Long story short, these people claim that the consumer protection law passed after all the delicious lead-bearing toys from China had to be recalled will drive small American toy makers out of business. They say that this’ll happen because the law makes the manufacturer pay for testing and there are no exclusions written into the law for size of company or point of origin. Putting aside the question of enforcement, since I have a hard time seeing the Feds busting craft shows and Etsy.com, do these people have a legitimate complaint and would their suggested changes address them fairly?
I don’t fundamentally have a problem with manufacturers having to certify that their toys aren’t made from lumps of lead but if the government body enforcing the legislation is charging $4000 a test to certify a product then something’s wrong.
The CPSIA simply forgot to exclude the class of toys that have earned and kept the public’s trust: Toys made in the US, Canada, and Europe. The result, unless the law is modified, is that handmade toys will no longer be legal in the US.
If you’re going to certify Toys, do them all. Where they’re assembled makes no difference in my opinion. If you exempt the above areas, what stops you having all the bits made in China and then just assembling them in the US/EU/Canada to get around the legislation? I’m reasonably sure that Matel’s toys had “earned the public’s trust” until they turned out to be a bit dodgy.
