BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    



                                                                  AB 2176
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          Date of Hearing:   April 20, 2010

           ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENTAL SAFETY AND TOXIC MATERIALS
                                  Pedro Nava, Chair
                 AB 2176 (Blumenfield) - As Amended:  April 14, 2010
           
          SUBJECT  :  Hazardous waste:  lighting products.

           SUMMARY  :   Enacts the California Lighting Toxics Reduction and  
          Jobs in Recycling Act (Act), which establishes a producer  
          responsibility program for mercury-containing lamps and a fee  
          program for inefficient lamps.  Specifically,  this bill  :  

          1)Enacts the Act and establishes legislative intent to require  
            the recycling of all unwanted mercury-containing lamps by  
            January 1, 2020.

           2)Defines terms for the purposes of the Act  , including:
             a)   "Class 1 lamp" as a lamp containing mercury; and
             b)   "Class 2 lamp" as a lamp that produces fewer than 45  
               lumens per watt.  


           3)Establishes a product stewardship program for class 1 lamps:

              a)   Requires, on or before September 30, 2011, a producer of  
               a class 1 lamp, either individually or jointly with other  
               producers, to submit a product stewardship program plan  
               (plan) to the Department of Toxic Substances Control  
               (DTSC).  

             b)   Requires the plan to meet specified requirements, such  
               as the plan must include information about the participants  
               of the plan; include a collection system; include  
               educational and outreach efforts; include a processing and  
               disposal system (for which no federal or state prison labor  
               can be used); include a financing system; include plans to  
               minimize the environmental impacts of covered lamps;  
               include a list of collection sites; reasonably demonstrate  
               how the product stewardship program will contribute toward  
               achieving the goal of recycling all unwanted  
               mercury-containing lamps by January 1, 2020; and comply  
               with universal waste regulations. 
             c)   Sets plan approval timelines and requirements.  
             d)   Requires, on or before January 1, 2012, a producer or  








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               designated stewardship organization to implement the plan  
               approved by DTSC.
             e)   Requires, at least once every four years, the plan  
               operator to update and submit the plan.
             f)   Requires, on or before April 1, 2013, and annually  
               thereafter, the plan operator to prepare and submit to DTSC  
               a report for the immediately preceding reporting period  
               describing the effectiveness of the program. 
             g)   Requires all reports submitted to DTSC to be made  
               available on DTSC's website and at DTSC's headquarters.
             h)   Requires the person that submits a plan to DTSC to enter  
               into an agreement with DTSC to pay DTSC for the costs  
               incurred by DTSC associated with the review, implementation  
               and enforcement of the plan.
           
          4)Establishes a fee program for class 2 lamps  .
             a)   Requires, on or before January 30, 2012, and annually  
               thereafter, a producer of a class 2 lamp to pay to the  
               California Energy Commission (CEC) the fee established by  
               the CEC.
             b)   Requires, on or before June 30, 2011, and annually  
               thereafter, a producer of a class 2 lamp to provide to the  
               CEC a written report with the number and efficiency, in  
               lumens per watt, of each model of class 2 lamps sold in the  
               state during the previous calendar year.
             c)   Requires, on or before December 1, 2011, the CEC to  
               adopt regulations for:
               i)     Determining the total environmental impact of a  
                 class 2 lamp according to the relative efficiency of each  
                 type of class 2 lamp; and
               ii)    Setting the amount of the fee based on the total  
                 environmental impact of that type of class 2 lamp  
                 according to the relative efficiency of that class 2  
                 lamps. 
             d)   Requires the regulations to require the CEC to set the  
               amount of the payment at a level necessary to provide  
               sufficient funds to implement the requirements of the bill,  
               including administrative costs.
             e)   Requires the CEC to assess the fee upon each producer of  
               a class 2 lamp based on the total sales of class 2 lamps by  
               that producer in the state.
             f)   Requires the CEC to deposit all fee revenues collected  
               in to the Energy Efficiency Research Fund.
             g)   Authorizes the funds in the Energy Efficiency Research  
               Fund to be expended by the CEC to provide grants for energy  








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               efficiency and environmental impact mitigation programs.

           5)Reporting requirements  . 
             a)   Requires, on or before January 1, 2012, DTSC to issue  
               and post on its website a report concerning the status of  
               the collective product stewardship programs.
             b)   Requires, on or before October 1, 2013, and annually  
               thereafter, DTSC to invite comments from stakeholders to  
               ascertain their satisfaction with the program.  
             c)   Requires DTSC, on May 1, 2012, and annually thereafter,  
               to provide information on its website including lists of  
               producers participating in an approved product stewardship  
               program, producers that have paid the fee, and producers  
               identified by DTSC as noncompliant.

           6)Prohibitions  .  
             a)   Prohibits, on and after January 1, 2012, a producer,  
               wholesaler, or retailer from selling or offering for sale a  
               class 1 lamp to a person in this state unless the producer  
               of that class 1 lamp is participating in a product  
               stewardship program under a plan approved by DTSC.
             b)   Prohibits, on and after February 1,2010, a producer,  
               wholesaler, or retailer from selling or offering for sale a  
               class 2 lamp to a person in this state unless the producer  
               of that class 2 lamp has paid the fee required. 

           7)Enforcement requirements  .  Requires DTSC to send written  
            notices and issue compliance orders with a schedule for  
            achieving compliance to violators of the Act. 

          8)Authorizes DTSC, under Green Chemistry provisions, to further  
            regulate lamps.

          9)Makes legislative findings and declarations.  

           EXISTING LAW  :

          1)Pursuant to California Code of Regulations, Title 22, Division  
            4.5, Chapter 23, prohibits the disposal of some common or  
            "universal" wastes in solid waste landfills.  Universal wastes  
            are hazardous wastes that are generated by a wide variety of  
            sources that contain mercury, lead, cadmium, copper and other  
            substances hazardous to human and environmental health.  

          2)Pursuant to Health and Safety Code 25251 et seq., requires  








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            DTSC to adopt regulations by January 1, 2011, to identify and  
            prioritize chemicals of concern, to evaluate alternatives, and  
            to specify regulatory responses, including product stewardship  
            programs.

          3)Pursuant to the California Lighting Efficiency and Toxics  
            Reduction Act (Health and Safety Code 25210.9 and Public  
            Resources Code 25402.5.4. et seq.):
             a)   Prohibits the manufacture, on or after January 1, 2010,  
               of general purpose lights, as defined, for sale that  
               contain levels of hazardous substances prohibited in the  
               European Union (EU) pursuant to the RoHS Directive  
               ("Restriction on the Use of Certain Hazardous Substances in  
               Electrical and Electronic Equipment" or Directive  
               2002/95/EC.)
             b)   Prohibits the sale of general purpose lights, on or  
               after January 1, 2010, under the following circumstances:   
               the lights would be prohibited in the EU pursuant to the  
               RoHS Directive; the manufacturer has not provided specified  
               information about the lights to the DTSC; and the lights  
               are not certified as being free of levels of hazardous  
               substances that would prohibit their sale in California.
             c)   Required DTSC to convene a task force to consider and  
               make recommendations, on or before September 1, 2008, on  
               the proper collection and recycling of end-of-life general  
               purpose lights.

           FISCAL EFFECT  :   Unknown.

           COMMENTS  :   

           Purpose of the bill  :  According to the author's office,  
          "Lighting is a significant source of environmental mercury  
          contamination.  Although [compact fluorescent lamps] CFLs use  
          75% less energy than traditional incandescent bulbs, if thrown  
          in the trash, CFLs can expose people and the environment to  
          harmful mercury vapor because they contain mercury in the bulb.   
          Currently, 90% of CFLs are not recycled in California.  One of  
          the principle reasons for a low recycling rate is that the  
          disposal and recycling opportunities for CFLs are currently  
          inconvenient or non-existent for most consumers.  In addition to  
          the health and environmental impacts from mercury, incandescent  
          bulbs have a variety of other environmental impacts including  
          contributing to global warming, heavy metal emissions,  
          particulate matter emissions as well as nitrogen oxide (NOx) and  








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          sulfur oxide (SOx) emissions.  All of these impacts impose  
          serious health and regulatory burdens on the State.  It is  
          therefore important to encourage the movement toward energy  
          efficient bulbs, or CFLs, while encouraging their proper  
          handling at end-of-life." 
           
          Health effects of mercury exposure  :  Under the Safe Drinking  
          Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986 (Proposition 65),  
          mercury and mercury compounds were listed in 1990 as  
          reproductive toxicants.  According to the US EPA, mercury  
          exposure at high levels can harm the brain, heart, kidneys,  
          lungs, and immune system of people of all ages.

           Universal waste:   Universal wastes are hazardous wastes that are  
          ubiquitous and contain mercury, lead, cadmium, copper and other  
          substances hazardous to human and environmental health.  In  
          general, universal waste may not be discarded in solid waste  
          landfills.  Examples of these wastes are batteries, fluorescent  
          tubes, and most electronic devices.  Under California's  
          Universal Waste Rule, households were allowed to dispose of  
          fluorescent lamps, batteries, mercury thermostats, and  
          electronic devices in the trash through February 8, 2006.  While  
          these products are now prohibited in landfills, many consumers  
          dispose of them in the trash, creating an enormous cost and  
          resource burden on local jurisdictions.  For example, the County  
          of Santa Clara spent $150,000 to collect and recycle 81,000  
          pounds of fluorescent lighting alone in fiscal year 2008/09.


           Product stewardship:   According to the USEPA, product  
          stewardship is a product-centered approach to environmental  
          protection.  Also known as extended product responsibility  
          (EPR), product stewardship calls on those in the product life  
          cycle-manufacturers, retailers, users, and disposers-to share  
          responsibility for reducing the environmental impacts of  
          products.  Product stewardship recognizes that product  
          manufacturers must take on new responsibilities to reduce the  
          environmental footprint of their products.  AB 2176 attempts to  
          take a product stewardship approach to managing an ubiquitous  
          waste that is prohibited in landfills.  

           Support (of the April 5 version of the bill):   Supporters of the  
          bill argue, "This bill minimizes the mercury impacts from  
          lighting, promotes efficient lighting, provides critical  
          assistance to overburdened local governments tasked with  








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          disposing of mercury-containing bulbs, and creates jobs in  
          recycling programs.  Lighting is a significant source of  
          environmental mercury contamination for two reasons:  (1)  
          electricity consumption from inefficient bulbs leads to  
          unnecessary power generation at coal fired power plants-the most  
          significant source of mercury contamination; and (2) some  
          efficient bulbs, like fluorescent lamps, causes less power-plant  
          related emissions but contain small amounts of mercury in the  
          bulb.  AB 2176 addresses both sources of mercury pollution from  
          lighting to minimize the harmful impacts of toxins in our  
          environment.  By requiring producers to set up and manage  
          recycling programs for mercury-containing bulbs, AB 2176 will  
          create new jobs in recycling all over California.  AB 2176  
          requires CFL producers, rather than local governments, to  
          develop, fund, and manage recycling programs.  This will ensure  
          that waste lighting products are kept out of landfills and  
          recycled responsibly by the private sector - and will protect  
          taxpayers from paying the price."

           Opposition (to the April 5 version of the bill):   Opponents of  
          the bill argue, "AB 2176 would require an expensive and  
          unnecessary new program for the collection and recycling of  
          waste fluorescent lamps, which will both discourage the use of  
          energy efficient lighting and derail the progress made to date  
          in establishing a practical network of collection locations for  
          lamps.  [Assemblymember Blumenfield's] proposal does not build  
          on prior work in this area, but rather represents a step  
          backward.  Specifically, [this] bill would place exclusive  
          responsibility on lighting manufacturers, without any role for  
          utilities, retailers, recyclers, or government to facilitate or  
          fund a recycling infrastructure or to generate responsible  
          consumer behavior.  The premise of [this] bill ignores the  
          consensus recommendations issued in 2008 by the Department of  
          Toxic Substances Control's Lamp Recycling Task Force that was  
          convened pursuant to AB 1109."  Those with a "support if  
          amended" position argue for clarification of specific  
          definitions, including "distributor" and "producer."  

           Related legislation:   Several bills purport to use a product  
          stewardship approach for various consumer products.  These  
          include:

          AB 283 (Chesbro).  Creates the California Product Stewardship  
          Act of 2009, and requires regulations to be developed by July 1,  
          2011, to implement a program for environmentally sound product  








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          stewardship protocols that encourage producers to research  
          alternatives during the product design and packaging phases, in  
          order to foster cradle-to-cradle producer responsibility and  
          reduce the end-of-life environmental impacts of the product.   
          (Held in the Assembly Appropriation Committee)

          AB 1343 (Huffman).  Creates an architectural paint recovery  
          program to require manufacturers or designated stewardship  
          organizations to develop and submit an architectural paint  
          stewardship plan to reduce the generation of post consumer  
          paint, promote the reuse of post consumer architectural paint,  
          and manage the end-of-life of post consumer architectural paint,  
          in an environmentally sound fashion.  (Held in the Senate  
          Appropriations Committee) 

          AB 2139 (Chesbro).  Creates the California Product Stewardship  
          Act.  Develops a product stewardship program to address medical  
          sharps, containers used to contain pesticides, personal-use  
          propane tanks, personal butane lighters, and single-use food  
          packaging.  (Set for hearing in the Assembly Natural Resources  
          Committee on April 19, 2010) 

          AB 2398 (J. Perez).  Requires, by September 30, 2011, a producer  
          or the product stewardship organization created by one or more  
          producers of carpet to submit a carpet stewardship plan which  
          would be required to include specified elements, including  
          performance goals.  (Set for hearing in the Assembly Natural  
          Resources Committee on April 19, 2010)

          SB 1100 (Corbett).  Creates a product stewardship program for  
          household batteries.  (In the Senate Appropriations Committee).

           Issues:
          1)California's Lighting Task Force:   The Lighting Efficiency and  
            Toxics Reduction Act, established by AB 1109 (Huffman, 2007),  
            directed DTSC to convene the Lighting Task Force to consider  
            and make recommendations on methods of collection, recycling,  
            education, outreach, labeling, and designations for end of use  
            residential fluorescent lamps.  The Task Force released its  
            findings in September, 2008, which included a list of 13  
            recommendations.  While some recommendations seem to be  
            touched upon by this bill, such as the education and outreach  
            program should include a wide range of methods and media,  
            other recommendations seem absent, such as program  
            implementation should be a shared responsibility among all  








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            parties benefiting from the sale or use of fluorescent lights.  
             Should the requirements of this bill better align with the  
            recommendations of the Task Force?   
           
          2)California's Green Chemistry Initiative:  As part of the Green  
            Chemistry Initiative, in 2009 the Governor signed AB 1879  
            (Feuer) into law.  AB 1879 requires DTSC to adopt regulations  
            by January 1, 2011, to identify and prioritize chemicals of  
            concern, to evaluate alternatives, and to specify regulatory  
            responses where chemicals of concern are found in consumer  
            products.  One of the regulatory responses that DTSC is  
            authorized to take is imposing requirements for the  
            manufacturer to manage the product at the end of its useful  
            life, including recycling or responsible disposal of the  
            consumer product.  Are the requirements of this bill  
            duplicative to those already granted to DTSC and should light  
            bulbs be managed through the existing regulatory process  
            instead of through a separate, newly created program?

           3)Fee structure  :  This bill requires the CEC to adopt  
            regulations for determining the total environmental impact of  
            a class 2 lamp according to the relative efficiency of each  
            type of class 2 lamp; and setting the amount of the fee based  
            on the total environmental impact of that type of class 2 lamp  
            according to the relative efficiency of that class 2 lamp.  It  
            also requires the CEC to set the amount of the fee at a level  
            necessary to provide sufficient funds to implement the  
            requirements of the bill, including administrative costs.  The  
            goal of the fee is to encourage producer and consumer movement  
            toward less environmentally harmful lamps, but the bill does  
            not clearly delineate what is meant by "total environmental  
            impact."  

           4)100 percent recycling goal  :  The bill requires, as part of the  
            plan operators' report for the immediately preceding reporting  
            period, a description of the progress toward achieving the  
            goal of recycling all unwanted class 1 lamps sold by the  
            producer or group of producers.  The bill also proclaims, "The  
            Legislature hereby finds and declares that it is the intent of  
            this article to require the recycling of all unwanted class 1  
            lamps, including orphan lamps, by January 1, 2020."   
            Therefore, the bill seems to set a goal of recycling all class  
            1 lamps, however, a requirement to do so is not delineated in  
            the bill.  









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           5)Technical corrections  :  While this bill attempts to create  
            product stewardship and fee based programs to encourage more  
            energy efficient light bulbs and reduce hazardous waste  
            generated by light bulbs throughout their lifecyle, it remains  
            a work in progress.  The Committee may wish to consider making  
            the following amendments:

             a)   Require, on page 11, line 11, that mercury collected  
               through the product stewardship program should be reclaimed  
               and recycled, rather than disposed of; 

             b)   Clarify, on page 17 line 23, that the requirement for  
               DTSC to invite comments from stakeholders applies to the  
               program created by this bill, not all product stewardship  
               programs; and

             c)   Clarify, on line 7 and line 13 of page 18, that the fee  
               being referred to is that in Section 25210.20, not Section  
               25250.20 or 25201.20.


           REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION  :   

           Support 

           Natural Resources Defense Council (Sponsor)
          Breast Cancer Fund
          California Association of Environmental Health Administrators 
          California League of Conservation Voters
          Californians Against Waste
          California Product Stewardship Council
          California Resource Recovery Association
          Central Contra Costa Solid Waste Authority
          City and County of San Francisco
          County of Santa Clara- Board of Supervisors
          Environmental Defense Fund
          Environmental Working Group 
          Environment California
          Napa County
          Planning and Conservation League
          Stop Waste


           Support if amended
           Pacific Gas and Electric 








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          San Diego Gas and Electric 
          Southern California Edison 
           

          Opposition 
           
          General Electric Lighting
          OSRAM Sylvania, Inc.
          Phillips

           

          Analysis Prepared by  :    Shannon McKinney / E.S. & T.M. / (916)  
          319-3965