The US Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 (HR 4040) became Public Law No: 110-314 on August 14, 2008. In 1972, Congress passed the Consumer Product Safety Act (CPSA), which created the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), to protect the public against unreasonable risks associated with consumer products. The new law improves the CPSA by establishing standards related to children’s product safety including a new limit for lead, mandatory third party testing, a ban on the sale of children's toys and child care articles that contain more than 0.1 percent of certain phthalates, and tracking labels for children’s products. The law also authorizes increased spending levels for the CPSC, provides for additional CSPC staff, enhances enforcement authority, provides employees of private sector firms with certain whistleblower protections, and provides for increased civil fines. For more information see the July 2008 House Committee on Energy and Commerce Press Release.