|
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee Chairman Daniel K. Inouye (D-Hawaii) issued the followed statement today prior to final passage of S. 2663, the Consumer Product Safety Commission Reform Act.
“Mr. President, I rise today in support of S. 2663, the Consumer Product Safety Commission Reform Act. The leadership of Senators Pryor and Stevens in negotiating this bipartisan compromise bill allows the legislation before the Senate today to move an important but beleaguered agency in the right direction. S. 2663 authorizes the appropriate level of resources and provides the new authorities necessary for the agency to do the job it was created to do: protect consumers.
“Mr. President, today the CPSC is broken. It is broken from years of neglect coupled with a growth in volume and complexity of products and from a dysfunctional Commission. Year after year, this agency is subjected to budget cuts and forced attrition of personnel. Today, it has less than half the budget and half the staff it had in its inaugural year of 1973. As a result, the CPSC is no longer properly equipped to carry out its essential mission of monitoring the marketplace and enforcing product safety standards. Making matters even more difficult, the number of products under its jurisdiction has grown exponentially in size and complexity.
“The Commission is responsible for the safety of more than 15,000 products, including everything from infant cribs to computer components. Most of these products are safe. However, those that are not safe can be deadly. Each year, more than 28,000 Americans die and an additional 33 million are injured by consumer products. To say these numbers are much too high is an understatement. We must have an effective CPSC, one with increased funding, staff, and authority, to reduce these losses.
“This bill addresses the weaknesses of our nation’s product safety system in several ways, but I would like to highlight some of the essential changes. S. 2663 puts the responsibilities of product safety squarely on the government’s shoulders. First, the Act authorizes needed resources over a seven year period to provide the agency the manpower and the technology it needs to police a complex global marketplace. The Act would restore the CPSC to a full complement of five Commissioners to maintain continuity and to avoid the losses of quorum that have plagued the agency in recent years.
“To help buttress the resources needed to monitor the market and keep consumers safe, the Act would authorize State attorneys general to bring civil actions to seek injunctive relief for clear violations of statutes enforced by the CPSC. Creating a joint enforcement relationship with the States has proven to be successful in the area of consumer protection, and this collaboration would provide the CPSC a partner to protect American families in a meaningful way.
“S. 2663 also would require manufacturers to use independent labs to test children’s products and to certify their compliance with mandatory safety standards, including the mandatory toy safety standard established in the Act. This new toy standard would provide the CPSC and industry with a fast, flexible way to address emerging hazards. It will serve to protect children from dangers such as strangulation, intestinal perforation or blockage hazards.
“While new authority and regulatory structure is needed for this agency, providing accurate and up-to-date information about product hazards to Americans would allow consumers to help themselves and make better decisions about the products they buy. In order to help consumers, S. 2663 would create a database of information from non-industry sources, such as hospitals, child care providers, public safety agencies, as well as consumer reports about product hazards collected by the CPSC itself. This database would provide consumers with potentially life-saving information, in an organized fashion, which would better equip them to assess product safety risks and hazards.
“Finally, this legislation would allow the CPSC to share product information with governments around the world. Since our economy is global, faulty products do not just end up in our homes but in homes around the world. By reaching out to and coordinating with other countries, the ability of the CPSC to interdict and keep unsafe products off of store shelves would be improved.
“Mr. President, unfortunately, some members in this chamber believe that regardless of the dire picture supporters of this bill have painted as it relates to the lack of resources and existing authorities, last year’s ‘summer of recalls’ proves that the Commission is working just fine.
“These members may site statistics showing that in 2007, the agency announced 231 children’s product recalls, of which 58 were toys. They will point out that last year set a record for the most toy recalls in a single year. However, anyone who understands the Agency and the work that it does will know that in fact, this statistic is further evidence of the need to reform the CPSC.
“Specifically, the slow nature of the current recall process left more than 46 million recalled items in the stream of commerce, including millions of toys sitting on store shelves, waiting to be sold to unsuspecting parents. I think it is safe to say that in the opinion of parents, this is a system failure. Unfortunately, the prospects for 2008 look much the same. The agency has already announced 40 voluntary toy recalls. At this pace, the number of recalls announced this year will surpass all records. However, these recalls are voluntary, not mandatory. Further, many of the recalls were not the result of a proactive agency; rather, they were the response of a reactive agency to an investigation conducted by members of the press. That is not how government should work.
“S. 2663 reflects a good bipartisan compromise led by Senators Pryor and Stevens. Children are dying and suffering grievous injuries because of unsafe products. This bipartisan bill is a good step forward in our effort to keep harmful products off of store shelves.
“For America’s families, and especially for America’s children, I urge my colleagues to support this meaningful consumer safety legislation.”
###
|
