Toy safety plan to debut Feb. 1

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- The Toy Industry Association said Friday that it expects to release a draft of tough new safety rules, which include a plan to require manufacturers to test toys for hazardous chemicals and defective designs, on Feb 1.

The trade group was initially expected to release the plan on Dec. 31, as reported Thursday by CNNMoney.com.

The association, which represents 500 toymakers, said Friday it needs an additional month to finish hammering out the details of the plan before making it available for public review.

The three-point plan, which the group developed in response to public criticism of 25 million toys recalled over the summer, will likely call for stricter safety tests in overseas factories where the products are made and once the toys are imported into the United States.

"We are developing a system that will help to assure that products entering the U.S. market meet this nation's rigorous toy safety requirements, whether those requirements are defined in standards or regulations," association President Carter Keithley, said in a statement.

The initiative by the TIA was first announced in September, and comes as Congress is considering harsh rules on companies that sell unsafe products.

The industry group is hoping that the Consumer Product Safety Commission, which has been attending its meetings from the start of the process, will endorse its testing plan and certify it as the new standard for toy safety.