Toy Manufacturers Fight Safety Requirements In House

by Stuart Shapiro

Back in 2007, after scandals associated with dangerous toys from China, legislation was passed strengthening the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC).  One of the actions taken by the newly empowered CPSC was to propose an online database of injuries from children’s products.  Who would oppose such a requirement (besides the legendary Irwin Mainway)?

Emboldened by a Republican majority in the House of Representatives, manufacturers of toys and other children’s products are making a last-ditch effort to quash new safety regulations that they say are unfair or too onerous.

Among their primary targets is a new public database, operated by the Consumer Product Safety Commission and scheduled to go online in three weeks, that would allow the public to search for injury reports on products like cribs and strollers.

While there may be an argument against requiring manufacturers to recall their products (not that I would buy such an argument), arguing against making injuries public is without any merit.  Maybe the companies really are hoping to market Mr. Mainway’s idea of selling a “bag o’ broken glass.”

By: Stuart Shapiro

Stuart is a professor and the Director of the Public Policy
program at the Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers
University. He teaches economics and cost-benefit analysis and studies
regulation in the United States at both the federal and state levels.
Prior to coming to Rutgers, Stuart worked for five years at the Office
of Management and Budget in Washington under Presidents Clinton and
George W. Bush.