Obama signs lead law-exemption bill for kids' off-highway vehicles
August 12, 2011
In a victory for families who enjoy responsible motorized recreation,
President Barack Obama has signed into law a bill to allow the sale of kids'
off-highway vehicles (OHVs) to continue, the American Motorcyclist
Association (AMA) reports.
On Aug. 12, Obama signed into law H.R. 2715, introduced by Reps. Mary Bono
Mack (R-Calif.) and G.K. Butterfield (D-N.C.). The measure exempts kids'
OHVs from the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) of 2008, known
as the lead law.
The CPSIA, which went into effect on Feb. 10, 2009, banned the making,
importing, distributing or selling of any product intended for children 12
and under, including kids' dirtbikes and all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), that
contained more than a specified amount of lead in any accessible part that
might be ingested.
H.R. 2715 cleared the House by a 421-2 vote on Aug. 1 just before lawmakers
went into their summer recess, and earned Senate approval by unanimous
consent the same day.
The new law is a victory that is the result of nearly three years of
intensive efforts by the AMA and its partner organization, the All-Terrain
Vehicle Association (ATVA), their members and millions of advocates of
responsible OHV recreation.
"Federal legislators deserve a lot of thanks for their tireless efforts,
especially U.S. Rep. Denny Rehberg (R-Mont.), U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar
(D-Minn.) and all the other lawmakers who supported an exemption," said AMA
President and CEO Rob Dingman. "Hundreds of thousands of parents, kids and
motorcycling club members responded to AMA calls for action to contact their
elected officials and their efforts, along with all those volunteers who
circulated petitions and took other actions, brought this issue to the
attention of Congress and turned the tide in our favor.
"I'm sure that those letters, emails and telephone calls to Congress had a
major impact in convincing lawmakers to exempt OHVs from the lead law,"
Dingman said. "I'm also convinced that the AMA Family Capitol Hill Climb
held on May 26 played a major role, since it put a human face on the issue
by showing lawmakers the kids and families who are suffering because of the
CPSIA.
"I want to thank Racer X magazine, Doublin Gap Motocross Park, Mason Dixon
Riding Association 6 and 7, Tomahawk MX Park, the Middle Atlantic Motocross
Association, Budds Creek Motocross Park, High Point Raceway, and advocates
such as the Yentzer family and Moto-Patriot Nancy Sabater, who brought
youngsters to Washington, D.C., for the AMA Family Capitol Hill Climb to
lobby their lawmakers," he said.
Dingman also thanked other organizations and individuals that worked
diligently on the effort, including the Motorcycle Industry Council and
Specialty Vehicle Institute of America, which represent the motorcycle and
ATV industries; the motorcycle enthusiast and trade media; Sean Hilbert,
president of Cobra Motorcycles, which makes kids' dirtbikes; the Coombs
family and Tim Cotter of MX Sports, which has conducted the famed AMA
Amateur National Motocross Championship featuring thousands of promising
young riders for the past 30 years, and Kirk "Hardtail" Willard, president
of the Motorcycle Riders Foundation.
"I want to extend a very special thanks to Malcolm Smith, a member of the
Motorcycle Hall of Fame, who brought a lot of attention to the unfairness of
the lead law when he hosted a media event at Malcolm Smith Motorsports and
sold some youth OHVs as a symbolic gesture to protest the law," Dingman
said.
The AMA has been at the forefront of the fight to exclude child-sized
motorcycles and ATVs from the CPSIA since early 2009. The association has
participated in news events to focus media attention on the issue, lobbied
on Capitol Hill, and organized campaigns to encourage riders and parents to
contact their federal lawmakers and key decision-makers to exempt kids' OHVs
from the CPSIA.
As a result, every single member of Congress, as well as members of the
Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), has received powerful statements
from members of the AMA and ATVA.
The AMA magnified these efforts through its "Kids Just Want to Ride"
campaign. To read more of what the AMA has done in its efforts to exempt
kids' OHVs from the CPSIA, go to
http://www.americanmotorcyclist.com/Rights/KeepKidMotorcyclesAndATVsLegal.aspx .
Aimed at children's toys, the CPSIA ensnared kids' dirtbikes and ATVs
because trace levels of lead can be found in parts such as batteries and
brake calipers. Other children's products were also affected by the CPSIA,
such as books, clothes and microscopes.
The CPSC, which is responsible for implementing the CPSIA, delayed
enforcement of certain parts of the law until the end of this year, granting
a reprieve for child-sized dirtbikes and ATVs. That gave those concerned
about the law time to change it before the reprieve ended.
wrote:
>Obama signs lead law-exemption bill for kids' off-highway vehicles
>August 12, 2011
<snip>
All well & good that *some* of the politicians did something
good. OTOH, why the hell do they have to waste two & a half years
getting around to something so simple? How often do you find children
chewing on brake pads?!
Is it really too much to ask that people that claim to run
this country spend more time solving debt problems, immigration
issues, foreign wars we shouldn't be in, infrastructure problems, tax
issues, etc., etc, etc.
Sixty days on an issue like this is too much. Look at it,
realize your mistake, sign off on the correction, & get back to work
on more difficult issues!
Jinks ('86 FXRS, '07 FLTR)
#64
Remember, "No good deed goes unpunished"
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>August 12, 2011