BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 403
Page 1
CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB 403 (Campos)
As Amended July 12, 2011
Majority vote
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|ASSEMBLY: |76-0 |(May 26, 2011) |SENATE: |33-0 |(August 31, |
| | | | | |2011) |
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Original Committee Reference: E.S. & T.M.
SUMMARY : Specifies that the primary drinking water standard for
hexavalent chromium (chromium 6) is included in the existing
expedited Department of Finance (DOF) regulatory review process
for drinking water standards. Requires the California
Department of Public Health (DPH) to post the report on its
progress on developing a drinking water standard for chromium 6
on its Internet Web site.
The Senate amendments add Senator Alquist as a principal
coauthor and make a minor, technical change.
EXISTING LAW requires:
1)Each primary drinking water standard adopted by DPH to be set
at a level that is as close as feasible to the corresponding
public health goal (PHG), published by the Office of
Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA), placing
primary emphasis on the protection of public health, and that,
to the extent technologically and economically feasible, meets
specified public health requirements. Requires the PHG to
contain an estimate of the level of the contaminant in
drinking water that is not anticipated to cause or contribute
to adverse health effects, or that does not pose any
significant risk to health.
2)DPH to report to the Legislature on its progress in developing
a primary drinking water standard for chromium 6 by January 1,
2003.
3)DPH to establish a primary drinking water standard for
chromium 6 on or before January 1, 2004.
4)DOF, for any proposed regulation that relates to the maximum
AB 403
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contaminant level for primary or secondary drinking water
standards, to take no longer than 90 days to review and act
upon that rule or regulation.
5)DPH and the Office of Administrative Law to proceed with all
other applicable procedures in connection with the adoption of
proposed regulations should DOF take longer than 90 days to
act upon the proposed drinking water standard regulations.
AS PASSED BY THE ASSEMBLY , this bill was substantively similar
to the version passed by the Senate.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee, negligible state costs, if any.
COMMENTS :
Need for the bill : The author argues that, "In 2001, Senator
Ortiz introduced SB 351, Chapter 602, which required DPH to
adopt a primary drinking water standard for hexavalent chromium
by January 1, 2004. However, DPH never complied due to the lack
of a Public Health Goal. DPH is tasked to provide a Maximum
Contaminant Level (MCL) based primarily on the Public Health
Goal and other regulatory and feasibility processes. This bill
will simply ensure that DPH complies in a timely manner and sets
a standard that has been long overdue in order to ensure our
communities are provided with drinking water that is safe and
meets stringent requirements."
Chromium 6 : According to OEHHA, chromium 6 is a heavy metal
that is commonly found at low levels in drinking water.
Chromium 6 is known to be a potent carcinogen when inhaled. It
was recently found to also cause cancer in laboratory mice and
rats that were exposed through drinking water. According to the
Environmental Working Group, in California, chromium 6 was
detected in 2,208 out of the more than 7,000 tap water systems
analyzed as of 2008 (DPH 2009).
Current status of the chromium 6 maximum contaminant level
(MCL) : California has long recognized the public health risks
of exposure to chromium 6. In 1977, California established
a drinking water standard, or MCL, for total chromium expressly
to address exposure to chromium 6.
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Health and Safety Code (HSC) Section 116365(a) requires DPH to
establish an MCL at a level as close as is technically and
economically feasible to the contaminant's PHG. In March 2001,
the Department of Health Services, DPH's predecessor agency,
requested that OEHHA prepare a PHG for chromium 6 in preparation
for a MCL on chromium 6 alone. SB 351 (Ortiz), Chapter 607,
Statutes of 2001, requires DPH to adopt an MCL for chromium 6 by
January 1, 2004 (HSC Section 116365.5).
On July 27, 2011, OEHHA announced that it had set the final PHG
for chromium 6 at 0.02 parts per billion (ppb), which is the
same level as the draft that was released for public comment in
December 2010. State law requires OEHHA to set PHGs to provide
scientific guidance to DPH in developing enforceable drinking
water standards. By law, DPH must set the eventual standard, or
MCL, as close to the PHG as economically and technically
feasible.
Analysis Prepared by : Shannon McKinney / E.S. & T.M. / (916)
319-3965
FN: 0002503