in 2010!

Opinion

Harsanyi: They’re tragically delicious

By David Harsanyi

Posted: 10/14/2009 01:00:00 AM MDT

How can Americans be expected to wrestle with the myriad of dangers that confront them each day? Insalubrious cereal? Unregulated garage sales? Pools of death? Sometimes it’s too much to process.

You know what we are desperately crying out for? An army of crusading federal regulatory agents with unfettered power. Who else has the fortitude and foresight to keep us all safe?

Mercifully, as The Washington Post recently reported, many of President Barack Obama’s appointees “have been quietly exercising their power over the trappings of daily life . . . awakening a vast regulatory apparatus with authority over nearly every U.S. workplace, 15,000 consumer products and most items found in pantries and medicine cabinets.”

If there’s anything Americans are hankering for in their everyday lives, it’s a vast regulatory apparatus. Hey, it’s dangerous out there.

That’s why the new chairman of the Consumer Product Safety Commission recently unleashed 100 agency inspectors to investigate whether or not swimming pools in America were equipped with a drain cover to prevent children from entrapment.

Nearly 0.9 children fall prey to this sadistic killer each year. With the compassionate guidance of federal officials, we will almost surely see this number plunge to 0.8 children per year.

It should be noted that each tragic year that passes by, an estimated 300 children under the age of 4 drown in swimming pools. Why our government sits idly by as this watery assassin targets
the most vulnerable among us is a mystery.

Don’t get me started on food. Washington will not rest until every one of our children is forcing down some gravel-based Mueslix after morning calisthenics in the name of a glorious preventive care revolution. I get it. They’re fat.

This is why I am grateful that one courageous soul has finally stood up to the menacing influence of Big Cereal. Yes, Food and Drug Administration commissioner Margaret A. Hamburg has had enough of deceitful infiltration of Cheerios, demanding that General Mills cease and desist a marketing campaign that peddles the fallacious claim that the oat-based cereal can lower cholesterol.

Why stop with oats? Trix are not only for kids, you know. Lucky Charms are nowhere close to being “magically” delicious.

What Lucky Charms does do is perpetuate the stereotype that the Irish are a bunch of oft-inebriated jerks — which everyone knows is only true about 70 percent of the time.

Isn’t there a statute we can pass in Congress to end the hate?

Then again, it’s not only those scheming Irish that are hawking their wares — unregulated — on concrete suburban driveways and inner city thrift stores across this country.

The “Resale Round-up,” launched by the CPSC, finally limits the power of these merchants of death who recklessly barter second-hand toys to unsuspecting civilians at low prices. Consider that Tonka truck — the one that you somehow outlasted — contraband. If not, you could be fined thousands of dollars.

The only question now is how did any of us survive this long?

Michael Livermore, executive director of the Institute for the Study of Regulation at New York University Law School, points out that “In the Bush administration, the problem was that the political folks were hostile to the mission.”

It is no surprise that Bush administration — a close second to Big Cereal in wickedness — was hostile to regulating the rhinestones on your kids’ denim jackets. Apparently the depths of its depravity knew no bounds.

The mission? Simple. Keeping you safe. Because everyone knows that parents aren’t equipped to keep their children safe until a bureaucrat explains exactly how it’s done.

And those parents who are neglecting their children’s safety, well, they always care more once government gets involved. Right?

E-mail David Harsanyi at dharsanyi@denverpost.com.

Read more here:
CPSIA – Must Read in the Denver Post

CPSIA – Car Seat Lead Poisoning Hoo-hah

Perhaps you heard that there have been six cases of lead poisoning by car seats in Maine. Sounds ridiculous, right

See original here:
CPSIA – Car Seat Lead Poisoning Hoo-hah