BILL NUMBER: SB 1381	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN SENATE  MAY 5, 2014
	AMENDED IN SENATE  APRIL 24, 2014
	AMENDED IN SENATE  APRIL 3, 2014

INTRODUCED BY   Senator Evans
   (Coauthors: Senators DeSaulnier  , Leno,  and Pavley)
   (Coauthors: Assembly Members Levine and Yamada)

                        FEBRUARY 21, 2014

   An act  to amend Section 111910 of,  to add
Section 110663 to, and to add Article 6.6 (commencing with Section
110808) to Chapter 5 of Part 5 of Division 104 of, the Health and
Safety Code, relating to genetically engineered food.



	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   SB 1381, as amended, Evans. Food labeling: genetically engineered
food.
   Existing law, the Sherman Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Law, makes it
unlawful to manufacture, sell, deliver, hold, or offer for sale, any
food that is misbranded. Food is misbranded if its labeling does not
conform to specified state and federal labeling requirements
regarding nutrition, nutrient content or health claims, and food
allergens. Violation of this law is a misdemeanor.
   This bill, beginning January 1, 2016, would require that any food,
except as provided, offered for retail sale in the state be
considered misbranded if it is entirely or partially genetically
engineered, as defined, and that fact is not disclosed in a specified
manner. The bill would prescribe labeling requirements for a raw
agricultural commodity that is genetically engineered and packaged
foods, as defined, containing some products of genetic engineering.
The bill would impose these labeling requirements on manufacturers
and retailers, as defined, of the commodities and foods. 
   Existing law authorizes any person to bring an action in superior
court for violations of the California Organic Products Act of 2003,
which, among other things, prohibits a product from being handled,
processed, sold, advertised, represented, or offered for sale in this
state unless it also is prominently labeled and invoiced in
compliance with federal regulations, as specified. The law authorizes
the court to grant a temporary or permanent injunction restraining
any person from violating the act. The law also authorizes the court
to award reasonable attorney's fees to a person, organization, or
entity that brings an action pursuant to these provisions. 

   This bill would apply these provisions to violations of the
genetically engineered food provisions described above. 
   Because this bill would create new crimes by expanding the number
of foods that could potentially be misbranded, it would impose a
state-mandated local program.
    The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local
agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the
state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that
reimbursement.
   This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this
act for a specified reason.
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: yes.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  SECTION 1.  The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:
   (a) California consumers have the right to know, through labeling,
whether the foods they purchase were produced with genetic
engineering, so they can make informed purchasing decisions.
   (b) Polls consistently show that the vast majority of the members
of the public, more than 90 percent, want to know, for health,
economic, environmental, religious, and ethical reasons, if the food
they purchase was produced with genetic engineering.
   (c) Without mandatory disclosure, consumers of foods produced
through genetic engineering may unknowingly violate their dietary and
religious beliefs.
   (d) There is currently no federal or California requirement that
genetically engineered (GE) foods be labeled. In contrast, 64
countries, including three of California's leading trading partners,
Japan, China, and the European Union member states, as well as South
Korea, Australia, Russia, and Malaysia, already have laws mandating
that foods produced through genetic engineering be labeled.
   (e) The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) does not
require safety studies of GE foods. Instead, any consultations are
voluntary and GE food developers may decide what information to
provide to the FDA.
   (f) Genetic engineering of plants and animals can cause unintended
consequences. It has been demonstrated that manipulating genes
through genetic engineering and inserting them into organisms is an
imprecise process. The results are not always predictable or
controllable.
   (g) United States government scientists have stated that the
artificial insertion of genetic material into plants via genetic
engineering can increase the levels of known toxicants or allergens
in foods and create new toxicants or allergens with consequent health
concerns.
   (h) Mandatory identification of foods produced with genetic
engineering can provide a method for detecting, at a large
epidemiological scale, the potential health effects of consuming
those foods.
   (i) Numerous foreign markets with restrictions on foods produced
through genetic engineering have restricted imports of United States
crops due to concerns about genetic engineering. Some foreign markets
are choosing to purchase agricultural products from countries other
than the United States because GE crops are not identified in the
United States, which makes it impossible for buyers to determine what
does or does not meet their national labeling laws or restrictions
and thus renders United States products less desirable.
   (j) Agricultural exports in California in 2011 generated $16.8
billion in revenue, representing 39 percent of total production.
Mandatory identification of foods produced with genetic engineering
can be a critical method of preserving the economic value of exports
or domestically sensitive markets with restrictions on, or
prohibitions against, genetic engineering. Preserving the identity,
quality, and reliability of California's agricultural products and
exports is critical to the state's economic well-being.
   (k) The cultivation of GE crops can have serious effects on the
environment. For example, in the year 2012, 93 percent of all soy
grown in the United States was genetically engineered to be herbicide
resistant. In fact, the vast majority of GE crops are designed to
withstand herbicides and they, therefore, promote indiscriminate
herbicide use. As a result, GE crops have caused 527 million pounds
of additional herbicides to be applied to the nation's farmland.
These toxic herbicides damage the vitality and quality of our soil,
contaminate our drinking water, and pose health risks to consumers
and farmworkers. Further, because of the consequent massive increase
in herbicide use, herbicide-resistant weeds have developed and
flourished, infesting farm fields and roadsides, complicating weed
control for farmers, and causing farmers to resort to more and
increasingly toxic herbicides.
   (  l  ) The FDA is currently proposing approval of the
first GE salmon for human consumption. Wild Pacific salmon are a
critical natural and cultural resource of California and are under
increasing environmental stress. More than 106 major salmon runs in
northern California and the Pacific Northwest are extinct and another
214 runs of wild salmon are at risk of extinction. An escaped GE
fish could pose additional environmental risk to California's already
stressed wild salmon populations and coastal ecosystems by, among
other things, imposing new competitive pressures on these populations
for food and space, interfering with effective breeding and
reproduction, and spreading disease. The west coast salmon fishing
industry, including both commercial and recreational components, has
lost an estimated 72,000 jobs during the last 20 years. In the face
of market confusion, seafood consumers may avoid purchasing salmon
altogether to avoid genetically engineered salmon which would further
negatively impact California's wild salmon fishermen.
   (m) The people of California should have the choice to avoid
purchasing foods produced in ways that can lead to that environmental
harm.
   (n) Labeling of foods produced through genetic engineering as
provided in this act can be implemented without substantial burden to
either food producers or the government.
  SEC. 2.  It is the intent of the Legislature, with the enactment of
this act, to require the labeling of all foods produced with genetic
engineering sold within the state, with exceptions.
  SEC. 3.  Section 110663 is added to the Health and Safety Code, to
read:
   110663.  A food is misbranded if its labeling does not conform to
the requirements of Section 110809.
  SEC. 4.  Article 6.6 (commencing with Section 110808) is added to
Chapter 5 of Part 5 of Division 104 of the Health and Safety Code, to
read:

      Article 6.6.  The California Right to Know Genetically
Engineered Food Act


   110808.  The following definitions shall apply for the purposes of
this article only:
   (a) "Food" shall have the meaning set forth in Section 109935,
except that "food" as used in this article includes only food for
human consumption and not any food for consumption by animals.
   (b) (1) "Genetically engineered" means produced from an organism
or organisms in which the genetic material has been changed through
the application of either of the following:
   (A) (i) In vitro nucleic acid techniques, which include, but are
not limited to, recombinant deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) or
ribonucleic acid (RNA) direct injection of nucleic acid into cells or
organelles, encapsulation, gene deletion, and doubling.
   (ii) "In vitro nucleic acid techniques" include, but are not
limited to, recombinant DNA or RNA techniques that use vector
systems, and techniques involving the direct introduction into the
organisms of hereditary materials prepared outside the organisms such
as biolistics, microinjection, macroinjection, chemoporation,
electroporation, microencapsulation, and liposome fusion.
   (B) Methods of fusing cells beyond the taxonomic family that
overcome natural physiological, reproductive, or recombinant
barriers, and that are not techniques used in traditional breeding
and selection such as conjugation, transduction, and hybridization.
   (2) "Genetically engineered" does not include an animal who has
not itself been genetically engineered, regardless of whether that
animal has been fed or injected with any food or any drug that has
been produced through means of genetic engineering.
   (c) "Label" shall have the meaning set forth in Section 109955.
   (d) "Labeling" shall have the meaning set forth in Section 109960.

   (e) "Manufacturer" means the person or entity that makes,
processes, combines, or packages food ingredients into a finished
product.
   (f) "Organism" means any biological entity capable of replication,
reproduction, or transferring genetic material.
   (g) "Packaged food" means any food offered for retail sale in the
state, other than raw food and food served, sold, or provided ready
to eat in any bake sale, restaurant, or cafeteria that are subject to
the provisions of Article 6 (commencing with Section 110660).
   (h) "Raw agricultural commodity" shall have the meaning set forth
in Section 110020.
   (i) "Retailer" means an establishment engaged in the business of
selling any perishable agricultural commodity or packaged food via a
storefront.
   (j) "Supplier" means a person or entity that engages in the
operation of selling or distributing raw agricultural commodities
that the person or entity has produced, purchased, or acquired from a
processor.
   110809.  (a) Any raw agricultural commodity or packaged food that
is entirely or partially produced with genetic engineering shall be
labeled in accordance with this article and is misbranded if not
labeled in accordance with this article.
   (b) This section does not apply to an alcoholic beverage that is
subject to the Alcoholic Beverage Control Act (Division 9 (commencing
with Section 23000) of the Business and Professions Code).
   (c) This section does not apply to any food sold at a certified
farmers' market, field retail stand, or farm stand, as defined by
Sections 47004, 47030, and 47050 of the Food and Agricultural Code.
   110809.1.  (a) (1) A manufacturer of a raw agricultural commodity
packaged for retail sale shall include the words "Genetically
Engineered" clearly and conspicuously on the front or back of the
package of that commodity.
   (2) A retailer of a raw agricultural commodity that is not
separately packaged or labeled shall place a clear and conspicuous
label on the retail store shelf or bin in which that commodity is
displayed for sale.
   (b) A manufacturer of packaged food containing some products of
genetic engineering shall label the product in clear and conspicuous
language on the front or back of the package of that food product
with the words "Produced with Genetic Engineering" or "Partially
Produced with Genetic Engineering."
   (c) This section shall not be construed to require a label that
lists or identifies an ingredient that was genetically engineered, or
that the words "genetically engineered" be placed immediately
preceding any common name or primary product descriptor of a food.
   (d) This section does not apply to an alcoholic beverage that is
subject to the Alcoholic Beverage Control Act (Division 9 (commencing
with Section 23000) of the Business and Professions Code).
   (e) This section does not apply to any food sold at a certified
farmers' market, field retail stand, or farm stand, as defined by
Sections 47004, 47030, and 47050 of the Food and Agricultural Code.
   110809.2.  (a) A person engaged in business as a manufacturer or
retailer of products who in good faith sells, offers for sale,
labels, or advertises any product in reliance on the representations
of a farmer, producer, or supplier that the product is not entirely
or partially produced with genetic engineering, shall not be found to
have violated this article unless the manufacturer or retailer knew
or should have known that the product was entirely or partially
produced with genetic engineering.
   (b) A farmer, producer, or supplier who is not a retailer or
manufacturer is not liable for a violation of this article.
   (c) It shall not be a violation of this article for failure to
label any of the following:
   (1) Packaged food in which the materials produced through genetic
engineering account for nine-tenths of 1 percent or less of the total
weight.
   (2) Food produced without knowledge or intent to use genetic
engineering.
   (3) An alcoholic beverage that is subject to the Alcoholic
Beverage Control Act, set forth in Division 9 (commencing with
Section 23000) of the Business and Professions Code.
   (4) Food sold at a certified farmers' market, field retail stand,
or farm stand, as defined by Sections 47004, 47030, and 47050 of the
Food and Agricultural Code.
   (d) Food is produced without knowledge or intent to use genetic
engineering under either of the following conditions:
   (1) The food is lawfully certified to be labeled, marketed, and
offered for sale as "organic" pursuant to the federal Organic Foods
Production Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. Sec. 6501 et seq.).
   (2) (A) An independent organization has determined that the food
was produced without knowledge or intent to use genetic engineering
and has been segregated from, and not knowingly or intentionally
commingled with, foods that may have been genetically engineered.
   (B) The determination has been made pursuant to a sampling and
testing procedure (i) consistent with sampling and testing principles
recommended by internationally recognized standards organizations
and (ii) which does not rely on testing processed foods in which no
DNA is detectable. 
   (e) The department shall adopt and enforce regulations necessary
to implement this article. 
   110810.  This article shall become operative on January 1, 2016.

  SEC. 5.    Section 111910 of the Health and Safety
Code is amended to read:
   111910.  (a)  Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 111900 or
any other provision of law, any person may bring an action in
superior court pursuant to this section and the court shall have
jurisdiction upon hearing and for cause shown, to grant a temporary
or permanent injunction restraining any person from violating any
provision of Article 6.6 (commencing with Section 110808) or Article
7 (commencing with Section 110810) of Chapter 5. Any proceeding under
this section shall conform to the requirements of Chapter 3
(commencing with Section 525) of Title 7 of Part 2 of the Code of
Civil Procedure, except that the person shall not be required to
allege facts necessary to show, or tending to show, lack of adequate
remedy at law, or to show, or tending to show, irreparable damage or
loss, or to show, or tending to show, unique or special individual
injury or damages.
   (b)  In addition to the injunctive relief provided in subdivision
(a), the court may award to that person, organization, or entity
reasonable attorney's fees as determined by the court.
   (c)  This section shall not be construed to limit or alter the
powers of the department and its authorized agents to bring an action
to enforce this chapter pursuant to Section 111900 or any other
provision of law. 
   SEC. 6.   SEC. 5.    The provisions of
this act are severable. If any provision of this act or its
application is held invalid, that invalidity shall not affect other
provisions or applications that can be given effect without the
invalid provision or application.
   SEC. 7.   SEC. 6.    No reimbursement is
required by this act pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the
California Constitution because the only costs that may be incurred
by a local agency or school district will be incurred because this
act creates a new crime or infraction, eliminates a crime or
infraction, or changes the penalty for a crime or infraction, within
the meaning of Section 17556 of the Government Code, or changes the
definition of a crime within the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII
B of the California Constitution.