BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



          SENATE COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
                             Senator Ricardo Lara, Chair
                            2015 - 2016  Regular  Session

          SB 763 (Leno) - Juvenile products:  flame retardant chemicals
          
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          |Version: May 7, 2015            |Policy Vote: B., P. & E.D. 5 -  |
          |                                |          2, E.Q. 6 - 0         |
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          |Urgency: No                     |Mandate: Yes (see staff         |
          |                                |comment)                        |
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          |Hearing Date: May 18, 2015      |Consultant: Marie Liu           |
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          This bill meets the criteria for referral to the Suspense File. 


          Bill  
          Summary:  SB 763 would require a manufacturer of juvenile  
          products sold in California to affix a permanent label on the  
          product indicating whether the product has added flame retardant  
          chemicals. This bill would also direct the Bureau of Electronic  
          and Appliance Repair, Home Furnishing and Thermal Insulation  
          Fund (bureau) to ensure compliance with the labeling and  
          documents requirements. 


          Fiscal  
          Impact: Costs pressures, in the low hundreds of thousands of  
          dollars, to the Home Furnishing and Thermal Insulation Fund  
          (HFTI Fund, special) for the enforcement of these requirements,  
          including testing for label accuracy. 


          Background:  Existing law establishes the Bureau of Electronic and  







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          Appliance Repair, Home Furnishings and Thermal Insulation  
          (Bureau) within the Department of Consumer Affairs (DCA). The  
          bureau is authorized to administer and enforce the Home  
          Furnishings and Thermal Insulation Act (HFTI Act) that provides  
          for the licensing and inspection of businesses that manufacture  
          and sell upholstered furniture, bedding and thermal insulation.  
          Pursuant to the HFTI Act, mattresses, box springs, and  
          upholstered furniture are required in this state to be flame  
          retardant. 
          Existing law (BPC §19094) requires a manufacturer of upholstered  
          furniture to indicate whether or not the product contains added  
          flame retardant chemicals, as defined, by including a specified  
          statement. This section requires manufacturers to retain  
          documents, as specified and to provide that documentation to the  
          bureau. The bureau has the authority to test for labeling  
          accuracy and to assess fines for violations of the requirements  
          or inaccurate labeling.




          Proposed Law:  
            This bill would require the manufacturer of a juvenile  
          product, as defined, that is sold in California to affix a  
          permanent label on the product indicating whether the product  
          has added flame retardant chemicals. Specifically, this bill  
          would:
           Define a "juvenile product" as a nonexclusive list of  
            products, including products such as bassinets, floor play  
            mat, changing pad, infant car seat, nursing pillow, infant  
            swing, and children's nap pads that do not have to meet  
            federal flammability standards for mattresses.


           Define a "flame retardant chemical" with language that is  
            consistent with the definition used for the labeling  
            requirements for upholstered furniture.


           Require specific notification regarding flame retardants for  
            juvenile products sold in California via a website or paper  
            catalog.










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           Require manufacturers of juvenile products sold in California  
            to retain documentation indicating whether flame retardant  
            chemicals were added.


           Requires, within 30 days of a request by the bureau, a  
            manufacturer of a product sold in California to provide the  
            Bureau with the documentation establishing the accuracy of the  
            flame retardant chemical statement on the label.

           Requires the bureau to provide the California Department of  
            Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) with samples of the product or  
            components of the product sold in California from products  
            marked "contains NO added flame retardant chemicals" for  
            testing for the presence of added flame retardant chemicals.   
            Requires DTSC to provide the results of all testing to the  
            Bureau.

           Authorizes the bureau to issue citations and assess fines for  
            violations of the above provisions, as specified. Fines for  
            not affixing a label, regardless of the label's accuracy,  
            would be assessed at the same level as other violations of the  
            act.

           Provides that a manufacturer of juvenile products and  
            component suppliers shall be jointly and severally liable for  
            violations of these provisions, as specified.

           Authorizes the bureau to adopt regulations to carry out the  
            provisions of the bill.

           Explicitly exempts juvenile products from flame retardant  
            requirements for mattresses.


          Related  
          Legislation:  SB 1019 (Leno) Chapter 862, Statutes of 2014,  
          required an upholstered furniture manufacturer to indicate on  
          the product label whether or not a product contains added flame  
          retardant chemicals. 
          AB 1175 (Ridley-Thomas) would raise the licensure fees that  
          support the HFTI Fund.










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          Staff  
          Comments:  This bill authorizes, but does not require, the bureau to  
          adopt regulations to carry out this bill. However the bureau  
          does not believe it will need to adopt regulations based on its  
          experience implementing SB 1019, which is the model for this  
          bill. In implementing SB 1019, the bureau has found that the  
          statutes provide sufficient detail so that additional  
          regulations have not been necessary. As such, there are no costs  
          or cost pressures associated with this provision.
          This bill will create cost pressures for the bureau's  
          enforcement of the bill's labeling requirements, particularly  
          for testing. As with SB 1019, the testing for enforcement  
          purposes will be performed by DTSC. The bureau would be required  
          to reimburse DTSC for its costs. Testing costs include equipment  
          costs and the staff time to conduct the tests. To provide some  
          context, DTSC estimates that it would cost approximately  
          $150,000 to test 100 products annually. DTSC notes that while it  
          has the capability of conducting these tests, it currently has  
          no capacity to do so. Unless the bureau's enforcement budget  
          increases, any testing of juvenile products will come at the  
          expense of testing other products or other enforcement  
          activities.


          Staff notes that the HFTI fund currently has a structural  
          deficit in that its current fee structure does not provide  
          enough funds to cover its current appropriations. Future  
          appropriation requests for the bureau's enforcement activities  
          could result in the need for future fee increases.


          Staff notes that because this bill is an expansion of the HFTI  
          act, the bureau would be authorized to use the HFTI fund to pay  
          for testing and other enforcement activities. However, the  
          definition of juvenile products in this bill is very broad as  
          the only defining requirement is that the product is not subject  
          to federal mattress flammability requirements. The bill lists 21  
          specific products, but it is a nonexclusive list. There are many  
          products that a person could conceivable consider a "juvenile  
          product" colloquially that are not mattresses (ex: stuffed toys,  
          a children's bike helmet with foam pads, a convertible car seat,  
          etc.) and that are not are not under the bureau's existing  








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          jurisdiction.  And at least one of the listed 21 products, a  
          baby carrier that is worn by an adult, may also not be under the  
          bureau's existing jurisdiction. Manufactures, retail sellers,  
          and importers of products under the bureau's existing  
          jurisdiction pay a license fee that supports the bureau's  
          activities including enforcement. Staff believes it is  
          questionable whether the HFTI fund should be used to enforce  
          labeling requirements on products that are not made or sold by  
          licensed entities. Staff notes that fees generally must be  
          assessed on the whole regulated community but this bill could  
          create entities that are required to have a label but not  
          required to be licensed. 


          This bill constitutes a state mandate as it creates a new crime.  
          However, under the California Constitution, costs associated  
          with this mandate are not reimbursable. 




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