Congress passes law to make toys safer

In early August, The New York Times editorial page took a rare opportunity to praise Congress for passing legislation that would:

• ban lead in toys intended for children under the age of 12
• require safety testing of children's toys before they could be put on sale
• permanently ban three types of phthalates and temporarily ban three more types
• raise the budget for the Consumer Product Safety Commission
• mandate a database of products that consumers could complain about

The Times notes that Bush is expected to sign the bill, which passed the Senate 89-3 and the House 424-1.

This is great news. Too bad it only took 30 million recalled toys, lead poisonings, powdered asbestos, and necklaces laced with the date rape drug to inspire some Congressional action.