From Etsy’s blog, The Storque:
“I [Matt at Etsy] compiled relevant links and resources to be used in educating yourself, spreading the word, and taking action around the CPSIA. I will be updating this document from time to time, and will be sure to post updates as they arise.
I have not included a section on proposed exemptions at this point, as I am awaiting confirmation from the CPSC on where we stand exactly. I will update the document as soon as I hear back.
Download version 1 of the Action Kit (PDF file).
Today, the CPSC posted two videos of two recent meetings on the CPSIA- One on children’s apparel, the other on publishers of children’s books.
You can watch them both here:
http://www.cpsc.gov/about/cpsia/apparel.html
http://www.cpsc.gov/about/cpsia/publishers.html
I am watching the lengthy videos now and will provide some commentary soon.
From the Etsy CPSIA forums this morning:
“I [Matt at Etsy] just received a copy of a letter sent from Congressmen Joe Barton and George Radonovich to The Honorable Henry A. Waxman, Chairman of the Committee on Energy and Commerce.
They have received 1000s of letters and emails, and are citing the cause of the independent producer. They are calling for a hearing to advocate a delay in implementation of the law, a “fine tuning” of the policies.
Click here to download the pdf:
http://tinyurl.com/7r4nn4
That said, nothing has changed yet! More than ever you need to keep those Emails and Calls coming to Henry Waxman and the Committee on Energy and Commerce coming!
Contacts:
Henry A. Waxman
California-30th, Democrat
2204 Rayburn HOB
Washington, DC 20515-0530
Phone: (202) 225-3976
http://www.henrywaxman.house.gov/htbin/formproc_za/waxman/zip_authen.txt&form=/waxman/email.htm
Before emailing: Read this great blog post by Kathleen at Fashion-Incubator
http://www.fashion-incubator.com/archive/dont-throw-yourself-under-the-cpsia-bus/ “
Etsy is holding a Community Chat on the CPSIA this Friday, January 23rd, 12:00pm EST online in the Virtual Labs (an online audio-visual chat space.) Go here to learn more about what will happen at the chat and how you can participate.
Hailed almost universally on its passage last year–it passed the Senate 89 to three and the House by 424 to one, with Ron Paul the lone dissenter–CPSIA is now shaping up as a calamity for businesses and an epic failure of regulation, threatening to wipe out tens of thousands of small makers of children’s items from coast to coast, and taking a particular toll on the handcrafted and creative, the small-production-run and sideline at-home business, not to mention struggling retailers. How could this have happened?
read more
From an email we received this morning:
“The last day of voting for the Ideas for Change in America competition is today! On Friday we will present the top 10 ideas to the Obama administration at the National Press Club in Washington, DC. We’ll then connect the winning ideas to leading nonprofits and launch a series of national advocacy campaigns to turn each idea into federal policy.
You have voted for the following idea:
You can help support this idea by forwarding this email to friends or posting links to your favorite ideas on sites like Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, or any blog you might write.
Voting ends at 5pm Eastern this Thursday, Jan. 15.
We started the Ideas for Change in America initiative in the hope that we could translate the energy behind the Obama election into a citizen-led movement for change around the major issues we face. With over 500,000 votes thus far, each of you has helped deliver a clear message to the Obama administration that the American people want to participate in their own government again.
For that, we thank you. And we can’t wait to work with each of you to continue this momentum after the competition ends.
In the meantime, best of luck for each of the ideas you support!
- The Change.org Team”
BuyHandmade endorsed this issue at Change.org. Tell everyone you know to vote today!
Great post in BusinessWeek on strength in numbers–or how you’re doing an excellent job using the web to get the word out and amend the CPSIA. So keep tweeting and emailing and blog-posting, everyone, because it is working!
NEW YORK—Toy Industry Association president Carter Keithley today released an open letter to the toy industry about the association’s efforts regarding the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act, a campaign that includes a push to have the Act’s Feb. 10 lead enforcement date pushed back. Read the letter here. (Via Playthings.)
A reminder that there is a 30 day request for public comment on the latest exemptions. Let the CPSC know that the current exemptions do not go far enough to save handmade and small business! The deadline is Januray 30.
Visit www.cpsc.gov/ABOUT/Cpsia/cpsia.HTML for more info:
“Request for Comments and Information Mandatory Third-Party Testing for Certain Children’s Products Section 102 of the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (“CPSIA”): Component Parts – COMMENT REQUEST, January 30, 2009 [PDF]“
The Smart Mama is a great blog that “provides eco-consulting to make your home healthy, green, non-toxic and safe”. It also happens to have a ton of CPSIA info. Give it a look, and follow her on Twitter @thesmartmama.
