GHTA PUBLIC POLICY BREAKING NEWS
GHTA Joins Scores of Industry Trade Organizations As It Travels
To Washington DC for an April 1 Fly In Rally and Congressional Briefing

Grand Rapids, Mich. -- The Gift and Home Trade Association (GHTA), the industry's non-profit trade association serving the gift and home industry, has been active in the Public Policy arena, joining with other industry organizations to fix flaws in the new product safety law.  See http://amendthecpsia.com/2009/03/press-release/ for details pertaining to the Fly In Rally.

GHTA attorney, Robin Harvey, Baker Hostetler, represented the GHTA at this event on Capitol Hill on April 1, which lasted for over 2-1/2 hours. Nearly 30 speakers, including industry spokespeople, scientists and Congressional representatives, presented information on the topic from a variety of vantage points. There were over 200 in attendance and 2,400 on the Webinar.  From there, Harvey joined others who visited several Congressional offices throughout the afternoon.

Technical correction bills for the CPSIA have been submitted this week in both the House and Senate by Representative Joe Barton and Senator Jim DeMint. That includes a one-year stay so that businesses and regulators can catch up, because they recognize that the complexities of the proposed legislation have created turmoil in the marketplace and required more from the regulators than the limited resources of the CPSC could support.

Additional information on the Rally will be posted to the GHTA web site, www.giftandhome.org and can be located on www.nam.org.

Earlier in the month, the GHTA also signed a petition sponsored by the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) with other trade associations and member companies to request a one-year stay of enforcement of the product tracking label provisions of Section 103 of the CPSIA.

For more information on the GHTA and its Public Policy initiative, please visit www.giftandhome.org or call 1.877.600.4872.  

About the GIFT AND HOME Trade Association:
GHTA is the gift and home industry's non-profit trade association formed to help vendors, sales agencies and industry affiliates work together to improve relationships.  GHTA's mission is to lead and transform the gift and home industry to ensure its long-term health and viability.  GHTA has four major initiatives:  to educate sales professionals;  to understand and educate the industry on opportunities for technological efficiencies;  to support and cultivate the industry's independent retailers; and to understand and educate the industry on showroom/trade show costs, statistics, schedules, opportunities and preferences.  GHTA can be reached by email at info@ghta.net.  For more information on the GIFT AND HOME Trade Association visit www.giftandhome.org.