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For Immediate Release:  
For Further Information:
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December 15, 2008  

Lee Moore
609-292-4791

Office of The Attorney General
- Anne Milgram, Attorney General
Division of Consumer Affairs
- David Szuchman, Director

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Attorney General Announces N.J. Part of $12 Million Settlement with Mattel on Toys Recalled for Excess Lead Paint

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TRENTON -- Attorney General Anne Milgram announced today that New Jersey has entered into a multi-state settlement agreement with the toy manufacturer Mattel, Inc. and its subsidiary, Fisher-Price, Inc., that resolves a 16-month long investigation into events that resulted in a voluntary recall of the company’s toys for excessive lead paint during 2007.

Filed today in New Jersey Superior Court in Mercer County, the agreement requires Mattel to make a total payment of $12 million to be divided among 38 participating states. The deadline for the settlement payment is January 30, 2009. New Jersey’s share of the payout is approximately $259,000.

From August 2, 2007 through October 25, 2007, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) recalled approximately two million Mattel and Fisher-Price toys manufactured in China, alleging that the toys contained excessive lead in accessible surface coatings. At the time of the recalls, the CPSC limit on lead in accessible surface coatings was 600-parts-per-million. Testing data reviewed during the multi-state investigation revealed that lead levels in the recalled toys not only exceeded federal limits but, in some instances, reached levels of more than 10,000 ppm and 50,000 ppm.

The multi-state agreement announced today includes more stringent standards for accessible lead both in surface coatings and substrates. The agreement is effective for toys manufactured after November 30, 2008.

”This is an important settlement for children in New Jersey,’’ said Attorney General Milgram. “Lead is a highly toxic metal, and can have serious – sometimes fatal – effects on young people who come into contact with it. We are committed to doing everything we can to ensure that the toys sold in our state are safe.”

Since the states first contacted Mattel in August 2007, Congress has enacted the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA), which sets more stringent standards for lead in surface coatings and substrates as of February 2009.

As a result of the multi-state settlement agreement, however, Mattel has agreed to phase in more stringent lead standards ahead of the timelines provided by the CPSIA.

Mattel has also agreed to notify New Jersey and the other participating states if it confirms excessive lead in any of its products in violation of the law or the settlement agreement, and to work with the states to remedy such violations.

Deputy Attorney General Cathleen O’Donnell, of the Consumer Fraud Prosecution Section within the Division of Law, handled the Mattel settlement on behalf of the state.

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