BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    




                                                                  SB 346
                                                                  PageA
          Date of Hearing:   June 15, 2010

           ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENTAL SAFETY AND TOXIC MATERIALS
                                  Pedro Nava, Chair
                      SB 346 (Kehoe) - As Amended:  June 7, 2010

          SENATE VOTE  :   22-16
           
          SUBJECT  :  Motor vehicle brake pads:  copper.

           SUMMARY  :   Restricts the use of copper and other toxic chemicals  
          in automobile brake pads.  Specifically,  this bill  :  

          1)Limits the use of copper in motor vehicle brake pads to no  
            more than .5 percent by weight by January 2025.

          2)Exempts vehicles from the copper limitation on  brake pad  
            including:
             a)   Military vehicles:
             b)   Vehicles with internal closed oil immersed brakes that  
               do not emit copper or other debris under normal operating  
               conditions;
             c)   Parking brakes; and 
             d)   Motorcycles.

          3)Restricts the use of the following toxic materials in brake  
            pads by January 1, 2014:
             a)   Cadmium and its compounds:  0.01 percent by weight,
             b)   Chromium (VI)-salts:  0.1 percent by weight,
             c)   Lead and its compounds:  0.1 percent by weight; and
             d)   Mercury and its compounds:  0.1 percent by weight.

          4)Requires manufacturers of brake pads to follow the process to  
            be adopted by DTSC regarding criteria to evaluate alternatives  
            to copper in brake pads.

          5)Require brake pad manufacturers, beginning in 2014, to obtain  
            certification to demonstrate compliance with these  
            requirements and include that certification of the content of  
            the brake pads.

          6)Requires vehicle manufacturers and retailers of brake pads to  
            ensure that only compliant brake pads are sold in this state.

          7)Establishes a civil fine of up to $10,000 per violation of the  









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            brake pad certification requirements.

          8)Establishes Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) as  
            the enforcing agency for the new article and permits them to  
            remove non-compliant brake pads from sale, but specifically  
            does not authorize the recall of vehicles to effect the  
            removal of illegal brake pads.



           
          EXISTING LAW  

          1)Requires DTSC, by January 1, 2011, to adopt regulations to  
            establish a process to identify and prioritize chemicals or  
            chemical ingredients in consumer products that may be  
            considered a "chemical of concern," in accordance with a  
            review process, as specified.

          2)Requires DTSC, on or before January 1, 2011, to adopt  
            regulations to establish a process to evaluate chemicals of  
            concern, and their potential alternatives, in consumer  
            products in order to determine how best to limit exposure or  
            to reduce the level of  hazard posed by a chemical of concern,  
            as specified.

          3)Requires the State Water Resources Control Board and the  
            California Regional Water Quality Control Boards to regulate  
            the discharge of stormwater in accordance with the Federal  
            Clean Water Act and the Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control  
            Act.

           FISCAL EFFECT :   Not known.

           COMMENTS  :   

           1)Need for the bill  .  According the author, elevated copper  
            levels occur in urban watersheds across California.  Dissolved  
            copper is toxic to phytoplankton (the base of the aquatic food  
            chain).  It also impairs salmon's ability to avoid predators  
            and deters them from returning to their home streams to spawn.  
             Scientific studies have shown that a major source of copper  
            in highly urbanized watersheds is material worn off vehicle  
            brake pads.  It is estimated that about one-half of the copper  
            found in run-off is attributed to brake pads.









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           2)Copper in the aquatic environment  .  According to the U.S. EPA,  
            elevated levels of copper are toxic in aquatic environments  
            and may adversely affect fish, invertebrates, plants, and  
            amphibians.  Acute toxic effects may include mortality of  
            organisms; chronic toxicity can result in reductions in  
            survival, reproduction, and growth.<1>

            Motor vehicles are a major source of toxic contaminants such  
            as copper, a metal that originates from vehicle exhaust and  
            brake pad wear.  Copper and other pollutants are deposited on  
            roads and other impervious surfaces and then transported to  
            aquatic habitats via stormwater runoff.

           3)Total Maximum Daily Loads  .  The State Water Resources Control  
            Board (SWRCB) has established Total Maximum Daily Loads  
            (TMDLs) as allowable pollution limits on copper and other  
            pollutants in several Southern California urban watersheds.   
            Failure to comply with these TMDLs will result in serious  
            penalties to the local governments.  The SWRCB is working to  
            establish these TMDLs for watersheds throughout California.   
            The ubiquity of copper in the urban environment, and the  
            technical difficulty and impracticality of treating stormwater  
            to remove it, mean that compliance with copper TMDLs will not  
            be feasible without source reduction of copper.  Cost could go  
            into the billions of dollars to remediate if source reduction  
            measures are not taken.

           4)Washington State Copper Brake Pad Legislation  .  In March of  
            2010 the state of Washington enacted the first state  
            restriction on copper brake pads.  That bill, SB 6556,  
            provides that by January 1, 2015, brake pads sold as  
            replacement parts (after-market brake pads) may not exceed 5  
            percent copper by weight. By January 1, 2020, new vehicles may  
            not have brake pads that exceed 5 percent copper.  The State  
            of Washington may require copper levels as low as .5 percent  
            if they find that those products are available.  
           
           Issues:
           
           1)Do we need a regulatory process for vehicles for which brake  
          ---------------------------
          <1> US, EPA, Aquatic Life Ambient Freshwater Quality  
          Criteria-Copper 2007 Revision (February 22, 2007). 










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            friction materials containing less than .5% copper content  
            cannot be developed by the statutory deadline?   Auto industry  
            and brake pad manufactures have suggested that an "off-ramp"  
            is needed in the event the industry does not meet the 2025  
            deadline based on the inability to develop an effective  
            alternative to the copper content in vehicle brake pads.

           2)Should the existing vehicle fleet be allowed to continue to  
            use copper brake pads after the 2025 deadline  ?  Auto industry  
            and brake pad manufactures have argued that there needs to be  
            an exemption from the .5% copper limit for brake pads designed  
            for vehicles manufactured prior to the operative date of the  
            .5% copper limit.  At this time the State does not know if new  
            non-copper brake pads will operate effectively on the current  
            and future auto braking systems.

           3)Is third party certification needed to insure proper  
            enforcement of the copper restrictions  ?  The bill as currently  
            drafted provides for certification by an independent third  
            party certification process for brake pads sold in California  
            after 2014.  This private party certification may provide a  
            less expensive and more user friendly process for insuring  
            enforcement of this new copper standard than a traditional  
            DTSC certification and enforcement model.

           4)Green Chemistry coordination and evaluation of safer  
            alternatives.   As part of the Green Chemistry Initiative, the  
            Governor signed AB 1879 (Feuer and Huffman) Chapter 559,  
            Statutes of 2008, 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.  "Consumer product" is broadly defined as a  
            product or part of the product that is used, bought, or leased  
            for use by a person for any purpose including auto parts like  
            vehicle brake pads.

            The current Green Chemistry statute contains two relevant  
            provisions.  This bill and the green chemistry statute  
            provides for an evaluation of alternatives to a chemical of  
            concern.  This means that manufactures must examine the  
            alternatives to a chemical to assure that the replacement  
            product is less harmful to the environment.  SB 346 attempts  
            to reference the current Green Chemistry statute addressing  
            the alternatives analysis but appears to in fact adopt the  









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            entirety of the green chemistry process established in Health  
            and Safety Code section 25253.

            The enactment of this bill may have the effect of precluding  
            any action by DTSC on brake pads under the State Green  
            Chemistry statute.  Specifically, the current law provides an  
            exemption from Green Chemistry for those products subject to  
            regulation similar to the Green Chemistry Statutes (H&S code  
            252571(c)).  This bill may be interpreted as an exemption for  
            vehicle brake pads from the current authority under Green  
            Chemistry.

                 The Committee may consider adopting an amendment to  
               limit the manufactures obligation to perform an alternative  
               analysis to those already outlined in the Green Chemistry  
               statute.

                 The Committee may consider adopting amendments to allow  
               the Green Chemistry process to establish new standards for  
               brake pads if DTSC finds that more stringent standards are  
               warranted as a result of the Green Chemistry evaluation.

           REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
           
          Support:


          Sustainable Conservation (co-sponsor)
          City of San Diego (co-sponsor)
          Alameda County Board of Supervisors
          Bay Area Stormwater Management Agencies Association
          California Association of Environmental Health Administrators
          California League of Conservation Voters
          California Product Stewardship Council
          California State Association of Counties
          California Stormwater Quality Association
          Center for Environmental Health
          City and County of San Francisco
          City of Arcadia
          City of Azusa
          City of Bellflower
          City of Beverly Hills
          City of Camarillo
          City of Carson
          City of Cerritos









                                                                 SB 346
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          City of Commerce
          City of Covina
          City of Downey
          City of Duarte 
          City of La Marada
          City of Lakewood
          City of Long Beach
          City of Los Angeles
          City of Lynwood
          City of Monterey Park
          City of Norwalk 
          City of Paramount
          City of Rolling Hills
          City of San Jose
          City of San Pablo
          City of Santa Marino
          City of Sante Fe Springs
          City of Signal Hill 
          City of Thousand Oaks
          City of Torrance
          City of Vernon 
          City of Vista
          City of Whittier
          City/County Association of Governments of San Mateo County 
          Clean Water Action
          Coalition for Practical Regulation
          Coastal Environmental Rights Foundation 
          Environmental Entrepreneurs
          Forests Forever
          Heal the Bay
          Industrial Environmental Association
          League of California Cities
          Los Angeles County Flood Control District
          Natural Resources Defense Council
          Planning and Conservation League
          Port of San Diego 
          San Diego Coastkeeper
          Save the Bay
          Sierra Club California
          StopWaste.Org
          TDC Environmental
          U.S. Department of the Navy
          UC San Diego
          Ventura County Board of Supervisors  
          Ventura Countywide Stormwater Quality Management Program









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          Opposition

          Association of International Automobile Manufacturers 
          Automotive Aftermarket Industry Association 
          Automotive Service Councils of California 
          Best Brakes 
          California Autobody Association 
          California Automotive Business Coalition 
          California Automotive Wholesalers' Association 
          California New Car Dealers Association
          California Retailers Association 
          Centric Parts 
          Coalition for Auto Repair Equality 
          Motor and Equipment Manufacturers Association 
          O'Reilly Auto Parts
          Power Slot 
          Stop Tech 
           

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