70.111.010 - Findings -- Purpose -- Intent.

Findings — Purpose — Intent.

(1) The legislature finds all of the following:

     (a) The disability and death of infants resulting from injuries sustained in crib accidents are a serious threat to the public health, welfare, and safety of the people of this state.

     (b) Infants are an especially vulnerable class of people.

     (c) The design and construction of a baby crib must ensure that it is safe to leave an infant unattended for extended periods of time. A parent or caregiver has a right to believe that the crib in use is a safe place to leave an infant.

     (d) Over thirteen thousand infants are injured in unsafe cribs every year.

     (e) In the past decade, six hundred twenty-two infants died (a rate of sixty-two infants each year) from injuries sustained in unsafe cribs.

     (f) The United States consumer product safety commission estimates that the cost to society resulting from injuries and death due to unsafe cribs is two hundred thirty-five million dollars per year.

     (g) Secondhand, hand-me-down, and heirloom cribs pose a special problem. There were four million infants born in this country last year, but only one million new cribs sold. As many as three out of four infants are placed in secondhand, hand-me-down, or heirloom cribs.

     (h) Most injuries and deaths occur in secondhand, hand-me-down, or heirloom cribs.

     (i) Existing state and federal legislation is inadequate to deal with this hazard.

     (j) Prohibiting the remanufacture, retrofit, sale, contracting to sell or resell, leasing, or subletting of unsafe cribs, particularly unsafe secondhand, hand-me-down, or heirloom cribs, will prevent injuries and deaths caused by cribs.

     (2) The purpose of this chapter is to prevent the occurrence of injuries and deaths to infants as a result of unsafe cribs by making it illegal to remanufacture, retrofit, sell, contract to sell or resell, lease, sublet, or otherwise place in the stream of commerce, after June 6, 1996, any full-size or nonfull-size crib that is unsafe for any infant using the crib.

     (3) It is the intent of the legislature to encourage public and private collaboration in disseminating materials relative to the safety of baby cribs to parents, child care providers, and those who would be likely to place unsafe cribs in the stream of commerce. The legislature also intends that informational materials regarding baby crib safety be available to consumers through the department of health.

[1996 c 158 § 1.]