U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission Office of Info and Public Affairs Washington, DC 20207 January 8, 2009 Release #09-086 CPSC Recall Hotline: (800) 638-2772 CPSC Media Contact: (301) 504-7908 In February 2009, new requirements of the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) take effect. Beginning February 10, 2009, children?s products cannot be sold if they contain more than 600 parts per million (ppm) total lead. Certain children?s products manufactured on or after February 10, 2009 cannot be sold if they contain more than 0.1% of certain specific phthalates or if they fail to meet new mandatory standards for toys. Under the new law, children?s products with more than 600 ppm total lead cannot lawfully be sold in the United States on or after February 10, 2009, even if they were manufactured before that date. The total lead limit drops to 300 ppm on August 14, 2009. Sellers of used children?s products, such as thrift stores and consignment stores, are not required to certify that those products meet the new lead limits, phthalates standard or new toy standards. The new safety law does not require resellers to test children?s products in inventory for compliance with the lead limit before they are sold. However, resellers cannot sell children?s products that exceed the lead limit and therefore should avoid products that are likely to have lead content, unless they have testing or other information to indicate the products being sold have less than the new limit. Those resellers that do sell products in violation of the new limits could face civil and/or criminal penalties. As of August 14, 2008, it became unlawful to sell recalled products. All resellers should check the CPSC Web site (www.cpsc.gov) for information on recalled products before taking into inventory or selling a product. The selling of recalled products also could carry civil and/or criminal penalties. Please visit the CPSC website at www.cpsc.gov for more information.
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