BILL NUMBER: AB 1369 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 24, 2004
AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 8, 2004
AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 26, 2003
AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 18, 2003
AMENDED IN SENATE JULY 22, 2003
AMENDED IN SENATE JULY 1, 2003
AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 12, 2003
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 7, 2003
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 21, 2003
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Pavley
(Coauthors: Assembly Members Calderon, Hancock, Koretz, Maze,
Mullin, and Vargas)
(Coauthors: Senators Machado, Romero, and Soto)
FEBRUARY 21, 2003
An act to add Article 10.2.1(commencing with Section 25214.8.1) to
Chapter 6.5 of Division 20 of the Health and Safety Code, relating
to hazardous waste.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1369, as amended, Pavley. Mercury-added thermostats.
(1) Existing law, the California Mercury Reduction Act of 2001,
requires any mercury-containing vehicle light switch that is removed
from a vehicle to be subject to the regulations adopted by the
Department of Toxic Substances Control regarding the management of
universal waste. Existing law prohibits any person, except as
specified, from selling at retail or supplying a mercury fever
thermometer to a consumer or patient in the state, except by a
prescription. Existing law also prohibits any person from
manufacturing, offering for sale or use, or distributing for
promotional purposes in this state a mercury-added novelty. A
violation of the hazardous waste control laws is a crime.
This bill would prohibit, on and after January 1, 2006, a person
from selling, offering to sell, or distributing for promotional
purposes, in this state a mercury-added thermostat, as
defined, unless the mercury-added thermostat is subject to a
variance granted by the department or the mercury-added thermostat
meets specified criteria.
Since the requirements imposed by the bill would be a crime, the
bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
(2) 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. Article 10.2.1(commencing with Section 25214.8.1) is
added to Chapter 6.5 of Division 20 of the Health and Safety Code, to
read:
Article 10.2.1. Mercury-Added Thermostats
25214.8.1. (a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:
(1) Once mercury is released into the environment it can change to
methyl mercury, a highly toxic compound. Methyl mercury is easily
taken up in living tissue and bioaccumulates over time, causing
serious health effects, including neurological and reproductive
disorders in humans and wildlife. Since mercury does not break down
in the environment, it has become a significant health threat to
humans and wildlife.
(2) Due to the bioaccumulation of mercury and other contaminants
in fish, the California Environmental Protection Agency has issued a
warning advising that adults and women who are pregnant or who may
become pregnant should limit their fish intake from several state
waterways.
(3) Increasingly stringent mercury discharge limits for wastewater
treatment plants make the identification and elimination of
unnecessary sources of mercury a critical task, because the cost of
mercury removal at a wastewater treatment plant is far greater than
the societal benefits of continuing use of mercury containing
products, as currently formulated.
(4) Thermostats are among the largest remaining sources of mercury
in consumer products that can be legally sold in California.
(5) Mercury thermostats are hazardous waste when discarded, and on
and after January 1, 2006, all mercury thermostat wastes will be
prohibited from disposal in a solid waste landfill under the
regulations adopted pursuant to this chapter.
(6) Economical alternatives to mercury thermostats are available
for commercial and residential applications.
(b) For purposes of this article "mercury-added thermostat" means
a product or device that uses a mercury switch to sense and control
room temperature through communication with heating, ventilating, or
air conditioning equipment. A mercury-added thermostat includes
thermostats used to sense and control room temperature in
residential, commercial, industrial, and other buildings but does not
include a thermostat used to sense and control temperature as part
of a manufacturing process.
25214.8.2. (a) On and after January 1, 2006, a
person shall not sell, offer to sell, or distribute for promotional
purposes in this state , a mercury-added thermostat,
unless the mercury-added thermostat is subject to a variance
granted pursuant to subdivision (b) or the mercury-added thermostat
meets either of the following criteria:
(1)
(a) The thermostat will be used for manufacturing or
industrial purposes.
(2)
(b) The thermostat will be used by a blind or visually
impaired person.
(b) A manufacturer of a mercury-added thermostat may apply to the
department for a variance for a thermostat from the requirements of
subdivision (a) for one or more specific uses of the mercury-added
thermostat. The department may grant a variance in accordance with
the procedures specified in subdivision (c), if the department makes
both of the following findings:
(1) The manufacturer demonstrates that a system exists for the
proper collection, transportation, and processing of the
mercury-added thermostat at the end of its life.
(2) The specific use or uses of the mercury-added thermostat
provide a net benefit to the environment, public health, or public
safety when compared to available nonmercury alternatives.
(c) (1) The department may impose conditions for the granting of a
variance pursuant to subdivision (b).
(2) The department shall not grant a variance pursuant to
subdivision (b) for a period of more than two years and may renew a
variance for one or more additional two-year periods, if the
department finds that the variance has not resulted in harm to human
health or safety or to the environment and that there has been
substantial compliance with the conditions contained in the variance.
(3) The department shall issue a public notice at least 30 days
before granting a variance pursuant to subdivision (b) to allow an
opportunity for public comment. The public notice shall be issued in
the California Regulatory Register, and to the department's
regulatory mailing list. The department shall, upon request, hold a
public meeting prior to granting the variance. In granting the
variance and in making the findings required, the department shall
consider all public comments received.
(4) A variance issued pursuant to subdivision (b) shall be issued
on a form prescribed by the department and shall, as applicable,
include, but not be limited to, all of the following:
(A) Information identifying the manufacturer to which the variance
applies, including the name and address of the manufacturer and the
model of the thermostat.
(B) The time period during which the variance is effective.
(C) A specification of the requirements of this chapter from which
the variance is granted.
(D) A specification of all conditions, limitations, or other
requirements to which the variance is subject.
(5) On or before 30 days after the date the department grants a
variance pursuant to subdivision (b), the department shall issue a
public notice in the California Regulatory Register.
(d) (1) The department may review a variance issued pursuant to
subdivision (b) at any time, at the discretion of the department, and
the department may revoke or modify a variance at any time.
(2) The department shall revoke or modify a variance issued
pursuant to this section if the department finds any of the
following:
(A) The system or the uses specified in paragraphs (1) and (2) of
subdivision (b) do not meet the conditions specified in those
paragraphs.
(B) The holder of the variance is in violation of one or more of
the conditions, limitations, or other requirements of the variance,
and, as a result of the violation, the system or the uses specified
in paragraphs (1) and (2) of subdivision (b) do not meet the
conditions specified in those paragraphs.
SEC. 2. 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.