Phone Group Sues San Francisco Over Radiation Law
SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS) _ A wireless industry trade group is suing the city of San Francisco to stop a law that says cell phone stores must post how much radio energy each model emits.
The suit filed by the CTIA_ The Wireless Association claims the law misleads the public because it implies that some phones are safer than others.
Studies have not conclusively found that cell phone radiation is a health risk and research is continuing on brain tumors.
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CTIA spokesman John Walls said the law also runs afoul of the Constitution.
"There's a supremacy clause of the Constitution that establishes clear order and authority for the federal government in certain areas," said Walls. "And in this case, the FCC has very clearly been given jurisdiction over wireless handsets."
But Tony Winnicker, spokesperson for Mayor Newsom's Office downplays the complaints.
"This is a common sense measure that will make information about the radiation level of cell phones available to those consumers for whom this is an area of interest," said Winnicker.
He said the law is not intended as an attack on the cell phone industry or its products, adding that San Francisco is well known as a city that encourages and welcomes new technology.
