Target, Toys R Us and Kmart have agreed to pay a total of $454,000 in fines for selling toys with prohibited amounts of lead paint.
The California Attorney General’s Office filed the suit in November 2007 after concluding that the quantity of lead paint violated federal and state law.
Many hope that these penalties will serve as a deterrent for future violations. “The settlement provides a remedy for past violations”, said Harrison Pollack, a state deputy attorney general, “and makes it less likely that there will be future violations of lead standards.”