Free Enterprise Action Fund (Ticker: FEAOX) Calls for Warning Labels on Mercury-Containing Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs
For more info contact: Steve Milloy, 301-258-2852, steve@feafund.com
Washington DC, May 21, 2007 - Action Fund Management, LLC (AFM), the investment advisor to the Free Enterprise Action Fund (Ticker: FEAOX), announced today that it petitioned the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) to issue consumer warning labels on mercury- containing compact florescent light bulbs (CFLs).
The FEAOX (http://www.FEAOX.com) is seeking warning labels for CFLs to alert consumers that accidental breakage and disposal of CFL debris poses a serious risk to human health and environment, according to federal and state regulators. Through this action, FEAOX seeks to protect its investment in companies that manufacture and sell CFLs from potential future liability from inadequate warning claims.
The CPSC has previously warned the public about health hazards associated with exposure to mercury vapor. CFLs contain a potentially hazardous amount of mercury that may be released into the environment if the bulbs break. According to a recent report in The Ellsworth American (April 12), the clean- up of debris from a single CFL could cost as much as $2,000.
"In their haste 'go green,' companies like General Electric, Wal-Mart, Home Depot, Target, Lowes and others may be exposing themselves to significant reputational and litigation risk over mercury exposure and clean-up. Wal- Mart's goal of selling CFLs in 100 million homes potentially translates to enormous litigation risk. Hopefully, warning consumers of the risk from CFLs will reduce the companies' litigation exposure," said Steve Milloy of AFM.
"GE's CEO Jeff Immelt's coziness with Al Gore has blinded him to the realities of today's business environment. It's very disturbing that GE apparently hasn't used its 'ecomagination' to realize that the potential for mercury contamination of millions of homes may result in expensive litigation," said AFM's Tom Borelli.
"After more than a decade of controversy surrounding GE's ongoing $500 million clean-up of PCB pollution in the Hudson River, you would think that GE executives would learn from its past experience with toxic waste. Without warning labels, CFLs are chum for trial lawyers," added Borelli.
- In its petition to CSPC, AFM requests a rulemaking to require that the
retail packaging of CFLs carry:
- A prominent warning label alerting consumers to the potential health hazards from mercury in the event of CFL breakage; and
- Prominent instructions for the safe and proper clean-up and disposal of CFLs, including the notification of appropriate state/local authorities in the event proper clean-up methods cannot be implemented.
The FEAOX aims to increase shareholder value by advancing free-market principles in the companies it owns. FEAOX is available exclusively through BISYS Fund Services Limited Partnership (applications may be obtained at http://www.FEAOX.com/how.html), and through E*Trade Financial and HSBC.
| As of 4-30-07 | As of 3-31-06 | |
| One Month | 4.16% | 0.98% |
| Three Months | 3.06% | 0.18% |
| Year-to-date | 4.34% | 0.18% |
| Annualized, Since Inception (3-1-05) | 8.11% | 6.34% |
| Annualized, 1-year | 11.54% | 8.01% |
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