[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 5 (Tuesday, January 29, 2002)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E59]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        THANK YOU ANN BROWN AND THE STAFF AND VOLUNTEERS OF SAFE

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. JAMES P. MORAN

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, January 29, 2002

  Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, thank you Ann and all the fine 
staff and volunteers of SAFE. I am proud to be here today standing 
along side of this nation's foremost safety advocates.
  Ann Brown has dedicated much of her life to our families safety. Her 
particular emphasis has been on children. Because our children 
naturally assume that anything, particularly a toy, that their parents 
give them couldn't possibly cause them harm.
  But do you know that more than 1.7 million children under the age of 
5 are injured each year by defective or hazardous products. For older 
children, the figure is almost 5.5 million.
  So, as I was saying, Ann Brown is determined, she's tough, and she 
doesn't give up. And if I'm ever not on her side, I'll know I'm on the 
wrong side. Because through effective regulatory action, encouraging 
voluntary steps by companies, and creating unique public-private 
partnership with industry and other governmental agencies, she has made 
a major difference in the quality and the safety of our lives.
  In fact, no one, before Ann, has been as consistently effective in 
making more people aware of dangerous and defective consumer products 
and getting them recalled--300 products were recalled during Ann's 7\1/
2\ years chairmanship of CPSC. Too many children have been injured, 
some have even died because people didn't learn about the recall of a 
dangerous product from television, radio or their daily paper.
  Sometimes they don't hear about the recall. Oftentimes, it's not 
their fault. The way the system works today, it's surprising anyone 
knows about some of these recalls.
  Most companies try to contact people directly about recalled products 
based on the limited records they've collected from the so-called 
warranty cards companies send out with products.
  These records are grossly inadequate.
  Over 90 percent of consumers toss the cards out because they contain 
marketing and personal questions people just don't want to answer. And 
they shouldn't have to.
  I like Ann's idea that if you could create a simple safety card, like 
she has shown today, people would be much more likely to send them 
back.
  We want to commend Mattel and BrandStamp for stepping up to the plate 
to help CPSC test this idea.
  Ann Brown and SAFE are right that CPSC should move forward on a 
proposed rule to improve recall effectiveness.
  So we are introducing legislation which would require CPSC, within 9 
months to adopt a standard for companies to develop shorter, simpler 
consumer friendly Product Safety Cards, or online product registration 
beginning with juvenile products and small electrical appliances, and 
then other consumer products.
  The legislation also encourages companies to look at other new 
technologies that will help them do the job.
  This bill is designed to help the government do what it needs to do 
to protect American consumers.
  I'm proud to be here today, standing alongside Ann Brown, my 
colleague from Massachusetts, Jim McGovern, and the folks from these 
good companies who want to save lives and prevent injuries by 
developing a way to let more people know about dangerous products.

                          ____________________