Green Kids

Something is afoot in the legislation right now. The Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act or CPSIA. This piece of legislation, meant to hold toy and childrens’ goods manufacturers accountable for producing safe, non-toxic items, will quite literally wipe out the mom and pop businesses that have been providing safe and healthy toys throughout the lead, magnet, and phalate crises of 2007.

The new law requires that all products be certified via third party testing. The price tag for each product or variation of a product? $4000! While large, multinational companies will survive this new act without losses this is not true for small businesses. No work at home mom selling crafts on Etsy will be able to afford to test each of her products at this extraordinary price.

All this law needs is a clause that recognizes that small, handcrafting businesses are not subject to third party testing. Already one German toy company, Selecta, has announced it’s departure from US sales as of December 31st. Please don’t let more quality companies leave our market. Visit the Handmade Toy Alliance and write to your Congresspeople and Senators. It is not too late to revise this law and save our toys and our freedom of choice. Without this clause the only toys available will be from large corporations with overseas factories.

Take action today!

Happy Writing