The public was scared about the lead found in cheap, imported toys. So, Congress nearly unanimously passed a law, the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) with lots of new regulations to keep American children safe. Result of said law? Every manufacturer of children’s clothing and toys has to subject every batch to a third party for very expensive testing. Goodbye handmade toys. Goodbye anything for kids on Etsy. What is supposed to keep our kids safe will push the best toys out of the market completely. And baby slings? We’ll be back to only having a handful of mass produced choices. Some people have even dubbed the day it goes into effect “National Bankruptcy Day” because of the vast numbers of small businesses which will have to close their doors.
You can help. Go here for more information. Write your senators and congressman. Tell everyone you know. We have until February to save handmade for our kids!
My understanding is that they will be able to sell already-manufactured stock until February … but they can’t manufacture new without complying with the law as of December 22. That’s what I think is the case … but I seriously am pressed for time and haven’t done enough homework. Anyway, it would be a much better Christmas if this were fixed by December 22!
It truly is only for manufacturers. My friend who makes diapers has done her homework on the law and essentially as long as she’s making her diapers out of already tested materials (which all diaper makers are as far as I know) her only new obligation is to have certificates on hand to prove it IF she’s selling to retailers. The people who are going to suffer the most are the middle sized business (Kim at Montana’s Diaper Store, those types) who are innovating.
Also, the toy company Selecta (high quality German toys) has declined to continue selling toys in the States because they don’t want to pay for extra testing (obviously they already have testing in their own country). So that stinks too. It’s a bad law, but I am pretty sure it’s not quite as dire as first thought.
I’m still writing to my congressman, though. The intrusion gets worse daily. The vote was nearly unanimous? Only one congressman voted no, and no one will be surprised to hear that it was Ron Paul.
I’m not so sure, fabrics generally sold are not tested to the levels of the CPSIA currently, perhaps they will be, but I don’t see why fabric manufacturers will take on that extra burden.