CPSC reports to Congress on CPSIA

The full report is here (PDF); the commission’s Democratic and Republican members managed to reach consensus on enough points to allow for a bipartisan report. AnimalsBall1c Deserving of particularly close attention are the supplementary views (also PDF) by Commissioners Nancy Nord and Anne Northup, and Northup appends to her remarks many letters from those whose businesses are being ravaged needlessly by the law. The same two commissioners also blog on the subject.

As Nord observes, the full CPSC report:

* acknowledges that the agency needs additional flexibility to implement the lead provisions of the CPSIA, though it does not address how that flexibility should be crafted (since we could not reach agreement on that point);
* acknowledges that books probably were not intended to be regulated under the CPSIA and suggests that Congress may want to consider addressing this issue;
* recommends that the retroactive nature of the law be repealed as the lead limits move from 300ppm to 100ppm; and
* outlines the efforts the agency has made to date to assist small manufacturers and artisans in complying with the CPSIA and states our willingness to work with Congress to address the problems small manufacturers continue to face.

The Handmade Toy Alliance has published some reactions from Rob Wilson as well as its own recommended changes to the law, as has Rick Woldenberg.

Alas, the commission was not exactly a model of transparency in its deliberations: its majority turned down requests from Commissioners Nord and Northup for it to open its debate to the public.

P.S. And more from Rick Woldenberg, Commissioner Anne Northup, and Carter Wood/ShopFloor.

January 18 roundup