New Consumer Protection Legislation

2008 Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (Effective Feb. 10, 2009)

Key Points

Protecting Children (up to 12 years of age)
Lead: Substantially lowers allowable lead limits in all products.
Phthalates: Bans three types of phthalates in toys and selected items, such as teething rings. Interim ban on three other types.
Testing: Requires third-party safety certification of children's products. Upon Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) approval, proprietary labs (those owned or operated exclusively for a given manufacture, will be allowed to test products if they provide equal or greater consumer protection than the manufacturer's use of a third party lab.
Safety standards: Current voluntary toy safety standards developed by American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) International, an independent standard-setting organization, will become mandatory and toys must be certified to these standards.

Enhancing Recall Actions

Labeling: Requires manufacturers to label children's products with tracking information to help consumers and retailers identify recalled products.
Recalled products: Makes it unlawful for retailers to sell a recalled product. Subcontractors: Requires companies to identify their subcontractors in the supply chain.

Increasing Resources and Effectiveness

Funding: Approves seven years of funding for the CPSC, starting at $88.5 million in 2009 and increasing at a rate of 10 percent per year through 2015. For 2009 and 2010, an additional $40 million would be authorized to upgrade CPSC's laboratories and $1 million would be authorized to research the safety of nanotechnology in products.
Quorum: Allows a two-member quorum to conduct official business for nine months. The CPSC currently is without a quorum and cannot conduct business that requires Commission action, such as a mandatory recall. The measure also restores the Commission to five members instead of three members to prevent future absences of quorum.
Database: Establishes a public database to include any reports of injuries, illness, death or risk related to consumer products submitted by consumers, local, state or national government agencies, child care providers, physicians, hospitals, coroners, first responders, and the media. The CPSC would be able to expedite the disclosure of industry-provided information in the interest of public health and safety. Strengthening penalties and enforcement
Civil fines: Increases the cap on civil penalties to $20 million from $1.8 million.
Criminal penalties: Increases criminal penalties to five years in jail for violators. Attorneys General: Allows state Attorneys General to obtain injunctive relief on behalf of its residents to enforce product safety laws.
Whistleblower protections: Provides whistleblower protections for employees of manufacturers who shed light on any problems along the supply chain.

How the Law Works

The Complaint
Discovery
Pre-Trial Preparation
The Trial
The Verdict

What Insurance Companies Don't Want You to Know

The Corson & Johnson Law Firm serves clients throughout Oregon, including Eugene, Portland, Brownsville, Springfield, Hood River, Brookings, Corvallis, Salem, Redmond, Roseburg, Medford, Klamath Falls, Myrtle Creek, Bend, Albany, Creswell, Ashland, Central Point, Grants Pass, Junction City, Florence, Tigard, Cottage Grove, Coos Bay, North Bend, Newport, Oregon City, Hillsboro, Gresham, Beaverton.

Benton County • Clackamas County • Coos County • Crook County • Deschutes County • Douglas County • Jackson County • Jefferson County • Josephine County • Klamath County • Lane County • Lincoln County • Linn County • Marion County • Multnomah County • Polk County • Tillamook County • Washington County

The Corson & Johnson Law Firm does not offer any guarantee of case results. Past success in litigation does not guarantee success in any new or future civil action. Our web site describes some of the cases that Don Corson or The Corson & Johnson Law Firm has worked on in the past. Our description of those cases is summary in nature. The results obtained in each of the cases depended on the particular facts of each case. The results of other cases will differ based on the different facts involved.

FULL DISCLAIMER

Eugene Oregon Personal Injury Attorneys • Corson & Johnson Law Firm, Don Corson and Lara Johnson, 101 East Broadway Suite 303, Eugene, Oregon 97401 • phone: 541/484-2525, fax: 541/484-2929
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	< BACK TO Recall Roundup Main New Consumer Protection Legislation 2008 Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (Effective Feb. 10, 2009) Key Points Protecting Children (up to 12 years of age) Lead: Substantially lowers allowable lead limits in all products. Phthalates: Bans three types of phthalates in toys and selected items, such as teething rings. Interim ban on three other types. Testing: Requires third-party safety certification of children's products. Upon Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) approval, proprietary labs (those owned or operated exclusively for a given manufacture, will be allowed to test products if they provide equal or greater consumer protection than the manufacturer's use of a third party lab. Safety standards: Current voluntary toy safety standards developed by American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) International, an independent standard-setting organization, will become mandatory and toys must be certified to these standards. Enhancing Recall Actions Labeling: Requires manufacturers to label children's products with tracking information to help consumers and retailers identify recalled products. Recalled products: Makes it unlawful for retailers to sell a recalled product. Subcontractors: Requires companies to identify their subcontractors in the supply chain. Increasing Resources and Effectiveness Funding: Approves seven years of funding for the CPSC, starting at $88.5 million in 2009 and increasing at a rate of 10 percent per year through 2015. For 2009 and 2010, an additional $40 million would be authorized to upgrade CPSC's laboratories and $1 million would be authorized to research the safety of nanotechnology in products. Quorum: Allows a two-member quorum to conduct official business for nine months. The CPSC currently is without a quorum and cannot conduct business that requires Commission action, such as a mandatory recall. The measure also restores the Commission to five members instead of three members to prevent future absences of quorum. Database: Establishes a public database to include any reports of injuries, illness, death or risk related to consumer products submitted by consumers, local, state or national government agencies, child care providers, physicians, hospitals, coroners, first responders, and the media. The CPSC would be able to expedite the disclosure of industry-provided information in the interest of public health and safety. Strengthening penalties and enforcement Civil fines: Increases the cap on civil penalties to $20 million from $1.8 million. Criminal penalties: Increases criminal penalties to five years in jail for violators. Attorneys General: Allows state Attorneys General to obtain injunctive relief on behalf of its residents to enforce product safety laws. Whistleblower protections: Provides whistleblower protections for employees of manufacturers who shed light on any problems along the supply chain. How the Law Works The Complaint Discovery Pre-Trial Preparation The Trial The Verdict What Insurance Companies Don't Want You to Know
	The Corson & Johnson Law Firm serves clients throughout Oregon, including Eugene, Portland, Brownsville, Springfield, Hood River, Brookings, Corvallis, Salem, Redmond, Roseburg, Medford, Klamath Falls, Myrtle Creek, Bend, Albany, Creswell, Ashland, Central Point, Grants Pass, Junction City, Florence, Tigard, Cottage Grove, Coos Bay, North Bend, Newport, Oregon City, Hillsboro, Gresham, Beaverton. Benton County • Clackamas County • Coos County • Crook County • Deschutes County • Douglas County • Jackson County • Jefferson County • Josephine County • Klamath County • Lane County • Lincoln County • Linn County • Marion County • Multnomah County • Polk County • Tillamook County • Washington County The Corson & Johnson Law Firm does not offer any guarantee of case results. Past success in litigation does not guarantee success in any new or future civil action. Our web site describes some of the cases that Don Corson or The Corson & Johnson Law Firm has worked on in the past. Our description of those cases is summary in nature. The results obtained in each of the cases depended on the particular facts of each case. The results of other cases will differ based on the different facts involved. FULL DISCLAIMER