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AAFA SUBMITS COMMENTS TO CPSC ON THE DEFINITION OF A CHILDREN'S PRODUCT AAFA submitted comments June 21 to the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) regarding the CPSC's proposed rulemaking that would define a children's product under the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA). The proposed rulemaking attempts to define and elaborate upon Section 235 of the CPSIA, which defines a children's product as "a consumer product designed or intended primarily for children 12 years of age or younger." The rulemaking proposes that the four factors should be utilized in making a determination that a product is a "children's product" under the CPSIA: 1) the manufacturer's statement; 2) product representation; 3) how the product is recognized by the public; and 4) the CPSC Age Determination Guidelines. AAFA's comments stressed that manufacturer's intent should be the primary and dominant factor in determining whether a product is a children's product followed by product representation. AAFA also signed onto joint comments submitted by the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) CPSC Coalition. (Rebecca Mond)
FOREIGN MANUFACTURERS ACCOUNTABILITY ACT SUBJECT TO HOUSE HEARING; OFFERED AS AMENDMENT IN SENATE House Committee on Energy and Commerce, Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade and Consumer Protection recently held a hearing to discuss H.R. 4678, the Foreign Manufacturers Legal Accountability Act. The legislation requires all foreign manufacturers to register an agent in the United States. That agent would be legally liable on behalf of the US manufacturer under US law. The legislation also requires a new declaration by importers that they are doing business with foreign manufacturers who have such a registered agent. Witnesses supporting the legislation told the subcommittee that the legislation would ensure a level playing field for all manufacturers that benefit from the American consumer market by allowing a plaintiff to sue the party responsible for defective consumer products. Others have pointed to possible violation of the World Trade Organization (WTO) as well as the unintended consequences and the burden of enforcement that will surely result from the legislation. A Senate version has also been offered as an amendment to pending tax legislation in that Chamber. However, with that underlying tax legislation still bogged down, it is unclear if this amendment will be voted on in that manner. (Rebecca Mond) SUPPLEMENTAL DEFENSE APPROPRIATIONS BILL PASSAGE STILL QUESTIONABLE BEFORE JULY 4TH RECESS Congressional leaders will try to pass a war supplemental spending bill through both houses before the Independence Day Recess. While the Senate passed its $59 billion package last month, House leaders will likely make significant changes to the bill, requiring the Senate to approve the bill again. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) has stated that passage of the bill before the recess is a top priority, but she could not confirm that it would definitely reach the floor this week despite urging from Defense Secretary Robert Gates and others. House Appropriations Chairman David Obey unveiled an $84 billion supplemental package last month, which included $33 billion for the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and $23 billion for recession-battered school districts to prevent a wave of teacher layoffs. The cost of the package is expected to be scaled back as Democrats face push-back from their ranks on deficit spending. For example, House Democrats are looking to reduce the teacher funding to roughly $10 billion and offset the spending, possibly with unspent 2009 stimulus dollars. The Senate bill did not include the $23 billion for teachers because Senate leaders feared that it may hold up movement of bill. (Kurt Courtney) PETRAEUS GEARS UP FOR CONFIRMATION HEARING The Senate Armed Services Committee is holding a confirmation hearing today, June 29, for General David Petraeus to become the commander of military and allied forces in Afghanistan. The former commander of forces in Iraq who now oversees both wars as head of U.S. Central Command, enjoys strong bipartisan support on Capitol Hill and is expected to be confirmed easily. Petraeus will replace Stanley McChrystal, who resigned the post last week after he and several aides made disparaging comments about President Barack Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and several members of the Obama administration's national security team in a Rolling Stone magazine profile. (Kurt Courtney)
CONGRESS HOLDS HEARING AS SHIPPING RATES GO THROUGH ROOF As both exporters and importers are facing coordinated "emergency" fees, charter rates two to three times year-ago rates and cargo bumped off ships at the last minute, the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee's Subcommittee on will hold a hearing tomorrow, June 30, to discuss the situation, the results of an ongoing Federal Maritime Commission study into the matter and the shipping industry's anti-trust protection. The hearing comes after House Transportation Committee Chairman James Oberstar (D-MN) recent statements questioning the shipping industry's anti-trust immunity in light of the current situation. (Nate Herman) HOUSE APPROVES AAFA-OPPOSED CAMPAIGN FINANCE LEGISLATION On a highly partisan vote of 219 to 206, the US House of Representatives on Friday approved a bill (HR 5175) that purports to provide greater disclosure of the political spending of corporations, unions and other outside groups. The legislation was proposed to repeal a recent Supreme Court case that had overturned elements of the McCain-Feingold campaign finance law restricting certain kinds of political advertising. The legislation that was ultimately adopted contains numerous provisions that would impose unconstitutional speech restrictions and burdens on corporations. Moreover, these restrictions are tailored to exempt many unions and certain other groups, such as the National Rifle Association (NRA), from the new requirements. The prospects for Senate approval of the legislation remain unclear. AAFA joined the business community in opposing the legislation, signing on to joint opposition letters and sending a key vote letter to members of Congress. (Steve Lamar) OBAMA ANNOUNCES TIMEFRAME FOR MOVING KOREA FREE TRADE AGREEMENT President Barack Obama on May 26 announced the timeframe for moving towards Congressional approval of the Korea-US Free Trade Agreement (KORUSFTA). Obama made the announcement after a meeting with South Korean President Lee Myung-Bak on the sidelines of the G-20 meetings in Toronto, Canada. Obama stated that he hoped to have all the remaining issues surrounding the KORUSFTA (autos, beef, etc.) resolved by his visit to Korea in November. He would then present the deal to Congress at the beginning of next year. The KORUSFTA would allow duty-free access for virtually all US and Korean footwear and travel goods under flexible rules of origin. The agreement would eventually allow duty-free trade among the two countries for textiles and apparel under restrictive yarn-forward rules of origin. (Nate Herman)
CALIFORNIA DTSC RELEASES DRAFT GREEN CHEMISTRY REGULATIONS California's Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) on June 23 released draft regulations for California's 2008 Green Chemistry Initiative. The regulations follow sixteen months of discussion with stakeholders. The draft regulations would require manufacturers who sell in the State of California to seek safer alternatives to toxic chemicals in their products, create tough governmental responses for lack of compliance and prioritize toxic chemicals and products. The regulation would require the DTSC to create a list of chemicals that are toxic and can do harm to people or the environment. Those products which contain chemicals on the list would be prioritized based upon the extent of public exposure, volume in commerce and how the product is eventually disposed. Manufacturers of those affected products would be required to perform a "alternatives assessment" to determine if safer alternative chemicals are available. (Greg Yahr) NEW CHEMICALS ADDED TO EU REACH SVHC LIST The European Chemical Agency (ECHA) on June 18 approved the addition of eight chemicals to the list of candidates for the designation of Substances of Very High Concern (SVHC) under REACH. The new SVHC chemicals are Trichloroethylene, Boric acid, Disodium tetraborate, anhydrous, Tetraboron disodium heptaoxide, hydrate, Sodium chromate, Potassium chromate, Ammonium dichromate, Potassium dichromate. Companies selling products in Europe containing chemicals on the SVHC candidate list must make available that information to customers and consumers upon request. The candidate list now totals 38 chemicals. (Greg Yahr) CONGRESSIONAL NEGOTIATORS REACH DEAL ON FINANCIAL REG REFORM — INTERCHANGE FEE REFORM; CONFLICT MINERALS REPORTING REQUIREMENT STAY IN BILL Congressional negotiators on June 26 announced a deal on financial regulatory reform legislation. The deal contains a number of far reaching reforms relating to the financial sector. Of particular interest, the deal still includes new AAFA-supported regulations on the ability of banks to charge retailers so-called "interchange" fees on debit card transactions, although the interchange fee provision was slightly watered down in the compromise legislation. The legislation also contains a new reporting requirement related to conflict minerals. Among other things, companies whose products contain tin, tantalum, tungsten, or gold will now be required to report to to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) if these minerals originate in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Congress is hoping to approve the legislation this week before it leaves for its July 4th recess. (Nate Herman) AAFA SUBMITS TESTIMONY TO CONGRESSIONAL CHINA COMMISSION AAFA submitted written testimony June 25 to the U.S. China Economic and Security Review Commission in response to their June 9 hearing on the impact of China's accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO) on the US economy. AAFA argues that China's accession to the WTO has benefited the US economy – from US consumers and US workers as well as US companies. (Nate Herman) AAFA CO-SIGNS LACEY SECOND LACEY ACT CONSENSUS DOCUMENT AAFA and 53 other trade associations and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) on June 23 co-signed a consensus document outlining how the amended Lacey Act should be implemented in the coming months. Recent amendments to the Lacey Act – which regulates trade in certain plant and animal products – created new restrictions related to the timber trade. Although the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) are currently not implementing these amendments with much impact on textiles, apparel, and footwear, a number of unanswered questions suggest uncertain implementation in the future. For example, key definitions like "common cultivar" remain vague. The consensus document signed last week clarifies how a variety of stakeholders believe these amendments should work in a commonsense and predictable manner. The groups shared the document with Congress and the Obama administration. Many of these same groups, including AAFA, signed a previous statement in July 2009. AAFA COMMENT WINDOW — UNCLE SAM WANTS YOU...TO COMMENT! Congress and many government agencies are soliciting comments on a range of issues that may affect your business. For a list of upcoming comments, please click here.
All Sides Claim Deficit Victory from The Financial Times The Group of 20 leading economies agreed a form of words on Sunday that allowed all sides to claim their deficit reduction strategy had won out but is likely to make little difference in practice. More Obama Invites Chinese President for State Visit from CNN U.S. President Barack Obama invited his Chinese counterpart for a visit, China's state media reported Sunday, amid lingering differences between the two powerful nations. More China Expects Yuan Reform, Debt Crisis to Impact Exports from Bloomberg Businessweek China's pledge for a more flexible yuan will slow the nation's exports this year, adding to difficulties that include the European debt crisis and rising costs, a Chinese government official said. More White House to Push Free Trade Deal with South Korea from The New York Times The Obama administration announced Saturday that it would ask Congress to ratify a long-stalled free-trade agreement with South Korea after the midterm elections in November. More Recalled Military Helmets Made With Prison Labor from The Military Community Examiner When the military issued a recall of 44,000 combat helmets last month, it was a subdued call for servicemen and women around the world to do a "lid check." More |
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