Recent Publications
June 2, 2008
ALP: What is the U.S. Government doing to address product safety after the recent recalls of children’s products?
Erika
J.
Schoenberger
The recent recalls of children’s products has created a public outcry that has the U.S. Congress paying attention. On March 6, 2008, the Senate approved a measure to strengthen the Consumer Product Safety Commission and to tighten the safety rules governing products. The CPSC Reform Act of 2008, as the measure is called, passed by a margin of 79 to 13. The Act (S.2663) is the government’s first major update of U.S. consumer product laws in nearly 20 years. The House of Representatives’ version of the bill (H.R. 4040) was unanimously voted forward in December 2007. A compromise between the two bills in committee will be the next step in the effort. Highlights of the Senate bill include:
Children’s products
Lead: Bans lead in all children’s products.
Testing: Requires third-party safety certification of children’s products. Upon CPSC approval, proprietary labs (those owned or operated exclusively for a given manufacturer) will be allowed to test products if they provide equal or greater consumer protection than the manufacturer’s use of a third party lab.
Safety standards: Current voluntary toy safety standards developed by ASTM International, an independent standard-setting organization, will become mandatory.
Labeling: Requires manufacturers to label products with tracking information to help consumers and retailers identify recalled products.
Recalled products: Makes it unlawful for retailers to sell a recalled product.
Increasing resources for CPSC
Funding: Approves seven years of funding for the CPSC, starting at $88.5 million in 2009 and increasing at a rate of 10 percent per year through 2015.
Database: Establishes a public database to include any reports of injuries, illness, death or risk related to consumer products submitted by consumers, local, state or national government agencies, child care providers, physicians, hospitals, coroners, first responders and the media.
Penalties and enforcement
Civil fines: Increases the civil fine penalty cap up to $20 million from the current level of $1.8 million on producers, a cap that is twice that of the House’s version of the bill.
Criminal penalties: Increases criminal penalties to five years in jail for those who knowingly and willingly violate product safety laws.
Attorneys General: Allows state Attorneys General to obtain injunctive relief on behalf of its residents to enforce product safety laws.
Whistleblower protections: Provides whistleblower protections for employees of manufacturers that report problems along the supply chain.