Sunday, January 11, 2009 8:47 PM CST
Resale store owners still concerned about lead rules
By NATHANIEL WEST, Staff Writer
nwest@jg-tc.com
MATTOON -- Local consignment store owners said they are still concerned about new federal regulations that at first seemed to require lead inspections of all secondhand children’s clothing and toys.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission last week clarified that changes to the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act, which take effect next month, do not require resale or consignment stores to submit their children’s products for lead testing — a highly costly process that local resale store officials said would have crippled them.
However, resale and consignment stores still could be responsible either in criminal or civil court for selling lead-tainted products, the CPSC said in a statement Thursday.
And local store owners said they are still wary of liability from lead-tainted children’s products and will take steps to be more watchful that no such items are on their shelves or clothing racks.
“I’m very concerned,” said Nancy Kuykendall, owner of Twice Is Nice in Charleston.
Last year, Congress passed new regulations under the CPSIA in reaction to numerous recalls for children’s products — including those made with lead, such as some buttons on clothing. Some toys also have contained lead-based paint.
When they first learned of the new regulations, Kuykendall and other local resale store owners thought they would have to submit every article of children’s clothing for a lead inspection. That would have cost almost $20 per item, said Brenda Scott, owner of Repeat Boutique in Mattoon.
While she said she “can understand where (advocates of the regulations) are coming from,” a rule requiring an inspection would have forced her to drop children’s clothing entirely, thus reducing her overall sales by at least 25 percent.
“There’s no way a (resale) shop could do that,” she said.
At the same time, Scott said she intends to stop selling toys this spring over fears of lead contamination. “I might as well do it now,” she said.
The inspection mandate would have spelled the end for Pennies from Heaven, a Mattoon consignment store that presently carries children’s clothing almost exclusively.
Now, Bill Ames, husband to owner Shawn Ames, said they believe they will not have to send clothing off for inspection, but they still think they could be held liable for selling something with lead in it.
“Most of us are still waiting for a better explanation of the law,” he said.
Contact Nathaniel West at nwest@jg-tc.com or 238-6860.
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gringa wrote on Jan 12, 2009 10:13 AM:
To protect themselves from would-be litigants, owners should post a disclaimer notice in the store stating that lead traces could be contained in certain childrens' clothing items and encourage parents to have the clothing items inspected if they have related concerns. Have each customer sign an acknowlegment form before accepting their money.
Send a letter to Durbin, Burris and Johnson to tell government to spend their time on something that makes a difference - like how to become an energy independent nation! "