The New York State Consumer Protection Board (CPB) helps protect the health and well-being of New Yorkers with its work in the area of product safety and toy testing. As a U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) state designee, the CPB conducts recall effectiveness checks in the marketplace. Additionally, the CPB produces its own educational materials on product safety, collaborates with numerous safety-oriented organizations to advance education, and posts recall notices on its website. To augment the CPB's efforts, New York State recently enacted the Children's Product Safety and Recall Effectiveness Act of 2008, giving the CPB greater authority to enhance marketplace safety.
Toy Testing
In 2009, the CPB continued its juvenile product testing program by contracting with a New York-based laboratory to test toys and other items for lead content in painted coatings and substrate materials. The products were selected from a variety of retail stores in the New York City area, including large retailers, department stores, specialty stores, and discounters. Products were also examined to ensure that they were properly labeled before they were sent to the lab for testing. In 2009, 20 products were tested according to federal standards, including colored pencils, crayons, modeling clay, small plastic and painted metal toys, wooden toys, puzzles, and stuffed animals. All of the toys met the current CPSC standards for lead content, having less than 90 parts per million (PPM) of lead in painted surface coatings and less than 300 PPM in substrate materials. One of the items selected did not have proper safety warnings, and this item was forwarded to the CPSC for further investigation.
Legislation and Rules -- Children's Product Safety and Recall Effectiveness Act of 2008
In September 2009, the Governor signed a chapter amendment to the Children's' Product Safety and Recall Effectiveness Act of 2008 to make the law fully comport with federal law. The law, advanced by the CPB, requires greater and more direct notice of recalls by manufacturers and importers of children's toys and durable juvenile products to consumers, distributors, and retailers. Further, the statute requires recalled products to be removed from store shelves and out of the stream of commerce. Additionally, the law requires that manufacturers of durable juvenile products include a product safety owner card that can only be used to notify consumers in the event of a recall and more detailed labeling of children's products. The CPB has been working with stakeholders in the retail and manufacturing sectors to construct rules that will advance compliance and further strengthen New York's position as a national leader in consumer protection.
Product Recall Checks
The CPB continued to conduct sweeps looking for recalled products in the stream of commerce. As the New York State designee for the CPSC, the Agency assists this federal agency with retail recall compliance checks. Under its initial contract and an extension, the CPB performed 25 checks in the Capital District and New York City.
In addition to sweeping stores for recalled products, the CPB checks whether recall notices are conspicuously posted for public viewing. For locations where the notices are not prominently displayed, the CPB sends letters to the appropriate retailers advising them that better notice is necessary and required under new federal and State laws.
Consumer Awareness
In the interest of raising awareness about the importance of recalls, the CPB routinely posts recalls of most types of consumer products - - including products for adults as well as children's clothes, toys, helmets, games, and furniture - - on its website in a timely fashion. In 2009, 292 entries were made to the CPB's product recall list. These notices were also transmitted to the public via NY-Alert and Twitter.
Special Products
Children's Drawstring Garments
In 2009, the CPB focused on an alarming trend involving a large number of national recalls of children's drawstring clothing. Upon review of national drawstring standards and New York State law, the CPB launched an outreach campaign that included educational materials for manufacturers, retailers, and consumers highlighting the dangers of long drawstrings at the neck of children's garments and the additional requirements of New York State law concerning drawstrings at the waist of children's items (New York State law is stricter than the voluntary federal standards). This information was also made available in the CPB's Back-to-School bulletin.
To encourage industry compliance and increase awareness about the safety requirements under New York State's drawstring law, the CPB conducted meetings with the American Apparel and Footwear Association (AAFA). This collaboration helped facilitate the distribution of the CPB's drawstring information at the AAFA compliance meetings held at New York City's Fashion Institute of Technology In December 2009.
Drop Side Cribs and Other Durable Juvenile Products
With the national recall of several models of drop side cribs manufactured by Simplicity, Inc. and SFCA, Inc. of Reading, PA by the CPSC in 2009, the CPB raised awareness about the safety hazards with educational materials and responded to consumer inquiries. Further, the Agency acknowledged the efforts of three national retailers conducting business in the State for prominently posting alerts in advertisements and on their websites about the recall of these durable juvenile products.
In a July 2009 press release, Chairperson and Executive Director Bockstein stated, "We believe in calling out companies and businesses in order to help raise the bar in protecting consumers and to give others examples of best practices to follow. We're glad to see that some businesses are taking recalls seriously and taking steps to help safeguard their customers from hazardous products. Our consistent work with the Retail Council of New York State and others in the business community is making a difference in safety and consumer protection for New Yorkers."
Additionally, in September 2009 and January 2010, the CPB recognized Toys R Us for its Great Trade-in programs designed to remove potentially unsafe old and second-hand children's products from homes, day care centers and other locations. Older cribs, car seats, and other durable infant and toddlers products often do not meet the most current safety requirements and in some cases may be subject to a safety recall. This program serves as an example on how retailers, by raising awareness and offering consumers an incentive to return their used items, can make a difference in the effort to help keep children safe.
Consumers can find important resource material about drop side cribs and other juvenile products on the Agency's website.