WASHINGTON, DC- U.S. Senators Bob Casey (D-PA), Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and Mary Landrieu (D-LA) today introduced an amendment to the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) reform bill that would help protect Americans from dangerous levels of formaldehyde in textiles including clothes, draperies, fabric and carpeting. The amendment would require the CPSC to regulate and test formaldehyde in textiles.
“The CPSC has identified formaldehyde as a potential hazard but has failed to regulate it in textiles,” said Casey. “American consumers can’t test these products on their own and American manufacturers should not have to compete with corner cutting competitors. It is time the Consumer Product Safety Commission does its job and keeps Americans safe by testing for formaldehyde to protect consumers from this poison.”
“The CPSC needs to update its authority to meet the challenges of a global supply chain,” Brown said. “Consumers deserve to know the clothes they wear will not make them sick. Protecting American families from formaldehyde in textiles is overdue.”
“CDC testing has found that formaldehyde was so dangerous in Gulf Coast trailers that the agency is asking residents to move out. But many people in my state are already sick. At a hearing I chaired yesterday, a CDC representative said the dangers of formaldehyde have been known since the 1980s. What is very clear is that the government needs to step up and prevent this carcinogen from being used in the products Americans wear and touch,” said Landrieu.
In 1997 the CPSC issued a report on the dangers of formaldehyde. The report stated that among other things, formaldehyde exposure “can cause watery eyes, burning sensations in the eyes, nose and throat, nausea, coughing, chest tightness, wheezing, skin rashes, and allergic reactions. It also has been observed to cause cancer in scientific studies using laboratory animals and may cause cancer in humans.” Despite issuing the report in 1997 warning of the dangers of formaldehyde, the CPSC has taken no action to protect consumers from exposure.
The Casey-Brown-Landrieu amendment would require the CPSC to complete an investigation of textile-based produces to examine the potential health and safety hazards.
The amendment also requires the CPSC to establish protocols for testing textile-based consumer products for formaldehyde, issue regulations and establish consumer product safety standards that are protective of human health for formaldehyde in such products. The CPSC would also establish a system of testing and compliance with its formaldehyde standards.
According to the Associated Press, last August the New Zealand government launched an investigation into Chinese garments imported to New Zealand after children's clothes from China were found to contain dangerous levels of formaldehyde. In 2007, according to the American Apparel and Footwear association, more than 25% of clothes sold in the United States were imported from China.
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“The CPSC has identified formaldehyde as a potential hazard but has failed to regulate it in textiles,” said Casey. “American consumers can’t test these products on their own and American manufacturers should not have to compete with corner cutting competitors. It is time the Consumer Product Safety Commission does its job and keeps Americans safe by testing for formaldehyde to protect consumers from this poison.”
“The CPSC needs to update its authority to meet the challenges of a global supply chain,” Brown said. “Consumers deserve to know the clothes they wear will not make them sick. Protecting American families from formaldehyde in textiles is overdue.”
“CDC testing has found that formaldehyde was so dangerous in Gulf Coast trailers that the agency is asking residents to move out. But many people in my state are already sick. At a hearing I chaired yesterday, a CDC representative said the dangers of formaldehyde have been known since the 1980s. What is very clear is that the government needs to step up and prevent this carcinogen from being used in the products Americans wear and touch,” said Landrieu.
In 1997 the CPSC issued a report on the dangers of formaldehyde. The report stated that among other things, formaldehyde exposure “can cause watery eyes, burning sensations in the eyes, nose and throat, nausea, coughing, chest tightness, wheezing, skin rashes, and allergic reactions. It also has been observed to cause cancer in scientific studies using laboratory animals and may cause cancer in humans.” Despite issuing the report in 1997 warning of the dangers of formaldehyde, the CPSC has taken no action to protect consumers from exposure.
The Casey-Brown-Landrieu amendment would require the CPSC to complete an investigation of textile-based produces to examine the potential health and safety hazards.
The amendment also requires the CPSC to establish protocols for testing textile-based consumer products for formaldehyde, issue regulations and establish consumer product safety standards that are protective of human health for formaldehyde in such products. The CPSC would also establish a system of testing and compliance with its formaldehyde standards.
According to the Associated Press, last August the New Zealand government launched an investigation into Chinese garments imported to New Zealand after children's clothes from China were found to contain dangerous levels of formaldehyde. In 2007, according to the American Apparel and Footwear association, more than 25% of clothes sold in the United States were imported from China.
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