Sens. Blunt and Moran, our kids need your help to stop furniture tip-over tragedies

Before November 2007, like many Americans, I assumed most products were safe. I assumed manufacturers tested and took proper precautions to ensure their products wouldn’t harm their customers. I was wrong.

In November 2007, a dresser tipped over on top of and killed my 2 1/2-year-old son, Charlie. I didn’t know until it was too late that the dresser in his room couldn’t stay upright when placed on a carpeted floor with multiple drawers open and a minimal amount of pressure put on it. I learned the hard way that dressers and other products for storing clothes are not always made with safety in mind — and the result can be deadly.

Since Charlie’s death 14 years ago, hundreds of children have died from furniture tip-overs, including at least one other child in the Kansas City area. Charlie should have been the last, and he might have been, if furniture manufacturers had taken appropriate measures to establish a strong dresser stability standard.

Many safety standards for consumer products are voluntary, and are set by nongovernmental organizations, such as ASTM International. For 21 years, ASTM’s furniture safety subcommittee — dominated by manufacturers — has failed to produce a sufficient standard to help prevent tip-overs.

When these groups fail to set strong voluntary standards, or when those standards aren’t followed and products continue to pose serious safety risks, only then can the Consumer Product Safety Commission, the federal safety agency, set mandatory rules. Even then, the regulatory process is extremely lengthy, with a single safety standard taking a decade or longer to finalize. Right now, the CPSC is trying to advance a draft proposed rule on dressers, but there is no timeline for implementation, and no guarantee that a final rule will be strong enough to protect children. Thankfully, there is another way.

The STURDY Act, a bill in Congress that would direct the CPSC to set effective rules for dresser stability and do so in a timely manner, was recently reintroduced in the Senate with new language that benefits both consumers and manufacturers. Parents Against Tip-Overs, of which I am a co-founder with other victims’ parents, worked alongside one of the world’s largest furniture manufacturers, IKEA, to add language that encourages manufacturers to develop new technology to prevent tip-overs.

The STURDY Act is a straightforward bill that considers the real-world reasons dressers are still tipping over onto children, including that they are dangerously unstable when multiple drawers are open, when placed on carpet, and when a child is pulling or climbing on drawers. Unfortunately, the STURDY Act has not yet been passed by Congress. However, two local senators on the Commerce Committee, Sens. Roy Blunt of Missouri and Jerry Moran of Kansas, could have great influence in helping pass the bill.

In 2008, when Blunt’s son Matt Blunt was governor, the Missouri legislature approved a resolution urging Congress and the CPSC to strengthen laws regarding furniture tip-over hazards immediately. This resolution was sent to every member of the Missouri congressional delegation. Yet more than 13 years later, no action has been taken to protect our children and save lives.

Both Sens. Blunt and Moran’s offices have met with local victims’ families, and have been urged by medical professionals, child safety advocates, furniture manufacturers and retailers to support the STURDY Act. We hope that both senators will join the Republicans and Democrats supporting this bill.

This year, the STURDY Act passed through the U.S. House with bipartisan support. It’s long past time for the Senate to stand up for families and support STURDY’s passage. As a Missourian, I hope to see Sen. Blunt leading the way, and every member of Congress helping to pass this lifesaving bill. Please support the STURDY Act. Do it for your Charlie and the loved ones in all our lives.