BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 501
SENATE COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
Senator Jerry Hill, Chair
2013-2014 Regular Session
BILL NO: AB 501
AUTHOR: Nazarian
AMENDED: June 11, 2013
FISCAL: Yes HEARING DATE: July 3, 2013
URGENCY: No CONSULTANT: Rebecca Newhouse
SUBJECT : VEHICLES
SUMMARY :
Existing law :
1) Prohibits, after January 1, 2014, the sale of brake pads in
California that contain the following materials in excess of
the following concentrations (by weight (Health and Safety
Code (HSC) �25250.51):
a) 0.01% Cadmium and its compounds.
b) 0.1% Chromium (VI)-salts.
c) 0.1% Mercury and its compounds.
d) 0.1% Lead and its compounds.
e) 0.1% Asbestiform fibers.
2) Specifies that motor vehicle manufacturers and distributors,
wholesalers or retailers of replacement brake friction
materials may continue to sell or offer for sale brake pads
that do not comply with the above requirements for the purpose
of depletion of inventories until December 31, 2023 (HSC
�25250.51).
3) Defines a "tire broker" to mean a person that arranges for the
shipment of used or waste tires to or from a site located
within the state, or through the state, as the term may
further be defined by regulation (Public Resources Code
�42950).
4) Requires motor vehicle dealers to maintain a non-profit
corporation known as the Consumer Motor Vehicle Recovery
Corporation (CMVRC) for the purpose of providing payments to
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consumers for unsatisfied claims for economic loss as a result
of a licensed dealer's failure to perform specified actions.
5) Under the Motor Carriers of Property Permit Act, requires a
motor carrier of property to hold a valid motor carrier permit
issued by the Department of Motor Vehicles, but exempts
specified vehicles.
This bill :
1) Authorizes motor vehicle dealers to continue to sell or offer
for sale brake friction material not certified as compliant
with the chemical standards, if the brake friction material
was installed on a vehicle before the dealer acquired the
vehicle.
2) Specifies that a "tire broker" does not include a tire
retailer primarily engaged in the retail sale, service, and
installation of tires on customer vehicles, or a vehicle
dealer.
3) Allows consumers to qualify for restitution from the CMVRC for
two additional dealer omissions.
4) Exempts specified motortrucks or two-axle truck tractors, as
specified, from the motor carrier permit requirements.
COMMENTS :
1) Purpose of Bill . According to the author, SB 346 (Kehoe),
Chapter 307, Statutes of 2010, which introduced composition
standards to brake pads sold after January 1, 2014, could be
construed as requiring vehicle dealers to remove legacy brake
pads on used vehicles that dealers regularly purchase at
auction or acquire from a vehicle trade, after January 1,
2014, and dealers would then be required to replace them with
pads meeting the new standards, at a considerable cost. The
author notes that the sole exception in SB 346 was to allow
retailers to exhaust the supply of their existing brake pad
inventory. The author states that AB 501 will clarify that
dealers may continue to sell vehicles equipped with legacy
brake pads, as long as the legacy pads were installed on the
vehicles when acquired by the dealer.
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According to the author, AB 501 will clarify the definition of
"tire broker" to exclude tire retailers and car dealers. AB
1647 (Gordon), Chapter 534, Statutes of 2012) was passed to
streamline enforcement action against facilities that
illegally export tires instead of recycling the tires in
California. The author notes that a late amendment to the law
added a requirement that "tire brokers" must register with the
state and report tire shipment activity. The author states
that the definition is broad and would include tire retailers
and car dealers who change tires and hire tire haulers to
dispose of their customer's waste tires. The author further
notes that a letter to the Assembly Journal by Assemblymember
Gordon clarified that his bill was not intended to include
such entities.
2) Copper toxicity and SB 346 (Kehoe) . Debris from friction
materials containing copper are generated and released to the
surrounding environment in the course of normal brake system
operation. Scientific studies have shown that a major source
of copper in highly urbanized watersheds is material worn off
vehicle brake pads. In these areas, it is estimated that about
one-half of the copper found in run-off is attributed to brake
pads. Dissolved copper is toxic to phytoplankton (the base of
the aquatic food chain). It also impairs a salmon's ability
to avoid predators and deters them from returning to their
home streams to spawn.
SB 346 (Kehoe) Chapter 307, Statutes of 2010, restricts the
use of copper, chromium (VI)-salts, lead, mercury and asbestos
in automobile brake pads. In an effort to ensure that copper
is not replaced with other hazardous chemicals, the bill
included provisions that prohibit that inclusion above
specified concentrations, of cadmium, hexavalent chromium,
lead, mercury, and asbestiform fibers in friction materials
sold in California after January 1, 2014. SB 346 allowed the
sale of brake pads out of compliance with those requirements
after January 1, 2014, in order to deplete their inventories,
until December 31, 2023.
The author is concerned that the law prohibiting the sale of
noncompliant brake material captures the selling of used cars
with noncompliant brake material. AB 501 allows car dealers
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to sell used cars with brake pads that do not meet the
standards for the toxic constituents, if the noncompliant
brake pads were installed in the car before the dealer
acquired the car.
3) Tire brokers . According to the Department of Resources
Recycling and Recovery (CalRecycle), the overall waste tire
diversion rate increased significantly from 81% in 2010 to 88%
in 2011. This increase was largely a result of the continued,
unprecedented rapid growth in the export of waste tires to
Pacific Rim nations, largely for use as tire-derived fuel
(TDF), which is now the largest single end-use destination for
California waste tires.
AB 1647 (Gordon) Chapter 534, Statutes of 2012, sought to curb
the growing trend of increasing quantities of waste tires sent
to unpermitted facilities, where they are often sent overseas
and burned for fuel, rather than being recycled or reused here
in California. To reduce the practice of exporting tire waste
overseas, AB 1647 requires tire brokers to register with
CalRecycle and periodically report information on tire
shipment activity. AB 1647 defined a tire broker as "a person
that arranges for the shipment of used or waste tires to or
from a site located within the state, or through the state, as
that term may be further defined by the department by
regulation." The author contends that this definition was
meant to include only those actively engaged in purchasing
waste tires for resale inside or outside of California and
that AB 1647 was not intended to include car dealers or tire
retailers.
In a letter to the Assembly Journal dated August 30, 2012,
Assemblymember Gordon clarified that it was his intent that
motor vehicle dealers and tire retailers primarily engaged in
the retail sale, service and installation of tires on customer
vehicles, would not be required to comply with the provisions
of AB 1647. The author has introduced AB 501 to clarify in
statute that a "tire broker" does not include a tire retailer
primarily engaged in the retail sale, service, and
installation of tires on customer vehicles or vehicle dealers.
Despite the fact that AB 1647 did not intend to capture
dealers or tire retailers, there are concerns regarding
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statutorily exempting tire retailers. Because these entities
may have significant used tire operations, exempting tire
retailers from the definition of "tire broker" and associated
reporting requirements, could hamper CalRecycle's ability to
gather complete and accurate data on the movement and disposal
of used tires, potentially inhibiting their ability to further
develop regulations to track used tire disposal and carry out
enforcement actions.
For these reasons, the committee may wish to suggest that the
bill be amended to strike the exemption of tire retailers from
the definition of "tire broker."
SOURCE : California New Car Dealers Association
SUPPORT : None on file
OPPOSITION : None on file