"Agency Misses Chance to Curb Lead in kids Jewelry"

 "The Consumer Product Safety Commission failed to exploit an opportunity to crack down on unsafe imports -- a lapse that consumer advocates say could leave children at continuing risk of exposure to lead-tainted toy jewelry. This past August, Congress temporarily authorized the CPSC to make rules governing the manufacture of such products and to pursue violators in court -- powers the agency had lost after the resignation of its chairman left it without the necessary quorum. But that special authorization expired last week without the agency taking action against lead-tainted children's jewelry -- after a year of many high-profile product recalls. Now the consumer-protection spotlight passes to federal legislators, who last year introduced bills in the Senate and the House of Representatives that would ban or severely restrict lead in all children's products and add more enforcement manpower to the CPSC. The House passed its bill in December. But the Senate bill has been stalled in committee as Democrats and Republicans wrangle over several key provisions, including confidentiality protections for manufacturers." M.P. McQueen reports for the Wall Street Journal Feb. 12, 2008 (free content).

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Source: sej.org