At the beginning of May, after protests from riders, the motorcycle industry and advocacy groups the CPSC extended the stay of enforcement of a lead law that currently bans the sale of youth-model motorcycles and all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) through May 1, 2011. While considered a short term victory, the stay has many looking to removing youth motorcycles and ATVs from the ban all together.

And, as the American Motorcyclist Association points out, the devil is in the details. The advocacy group has applauded the Commissioners' vote to stay enforcement, however, they note its unclear whether state attorneys general will also decline to enforce the CPSIA. Because the law is still in place, the sale of youth-model motorcycles and ATVs is still technically illegal.

"While we applaud the CPSC commissioners' vote to stay enforcement of the law, this doesn't solve the real issue, which is the law itself," said Ed Moreland, AMA vice president for government relations. "Youth-model motorcycles and ATVs should be exempt from the law, and Congress needs to act to make that happen. Hopefully, this stay will give Congress the time it needs to fix this law, and we will continue to work with both legislators and our partners in the industry to make certain that it does."

In Acting Chairman Nord's testimony at a hearing to a Subcommittee of the U.S. House Committee on Small Business on May 14, the Acting Chairman stated, "I would like to call your attention to Section 218 of the CPSIA that gives state attorneys general the authority to enforce certain federal product safety laws, including those regarding the limits on lead and phthalates. This state authority to enforce CPSC's statutes compromises the ability of our agency's Office of Compliance to engage in reasonable enforcement discretion. For example, the CPSC is powerless to require state attorneys general to join in the agency's stay of enforcement of certain testing and certification requirements."

In other words, even though a stay means that dealers would not be subject to fines or penalties imposed by the CPSC, state attorneys general would still be able to prosecute violators if they chose to do so.

The AMA is encouraging motorcyclists and ATV riders to let their state attorneys general know that we are concerned about the law, and that we want their office to work with the CPSC and to follow their lead in staying enforcement of the lead content limits of the CPSIA.

In an ongoing concern with the stay, comments from the the commissioners of the CPSC have left some ambiguity on the next expected step by the motorcycle industry. Although acting chairman Nancy Nord has clashed with Congress over the law, which she too has said was written too broadly and vaguely in parts, but in a statement CPSC commissioner Thomas Moore said the manufacturers of the affected vehicles have argued and presented evidence that the products need a certain amount of lead, at least for now, for safety reasons such as corrosion resistance and durability.

"They indicate they need time to do testing to see how much of a reduction in lead can be made without introducing other safety problems," Moore said referring to the industry telling the commission it is working to reduce the amount of lead in its vehicle components, "The commission expects them to use the stay of enforcement to follow through on these initiatives."

Other critics complain the stay doesn't address other implications of the initial bill.

"For example, because the CPSIA has now branded these products as 'banned hazardous substances' due to their minimal lead content," the Motorcycle Industry Council said in a statement, "they cannot be imported into the United States. U.S. Customs and Border Protection is responsible for enforcing this ban, and CPSC's stay cannot and does not bind this separate federal agency to follow it. Nor would the proposed stay prevent state Attorneys General from taking enforcement action against our member companies."

While many in the motorcycle industry were happy to hear of the stay, the damage has already been done with some dealerships around the country going out of business during the efforts to amend the law.

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