Fighting The Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act
Erika Fey (pictured) sells hoops at a few stores in Portland, Oregon. Recently she got the news from one of the store owners that they'd no longer be carrying her hoops. Why? The Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA). The CPSIA regarding toy safety and testing which takes effect in the United States starting on February 9th, 2009, is already creating problems that could be more devastating for hoop makers that sell their hoops as toys and other cottage industry than we can even imagine. The fines for any item subject to testing that has not been tested or did not pass found in circulation could also be devastating to retailers and manufactures alike. What is the CPSIA and how did this come about? Let us explain.
In 2007, large toy manufacturers who outsource their production to China and other developing countries violated the public's trust. They were selling toys containing dangerously high lead content, unsafe small parts, and chemicals that made kids sick. In response the United States Congress rightly recognized that the Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) lacked the authority and staffing to prevent dangerous toys from being imported into the United States. As a result they passed the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) in August 2008. Among other things, the CPSIA bans lead and phthalates in children's products, mandates third party testing and certification, and requires manufacturers of all goods for children under the age of 12, to permanently label each item with a date and batch number.
While all of these changes are fairly easy for large, multinational companies to comply with who make thousands of units of each item with very little incremental cost to pay for testing and updating their systems to include batch labels, many small businesses will be forced to shut their doors due to the costs of mandatory testing. How much money are we talking? As much as $4,000 or more per item. And the few larger manufacturers who still employ workers in the United States face increased costs to comply with the CPSIA, even though American-made toys had nothing to do with the toy safety problems of 2007.
Anyone who produces or sells not only hoops as toys, but books, clothing, art, educational supplies, materials for the learning disabled, bicycles, and more will be subject to the new law. Any uncertified item intended for children under the age of 12 will be considered contraband after February 10, 2009, and it will be illegal to sell or give these items away to charities and the government will require their destruction or permanent disposal, resulting in millions of tons of unnecessary waste, and placing an enormous strain on our landfills.
For more information on the work that's being done to amend the CPSIA so that all businesses large and small are able to comply and survive, please visit The Handmade Toy Alliance. As Fey told Hooping.org, "Hopefully something good can be done because as we will all agree, there should be many many more hoops in this world, and this law should not get in the way of that!"
Comments
thank you so much for posting this, it's very helpful!
Posted by: Tailspin | January 13, 2009 11:26 AM
People can provide public comment until Jan 30 - see here http://blog.buyhandmade.org/
The direct link to the government site is http://www.cpsc.gov/ABOUT/Cpsia/cpsia.HTML
(I didn't see this on Handmade Toy Alliance, wanted to share.)
I knew the folks at etsy.com would be discussing this at length and they are... they created a forum just for this issue http://www.etsy.com/forums_board.php?forum_id=5000002
From etsy I heard about the buyhandmade blog linked at the top - and it will be kept up to date with news relevant to crafters and small businesses.
Posted by: Katie | January 13, 2009 2:01 PM
Hi
Just to let you know that Identi-tape.com have put some information up on their web site yesterday about this new act. Their information relates to the tapes they sell that people use to make hoops with. The URL for the information is: http://www.identi-tape.com/RoHS.htm
I hope this is helpful.
Sue
Posted by: Sue | January 13, 2009 3:38 PM
Hmmmm....how will this impact World Hoop Day and gifting hoops to kids as we have done in the past? Perhaps a work-around will be that we can let the kids craft their own? Still, I see potential liability issues.
Posted by: mari | January 13, 2009 3:43 PM
Um, the hoops we sell are not TOYS, they are fitness equipment. I would imagine a lot of other hoop makers classify their hoops in the same way. Doesn't this exclude us from this issue? Just food for thought....let's keep researching!
Posted by: Rayna | January 13, 2009 4:10 PM
If you make sure your site to be focused on a hoop as Exercise Equipment we SHOULD be exempt?? But im still researching this. As for Scotch Brand tapes it is maked in bold print on the bottom of thier containers LEAD FREE. As for other tapes you use you need to contact the supplier. As Sue noted above identi-tape has posted theirs on the site.
Also hoops are made out of water drinking pipes....they will not make them with lead.As for the couplings i'm still waiting on a answer. Now it is all up to everyone to protest this law that is passed. And work on getting your hoops covered under the compliance.
Posted by: melody | January 14, 2009 6:14 AM
Rayna, I don't think that matters one bit. They may still consider the hoops toys, but the law also applies to books, clothing, educational items, so I don't see why fitness equipment will be any different. It applies to bikes as well, I believe...
Posted by: katie | January 14, 2009 8:54 AM
I actually heard a story about this on NPR yesterday. Like Erika, I live in Portland, and the story featured a Portland-area artist who makes children's toys and clothing. She was afraid she'd have to go out of business.
I understand Rayna's comment that hoops can be seen as fitness equipment. That's probably more true for people who market mainly to adults and less true for people who also sell smaller hoops for children. I don't know how difficult it would be to argue that OUR handcrafted kids' hoops are fitness equipment when large stores feature "hula hoops" in the toy aisle. And for any hoop businesses that sell smaller diameter hoops, I guess you could never be sure whether people purchasing them online were adults who wanted to try speedier moves ... or adults who were purchasing them as "toys" for their children.
Anyway, maybe it would depend on how hoopers choose to advertise their products. But I think this law is something that could potentially affect all hoop crafters, whether we have a good argument against it or not. I'm glad to read this story and see and that people are posting links where we can go voice our opinions!
Posted by: Revolva | January 14, 2009 12:51 PM
Thanks for writing this article. It is really important info for all of us to know. As a mother, hooper and hoopcrafter I don't want to buy or sell anything with lead or other harmful contaminates. However, identi-tape has tested their tapes and I know of at least one local Carrboro hoopcrafter who has done her own testing. This seems like a law which can harm small businesses and non-profits. Hopefully our voices can be heard
Posted by: Bonnie | January 14, 2009 6:55 PM