BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 421
Page 1
Date of Hearing: August 19, 2015
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Jimmy Gomez, Chair
SB 421
(Hancock) - As Amended June 19, 2015
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Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: NoReimbursable: No
SUMMARY:
This bill, with respect to existing law governing petroleum
refinery turnaround reports:
SB 421
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1)Removes-in a case involving a motion to compel or prohibit
disclosure of a refinery report containing trade secret
information-the requirement for the court to provide an award
of costs and attorney's fees to the prevailing party. (The
court would maintain discretion to make such an award.)
2)Removes the requirement for a party-in a suit to compel or
prohibit the disclosure of a refinery turnaround report
containing trade secret information-to name the other party in
the suit as a real party in interest, and instead allows
either party to intervene in an action filed by the other
party.
3)Requires the Division of Occupational Health and Safety,
within the Department of Industrial Relations, if a person
requesting the release of information identified by a refinery
as a trade secret files an action against division to order
disclosure of that information, to promptly notify the
refinery of the action by certified mail.
FISCAL EFFECT:
Negligible fiscal impact to the division to provide notification
as required.
COMMENTS:
Purpose. SB 1300 (Hancock)/ Chapter 519, Statutes of 2014, which
stemmed from the Chevron USA refinery explosion in Richmond in
2012, required refineries to issue reports every year regarding
planned, periodic shutdowns to perform maintenance, overhaul,
and repair operations at the facilities, and to inspect, test
and replace process materials and equipment. In his signing
message, the Governor indicated that the author had agreed to
introduce clean-up legislation to ensure that SB 1300 "does not
SB 421
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authorize petroleum refineries to collect attorney's fees from
individuals and organizations" who seek to obtain turnaround
reports from the Division of Occupational Safety and Health (the
Division).
This bill removes the requirement in existing law that a court
must award attorney's fees to the party who prevails in an
action challenging the disclosure of information contained in a
petroleum refinery turnaround report that contains information
which the court determines is exempt as trade secret information
from public disclosure (even when the prevailing party is a
Refinery and the other party is an individual or organization
seeking a turnaround report from the Division), but does not
prohibit the award of attorney's fees to the prevailing party in
such a case. This bill also clarifies that a Refinery that
seeks to prevent disclosure of information in a turnaround
report, or a party who seeks to obtain it, may intervene in an
action regarding the disclosure of such information, but the
intervener is not required to be named in the action as a party
in interest.
Analysis Prepared by:Chuck Nicol / APPR. / (916)
319-2081