Mom’s Soap Box

From the LA Times:

Some owners say the cost of testing for  lead  will shut their businesses.
The law goes into effect Feb. 10.

Goodwill - the king of thrift stores

Dreams of thrift.

By Alana Semuels

January 2, 2009

Barring a reprieve, regulations set to take effect next month could force thousands of clothing retailers and thrift stores to throw away trunkloads of children’s clothing.

The law, aimed at keeping lead-filled merchandise away from children, mandates that all products sold for those age 12 and younger -  including clothing — be tested for lead and phthalates, which are chemicals used to make plastics more pliable. Those that haven’t been tested will be considered hazardous, regardless of whether they actually contain lead

“They’ll all have to go to the landfill,” said Adele Meyer, executive director of the National Assn. of Resale and Thrift Shops.

The new regulations take effect Feb. 10 under the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act, which was passed by Congress last year in response to widespread recalls of products that posed a threat to children, including toys made with lead or lead-based paint.

Supporters say the measure is sorely needed. One health advocacy group said it found high levels of lead  in dozens of products purchased around the country,  including children’s jewelry, backpacks and ponchos.

Lead can also be found in buttons or charms on clothing and on appliques that have been added to fabric, said Charles Margulis, communications director for the Center for Environmental Health in Oakland. A child in Minnesota died a few years ago after swallowing a lead charm on his sneaker, he said.

But others say the measure was written too broadly. Among the most vocal critics to emerge in recent weeks are U.S.-based makers of handcrafted toys and handmade clothes, as well as thrift and consignment shops that sell children’s clothing.

“We will have to lock our doors and file for bankruptcy,” said Shauna Sloan, founder of Salt Lake City-based franchise Kid to Kid, which sells used children’s clothing in 75 stores across the country and had planned to open a store in Santa Clara, Calif., this year.

…

Thrift store owners say the law stings because children’s garments often come in new or nearly new, because children typically outgrow clothing quickly.

Carol Vaporis, owner of Duck Duck Goose Consignment in New Port Richey, Fla., said her store stocks barely used brand-name clothing from places such as Limited Too and Gymboree.

“We really provide a service to the community to help people get clothes for their children they otherwise couldn’t afford,” she said.

Read the rest of the article here:

http://www.latimes.com/news/science/environment/la-fi-thrift2-2009jan02,0,4604950.story

Thrift store interior

I would be one of those people, buying clothes for my kids at the thrift store that I can’t afford to shop for at the mall. Hell, most months I can’t afford the clothes at Walmart, much less at the mall or other big name retailers. If it wasn’t for Ebay and thrift stores, me and my kids would all be running around naked. Trust me, no one wants to see that.