The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission cannot do its job right if its officials feel any sense of obligation to the industries that make the products it regulates.

So why have top CPSC officials been traveling at the expense of those industries?

The Washington Post found records of nearly 30 such trips since 2002 by the CPSC’s present acting chairman, Nancy Nord, and its past chairman, Hal Stratton. Trade associations or manufacturers of toys, appliances, children’s furniture and other regulated products paid all or part of the expenses.

The American Fireworks Standards Laboratory paid for Mr. Stratton’s $11,000 trip to China and Hong Kong in 2004.

In February 2006 when Ms. Nord attended the American International Toy Fair in New York, the Toy Industry Association picked up her rail fare, two hotel nights, meals and parking.

Spokespeople for industries and the commission defend such travel as a way for officials to inform themselves about products and the points of view of the industries they regulate.

But big businesses and trade associations have an unfair advantage over consumers, who lack the cash to fly, house, wine, dine and lobby public officials. Companies and consumers ought to be on as nearly level a playing field as possible. Let them make their arguments for and against regulations in public, through official channels and procedures.

When the government needs information, let the government pay for any travel necessary to obtain it.

Meanwhile, CPSC officials’ travel ought to be reviewed to see whether it violated the government’s ethics rules. If it did not, those rules need to be stronger.

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