BeeBlog

Well, maybe if not "death," then at least "long dark coma."

On February 10th, legislation called the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) will go into effect, requiring that all products made for, marketed to or even just "appealing" to children 12 and under must undergo third-party lead testing in order to be sold in the USA.

I put all in bold because, as this law is currently written, they really do mean all.

All toys of any kind (or anything that looks like toy), whether they are made in China by Mattel or right here in the USA by a single mom in her kitchen.

All children's books and educational supplies.

All children's clothing & accessories.

All children's furniture and wall decor.

Anything and everything imaginable that is produced for the use of anyone under 13 years old.

Now, I support the idea that kid's toys should be lead-free. That's a given.  I also support the idea that the corporations that violated the public's trust by importing dangerous toys from overseas should be held accountable for those actions and be subject to stricter regulation.

What is deeply wrong with this law is that, instead of focusing on the problem area (ie: toys and items with metal or painted surfaces that could have lead content), they are requiring that everyone who makes anything for children pay to have each and every item tested, no matter how small their business is or how unlikely their item is to contain lead.

Teddy bear? Yep, gotta test it.

You sell knitted baby hats made out of organic yarn? Yep, sorry, gotta test it.

You publish children's books? Yep, gotta test them all. (Even though they all use the same materials!)

You sell art prints that might go in a nursery? Yep, you gotta test 'em.

Seriously, people, as of the time I am writing this post, children's books & art prints are included, despite the fact that paper and printing ink are highly unlikely to contain lead!

The tests required for certification under this act range from $300 - $4000 per item, and must be completed each time you manufacture a batch.

That means if I get 1 print made for an Etsy order that is technically a batch.  (So really I would have to get 2, so that one could be sent away and tested because the lab test destroys the item.)

Let's say the test is on the "cheap side" at $300.

So now my digital prints which I currently sell for $15, would cost you $315 so that you can be assured by the US government that they are lead free.

Of that $315, approximately $8 would be my profit from the sale.

But all of this talk of cost is moot, because the few labs currently certified by the CPSC to do these tests won't even deal with a business as small as mine. They only deal with the Hasbro's and the Fischer-Price's of the world.

So, as you can see, this bill will put most small producers and independent artisans who make anything for children out of business, not because they have unsafe products, but simply because they cannot access or afford expensive and redundant testing to prove otherwise.

And, ironically, the only toy producers still in business? The ones who started this mess in the first place, because they are the only ones producing at a volume which can absorb such an expense.

Please write, call or fax  your representaives and urge them to postpone the implementation of this law until the effects on small businesses can be fully considered.

There is a CPSC public comment period on the issue of component (supply) testing versus unit (finished product) testing open until January 30th:

Comments can be e-mailed to Sec102ComponentPartsTesting [!at] cpsc.gov or visit www.cpsc.gov/about/cpsia/cpsia.html
Comments can be faxed to 301-504-0127
Comments can be mailed to: Office of the Secretary / Consumer Product Safety Commission / Room 502 / 4330 East-West Highway / Bethesda, Maryland / 20814
  All comments should be captioned "Section 102 Mandatory Third-Party Testing of Component Parts."
  Act soon. The public comment period ends Jan. 30.



There is a dedicated voicemail line for the Congressional Commerce Committee: 202-225-4434

You can locate your elected officials by entering your zipcode here: www.house.gov/ & here: www.senate.gov/

I also urge you to write the Consumer Product Safety Commission: www.cpsc.gov/about/contact.html

And if you are feeling extra sassy, please write or call the office of Congressman Henry Waxman, as he is the genius behind this bill and the one with the authority to call a hearing about it (which currently he is refusing to do, despite the outcry from small businesses, because he is an utter turd).