Carlucci's Bill Puts Warning Tags on Christmas Trees (VIDEO)

Christmas Trees are lit and decorated and while fire departments warn about the fire hazards with keeping live trees watered, those with artificial trees are not in the clear either.

Senator David Carlucci, (D-Rockland/Orange) asks families, parents and pet owners to be aware of possible hazards from artificial trees when it comes to children and pets.

“Christmas is right around the corner. It’s a wonderful holiday we look forward to every year. I want to make sure that the public is aware and is equipped with the right tools to protect their families,” said Carlucci. “Right now in the U.S., about 85 percent of artificial Christmas trees are made in China. Many of them contain PVC (polyvinyl chloride), plastics, which is a material that can really cause harm to young children, to pets.” Plastic material, typically PVC, can be a potential source of hazardous lead, according to the National Christmas Tree Association.

Carlucci is working on passing a Consumer Protection Bill (Senate bill S1644) that would put warning labels on artificial Christmas trees and any holiday decorations containing lead that are sold in New York State.

“I put forth legislation to make sure that families are protected, that there is a warning label on these trees, to make sure that consumers, parents, families, New Yorkers, know what’s contained in these Christmas trees,” he said. “PVC can lead to serious health problems. Right now other states do have warning labels that are put on Christmas trees. New York is not one of them.”

The idea for this bill came from a grocery trip to Shoprite. A man approached Carlucci telling him that he bought a Christmas tree for the holidays and assembled it with his family. As he put the tree’s box away, he noticed a warning label on it. His artificial tree was from California and under Proposition 65 in California, artificial Christmas tree made in China are required to carry a warning label. He told Carlucci he was upset that New York did not have a similar law.

“This issue is a consumer protection issue. It’s common sense to safeguard families, our children and protect their health,” said Carlucci. “While children and pets are playing with the Christmas tree, when you unwrap your presents, you should take the proper precautions and wash your hands and make sure that you vacuum up the needles.”

It’s more dangerous for children because they often put their hands and other objects in their mouths and their bodies absorb more lead, leading their brains and nervous system to be more sensitive to the damaging effects.

The bill would:

• Require that a warning label list all hazardous chemicals and any precautionary measures that should be taken before handling a tree
• Indicate that the responsibility lie with the store selling the product so as to make sure every box has this label
• Include financial penalties for any person, firm, corporation or association who violates the requirement, subject to a civil penalty of no more than $1,000
• Would require this warning label be on products containing paint or other similar surface-coating material, or is made of any plastic material

“I’m hopeful that it will (pass next year). The big part is, even if we pass this legislation, we need to make sure that consumers are educated,” he said, adding that although manufacturers need to be lobbied and pushed into producing alternatives of artificial trees, “the problem that we have is that most of the manufacturers are in China and it’s hard to regulate them as a state. What we can do is do our best to educate the consumer and the retailer.”