This Law Has Very Scary Effects on the Working Family

I have included a couple of articles about this SCARY law that is already set to take effect in February. This law was passed last year under the radar of many watchdog groups and is just now surfacing. If this law takes effect the days of consignment shopping and yard saleing are over! Any item intended for children 12 and under that was produced prior to this date and doesn’t have a certificate of lead testing will be considered contraband and no one can sell or give it away to charity. The fine for such an action is up to 100,000 and five years in prison. It is considered a felony!!! This is appalling to me and to think of the massive waste it will create and the rise in coast of manufacturing.
Lead testing can cost in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. Think of the disabled man who makes wooden cars, or the stay at home mom that sews dresses, none of these business people will be at the craft shows anymore. Their merchandise, unless tested will be illegal to sell. Please read the following articles and email and call your Congressman IMMEDIATELY!!

http://capwiz.com/afanet/directory/congdir.tt – Contact your Congressman or woman TODAY!

The Sale of Children’s Books to be Banned

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Oh, how I wish this were a joke! But it is a grim and looming,
almost Orwellian, reality.

Effective February 10th, in the United States, the sale of
all children’s books (books intended for children ages 12 and
under) is to be PROHIBITED. Every single book printed prior
to the ruling is affected, whether new or used. New books in
production are required to include a “lead-free” certification
and will be the only books that are legal to offer for sale.

What does this mean to the homeschooling family?

Well, for one, curriculum fairs across the country will be
cancelled as book vendors scramble to figure out how to comply
with the new ruling. Complete book inventories will have to be
destroyed — the ruling even prohibits giving away the books!
Local thrift stores will be hard hit — most will likely have to
close their doors — yes, even Goodwill and Salvation Army.

Clothing, toys and books — even CDs and DVDs are included in the
ruling. Thrift stores will no longer be able to accept or process
anything (including clothing) that would be intended for a child.

No more library sales. Libraries will not be permitted to give
away or sell book donations. It is unsure yet, however, how
the libraries’ shelves themselves will be impacted (the ruling
doesn’t explicitly mention “loaning” books, just selling or
giving them away). The key word, however, is “distribution” —
libraries may well be required to destroy books from their shelves.

(The ruling that originally passed was about toys, but the EPA has
since made a statement that clothing, books and media are included
in “children’s toys”.)

Just how serious is this new law?

Amazon.com has already notified all vendors of their need to comply.
No book can be sold at the Amazon site that was printed prior to
compliance. And the “compliance” must be coordinated at the manu–
facturing stage. At the time of this article there is no clause
to be able to grandfather- in older books or even rare out-of-print
books. It can cost between $500 and $1500 to test a book for lead.

I happen to own a children’s bookstore specializing in living books
from the 1950s and ’60s. My punishment for selling a book after
February 10th? Up to $100,000 and 5 years in jail. And yes, it is
a felony charge. For selling a SINGLE book.

(Although I don’t think the S.W.A.T. team scenario would become a
reality overnight, at the same time I would be leery of blatantly
violating Federal law.)

So what can you do to help save your local used bookstore that
sells children’s books? Or that homeschool curriculum business?
Or your EBay business selling children’s items?

ACT NOW before the quickly approaching deadlines:

1) Email or call the CPSIA – the office of the CPSC ombudsman at
888-531-9070. http://www.cpsc. gov/cgibin/ newleg.aspx

Comments on Component Parts Testing accepted through January 30,
2009. Or email: Sec102ComponentPart sTesting@ cpsc.gov

2) Contact your local representatives. For their contact informa–
tion, just enter your zip code.
http://capwiz. com/americanappa rel/dbq/official s/

3) Make your voice heard by voting on this issue! The top 3 in
each category will be presented to President-elect Obama.
http://change. org/ideas/ view/save_ handmade_ toys_from_ the_cpsia

4) Sign the petition.
http://ipetitions. com/petition/ economicimpactso fCPSIA/index. html

5) Spread the word! Forward this article. Send an email. Write
about this on your blog. Tell others about this issue and
encourage them to do the same.

—

For the complete story, read the following links:

http://www.cpsc. gov/about/ cpsia/cpsia. html

Consumer Product Safety Commission Summaries on Legislation Index
page for Children’s Products Containing Lead; Lead Paint Rule and
other rulings

http://www.cpsc. gov/about/ cpsia/legislatio n.html#summaries

Office of the General Counsel FAQ on retroactive inventory require-
ments — The use of forward effective dates appears to force current
inventories to adhere to the ruling on February 10th, 2009

http://www.cpsc. gov/about/ cpsia/summaries/ 101brief. html

Specific FAQ on their interpretation of books and other media to be
included in the testing of lead based products

http://www.cpsc. gov/about/ cpsia/faq/ 101faq.html

———–

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.

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 US. So, 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.

All of these changes will be fairly easy for large, multinational companies to comply with. Large manufacturers who make thousands of units of each item have very little incremental cost to pay for testing and updating their systems to include batch labels. Small businesses however, will likely be driven out of business by the costs of mandatory testing, to the tune of 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 any of the following new or used items will be required to comply with the law: toys, books, clothing, art, educational supplies, materials for the learning disabled, bicycles, and more. Any uncertified item intended for children under the age of 12 will be considered contraband after February 10, 2009. 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.

There is a clear disconnect between the sweeping nature of this law, and the narrow range of products that were problematic in 2007. The CPSIA applies standards that were put in place in reaction to the sale of toys contaminated with lead paint and toxic plastics. Rather than focus on these materials, this law places a guilty until proven innocent mentality on all children’s product producers by imposing mandatory testing and certification, and in the process will kill an entire industry.

Thriving small businesses are crucial to the financial health of our nation. Let’s amend the CPSIA so that all businesses large and small are able to comply and survive!

Fox 2 News in St. Louis – http://www.myfoxstl.com/myfox/pages/Home/Detail;jsessionid=1C48C5C88B2F18449AEC2C95D1D54C8A?contentId=8210646&version=3&locale=EN-US&layoutCode=TSTY&pageId=1.1.1&sflg=1