BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                  SB 646
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          SENATE THIRD READING
          SB 646 (Pavley)
          As Amended  June 20, 2011
          Majority vote 

           SENATE VOTE  :30-5  
           
           ENVIRONMENTAL SAFETY          7-2                   
          APPROPRIATIONS      12-5        
           
           ----------------------------------------------------------------- 
          |Ayes:|Wieckowski, Campos,       |Ayes:|Fuentes, Blumenfield,     |
          |     |Chesbro, Davis, Feuer,    |     |Bradford, Charles         |
          |     |Bonnie Lowenthal, Valadao |     |Calderon, Campos, Davis,  |
          |     |                          |     |Gatto, Hall, Hill, Lara,  |
          |     |                          |     |Mitchell, Solorio         |
          |     |                          |     |                          |
          |-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
          |Nays:|Miller, Morrell           |Nays:|Harkey, Donnelly,         |
          |     |                          |     |Nielsen, Norby, Wagner    |
          |     |                          |     |                          |
           ----------------------------------------------------------------- 
           SUMMARY  :  Deletes the exemption from enforcement provisions of 
          the Metal-Containing Jewelry Law for the signatories to the 
          amended consent judgment, People v. Burlington Coat Factory 
          Warehouse Corporation, et al.  Makes other technical changes to 
          statute.

           EXISTING LAW  under the Metal-Containing Jewelry Law:

          1)Prohibits the manufacture, shipping, sale, or offering for 
            sale or promotional purposes of jewelry, children's jewelry, 
            or jewelry used in body piercing that is not made entirely 
            from certain specified materials (specified limits of lead and 
            cadmium).

          2)Authorizes the Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) 
            to enforce the Metal-Containing Jewelry Law and specifies 
            penalties for violations.

          3)Provides that a party that is a signatory to the amended 
            consent judgment, or a party that is signatory to a consent 
            judgment entered in the consolidated action entitled People v. 
            Burlington Coat Factory Warehouse Corporation, et al.  








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            (Alameda Superior Court Lead Case No. RG04-162075) that 
            contains identical or substantially identical terms as 
            provided in the amended consent judgment, is exempt from 
            enforcement pursuant to the Metal-Containing Jewelry Law, and 
            instead is subject to enforcement provisions of the amended 
            consent judgment.

           FISCAL EFFECT  :  According to the Assembly Appropriations 
          Committee, enactment of the bill may result in negligible costs 
          to DTSC, which currently inspects jewelry retailers, importers 
          and suppliers that are signatories to the judgment and those 
          that are not.  It also may result in increased penalty revenue 
          of an unknown amount resulting from enforcement activity against 
          signatories who violate the Metal-Containing Jewelry Law.  
          (Special fund.)

           COMMENTS  :

          Need for the bill  :  According to the author, "In California, 
          concentrations of lead in jewelry were sharply limited (Health 
          and Safety Code §§ 25214.1 - 25214.4.2).  Enforcement of this 
          law began in 2007.  Review of the enforcement data reveals a 
          significant loophole.  Existing law allows a large and 
          increasing number of businesses to bypass much of the statutory 
          enforcement provisions and avoid financial penalties for 
          violations.  This bill amends current law to remove this 
          loophole and provide enforcement equity for violations to all."

           Background  :  AB 1681 (Pavley), Chapter 415, Statutes of 2006, 
          created the Lead-Containing Jewelry Law, which prohibited the 
          manufacture, shipping, sale, or offering for sale of jewelry, 
          children's jewelry, or jewelry used in body piercing that is 
          made from materials with more than specified levels of lead.  AB 
          2901 (Brownley), Chapter 575, Statutes of 2008, among other 
          things, strengthened and expanded DTSC's enforcement authority 
          for the Lead-Containing Jewelry Law.  SB 929 (Pavley), Chapter 
          313, Statutes of 2010, added prohibitions for jewelry containing 
          cadmium to the Lead-Containing Jewelry Law, updating the statute 
          to become the Metal-Containing Jewelry Law.  Under the law, DTSC 
          may impose an administrative or civil penalty against violators 
          of the Metal-Containing Jewelry Law, not to exceed $2,500 per 
          day for each violation.
           
           AB 1681 (Pavley) intended to impose a standard for the amount of 








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          lead allowed in jewelry that was equivalent to that allowed in 
          the settlement that had been reached between the California 
          Attorney General (AG) and several California-based retailers 
          (People v. Burlington Coat Factory Warehouse Corporation, et 
          al.).  Because the bill was being considered at the same time 
          that the settlement of the AG's case was being finalized, the 
          author agreed to codify the terms of the agreement in the bill 
          and exempt the signatories from the Lead-Containing Jewelry Law, 
          with the belief that both the law and the settlement would have 
          the same effect.  The intent was to hold California retailers 
          that were not parties to the lawsuit to the same standards as 
          those that were.

          The Metal-Containing Jewelry Law has, however, essentially 
          created a two-tiered system for enforcing lead in jewelry 
          violations.  The amended consent judgment limits its enforcement 
          to only the AG or the plaintiffs (Center for Environmental 
          Health and As You Sow).  DTSC has authority to enforce 
          provisions of the law only for violators that are not parties to 
          the amended consent judgment.

          The limited enforcement provisions of the amended consent 
          judgment have created an incentive for additional jewelry 
          retailers and wholesalers to add onto the amended consent 
          judgment to avoid enforcement under the stricter 
          Metal-Containing Jewelry Law.  In 2006, when the settlement was 
          first announced, there were a total of 113 signatories to the 
          amended consent judgment.  Since that time, 126 additional 
          parties have negotiated with the AG and have been added to the 
          settlement, with additional cases being negotiated that may 
          result in more parties being added.  Adding to the consent 
          judgment virtually exempts companies from having to comply with 
          the lead provisions of the Metal-Containing Jewelry Law.  

          This bill removes the exemption for signatories to the amended 
          consent judgment from the Metal-Containing Jewelry Law and evens 
          the playing field for all California manufacturers, suppliers 
          and retailers.


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










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