A new law enacted by Congress in August 2008 has created quite a stir in the publishing industry. The Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) is a response to the numerous product recalls in 2007 and 2008 — most notably toys — manufactured in China. The Act targets all products intended for children 12 years old or younger and imposes strict testing guidelines and documentation for those items.
Under the CPSIA, companies are held accountable for “acceptable levels” in their products of lead and for phthalates, which are substances added to plastic to increase its flexibility. It lowers those acceptable levels progressively over the next few years and increases fines and jail time for certain offenses — $100,000 per incident in some cases.
Children’s books are apparently included in the targeted products. “Everybody agrees that the basis of the [CPSIA testing] requirement is absolutely in good faith[…b]ut there must be exceptions to that. With books, you’re testing for lead on a material that’s just not associated with lead at all,” said Kathleen McHugh, president of the American Specialty Toy Retailers Association.
The required testing and documentation is extensive and costly, particular for smaller companies, and the responsibility is on the shoulders of both publishers and bookstores. Many industry trade groups are fighting the Act, including the Association of American Publishers, BMI, the American Booksellers Association, and the Children’s Book Council. They are trying to convince the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), the government agency formed by the Consumer Product Safety Act in 1972 and the entity responsible for enforcing the CPSIA, to exempt traditional book formats, i.e., ink on paper.
Those affected by the CPSIA are scurrying to be in compliance by the February 10 deadline, but are finding that confusion is complicating the already rigorous requirements. According to Publishers Weekly, “The CPSC has been issuing information about specific issues on a daily basis, leading to an ever-changing scenario, but much of it is contradictory and difficult to interpret.”
SOURCE: “Safety Act Catches Publishers Off Guard,” 01/12/09; SOURCE: “The Very Latest on CPSIA and Books,” 01/15/09; Photo courtesy of apdk, used under its Creative Commons license
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