Thanks to the recent scare about lead in children's products, one of the stupidest laws ever went into affect last week. The Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act, which took hold on Monday Feb 10th, made it illegal to sell children's products that have not been tested for lead and phthalates.
Sounds all well and good, right? Well, this also applies to second hand children's items at thrift stores, consignment shops, yard sales, everywhere. And not just toys, this new law includes board games, trading cards, sporting goods, bicycles, BOOKS! and worst of all CLOTHING!
Go into your local second hand shop and take a look at where the children's section used to be. Every thrift store in my area has throw away all of their children's items. TO THE DUMPSTER! They can't even give them away, legally they have to be throw out.
Not only is this incredibly environmentally UNfriendly, but also a huge burden on those of us who can not afford to buy new, like ME!
Nate and I are, in so many words, freaking out. We still have to buy expensive items like a car seat and stroller and all that over-priced but unavoidable crap. We never gave a thought to spending money on clothing because we assumed places like the Salvation Army would provide super cheap second hand clothes for this kid. No longer an option.
This also has a terrible effect on small time consignment shops that rely on children's items for the bulk of their income. There is a children's only consignment shop in my town that has already closed it's doors for good. It can't remain in business without breaking the law. They are too small to afford the lead testing equipment (which apparently runs at about $50,000), and without the testing they can be both fined by the government for not meeting child safety requirements (the fine is $10,000) and are legally liable should an item they resell contain lead and a parent decides to sue.
This is all disgusting. In a time when our economy is failing, hundreds of thousands are losing their jobs, and food prices are skyrocketing, what does the government do? Kill the thrift stores and force parents to buy new.
Monday, February 16, 2009
Thursday, February 12, 2009
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