One of Gov. Tim Pawlenty’s most recent vetoes has him looking out-of-step on a matter of public health and safety, as the federal government and national retailers scramble to address consumer safety issues in children’s products.

On July 31, Congress passed a legislative ban on a family of toxins known as phthalates, which are used as a plasticizer to increase flexibility in thousands of products. Pressure for a ban on children’s products like toys, clothes and health products with more than 0.1% phthalate content increased after repeated safety recalls earlier this year heightened awareness. The federal legislation awaits the approval of President Bush, who is likely to sign the bill despite expressing previous reservations.

When the Minnesota Legislature a similar ban earlier this year, Pawlenty deemed the legislation "not based on established science" and on May 12 issued a veto.

"The legislative mandate overreaches and goes beyond current scientific research," Pawlenty wrote in his veto letter (pdf). "The issues of product safety and product availability are important and need to be based on science."

While definitive evidence on the health impact of phthalates on humans is lacking, multiple studies have linked the chemicals to neurological and reproductive abnormalities in rats and primates. A more recent study in the February 2008 issue of the medical journal Pediatrics further raised concerns when it was found that infants exposed to lotions and other cosmetic products showed increased urinary concentrations of monoethyl phthalate, monomethyl phthalate and monoisobutyl phthalate.

As for the governor’s concerns over issues of "product availability," even some of Pawlenty’s vaunted "Sam’s Club Conservatives" may disagree with the governor.

Three months before Pawlenty’s veto, Sam’s Club parent company Wal-Mart announced that all of its toys will be subjected to independent third-party lab testing and that they cannot have more than 0.1% phthalate content.