Got Kids? Your going to need more money.

[Big Slick]

You know the price of new clothes will probably go up just because of this new law taking effect on February 10th. Just when you were wondering how to pay the heat bill now you can't buy a used jacket to keep your kid warm.
I think Wal-Mart had something to do with this.
And with OBlamo at the helm its just going to get worse. Australia is starting to look pretty good.
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-thrift2-2009jan02,0,2083247.story

[Big Slick]

The law, aimed at keeping lead-filled merchandise away from children, mandates that all products sold for those age 12 and younger -- including clothing.

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


If you have kids you aren't getting any USED cloths for them...anywhere.
No Garage sales, no Goodwill, No Salvation Army...You get the idea...And the shaft.

[sandmannd]

That's just rediculous right there!!

[GRIZ]

It may not be legal but I still bet you'll find some at garage sales. Some people won't know and others won't care and play dumb. What the heck are they gonna do go and waste time patrolling garage sales while thieves an drug dealers go about things as usual? If they do that they must be afraid the only thing they could catch is a cold instead of criminals.

[JCAMERON]

Rest assured I will still be buying or using "used" clothes for myself and my children!

[sandmannd]

Rest assured I will still be buying or using "used" clothes for myself and my children!

I agree. My kids are my biggest pride and joy and would do everything in my power to protect them. That being said, when does it end?? I mean come on, how much lead is in a shirt or whatnot? This protecting us from ourselves is getting out of hand.

[The General]

Got Kids = Always need more money.

[Auggie]

What a bunch of  . How much closer to socialism are we going to get? They can kiss my 

[22lex]

It looks like we can buy cheap stuff, as long as it's not on the recall list.

Looks like Johnny lawmaker had to do a little revising!

Post-Bulletin, Rochester MN 

A recent change to a new law governing children's clothing and toys exempted resale stores from the strict testing requirements that could have put the retailers in jeopardy.

As it was originally written, the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act, which goes into effect Feb. 10, mandates that all products sold for children age 12 and younger be tested for lead and phthalates, a chemical used in plastic. While testing is still required of manufacturers and distributors, it would have been prohibitively expensive for children's consignment and second-hand stores.

Fears about the reverberating effects of the law passed in August were heightened in January by a Los Angeles Times article that said all untested toys would be sent to the landfill.

"That Monday we literally had reporters coming into our store asking, 'Are you aware of this law?'" said Sue Mrugala, who own five Once Upon a Child stores in Minnesota, including the one in Rochester, with her husband Roger Mrugala. The resale store offers children's toys, clothing and other items.

Her response, "We certainly are. That's our business."

The severe restrictions wouldn't have only clamped down on her business, but also places such as Goodwill, Salvation Army Thrift Store, Savers, Children's Exchange, plus any consignment shop that accepts children's items. Yet the law didn't restrict garage sales and eBay, Mrugala said.

The exemption for resale stores was added in early January, but it came with a caveat barring the purchase and sale of any item that has been recalled.

In 15 years of owning Once Upon a Child stores Mrugala said they haven't done that anyway.

At each store, employees consult a 100-page consumer safety book that lists all recalled products. In addition to the listed items, the store also won't buy jewelry, barrettes or anything sparkly or studded since a child in Minnesota died a few years ago after swallowing a lead charm on his sneaker, she said.

"We won't even purchase any toys made from 2006 to 2007 by Mattel and Fisher Price," she said, referring to a time of a large number of recalls by those companies.

"I am confident we do everything we can in our power to make sure our product is safe," Mrugala said.

She also supports the new law, which will tighten what's allowed as far as lead and chemical content in the manufacturing process.

Taking the next step, at The Toy Zone in Rochester assistant manager Shawn Taylor said she contacted one of the store's suppliers before Christmas with her concerns.

"They said they are raising their standards above and beyond what they need to be," she said.

[sandmannd]

I honestly don't know how any of us over thirty managed to survive. We didn't have these types of  laws that protect ourselves from ourselves. Guess what, my parents didn't buy  that would fit in the mouth of a toddler. It wasn't cause the gov't told them not to, it's cause the had some common sense. Crap on a cracker this country is going down the tubes with laws like this.