“They’ve been a great lure to get people to come talk to us at events and find out more information about the census,” says Joy Brandon, media specialist for the Dallas Regional Census Center. “It’s been amazing to me how people want these items.”

Promotional products with the census logo used by the agency include backpacks, tote bags, coffee mugs, rulers, church fans, luggage tags, pens and pencils, chip clips, magnetic picture frames, polo shirts and miniature basketballs for children, Brandon says.

In addition to events, products are getting out to people by way of census buses that are traveling the country. People who tour the bus get promotional products-but only after they’ve taken the tour, Brandon says.

“The products give us the opportunity to get them in, get them closer to us and answer their questions,” she says.

In one recent contract, nearly $10 million was spent by the Census Bureau on a canvas tote bag promotion filled with census-logoed promotional products including water bottles, toy footballs, mouse pads, paperclips, pencils, luggage tags and key chains.

The items are designed to improve outreach. The Census Bureau says that for every one percent increase in mail response it will save taxpayers $85 million in costs, primarily from hired temporary employees collecting the information in door-to-door interviews.

In addition to direct Census Bureau spending, more than 200,000 partners have signed on to help promote the 2010 Census. These community-based organizations, including churches, neighborhood associations and service clubs, have received federal grant money to purchase promotional items with the census logo to help reach their constituents.

The business has been a boon for struggling companies in the promotional products business. For example, Albany, New York, distributor Absolute Promotions Inc. (UPIC: absolute) received several thousand dollars in sales of promotional items from four nonprofit organizations that received grants to canvas neighborhoods and hold events using promotional products, says Christine Piel, owner of Absolute.

Absolute delivered four-color self-adhesive notes, pens, organic totes and mints in tins with the census logo imprinted on them, Piel says.

Two of Absolute’s contracts were with the NAACP and the Korean American Family Center, she says. These organizations go door-to-door in neighborhoods looking for new people or new citizens who didn’t get the form or didn’t fill it out.

“When they canvas the neighborhoods, they can hand the products out and the information will stay over,” Piel says.

Other uses of promotional products include a Seattle fortune cookie maker who added a promotional message on one side of the paper insert in the cookies and paper plates imprinted with the census logo used by mobile taco stands in Los Angeles.

The Census Bureau launched its first paid advertising campaign for the 2000 Census when participation rates were slipping, according to Census officials.

Census data are used to apportion congressional seats to states, to distribute more than $400 billion in federal funds to tribal, state and local governments each year and to make decisions about what community services to provide. 

If you are considering using promotional items to promotion your corporation brand, please contact us for more information. We have all of the expertise you’ll need.

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This doesn’t mean members can’t participate in and even help effect policy change. The Physician Payments Sunshine Act, S. 301, is one bill currently before the U.S. Senate that, if passed as written, could effectively ban the distribution of promotional products to healthcare professionals.

S. 301 would require all manufacturers of covered drugs, devices or medical supplies to disclose payments or any other “transfer of value” made to a physician, a physician medical practice or a physician group practice. Promotional products are included in this definition.

If every item must be reported, the reality is many companies will opt to give nothing of value rather than report each item. Regardless of your client base, this bill as it stands could have a staggering economic impact on our industry, on the small business owner and on you.

PPAI urges every member to contact U.S. senators from his or her district and voice opposition to S. 301 in its current form. Visit PPAI LAW at www.capwiz.com/ppa/home/ for a copy of the letter and to locate contact information for senators.

If you are considering using promotional items to promotion your corporation brand, please contact us for more information. We have all of the expertise you’ll need. 

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Also known as the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986, California Proposition 65 is a law that imposes requirements for goods made, distributed or sold in the State of California.

Why was it passed?

The initial purpose of Prop 65 was to protect California citizens and the state’s drinking water sources from chemicals known to cause cancer, birth defects or other reproductive harm, and to inform citizens about exposures to such chemicals.

The initial purpose of the law seems good for everyone.  Why would I oppose it?

The “significant risk level” as determined by the state of California is often so low, the effects of Prop 65 are significantly more far-reaching than most Californians likely imagined at the time of passage.

Distributors conducting business in California (even if they are headquartered outside of California) have been threatened with penalties, forced to refuse shipments of products and lost business because their clients refuse to accept products that may be in violation of the law. Additionally, suppliers, particularly those that manufacture ceramic and glassware products, have forfeited thousands of dollars in lost business and have been forced to comply with state guidelines and specifications much more restrictive than other states or those of the Federal government.

Why is Prop 65 such a problem?

Prop 65 requires businesses to notify Californians via warning labels about significant amounts of chemicals – specified in a list of more than 700, such as lead and cadmium – contained in a company’s products.  More importantly, many of the compounds identified on the Prop 65 list are permissible under federal regulations.  Even though the same product can be shipped and received in other states, doing so in California without the proper warnings can expose a company to the assessment of significant penalties. Failing to provide warning notices violates Prop 65 and can result in penalties as high as $2,500 per violation per day. And if the shipped products violate the law, all involved – suppliers, distributors and end users – are potentially liable depending on the circumstances.

What is the best way to handle the warning requirements of Prop 65?

According to the state of California you must provide a warning that appears on a product’s label or other labeling. The term “label” means a display of written, printed or graphic matter upon a product or its immediate container. The term “labeling” means any label or other written, printed or graphic matter affixed to or accompanying a product or its container or wrapper.  You should consult legal counsel for specific guidance.

Are any businesses exempt from Proposition 65?

Small businesses with less than 10 employees, governmental agencies and public water systems are exempt from the warning requirement and discharge prohibition of Proposition 65. 

How can I find the list of prohibited chemicals under Prop 65?

For information on the Proposition 65 issue, including the list of prohibited chemicals, visit www.oehha.ca.gov/prop65.html.

Is there a specific test lab you would recommend that has experience testing products for Prop 65?

PPAI cannot recommend a specific laboratory but we encourage you to contact the Society of Glass and Ceramic Decorators for a list of member testing laboratories.  Visit www.sgcd.org

If it was passed in 1986, why did it take 20 years for us to hear about Prop 65?

While this law has been around for 20 years, private sector enforcement has become more aggressive. Individuals in the private sector are attacking mid- and small-sized companies in our industry. There apparently is enough of a financial incentive in just recovering a portion of the penalties and attorneys’ fees that some of these private sector “enforcers” feel it is worth their while to pursue these actions.

Private enforcement is entitled to reasonable attorneys’ fees and up to 25 percent of civil penalties. Since the penalties are per violation per day, there is a significant incentive for private enforcers to find multiple violations over a long period of time. As the history of enforcement demonstrates, it is possible for private enforcers to secure some sizable payments, based solely on attorneys’ fees and the percentage of penalties.

I don’t live in California. Why should I care?

Prop 65 is a national issue. Even when the entire distribution chain is based outside of California, if even one promotional item failing to meet the restrictions imposed by the law ships to California, all involved – suppliers, promotional consultants and end buyers – are potentially liable under the terms of Prop 65 depending on the circumstances.

Distributors throughout the country have been notified of potential violations, and several have been threatened with penalties or had to settle disputes in court.

What is S. 3128?

S. 3128, the National Uniformity for Food Act, is the U.S. Senate’s response to the safety and health regulation chaos that has been caused by Proposition 65.  The goal of S. 3128 is to provide for uniform food safety warning notification requirements, and for other purposes. This bill passed in the House of Representatives as H.R. 4167 on March 8, 2006, by a 283-139 margin. We hope its passage will provide Federal guidelines and stop enforcement for some limited products and purposes of Proposition 65.

What can I do now to protect myself from penalties?

Two things:

1.  We strongly encourage all U.S.-based members of the promotional products industry to immediately urge their Senators to support the S. 3128 legislation.

2.  In the meantime, warning labels, properly worded, do work. Changes in the composition of decorating inks to avoid the offending chemicals may be the better choice, however, as no one wants to “brand” products as being potentially hazardous to the end user. Changes to the manufacturing process – i.e. removing lead from lead crystal products – are clearly less realistic. 

When do I need to write to my Senator?

Immediately. The Senate has already held a hearing on the initiative and will begin debating this bill in September. We need to make our opinions known now to influence that debate.

If you are considering using promotional items to promotion your corporation brand, please contact us for more information. We have all of the expertise you’ll need. 

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