MONTEREY, CA (BRAIN)—Is your company in compliance with CPSIA rules? If you are unsure, do your company a service and join a collective industry effort by attending the Bicycle Leadership Conference during Sea Otter next week.
The Consumer Product Safety Information Act (CPSIA) limits lead content for products made for kids 12 and under. It may render your products in technical non-compliance with this new federal law. Sale of non-compliant products can lead to significant fines and penalties.
The Bicycle Product Suppliers Association is giving the issue top billing at its annual conference because of its serious potential implications, said BPSA president John Nedeau.
“It’s an opportunity to get updated on what’s occurred. The situation is highly politicized, and we need to call the industry to arms. We need that participation across a broader base than the people involved so far and existing BPSA members,” Nedeau said, citing mass market companies and BMX companies in particular.
The BPSA Legislative Committee has been at the forefront of this critical issue, and the BPSA currently has a petition pending before the Consumer Product Safety Commission. However, based on the agency's recommendation that a very similar petition for the ATV industry be denied, bicycles may be approaching a critical deadline. The effort may now have to shift to a legislative fix and you need to understand what is happening at the vanguard of this effort or risk an outcome that you have no say in.
“This is a fluid situation,” Nedeau said. “Our tactics and strategy change pretty frequently. This is an opportunity to learn from Bob how it’s politicized in Washington.”
Bob Burns, head of the BPSA’s legislative committee and general counsel for Trek, will update BLC attendees Friday, April 17 from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. He will give an overview of the law and how it affects the industry; outline BPSA efforts to date, both with the CPSA and on Capitol Hill; and share the BPSA’s strategy going forward and the need for broader industry participation.
For more information about the Bicycle Leadership Conference and to register for the April 15-17 conference, held at the Sea Otter Classic in Monterey, California, click on link. Full descriptions of the panels and other events, including the annual BRAINy Awards, bike rides and networking events, are listed on the Web site under '09 Agenda.
