Amended in Assembly August 14, 2014

Amended in Assembly August 6, 2013

Amended in Senate April 9, 2013

Senate Bill No. 193

Introduced by Senator Monning

February 7, 2013

An act to amend Section 6276.12 of the Government Code, and to amend Section 147.2 of the Labor Code, relating to employment.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SB 193, as amended, Monning. Hazard evaluation system and information service.

Existing law requires the Department of Industrial Relations, with the State Department of Public Health (DPH), to establish a repository of current data on toxic materials and harmful physical agents in use or potentially in use in places of employment in the state. That repository is known as the Hazard Evaluation System and Information Service (HESIS). Existing law requires begin delete the end delete HESIS, among other things, to provide information and collect and evaluate data relating to possible hazards to employees resulting from exposure to toxic materials or harmful physical agents. Existing law expressly does not require employers to report any information not otherwise required by law.

This bill, except as specified, when there is new scientific or medical information and the Chief of HESIS, in consultation with begin insert the Director of Industrial Relations and end insert the Chief of the Division of Environmental and Occupational Disease Control in DPH, makes a specified determination, would require chemical manufacturers, formulators, suppliers, distributors, importers, and their agents to provide to HESIS the names and addresses of their customers who have purchased specified chemicals or commercial products containing those chemicals, and certain other information related to those shipments, upon written request of HESIS, for every product the final destination of which may be a place of employment in California. The bill would deem the names and addresses of customers, the quantities and dates of shipments, and the proportion of a specified chemical within a mixture to be confidential. The bill would also provide that DPH would be entitled to reimbursement of attorney’s fees and costs incurred in seeking an injunction to enforce this requirement.

The California Public Records Act requires certain public records to be made available for public inspection, and lists records that are exempt from disclosure under the act.

The bill would exempt from public disclosure under the act the names and addresses of customers, the quantities and dates of shipments, and the proportion of a specified chemical within a mixture provided to begin delete the repository end delete begin insert HESIS end insert by chemical manufacturers, formulators, suppliers, distributors, importers, and their agents, that would be required pursuant to the bill, as provided, but would begin delete provide that end delete specifically authorize HESIS to disclose that information to officers or employees of the DPH, to officers or employees of the state who are responsible for carrying out the provisions of the Labor Code relating to safety in employment, or to specified state agencies. The bill would also state findings and declarations of the Legislature for limiting the public’s right of access to the information.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

Section 6276.12 of the Government Code is
amended to read:

6276.12.  

Conservatee, confidentiality of the conservatee’s
report, Section 1826, Probate Code.

Conservatee, estate plan of, confidentiality of, Section 2586,
Probate Code.

Conservatee with disability, confidentiality of report, Section
1827.5, Probate Code.

Conservator, confidentiality of conservator’s birthdate and
driver’s license number, Section 1834, Probate Code.

Conservator, supplemental information, confidentiality of,
Section 1821, Probate Code.

Conservatorship, court review of, confidentiality of report,
Section 1851, Probate Code.

Consumer fraud investigations, access to complaints and
investigations, Section 26509.

Consumption or utilization of mineral materials, disclosure of,
Section 2207.1, Public Resources Code.

Contractor, evaluations and contractor responses, confidentiality
of, Section 10370, Public Contract Code.

Contractor, license applicants, evidence of financial solvency,
confidentiality of, Section 7067.5, Business and Professions Code.

Controlled Substance Law violations, confidential information,
Section 818.7.

Controlled substance offenders, confidentiality of registration
information, Section 11594, Health and Safety Code.

Cooperative Marketing Association, confidential information
disclosed to conciliator, Section 54453, Food and Agricultural
Code.

Coroner, inquests, subpoena duces tecum, Section 27491.8.

County aid and relief to indigents, confidentiality of
investigation, supervision, relief, and rehabilitation records, Section
17006, Welfare and Institutions Code.

County alcohol programs, confidential information and records,
Section 11812, Health and Safety Code.

County Employees’ Retirement, confidential statements and
records, Section 31532.

County mental health system, confidentiality of client
information, Section 5610, Welfare and Institutions Code.

County social services, investigation of applicant, confidentiality,
Section 18491, Welfare and Institutions Code.

County social services rendered by volunteers, confidentiality
of records of recipients, Section 10810, Welfare and Institutions
Code.

County special commissions, disclosure of health care peer
review and quality assessment records not required, Section
14087.58, Welfare and Institutions Code.

County special commissions, disclosure of records relating to
the commission’s rates of payment for publicly assisted medical
care not required, Section 14087.58, Welfare and Institutions Code.

Court files, access to, restricted for 60 days, Section 1161.2,
Code of Civil Procedure.

Court reporters, confidentiality of records and reporters, Section
68525.

Court-appointed special advocates, confidentiality of information
acquired or reviewed, Section 105, Welfare and Institutions Code.

Crane employers, previous business identities, confidentiality
of, Section 7383, Labor Code.

Credit unions, confidentiality of investigation and examination
reports, Section 14257, Financial Code.

Credit unions, confidentiality of employee criminal history
information, Section 14409.2, Financial Code.

Criminal defendant, indigent, confidentiality of request for funds
for investigators and experts, Section 987.9, Penal Code.

Criminal offender record information, access to, Sections 11076
and 13202, Penal Code.

Crop reports, confidential, subdivision (e), Section 6254.

Customer list of chemical manufacturers, formulators, suppliers,
distributors, importers, and their agents, the quantities and dates
of shipments, and the proportion of a specified chemical within a
mixture, confidential, Section 147.2, Labor Code.

Customer list of employment agency, trade secret, Section 16607,
Business and Professions Code.

Customer list of telephone answering service, trade secret,
Section 16606, Business and Professions Code.

SEC. 2.  

Section 147.2 of the Labor Code is amended to read:

147.2.  

(a) As used in this section, “Hazard Evaluation System
and Information Service” or “HESIS” means the repository
established pursuant to subdivision (b).

(b) In accordance with Chapter 2 (commencing with Section
6350) of Part 1 of Division 5 of this code and Section 105175 of
the Health and Safety Code, the Department of Industrial Relations,
by interagency agreement with the State Department of Public
Health, shall establish a repository of current data on toxic
materials and harmful physical agents in use or potentially in use
in places of employment in the state, known as the Hazard
Evaluation System and Information Service, or HESIS.

(c) HESIS shall fulfill all of the following functions:

(1) Provide reliable information of practical use to employers,
employees, representatives of employees, and other governmental
agencies on the possible hazards to employees of exposure to toxic
materials or harmful physical agents.

(2) Collect and evaluate toxicological and epidemiological data
and any other information that may be pertinent to establishing
harmful effects on health of exposure to toxic materials or harmful
physical agents. Nothing in this subdivision shall be construed as
authorizing HESIS to require employers, other than chemical
manufacturers, formulators, suppliers, distributors, importers, and
their agents, to report any information not otherwise required by
law.

(3) When there is new scientific or medical information and the
Chief of HESIS, in consultation with begin insert the Director of Industrial
Relations and end insert the Chief of the Division of Environmental and
Occupational Disease Control in the State Department of Public
Health, determines that a substance potentially poses a serious new
or unrecognized health hazard to an employee, including, but not
limited to, cancer, reproductive or developmental harm, organ
system impairment, or death, chemical manufacturers, formulators,
suppliers, distributors, importers, and their agents, as specified in
subparagraph (A), shall provide to HESIS the names and addresses
of their customers who have purchased certain chemicals, as
specified by HESIS, or commercial products containing those
chemicals and information related to those shipments, including
the quantities and dates of shipments, and the proportion of a
specified chemical within a mixture containing the specified
chemical, upon written request by HESIS, for every product the
final destination of which may be a place of employment in
California. This paragraph shall not apply to a retail seller of the
substance, whether sold individually or as part of a commercial
product to the public. The following shall apply to this paragraph:

(A) On or after January 1, begin delete 2015, end delete begin insert 2016, end insert the information requested
shall include current and past customers for not more than a
one-year period prior to the date the request is issued. The
information shall be provided within a reasonable timeframe, not
to exceed 30 calendar days from the date the request is issued. The
information shall be provided in a format specified by the State
Department of Public Health but consistent with the responding
entity’s current data system.

(B) Unless, pursuant to other law or regulation the following
persons, any other person, or any governmental entity is required
to publicly disclose the following information, the names and
addresses of customers, the quantities and dates of shipments, and
the proportion of a specified chemical within a mixture provided
by chemical manufacturers, formulators, suppliers, distributors,
importers, and their agents pursuant to this paragraph shall be
considered confidential and, except as specified in this
subparagraph, exempt from public disclosure under the California
Public Records Act (Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 6250)
of Division 7 of Title 1 of the Government Code). HESIS may
disclose that information to officers or employees of the State
Department of Public Health, to officers or employees of the state
who are responsible for carrying out the purposes of Division 5
(commencing with Section 6300), or to the state agencies of the
state officers specified in paragraphs (5) and (6). begin insert Any officer,
employee, or agency to which the information is disclosed shall
be subject to this subparagraph. end insert

(C) The State Department of Public Health shall be entitled to
reimbursement of attorney’s fees and costs incurred in seeking an
injunction to enforce this paragraph.

(4) Recommend to the Chief of the Division of Occupational
Safety and Health Administration that an occupational safety and
health standard be developed whenever it has been determined
that a substance in use or potentially in use in places of employment
is potentially toxic at the concentrations or under the conditions
used.

(5) Notify the Director of Pesticide Regulation of any
information developed by begin delete the repository end delete begin insert HESIS end insert that is relevant to
carrying out his or her responsibilities under Chapters 2
(commencing with Section 12751) and 3 (commencing with
Section 14001) of Division 7 of the Food and Agricultural Code.

(6) Notify the Secretary for Environmental Protection of any
information developed by HESIS that is relevant to carrying out
his or her responsibilities.

(d) The Director of Industrial Relations shall appoint an advisory
committee to HESIS. The advisory committee shall consist of four
representatives from labor, four representatives from management,
four active practitioners in the occupational health field, and three
persons knowledgeable in biomedical statistics or information
storage and retrieval systems. The advisory committee shall meet
on a regular basis at the request of the director. The committee
shall be consulted by, and shall advise the director at each phase
of the structuring and functioning of the repository and alert system
with regard to, the procedures, methodology, validity, and practical
utility of collecting, evaluating, and disseminating information
concerning hazardous substances, consistent with the primary goals
and objectives of the repository.

(e) Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit the ability
of the State Department of Public Health to propose occupational
safety and health standards to the Occupational Safety and Health
Standards Board.

(f) Policies and procedures shall be developed to assure, to the
extent possible, that HESIS uses and does not duplicate the
resources of the federal government and other states.

(g) On or before December 31 of each year, the Department of
Industrial Relations shall submit a report to the Legislature
detailing the implementation and operation of HESIS including,
but not limited to, the amount and source of funds allocated and
spent on repository activities, the toxic materials and harmful
physical agents investigated during the past year and
recommendations made concerning them, actions taken to inform
interested persons of the possible hazards of exposure to toxic
materials and harmful physical agents, and any recommendations
for legislative changes relating to the functions of HESIS.

SEC. 3.  

The Legislature finds and declares that Section 1 of
this act, which amends Section 6276.12 of the Government Code,
imposes a limitation on the public’s right of access to the meetings
of public bodies or the writings of public officials and agencies
within the meaning of Section 3 of Article I of the California
Constitution. Pursuant to that constitutional provision, the
Legislature makes the following findings to demonstrate the interest
protected by this limitation and the need for protecting that interest:

In order to protect the names and addresses of customers who
have purchased chemicals from chemical manufacturers,
formulators, suppliers, distributors, importers, and their agents,
the quantities and dates of shipments, and the proportion of a
specified chemical within a mixture, it is necessary that lists
containing that information be exempt from disclosure, as provided
in Section 147.2 of the Labor Code, under the California Public
Records Act (Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 6250) of
Division 7 of Title 1 of the Government Code).