BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 2709
Page 1
Date of Hearing: April 19, 2016
Consultant: Matt Dean
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SAFETY
Reginald Byron Jones-Sawyer, Sr., Chair
AB
2709 (Quirk) - As Amended April 14, 2016
SUMMARY: Increases the punishments for selling, distributing or
releasing balloons made of or attached to electrically
conductive material. Specifically, this bill:
1)Sunsets existing provisions of law regarding electrically
conductive balloon sales, distribution and release on January
1, 2018, unless a later enacted statute, that is enacted
before January 1, 2018, deletes or extends that date.
2)Prohibits selling or distributing balloons made of, or
attached to, electrically conductive material.
3)Prohibits releasing balloons made of, or attached to,
electrically conductive material.
4)Punishes selling or distributing balloons made of, or attached
to, electrically conductive material as follows:
a) A first offense is punished as an infraction punishable
by a fine of up to $250; and
b) A second subsequent offense is punishable as a
AB 2709
Page 2
misdemeanor.
5)Punishes releasing balloons made of, or attached to,
electrically conductive material as an infraction with a fine
of up to $250.
6)States that these prohibitions do not apply to manned hot air
balloons, or to balloons used in governmental or scientific
research projects.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Prohibits any person from selling or distributing any balloon
made of electrically conductive material and filled with a gas
lighter than air without:
a) Affixing an object of sufficient weight to the balloon
or its appurtenance to counter the lift capability of the
balloon,
b) Affixing a statement on the balloon, or ensuring that a
statement is so affixed, that warns the consumer about the
risk if the balloon comes in contact with electrical power
lines, and
c) A printed identification of the manufacturer of the
balloon. (Pen. Code, § 653.1, subd. (a).)
2)Prohibits any person from selling or distributing any balloon
filled with a gas lighter than air that is attached to an
electrically conductive string, tether, streamer, or other
electrically conductive appurtenance. (Pen. Code, § 653.1,
subd. (b).)
3)Prohibits any person from selling or distributing any balloon
that is constructed of electrically conductive material and
filled with a gas lighter than air and that is attached to
another balloon constructed of electrically conductive
material and filled with a gas lighter than air. (Pen. Code,
§ 653.1, subd. (c).)
AB 2709
Page 3
4)Prohibits any person or group from releasing balloons made of
electrically conductive material and filled with a gas lighter
than air, outdoors as part of a public or civic event,
promotional activity, or product advertisement. (Pen. Code, §
653.1, subd. (d).)
5)Punishes a violation of the above prohibited conduct as an
infraction with a fine of not more than $100, unless the
person has twice been convicted of any of the above. A third
or subsequent conviction is a misdemeanor. (Pen. Code, §
653.1, subd. (e).)
6)States that these prohibitions do not apply to manned hot air
balloons, or to balloons used in governmental or scientific
research projects. (Pen. Code, § 653.1, subd. (f).)
FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown
COMMENTS:
1)Author's Statement: According to the author, "As each of us
who has experienced power outages knows, loss of electricity
means a halt and disruption to almost every kind of activity
we engage in every day. Business operations and manufacturing
can be halted, traffic signals and street lights can stop
working, lights and computers at home can turn off and can
even be damaged.
"Metallic balloons can cause power outages and cause a
significant portion of preventable power outages. These shiny
metallic balloons are made of electrically conductive
material, and can cause significant damage to power lines and
equipment when they come into close proximity to power lines
and cause an electric arc. Costs to repair damaged equipment
from just a single metallic balloon cost thousands of dollars.
And the loss of power due to metallic balloons represents a
significant cost to California's economy on the order of tens
of millions of dollars. Even though balloons are currently
required to have weights attached, the ongoing number of power
outages due to metallic balloons is evidence that these
requirements are not sufficient for addressing the problem.
There are beautiful alternative balloons made of other
AB 2709
Page 4
materials that do not conduct electricity and do not put power
lines at risk. While not all power outages can be avoided,
power outages caused by metallic balloons can be prevented by
prohibiting electrically conductive balloons from being sold
in California, and phasing into currently available
alternatives."
2)Balloons and Power Outages: Since 2011, there have been over
6,500 power outages in California caused by balloons made of
or attached to electrically conductive material. These
metallic balloons, or metallic balloon strings, are one of two
primary types of balloons available for regular consumers. One
type of balloons are typically constructed of Mylar nylon and
coated with a metallic finish. When these electrically
conductive metallic balloons come into contact with electrical
lines, they can cause a bridge which often results in a power
outage. If these balloons are not weighted and they are
released, they can travel for many miles and end up tangling
in power lines far away from where they were released. In an
average year, PG&E will have 300 outages caused by metallic
balloons -affecting nearly 165,000 homes. ( <
http://www.sanluisobispo.com/news/weather/weather-watch/article
58874343.html > ) Moreover, Mylar is not a biodegradable
material, meaning these balloons often end up in nature
preserves or the ocean where wildlife eat the Mylar, most
often resulting in wildlife death. Latex balloons, on the
other hand, are both biodegradable (because they are made of
rubber) and not electrically conductive.
This bill would only ban the first type of balloons in an effort
to reduce the negative effect these balloons have on power and
wildlife. This bill, if passed, would not go into effect
until January 1, 2018. At that time, it would increase the
potential fine from not more than $100 to not more than $250.
Additionally, the bill would require only one prior
conviction, rather than the existing requirement for two prior
convictions, for selling and distributing balloons made of or
attached to electrically conductive material for a violation
to be punishable as a misdemeanor.
3)Argument in Support: According to Pacific Gas and Electric
Company, "PG&E conducts public service announcements during
AB 2709
Page 5
the months of February, May and June when there is an increase
in the number of Mylar balloons sold throughout the state due
to various holidays. These efforts are meant to raise public
awareness of the electric outage risks associated with Mylar
balloons should they come into contact with our transmission
and/or distribution lines. However, even with these efforts
we have witnessed a steady increase in the number of Mylar
balloon-related outages over the last ten years. Most
notably, in 2015 alone we experienced 370 outages, impacting
over 198 thousand customers spanning a total of over 14
million minutes without power.
"Mylar balloon-related outages are not solely a reliability
issue. When making contact with power lines, there is a risk
of wildfire. For example, last year the Webb Fire in Butte
County which burned 75 acres was caused by a Mylar balloon
making contact with power lines.
"PG&E takes our responsibility to provide safe, reliable and
affordable electric delivery services to our customers
seriously. Mylar balloon-related outages are a public safety
issue and can impact both our residential and non-residential
customers. Our non-residential customers include public
safety providers, businesses, schools, hospitals and military
facilities. PG&E supports AB 2709 in an effort to reduce
outages and avoid the unnecessary adverse impacts that follow
electric system outages."
4)Argument in Opposition: According to the California Teamsters
Public Affairs Council, "Our members are employed by four of
the largest suppliers of helium gas in California, whose use
in balloons constitutes approximately 20% of the sales of
helium in this state. Each balloon contains 30-40 cents of
helium and about 60 million foil balloons are sold in this
state annually. As such, the bill would eliminate the sales
of $15-$20 million in sales by our employers and would,
therefore, be harmful to our members' jobs.
"There is only one alternative to foil balloons. This is a
plastic balloon material that is held under patent by a
Japanese company. As such, this bill would create a state
mandated monopoly for one company. Plastic balloons are
AB 2709
Page 6
already nearly twice the price of foil balloons. This is a
recipe for some very expensive birthday parties, weddings and
anniversaries.
"Under current law, balloons need to be weighed down and it is
unlawful to release them. While there are some outages that
are caused by foil balloons, most do not cause service
disruptions and a are a small number in comparison to outages
caused by animals, trees, accidents and other causes. Public
education is the key to dealing with this issue, not a ban on
an entire product."
5)Prior Legislation: SB 1499 (Scott), of the 2007-2008
Legislative Session, would have increased the fine for a
violation of those provisions punished as an infraction. The
bill would have further specified the type of weight that must
be attached to the balloon and the specifications for the
required warning, and would have required that the consumer be
provided a separate warning notice, as specified. The bill
would also have prohibited a manufacturer or distributor from
sending or shipping these types of balloons to retailers
without the shipment containing a notice describing the
retailer's responsibilities. SB 1499 was vetoed by the
Governor.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:
Support
California Municipal Utilities Association (Sponsor)
California Fire Chiefs Association
City of Glendale Water and Power Department
Fire Districts Association of California
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti
Pacific Gas and Electric Company
Southern California Edison
Southern California Public Power Authority
Opposition
California Grocers Association
California Teamsters Public Affairs Council
AB 2709
Page 7
The Balloon Council
Analysis Prepared
by: Matt Dean / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744