Washington, D.C. –U.S. Congressman John D. Dingell (D-MI15) issued the following statement today at the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade mark-up to amend the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008:

“Thank you, Madam Chairman, for your courtesy.  My concerns about the impracticability of certain provisions in the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) are a matter of public record and need not be revisited here.  I commend you, Madam Chairman, for circulating draft legislation meant to remedy these concerns.  I am pleased that this legislation maintains the age of 12 in the definition of a “children’s product,” makes an attempt to provide a practicable exemption process from CPSIA’s lead limits, and strives to improve the accuracy of information published in the Commission’s public database.

“Nevertheless, the draft bill contains provisions that are deeply troubling to me.  I find it difficult to support exempting children’s products from third-party testing for lead, phthalate, and mandatory toy standards.  Further, I am suspicious of limiting the applicability of the 100 parts-per-million lead standard to products for children aged six years and younger.  These provisions, while wonderfully feasible for industry, are unfortunately not as protective of children’s health and safety as I would care to see.  As such, I cannot support your draft legislation at this time, Madam Chairman.

“I would like to observe that we still have an opportunity to come to bi-partisan agreement on this bill before it is marked up by the full committee.  I remain open to voting in support of this legislation – albeit in amended form – provided it is moderate, as well as the product of transparent and inclusive negotiations that reflect meaningful participation by all stakeholders.  With the benefit of some years’ experience, I can attest to the effectiveness of this kind of process.  Thank you for your courtesy, Madam Chairman.  I yield back the balance of my time.”

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