Finally! Some Good News re the CPSIA!

From the CPSC's press release yesterday:

CPSC Grants One Year Stay of Testing and Certification Requirements for Certain Products

Washington, D.C. – The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission voted unanimously (2-0) to issue a one year stay of enforcement for certain testing and certification requirements for manufacturers and importers of regulated products, including products intended for children 12 years old and younger. These requirements are part of the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA), which added certification and testing requirements for all products subject to CPSC standards or bans.

Significant to makers of children’s products, the vote by the Commission provides limited relief from the testing and certification requirements which go into effect on February 10, 2009 for new total lead content limits (600 ppm), phthalates limits for certain products (1000 ppm), and mandatory toy standards, among other things. Manufacturers and importers – large and small – of children’s products will not need to test or certify to these new requirements, but will need to meet the lead and phthalates limits, mandatory toy standards and other requirements.

For the rest of the release and Etsy's take on it, please see this article from The Storque, Etsy's blog. Then join me in a big shout of "Woo hoo!"

Edited to add: Found more on this after posting, of course. Thanks to Hilary at Endangered Whimsy for this post to point out our joy should probably be tempered with a bit of caution. (Check out ZRecommends' "Seller Beware" post for other reasons to hold off on the happy dance.) However, Hilary also highlighted the good news that at least one senator has finally realized that this legislation can only be controlled by... more legislation. Click on through to read Sen. DeMint's proposals to rein this thing in-- there's lots of common sense in there, so here's praying it comes out right once he proposes it as legislation this next week.