CPSC Official Proposes Reforms to Product Safety Laws

March 2, 2011

In a recent Congressional hearing, Consumer Product Safety Commissioner Anne Northrup argued that the requirements in the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 (CPSIA) are creating a significant barrier to domestic manufacturing and providing a competitive advantage to large manufacturers in countries where manufacturing and testing costs are cheaper than in the United States. She also argued that the “complex, non-risk-based testing and certification requirements” are diverting the Consumer Product Safety Commission’s (CPSC’s) attention from real safety hazards. Northrup made four recommendations to Congress, including for Congress to amend the CPSIA to exclude products or materials with a level of absorbable lead that the CPSC determines not to be harmful to children. Northrup also suggested that Congress require cost-benefit analysis before the CPSC takes any further regulatory action and that Congress delay funding for a public, web-accessible database that would allow consumers to report harm from products until a verification method for those claims is established. Additionally, Northrup argued that Congress should eliminate third-party testing, certification, and tracking label requirements for all children’s products unless CPSC is addressing a risk with a specific product or material.

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