Poll question: Table saw mandates

The Consumer Product Safety Commission is taking a long, hard look at the table saw category.

Specifically, it’s looking at SawStop, the brand of table saws with the patented feature that recognizes when a finger is about to be sliced, at which point it shuts down in an instant.

[For more coverage, visit Drama over table-saw safety.}

In November, the CPSC proposed a rule requiring finger-detection technology in both home and industrial table saws within three years.

The mandate could prevent thousands of accidents. But not everyone is on board.

Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (WA-03) and Rep. Jeff Duncan (SC-03) introduced the bipartisan Preserving Woodworking Traditions and Blocking Government-Mandated Monopolies Act. Among their concerns is that SawStop saws are several hundred dollars more expensive and have higher replacement costs than a regular table saw, so they can be cost-prohibitive to hobbyist woodworkers and small construction crews and businesses.

Here's this week’s contentious survey question.