BILL NUMBER: AB 2297 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 20, 2004
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 1, 2004
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Vargas
FEBRUARY 19, 2004
An act to add a heading as Article 1 (commencing with Section
105275) to, and to add Article 2 (commencing with Section 105312) to,
Chapter 5 of Part 5 of Division 102 of the Health and Safety Code,
relating to imported candy.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 2297, as amended, Vargas. Imported candy: lead contamination.
Existing law, the Sherman Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Law, requires
the State Department of Health Services to regulate manufacture,
sale, labeling, and advertising activities related to food, drugs,
devices, and cosmetics in conformity with the federal Food, Drug, and
Cosmetic Act.
Under existing law, the State Department of Health Services is
responsible for administering the Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention
Act of 1991. Existing law requires the department to establish a
childhood lead poisoning prevention program to identify and conduct
medical followup of high-risk children, and to establish procedures
for environmental abatement and followup designed to reduce the
incidence of excessive childhood lead exposures. Existing law
requires the department to assess a fee for these purposes against
persons who contributed to sources of lead contamination.
This bill would amend the Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Act
of 1991 to require the department to , as a component of that
program, regulate lead in imported candy and use those fees,
upon appropriation by the Legislature, to regulate the lead content
of imported candy. The bill would require the department to test
imported candy to determine the presence of lead, to issue related
health advisories, to order removal of, and to embargo, imported
candy found to contain lead. The bill would require the department
to adopt related regulations and to form an interagency
collaborative. The bill would authorize the department to enter into
contracts with county health officers and to provide grants to
environmental justice organizations.
By requiring enforcement of these provisions in part by county
health officials, this bill 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, including the creation of a State Mandates Claims Fund
to pay the costs of mandates that do not exceed $1,000,000 statewide
and other procedures for claims whose statewide costs exceed
$1,000,000.
This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates
determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state,
reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these
statutory provisions.
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. A heading is added as Article 1 (commencing with
Section 105275) to Chapter 5 of Part 5 of Division 102 of the Health
and Safety Code, to read:
Article 1. General
SEC. 2. Article 2 (commencing with Section 105312) is added to
Chapter 5 of Part 5 of Division 102 of the Health and Safety Code, to
read:
Article 2. Imported Candy
105312. (a) The department, as a component of its other
regulatory duties pursuant to this chapter, shall have jurisdiction
over the regulation of imported candy to ensure that the candy is
lead free.
(b) For the purposes of this chapter , "candy" includes
only candy imported from a foreign country and its packaging or
wrapper.
(c) Funds deposited into the Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention
Fund established pursuant to Section 105310 shall, upon appropriation
by the Legislature, be available to the department for the purposes
of this article.
105313. The department shall do all of the following:
(a) Establish a lead content standard of zero, or the lowest
detection limit, for imported candy.
(b) Establish a collaborative as set forth in Section 105314.
(c) Require the testing of imported candy to determine its lead
content. Priority shall be given to testing samples of imported candy
received by community-based organizations.
(d) Issue health advisories when candy has been found to contain
any detectible level of lead.
(e) Order local health officers to remove from selves
shelves of retailers, any candy found to contain
lead.
(f) Order an embargo against a manufacturer of candy that is found
to contain lead, until the manufacturer demonstrates that the lead
contamination no longer exists.
(g) Promote enforcement of this article by making the elimination
of lead in imported candy a major goal of its Childhood Lead
Poisoning Prevention Branch branch .
(h) Through its Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention
Branch branch , enter into contracts with county
health officers and county environmental health officers to collect
samples of imported candy for submission to the Food and Drug
Branch branch of the department for
testing pursuant to this article.
(i) Through its Food and Drug Branch
branch , test the samples of imported candy collected pursuant
to this article.
(j) Through its Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Branch,
provide grants to between 5 and 10 environmental justice
organizations throughout the state to identify retail establishments
and imported candy for obtaining test samples. Pursuant to these
grants, the organization shall conduct inspections of retail
establishments to determine the presence of imported candy and shall
report its findings to the county health officer for the collection
and testing of samples pursuant to this chapter, and for enforcement
actions if banned candy is found. The organizations shall conduct a
media campaign as a central part of their public education and
outreach efforts under this article.
(k)
(j) Through its Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention
Branch branch , draft, periodically update, and
distribute a community flyer that identifies all imported candy
found to contain lead pursuant to this article, for use by the
department and by environmental justice organizations to inform the
public and to educate retailers.
(l)
(k) Adopt regulations necessary for the enforcement of this
article. Evaluate the regulatory process, identify problems, and
report to the Legislature, as necessary.
105314. (a) The department shall establish an interagency
collaborative on the lead content of imported candy to be composed of
the following members:
(1) The department, including its Childhood Lead Poisoning
Branch branch and its Food and Drug
Branch branch .
(2) County health officers.
(3) Environmental health organizations receiving grants pursuant
to this article.
(4) Health ministers of affected foreign governments.
(5) Manufactures Manufacturers of
imported candy.
(6) Community-based organizations.
(b) The department, in consultation with its partners in the
collaborative, shall do all of the following:
(1) Identify the reasons for, and problems associated with, lead
contamination of imported candy.
(2) Identify obstacles to the removal of lead from
imported candy, and develop strategies for overcoming the obstacles.
(3) Develop recommended feasible manufacturing process shifts
designed to result in lead-free candy.
SEC. 3. Notwithstanding Section 17610 of the Government Code, if
the Commission on State Mandates determines that this act contains
costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to local agencies and
school districts for those costs shall be made pursuant to Part 7
(commencing with Section 17500) of Division 4 of Title 2 of the
Government Code. If the statewide cost of the claim for
reimbursement does not exceed one million dollars ($1,000,000),
reimbursement shall be made from the State Mandates Claims Fund.