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Consumer Product Safety Commission chief urged to resign
Filed under: Health & Safety: Babies, In The News, Shopping and recalls
With the increasing number of toy recalls of late, you would think those in charge over at the US Consumer Product Safety Commission would be begging for more money, staff and resources to better ensure the safety of the American public. Not so, according to Speaker of the House Nancy Peolosi and her Democratic Party colleagues. In fact, Nancy Nord, who was appointed chairwoman of the CPSC by President George W. Bush, has steadfastly opposed legislation that would increase the agency's authority and staff, double its budget and increase penalties for safety violations.Pelosi is now calling for Nord's resignation, saying, "Any commission chair who ..., in the face of the facts that are so clear, says we don't need any more authority or any more resources to do our job, does not understand the gravity of the situation and does not understand the concerns parents have for the safety of their children."
According to the Toy Industry Association, 80 percent of the toys purchased by Americans are made in China. And of all the product recalls made by the CPSC, more than half are of products originating in China. Congress is working to introduce new toy and child product safety legislation, the "Comprehensive Consumer Product Safety Bill", which would ban lead from children's products and paint, require mandatory testing of such products by independent third-party laboratories and ban unsafe and untested imported products. Another proposition would quadruple the penalties assessed against companies who are linked to tainted products.
I am generally not in favor of growing government, but an agency that relies on a toy tester "who drops toys on the floor in his office to see if they break" is clearly not up to the task of keeping our children safe.
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ReaderComments (Page 1 of 1)
10-31-2007 @ 11:30PM
Judy said...You have to be careful what you ask for. Mattel has been lobbying Washington for new laws that would essentially put small toy makers out of business - and this "third party testing" is it. For example, your prescription drugs don't require third party testing. All tests are performed by the company that makes the drug. But the sytems for testing are well documented and AUDITED by the FDA. If the testing by a drug company is falsified or just not strong enough, the goverment mandates recalls, requires systematic in house testing to be in place and in the worst case scenarios, puts executives of that company in jail.
By law, the US company that imports a product is responsible for it's safety and Mattel has dropped the ball - completely!!!! There is clearly NOBODY on the ground in China representing Mattel in the matter of Quality Control.
If anything, call your congressmen and tell them not to fall for Mattel's crap. That is one POS company that needs to go out of business.
Reply
11-01-2007 @ 9:50AM
LS said...Well said, Judy.
Anytime that this current Congress (approval rating, 11% by the way, LESS then GWB) wants more regulation for anything, I start to itch. They are desperately trying to show *some* of progress, but using our children is NOT the way to go.
People, if you want something done about this lead nonsense, DON'T BUY FROM THESE COMPANIES. The biggest impact a company feels is not when they are "dinged" by the government - because they will just keep doing what they're doing, and pass the cost on to us. The way to stop them is to completely cut off their profit base. And we provide it. If you want them stopped, STAND UP and stop them yourself.
Stop whining that the government doesn't do enough, and start doing something yourself.
Reply
11-01-2007 @ 9:53AM
Amanda said...well put LS!
Reply