WASHINGTON, D.C. – Consumer Reports today praised the House approval of important bills to boost consumer safety and help save lives. The nonprofit consumer organization urged the Senate to move quickly to pass these measures.
As part of a bipartisan vote today on a package of legislation, the House approved the STURDY Act, a bill long championed by CR. It would require the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) to establish a national rule for furniture stability. The rule would help prevent child injuries and deaths from tip-overs of unstable dressers and other clothing storage units. Currently, there are no mandatory standards for furniture stability, only voluntary ones.
Between 2000 and 2019, 451 children were killed when a piece of furniture or a television fell onto them, according to recent CPSC data. From 2017 through 2019, 11,300 children per year, on average, were treated in hospital emergency rooms for tip-over-related injuries.
Gabe Knight, policy analyst for Consumer Reports, said, “The House today approved the STURDY Act with bipartisan support. Now it’s time for the Senate to act. This lifesaving bill has the support of parents, pediatricians, safety advocates, and even major companies in the furniture industry. Every senator should stand with American families to help them keep their homes safe and their children protected from a furniture tip-over tragedy. There’s no time to waste.”
For years, CR has worked with parent advocates, companies and policymakers to advance the STURDY Act, which was approved by the House during the last session of Congress as well, but the Senate did not act before the session’s end. Read CR’s ongoing coverage of furniture tip-overs, including CR testing of dresser stability, which shows that it is feasible for manufacturers to produce stable dressers at a range of price points.
The House today also passed the Safe Sleep for Babies Act, which would ban inclined sleepers and crib bumper pads, two products that are not safe for infant sleep and are associated with more than 200 reported infant deaths.
Oriene Shin, policy counsel for Consumer Reports, said, “Lawmakers today sent a clear message: unsafe sleep products must be banned from the market. Inclined sleepers and crib bumpers can confuse parents and put babies at risk, and there are other types of infant sleep products for sale that do the same. Fortunately, the Consumer Product Safety Commission just approved a new rule to make sure all infant sleep products are required to meet strong safety standards. As the Senate takes up safe sleep legislation, we urge every manufacturer and retailer to support the CPSC’s sensible rule and comply with its requirements as quickly as possible.”
Other consumer safety bills passed by the House today were the Pandemic Effects on Home Safety and Tourism Act and the Consumer Safety Technology Act.
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Contact: David Butler, david.butler@consumer.org
Note: With the continued impact of COVID-19 on health and the economy, Consumer Reports is working to give consumers the latest information and CR advice related to the pandemic.
Consumer Reports is an independent, nonprofit membership organization that works side by side with consumers to create a fairer, safer, and healthier world. For 85 years, CR has provided evidence-based product testing and ratings, rigorous research, hard-hitting investigative journalism, public education, and steadfast policy action on behalf of consumers’ interests. Unconstrained by advertising or other commercial influences, CR has exposed landmark public health and safety issues and strives to be a catalyst for pro-consumer changes in the marketplace. From championing responsible auto safety standards, to winning food and water protections, to enhancing healthcare quality, to fighting back against predatory lenders in the financial markets, Consumer Reports has always been on the front lines, raising the voices of consumers.