fakes from coming into this country. New law in Canada means any coin, regardless if it is stamped copy or not, if fake is illegal and it is illegal to own or sell those coins. US needs to do the same thing. E-bay has to clean up it's act and help. Problem is, China holds so much of the US national debt that we don't want to alieanate them. The hobby suffers. I wouldn't buy any Trade Dollar unless it was from a dealer I trust or slabbed. Of course, you can't even trust the slabs in some cases. Have to beware of dealers on e-bay who won't accept returns. Should send up a red flag if they won't stand behing their merchandise.
I think maybe it would be best to limit that restriction to only silver and gold type coinage. We wouldn't want children with toy cash registers full of plastic coins to become felons. I would have to see how the law was worded before I could stand behind it, but I certainly do agree that that the fake money being brought into the US is a major problem.
I may be wrong, but IMO that isn't a significant factor. It's a two way street - we are by far the #1 importer of their goods, and they need to be careful alienating us. We are their customer, and one who irritates customers loses customer.
Obviously, monopoly money and kids play money is not included. The law is for counterfeiting coins made by the Canadian Mint. They cannot be reproduced, even if stamped "copy". All such coins have already been pulled from E-bay. If the US passes a law making it illegal to make or import copies, the flood on the market would diminish. Something needs to be done to protect the hobby. Of course common sense also needs to be used. If a deal looks to good to be true, it is. Problem is the latest round of Chinese fakes are good enough to fool even the dealers as was proven at the FUN convention when a lot of the dealers were fooled.
The Hobby Protection Act is the main law that covers deceitful copies of collector coins. Sec. 304.6 Marking requirements for imitation numismatic items. (a) An imitation numismatic item which is manufactured in the United States, or imported into the United States for introduction into or distribution in commerce, shall be plainly and permanently marked "COPY". (b) The word "COPY" shall be marked upon the item legibly, conspicuously, and nondeceptively, and in accordance with the further requirements of these regulations. (1) The word "COPY" shall appear in capital letters, in the English language. (2) The word "COPY" shall be marked on either the obverse or the reverse surface of the item. It shall not be marked on the edge of the item. (3) An imitation numismatic item of incusable material shall be incused with the word "COPY" in sans-serif letters having a vertical dimension of not less than two millimeters (2.0 mm) or not less than one-sixth of the diameter of the reproduction, and a minimum depth of three-tenths of one millimeter (0.3 mm) or to one-half (\1/2\) the thickness of the reproduction, whichever is the lesser. The minimum total horizontal dimension of the word "COPY" shall be six millimeters (6.0 mm) or not less than one-half of the diameter of the reproduction. (4) An imitation numismatic item composed of nonincusable material shall be imprinted with the word "COPY" in sans-serif letters having a vertical dimension of not less than two millimeters (2.0 mm) or not less than one-sixth of the diameter of the reproduction. The minimum total horizontal dimension of the word "COPY" shall be six millimeters (6.0 mm) or not less than one-half of the diameter of the reproduction.
I think what you posted is the rules set up by the FTC and not the law itself. "PART 304--RULES AND REGULATIONS UNDER THE HOBBY PROTECTION ACT" Here a link to the actually law. http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/uscode15/usc_sup_01_15_10_48.html Unfortunately we can pass all the laws we want, but if it is not enforced it becomes a meaningless law to many individuals, which in my opinion, is happening with the Hobby act. With that said, I would not be in favor of following Canada lead but instead like to see the US enforce their existing laws. BTW:What is the penalty for not following the Hobby act?
From what I have found, the penalty is seizure and forfeiture if non-complying items are intercepted by customs. So Chinese exporters of bogus coins don't seem to be running much risk.
