Capitol Hill Tries To Get The CPSC To Get The Lead Out
Tuesday, October 30, 2007PAUL KANGAS: After this summer's huge recalls of toys contaminated with lead paint, there's a move on Capitol Hill to beef up the Consumer Product Safety Commission. The Senate Commerce Committee today approved a bill overhauling the agency, but the White House said it's against the measure and that caused Democrats on Capitol Hill to lash out, calling for the CPSC head to step down, but the agency's chairman told Stephanie Dhue she's not going anywhere.
STEPHANIE DHUE, NIGHTLY BUSINESS REPORT CORRESPONDENT: Lawmakers want to double the budget for the agency that protects consumers from dangerous products. Congress is also considering giving the Consumer Product Safety Commission authority to slap fines up to $100 million on companies with major safety violations. But the agency's own acting chairman, Nancy Nord, has come out against the proposal. That has House Speaker Nancy Pelosi calling for Nord's resignation.
REP. NANCY PELOSI, HOUSE SPEAKER: I think that any commission chair who does not, in the face of the facts that are so clear, says we don't need any more authority or any more resources to do our job does not understand the gravity of the situation and does not understand the concerns that America's parents have for the safety of their children.
DHUE: Nord says she won't quit.
NANCY NORD, ACTING CHMN., CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY COMMISSION: I have no intention of resigning.
DHUE: Nord says the bill is ill considered and would mean more lawyers instead of safety inspectors.
NORD: If you increase penalties to such an extent that it becomes cheaper if you will for people to fight us in court rather than settle, negotiate and get the recall done and get on with business of protecting consumers, that to me does not bode well for this agency and it does not bode well for product safety overall.
DHUE: Jonathan Gold of the National Retail Federation echo Nord's concerns the bill would lead to increased lawsuits.
JONATHAN GOLD, NATIONAL RETAIL FEDERATION: We want to make sure we're not just legislating by sound bite. What sounds great might not actually work in the real world.
DHUE: Consumer groups disagree. Consumer activist Sally Greenberg says the bill is a shot in the arm for an agency that has been badly under funded.
SALLY GREENBERG, EXEC. DIR., NATIONAL CONSUMERS LEAGUE: We would recommend that the powers that be over at the CPSC look at this as a brand new opportunity to reinvigorate the work they do, to increase the number of staff they have.
DHUE: While lawmakers on Capitol Hill may pass a bill by the end of the year, states like California aren't waiting for Congress to act. Some states are already moving forward with tougher safety standards of their own. Stephanie Dhue, NIGHTLY BUSINESS REPORT, Washington.
