Senate committee advances bill to curb sale of counterfeit car seats online

SALEM, Ore. — The Senate Committee on Commerce and General Government voted to send House Bill 4,092A to the Senate floor with a do-pass recommendation after a public hearing and work session on Feb. 23.

Representative Hai Pham, the bill sponsor, told the committee the measure is intended “to keep kids safe by preventing the sale of car seats online” that do not meet federal or state safety standards. The bill, as described to the committee, would prohibit retailers and online marketplaces from selling car seats that fail to meet applicable federal motor vehicle safety standards and would create a private right of action for consumers who buy noncompliant products.

The bill drew technical and safety testimony from pediatricians, early‑learning advocates and consumer‑advocacy groups. Dr. Ben Hoffman, a general pediatrician at OHSU Doernbecher and a long‑time child passenger‑safety expert, described an increase in counterfeit seats identified in clinical and community settings: “Since July, we’ve identified 21 fake seats just in doing our daily work,” he said, and showed committee members physical differences between compliant and counterfeit models. Hoffman cited Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 213 (FMVSS 213) as the set of federal crash‑testing and labeling requirements that genuine seats must…