A consumer advocacy group is hoping holiday shoppers will cross several toys off their gift lists this year.

The U. S. Public Interest Research Group rounded up more than 30 toys it said pose choking and strangulation hazards, violate labeling regulations and exceed acceptable noise and toxin levels.

The findings are published in its annual “Trouble in Toyland” report. Additional information was published by HealthyStuff.org.

Among the toys deemed dangerous are the MLB Soft Sport glove, bat and ball set; a Disney High School Musical argyle belt and Learning Curve’s Gordon from the Thomas & Friends Wooden Railway. They were found to exceed legal levels of lead, chlorine, cadmium, arsenic, mercury or bromine. Those toxins have been linked to hampered development, birth defects and cancer.

Pucci Pups, stuffed dogs in play pet carriers, come with long leashes that could strangle a child, the report said. The box lacks an explicit strangulation warning, and manufacturer Battat recommends it for children ages 2 and up. Similarly, a Disney Toy Story Buddy Pack contains small pieces on which kids can easily choke, the consumer group said.

These potential hazards were found despite tightened regulations put in place by the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act last year. Toys are required by law to meet strict safety standards, but testing is not required to be sure those standards are met, the group said.

“You can’t assume that because you’re in a reputable store that you’re buying a safe toy,” said Letizia Tagliafierro, special counsel to the New York State attorney general’s office in Buffalo.

In fact, most of the toys on the list are sitting on Western New York store shelves now at places such as Kmart, Target, Walmart, Toys R Us, Babies R Us and Claire’s Boutique, according to New York Public Interest Research Group representatives who bought samples at those stores.

“Most are from name brands you would never eye with suspicion,” said Corey Tarreto, of NYPIRG’s student chapter at Buffalo State College.

The group found toys from well-known brands such as VTech, Playskool and Mattel it said exceeded at close range the noise hazard maximum of 85 decibels. Among the toys the group found fault with is the Fisher-Price Laugh & Learn Learning Phone, which they claim is too loud. The company, however, said the sound levels were tested and found compliant in a Consumer Product Safety Commission-certified lab. The toy fully complies with the U. S. and international toy standards regarding sound levels in toys, said Fisher-Price spokeswoman Juliette Reashor.

“We are not aware of the testing procedures used by [the research group], but at Mattel, we are extremely careful in establishing appropriate volume levels in all of our toys . . . We have also worked closely with established audiologists to confirm that our standards are safe and appropriate for children based on sound science,” said Reashor.

In October, Mattel and subsidiary Fisher-Price agreed to settle a multimillion-dollar class-action lawsuit over toys containing lead.

Joan Lawrence, vice president of safety standards for the Toy Industry Association, said “protecting children will always be the toy industry’s highest priority,” and pointed to the report’s finding that the number of toys found to be in violation this year is smaller than years past and “steadily declining.”

The toy association said it is “concerned” that the reports by the research group and HealthyToys. org “contain errors” and use “scare tactics” that “needlessly frighten parents.”

Still, some feel the report doesn’t go far enough.

“These reports are [incomplete] because they do not test for all dangerous chemicals in children’s products; they do not test for [Bisphenol A] . . .,” said Ron Vigdor, president of Born- Free, a brand of baby products manufactured without BPA.

Bisphenol A has been linked to negative effects on infant brain development and other defects, leading many manufacturers to voluntarily curb use of them.

NYPIRG urges parents to visit

www.ToySafety.net

to familiarize themselves with common toy safety hazards and to check

www.NYPIRG.org

for the most recent lists of hazardous toys. “Regardless of what the label says, there have been so many violations,” said Tarreto. “Think critically.”

NYPIRG claims its industry reports have lead to the recall of 130 unsafe toys and hundreds of other cautionary measures over the 24 years it has been published.