Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act

This Act, passed by congress will go into affect February 10, 2009. Information regarding the act is not just important for large manufacturers or even small businesses making a few children's items - it is for everyone. The new changes in the law will directly affect millions.

Do you buy any toys for children 12 and under? Do you buy any clothes for children 12 and under? Do you hand-down clothes from your children to friends, family, under-priveledged children or even donate them to a charity? If you do, affective February 10, 2009 unless that item has a compliance tag stating is conforms to the new regulations you can no longer do anything except throw said item away. You cannot post it on FreeCycle to give away, Ebay or Craigs list to sell, donate it or anything else. Yes, the Consumer Products Safety Commision has interpreted the law to be retroactive, therefore it applies to all used clothing.

We all want children to be as safe as they possibly can, however, by pushing this Act and its subsequent changes through, there was not enough time to review every possible consequence of the law. Many small and home-based businesses will be put out of business. Do we really need that in this time of economic uncertanty?

The law was meant to affect the large-scale manufacturers of children's clothing, jewelry and toys and those are the very business who are being helped by the Act. Who is able to afford the testing and makes many, many of the same toy or clothing item? The large manufacturers.
So, please show Congress and our in-coming President that this law is not feasible and it affects so many!

Here is a link to Change.org which has other resources for you to object this law as it affects small businesses: Save Handmade Toys from the CPSIA

A link to the Hanmade Toy Alliance's Information on the Act: http://www.handmadetoyalliance.org/Home

A digital journal article about the Act: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/264507

A link to the Consumer Products Safety Commision's form for questions on the new law:
http://www.cpsc.gov/cgibin/newleg.aspx

Through those links you can find information on contacting your representatives in Congress and your Senators. Please, please understand that as currently written this law does not only affect those that make handmade or small-scale manufacture items or even the large-scale manufacturers. Take the few minutes needed to tell someone that this law will affect so many.