LAWS, REGULATIONS, AND POLICY: Consumer Protection Act Sees Uneven Launch

The Consumer Product Safety Improve­ ment Act (CPSIA), passed by Congress in 2008 in response to widespread recalls of lead­containing toys manufactured in China, imposed new testing and documen­ tation requirements upon manufacturers of juvenile products and gave the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) new enforcement powers to ensure compliance. Six months after the new law was scheduled to go into effect, however, it is still the sub­ ject of controversy and confusion. The new law set maximum permissible levels of 600 ppm lead (used to inexpensively increase durability, weight, and paint bright­ ness) and 0.1% of three specified phthalates (plastic softeners) for products intended for children aged 12 years and younger. A more stringent lead level was phased in 14 August 2009, when the permissible level dropped to 300 ppm; in two years it will drop again, to 100 ppm. Manufacturers were to ensure their products do not exceed those levels prior to release into the marketplace. But the testing requirements met strong opposition from manufacturers, who argued that the timeline and content of the rules imposed an unrealistic burden on small and large producers alike. Days before the require­ ments were to go into effect, the CPSC issued a one­year stay of enforcement until 10 February 2010 to provide agency staff time to develop guidance on when and how testing is to be done, and on what materials. Such guidance has begun to emerge. The CPSC announced in the 7 August 2009 Federal Register that wood, natural fibers, and gemstones joined selected metals and alloys as materials that are exempt from testing. In addition, the CPSC clarified the conditions that must be present—such as security against leaching—in order for a lead­ containing component part to be deemed " inaccessible " during " normal and reasonably foreseeable use and abuse of the product by a child. " Inaccessible component parts con­ tained inside a product, which typically are not touched or mouthed by a child, also are on the list of testing exemptions. Another requirement, which did go into effect August 14, calls for manufacturers and importers to include tracking labels on all chil­ dren's products manufactured after that date. Tracking labels must provide information about when and where a product was made, which will help officials locate specific chil­ dren's products in the event of a safety recall. The rule also originally required that manu­ facturers include specific …