Toy Association Lobbies U.S. Government to Prioritize Shipping Crisis

July 12, 2021 | The Toy Association continues to urge the U.S. government to take swift action in response to the ongoing shipping crisis.

In letters submitted to the House Transportation Subcommittee on Coast Guard, Maritime, and Transportation and additional members of Congress last week, The Toy Association underscored the significant negative impacts shipping delays, increased costs, and container shortages have caused its members and the greater toy community.

The Toy Association outlined how − with 85 percent of toys sold in the U.S. being manufactured overseas − these disruptions are jeopardizing the U.S. toy industry’s business operations and in turn the industry’s positive U.S. economic impact of $97.2 billion annually, $13.1 billion in state and federal tax revenue generated each year, and 623,067 U.S. jobs.

“With our members, many of whom are small businesses, reporting a 500 percent increase on containers, along with increased trucking and air freight rates and rail surcharges, absorbing these costs has become extremely challenging,” said Leigh Moyers, director of federal government affairs at The Toy Association. “As shipping for the holiday season begins to accelerate into the fall months, we will continue to work with federal government officials and stress the critical need for developing and implementing short-term and long-term solutions to resolve this issue.”

Last week, the Association hosted a members-only webinar, “Shipping Crisis Facing Toy Industry Examined,” in which the Toy Industry Shippers Association (TOYSA) provided members with an update. This follows the Association’s ongoing advocacy on the issue, which includes meeting with the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) and hosting a previous webinar with the Port of Los Angeles, which provided a ports update and forecasted the 2021 holiday shipping season. Recordings of both webinars are now available for free and exclusive to Toy Association members.

On July 14, members of the Toy Association Executive Committee, along with its President & CEO Steve Pasierb and Executive Vice President of External Affairs Ed Desmond, are expected to meet with Daniel Maffei, chairman of the FMC, to continue discussions on the shipping crisis and its impact on the toy industry.

With the issue expected to persist through year’s end, and potentially into 2022, The Toy Association will continue to keep members up to date on the situation. For additional information, please contact The Toy Association’s Leigh Moyers.