The Middle Class Supports. The record-setting 473 product recalls last year made 2007 the year of the recall. Although the Consumer Product Safety Commission is responsible for protecting consumers from more than 15,000 types of consumer products, an anemic budget and staff shortages have increasingly put middle-class American consumers at risk. The Senate version of the Consumer Product Safety Modernization Act responds soundly to the dangers that consumers increasingly confront at the supermarket, at the toy store, and in their own homes. By providing the CPSC with additional funding through 2015, along with resources to improve its testing facilities, the legislation helps to ensure that competent inspectors remain vigilant of consumer safety no matter who is president. Empowering state attorneys general to file suit when they believe that residents of a state have been adversely affected by a violation of a consumer product safety rule – instead of simply to enforce a CPSC rule, as provided in the House version of this bill – creates an additional layer of consumer protection. Independent third-party testing of children’s products prevents the insidious practice by which manufacturers would certify the safety of their own goods, while mandatory toy safety standards are a commonsense response to the recent explosion of toy recalls. A database of consumer complaints about dangerous products will both educate the public about potentially harmful goods and allow consumers to voice their concerns about such products. The ban on lead in children’s products and the increase in the age level at which a product is considered to be intended for a child will benefit parents who would otherwise be unable to determine if a toy is safe. Whistleblower protections will ensure that vigilant industry employees and public employees do not fear job or compensation loss for reporting negligent manufacturing practices or poor oversight.