October 30, 2009

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By Product Safety Letter staff

A coalition of 41 industry groups, led by the National Association of Manufacturers, are calling on Sen. Mark Pryor (D-Ark.) to follow through on his stated desire – at CPSC Chairman Inez Tenenbaum’s June confirmation hearing – to talk to the chairman about the CPSIA about “60 days” after she joined CPSC. That would have been in late August or early September.

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As Product Safety Forum reported June 29, Pryor – as well as Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchinson (R-Texas) – hinted at the possible hearing, although it should be noted that Pryor said that either a hearing or a more informal meeting might be in order. In September, Tenenbaum faced a House panel.

Below is the text of the industry groups' letter.

Dear Senator Pryor,

Thank you for your continued leadership on the important consumer protection issues facing our country. On behalf of the NAM CPSC Coalition and the undersigned parties of this letter, we are writing to request that you schedule a hearing to review implementation of the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) before the end of the year. You announced at CPSC Chairman Inez Tenenbaum's confirmation hearing in June that you intended to hold such a hearing after her confirmation. We urge you to schedule a date for this hearing as soon as possible.

Consumer product safety is very important to the U.S. manufacturers and the retail community. To that end, the business community has made enormous and often costly efforts to comply with this important safety law. However, the CPSIA's unintended consequences are causing confusion for consumers and economic damage to our members across the country, especially small businesses. Safe products are being pulled from store shelves because of fear, confusion, and a lack of guidance from the regulatory authorities.

As you know, the House Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade and Consumer Protection held an oversight hearing on the CPSIA on September 10. Chairman Tenenbaum was the only witness at this hearing.

At the Senate hearing, we hope that Chairman Tenenbaum will further detail how the agency will approach the unresolved implementation issues, and we urge you to allow other witnesses to testify at the hearing from the business community so that the Committee obtains a full picture of the outstanding issues related to the law. The manufacturing community appreciated the opportunity to testify before your subcommittee during the development of the CPSIA. As frontline stakeholders in the legislation, we believe the committee would similarly benefit from our perspective on the implementation of the CPSIA.

The various stays of enforcement issued by CPSC to temporarily resolve CPSIA implementation problems will soon expire, and a permanent resolution is needed. We believe that the Senate's oversight role is extremely important in helping the agency implement common sense solutions to resolve these issues, and we strongly urge you to set a date for a CPSIA oversight hearing.

Thank you for your consideration of our request. We look forward to continuing to work with you and your staff on this important issue.

Sincerely,

Alliance for Children’s Product Safety
American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA)
American Fiber Manufacturers Association
American Home Furnishings Alliance
American Independent Business Alliance (AMIBA)
American Manufacturing Trade Action Coalition
American Specialty Toy Retailing Association (ASTRA)
Coalition for Safe and Responsible ATV Use
Consumer Electronics Retailers Coalition (CERC)
Consumer Specialty Products Association (CSPA)
Fashion Accessories Shippers Association (FASA)
Fashion Jewelry Trade Association
Franchisees of Once Upon A Child & Play It Again Sports (Winmark)
Greeting Card Association
Handmade Toy Alliance
Information Technology Industry Council (ITI)
International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions
Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association (JPMA)
Manufacturing Jewelers and Suppliers of America
NARTS – National Association of Resale & Thrift Shops
National School Supply and Equipment Association
National Association of Manufacturers
National Bulk Vendors Association
National Retail Federation
National Textile Association
Northwest Children's Business Alliance
Outdoor Industry Association
Promotional Products Association International
Real Diaper Industry Association
Soap & Detergent Association
Society of Glass & Ceramic Decorated Products
Society of the Plastics Industry, Inc.
Specialty Graphics Imaging Association
Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association
The Art & Creative Materials Institute, Inc.
The Coalition for Safe and Affordable Childrenswear, Inc.
The Hosiery Association
Travel Goods Association (TGA)
U.S. Association of Importers of Textiles and Apparel
U.S. Chamber of Commerce
U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform
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