CPSC

[tikistitch]

Toy safety bill debated in Senate

WASHINGTON - The Senate on Tuesday dove into what could be an extensive debate over a sweeping reform of the nation's toy safety system, rejecting an early attempt to scale back its mandates for increased toy testing and other safety measures.

'Bout bloody time:

The bill would bring the largest overhaul in decades of the federal Consumer Product Safety Commission if the Senate passes the measure and reconciles it with a version the House passed late last year, and if President Bush signs it into law.

*sighs*

Here's something a bit cheerier:

Safety Inspector Just Can't Stop Poking Around

BROOKLYN, N.Y. -- Shaking the rain off his jacket, Martin Bennett entered the cavernous warehouse of a refurbished-mattress supplier one recent afternoon. Past stacks of old bedding, he found, sitting behind a desk, a man who identified himself as the owner of the E&G Bedding Corp.

Mr. Bennett wanted to inspect the company's paperwork on the sanitation tests required on used bedding that's resold. Instead, he was shown the door. "Get...out of here!" shouted the man. "This is private property."

He was correct that Mr. Bennett has no business reviewing the company's internal records -- at least not anymore. He retired more than six years ago from the federal Consumer Product Safety Commission, where he worked as a compliance officer for more than four decades.

But retirement hasn't stopped the 69-year-old sleuth from continuing to hunt for unsafe consumer goods -- and from going after companies that sell or distribute them. Mr. Bennett, a widower who is now remarried, spends hours on his home computer, researching whether recalled products are still being sold at online auction sites. He sends letters marked "URGENT" to retailers, demanding they contact the CPSC "within 24 hours" about toys and other products they carry that he considers dangerous. He attends public hearings in Washington and, about once a week, makes unannounced shopping trips seeking unsafe merchandise.

His former employer can use the help. A flood of imports, from China particularly, has put a strain on the CPSC, which came under fire last year for failing to uncover lead and other safety issues in millions of toys that ended up being recalled. The agency currently has only 90 inspectors for the whole country, and it says it wants to add more. Since retiring, Mr. Bennett has passed along scores of tips to the CPSC, which says it welcomes the input.