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Novelty Lighter Ban in Oregon

Bill would ban novelty lighters

By David Steves

The Register-Guard

Published: August 1, 2008 12:00AM

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Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden introduced legislation Thursday to ban the sale of novelty lighters that resemble playful animals, colorful trucks and other toys with a dangerous appeal to children.

The Democrat said he was troubled by the role the lighters have played in fires started by children, including at least one deadly blaze last year in his home state.

"Because they are so well disguised as toys, novelty lighters have children literally playing with fire," Wyden said.

The senator said he introduced the bill in response to a request from the Oregon fire marshal's office, along with a national campaign by firefighters and chiefs associations to ban the lighters.

"You have these first responders weighing in, and that's a strong coalition. That's what swung me on the issue," Wyden said.

The ban would require the Consumer Product Safety Commission to treat novelty lighters as a banned hazardous substance that could not legally be manufactured, imported or sold anywhere in the country. Wyden's bill was co-sponsored by Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Christopher Dodd, D-Conn.

The states of Maine and Tennessee impose such bans, as do cities and counties across the United States. An Oregon House committee in June heard testimony urging such a prohibition on novelty lighter sales, prompting Chairman Paul Holvey, D-Eugene, to make plans for such legislation next session.

Holvey said he would favor a national ban, but doesn't plan to put state-level legislation on hold while waiting for Congress to act.

"We have no way to know if federal legislation will be successful or how comprehensive it will be," said Holvey, chairman of the House Committee on Consumer Protection. "There's no reason for Oregon not to go ahead."

In Oregon, advocates of a novelty lighter ban frequently cite a 2000 house fire in Washington County that killed a 6-year-old-boy and injured his 2-year-old brother. Fire investigators concluded that it was ignited by one of the children's misuse of a dolphin-shaped novelty lighter left on a tabletop by their mother.

Rich Hoover of the Oregon fire marshal's office said there are a few other Oregon fires in which novelty lighters were known to have been the cause. But a lack of state or national data linking novelty lighters to statistics on fires has hampered fire officials' ability to make the case against the devices.
 
 

While public safety groups have pushed for better data and state and local sales bans, Wyden's proposal offers the best solution, Hoover said.

"It would be a terrific outcome," he said. "What we're ultimately working for is a national ban, either for the import or the manufacture of these devices."

Wyden said he feels confident about his bill's chances for passage. He noted that most or all the novelty lighters sold in the United States, largely through convenience stores, are made in China, so U.S. manufacturers have little reason to oppose such a restriction.

"This is a chance to have a firefighter-industry-family advocates' coalition, so I'm hopeful," he said.