[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 112 (Friday, July 25, 2003)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1661]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               GIVE PARENTS SECURITY AND CHILDREN SAFETY

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                       HON. JANICE D. SCHAKOWSKY

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                         Friday, July 25, 2003

  Ms. SCHAKOWSKY. Mr. Speaker, today I am introducing a bill that would 
help prevent needless death and injury of young children. My bill would 
require that infant and toddler products are tested before they reach 
the marketplace. This bill is long overdue.
  Many consumers believe that, because a product is on a shelf, it is 
safe. This is not always true. In most cases, manufacturers are not 
even required to test the safety of children's products, including baby 
carriers and high chairs, before putting them on the market. As a 
consequence, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission 
(CPSC), an average of 65 children under the age of five die each year 
in incidences associated with nursery products. Furthermore, an 
estimated 69,500 children under the age of five were treated in U.S. 
hospital rooms in 2001 for injuries associated with nursery products.
  Unfortunately, issuing a voluntary recall once one or more children 
have been hurt often becomes the only way to know if a product is 
unsafe. This is unacceptable. Parents and caregivers must have 
assurance that when they buy a product, it will be safe. Therefore, 
this bill would not only require the CPSC to issue mandatory safety 
standards for infant and toddler products, but it would require the 
testing and certification of these products by an independent third 
party.
  Parents should not have to worry that the products they buy will 
threaten their children's health and safety. Nor should parents have to 
wait until they hear on the news that the carrier or crib or high chair 
that they use has been recalled before they become aware that their 
child could be in danger. Children's products were recalled, on 
average, nearly two times per week in 2002 and they accounted for over 
11 million individual units. Instead of using recalls as the answer, we 
should require that the CPSC take steps to ensure that products do not 
present safety hazards to our children.
  I would like to recognize and thank Kids In Danger, an organization 
in Chicago dedicated to protecting children, for their invaluable input 
and expertise on children's product safety. It is past due that we give 
parents the security they deserve and children the safety they need. 
This bill will accomplish those goals.

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