If you are on the CPSC listserve, you likely already know this too. If not, it would appear all of your emails have had an effect. I’d been waiting for this rumor to bear fruition since last week. Apparently the the US Consumer Product Safety Commission’s web page on the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) of 2008 has been updated with a request for comments (pdf). Please contribute your information in an attempt to modify the regulations as they exist for mandatory third-party testing. The deadline to contribute is January 30, 2009.
Related in the forum:
The War Room: CPSIA & Consumer Safety. This is a very active section with nearly 60 different threads and over 1,000 postings. Open to the public.
We have just started our new clothing line this last fall. We are 2 moms who have poured are all into this venture. Now we are finding out about all this testing of all of our already produced 2009 line. We have it all in stock and now need to find out some information about how we get this tested affordably so as not to go out of business before we have barely started!! We can’t sell if we arent compliant but concerned over whether the costs of getting compliant will be too high for us to keep in business. Any information at all would be appreciated!
I sell on Ebay as many do. It’s not a big business but I sell childrens clothing, about half of it being used. I will lose my small business if I cannot sell these items. Hundreds of people just trying to get by will. This law as written will also put a hardship on regular Americans who can only afford to buy clothing at resale shops and thrift stores. This will also be hard on charities that use donated items and sell in their thrift shops. This law needs to be ammended in many ways. As written it hurts more than it helps.
My sister & I recently started this new business from our homes. We spent a year working on our dream, designing & preparing & finally went into production in July/Aug 08. Having tried very hard to produce here in the States, we finally gave up & went where everyone goes – China.
We received our first shipment in end Sept 08 & have slowly started getting into stores. At this point, we have spent everything we put in & were not expecting any positive returns for at least another year but with this mandatory testing which we found out about AFTER our bags already arrived here (We have already spent $840 for the testing on just ONE diaper bag), we are at a total loss as to what we will do in the future. Testing the changing pad in the bag makes total sense but testing the bag itself, which is a fashion item for the mom, just complicates everything for us.
Plus we will have to repeat this cost if we make even one MINOR style change to the bag! We are seriously thinking that we will have to close the business before we even got a chance to figure things out!
I have two businesses that will be affected by CPSIA. I have had my hairbow business for 19 years. I have a children’s accessory and gift boutique that I opened up in May 2008. Many of the items sold in the boutique are hand-made children’s accessories by stay-at-home mothers. It’s ridiculous that I would have to have my final product, the hairbow, tested if I use lead-free ribbon, lead-free barrettes, and lead-free glue. I will be joining the class action lawsuit!
OMG!! There is a class-action lawsuit brewing….didn’t know such a thing was even possible! count me in!
Enactment of this law will, in addition to bankrupting businesses, cause the demise of many craft and art shows. For years, I went to shows to buy unique items for children. I’m now a vendor, hand-painting blank childrens’ clothing. In the past season, many vendors were evaluating whether to continue in business because of a decrease of twenty-to-forty percent in sales. Eliminating vendors with products for children under 12 will further decrease participants at the shows.
Unless the law is rewritten or amended, like many others, I’ll be out of business as I cannot afford to have all items tested. Why must we have products tested if we use components that are lead-free!
Count me in on a class-action lawsuit!!!