BILL ANALYSIS
AB 629
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Date of Hearing: April 28, 2009
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENTAL SAFETY AND TOXIC MATERIALS
Wesley Chesbro, Chair
AB 629 ( Krekorian) - As Amended: April 22, 2009
SUBJECT : School facilities: water.
SUMMARY : Requires a school district, by January 1, 2012, to
conduct a one-time analysis of the level of lead in water in
schools that were constructed before January 1, 1993, as
specified. Specifically, this bill :
1)Requires a school district, by January 1, 2012, to conduct a
one-time analysis of the level of lead in water in schools
that were constructed before January 1, 1993, except in
schools with plumbing that was completely replaced on or after
January 1, 1993.
2)Requires that only water dispensed from drinking water
fountains and other fixtures that are intended to convey water
for human consumption is analyzed.
3)Requires the State Department of Public Health (DPH) to
establish school site lead testing protocols. Requires water
samples to be analyzed by a laboratory that is certified by
the DPH or the United States Environmental Protection Agency
(USEPA). Authorizes the school district to contract with a
private certified laboratory or the county health department
laboratory, whichever is more cost-effective.
4)Requires a school district that has conducted an analysis
pursuant to this bill to report the results of the analysis to
the California Department of Education (CDE). Requires CDE to
make the information available to the public.
5)Provides that if the analysis reveals the presence of lead at
a concentration that exceeds the lead action level in the
federal lead and copper rule of 15?g/L, the school district
maintaining the school site is eligible to compete for funds
made available from the Safe Drinking Water, Water Quality and
Supply, Flood Control, River and Coastal Protection Bond Act
of 2006 (Proposition 84) in order to mitigate the
contamination.
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EXISTING LAW :
1)Establishes the School Facilities Needs Assessment Grant
Program under which grants are awarded to school districts to
develop a comprehensive needs assessment of all school sites
eligible for grants. Among the information the assessment is
required to contain is the useful life remaining on all major
building systems, including the water system.
a) Establishes the Lead-Safe Schools Protection Act,
enacted in 1992, which required the Department of Health
Services (DHS) to conduct a sampling survey of schools to
develop risk factors to predict lead contamination in
public schools; required the survey to determine the likely
extent and distribution of lead exposure to children from
schools; and required DHS to evaluate the most current
cost-effective lead abatement technologies, among other
requirements.
2)Prohibits, since 1993, the use of lead-based paint, lead
plumbing and solders, or other potential sources of lead
contamination in the construction of any new school facility
or the modernization or renovation of any existing school
facility.
3)Establishes the California Safe Drinking Water Act, which
requires DPH to administer provisions relating to the
regulation of drinking water to protect public health,
including, but not limited to, conducting research, studies,
and demonstration programs relating to the provision of a
dependable, safe supply of drinking water; enforcing the
federal Safe Drinking Water Act; adopting enforcement
regulations; and conducting studies and investigations to
assess the quality of water in domestic water supplies.
Requires standards to be set for toxics in drinking water,
which includes lead.
4)Establishes the federal Safe Drinking Water Act, which
authorizes US EPA to set national health-based standards for
drinking water to protect against both naturally-occurring and
anthropogenic contaminants that may be found in drinking
water. US EPA, states, and water systems enforce these
standards. Requires standards to be set for toxics in
drinking water, which includes lead.
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FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown.
COMMENTS :
Purpose : According to the author's office, "Children are
especially susceptible to high levels of exposure to lead and
other toxic chemicals because their bodies absorb these metals
at higher rates than the average adult. Research shows that
long-term exposure to high levels of lead can cause irreversible
damage to the brain, red blood cells, and kidneys. Exposure at
low levels of lead can cause low IQ, hearing impairment, reduced
attention span, and poor classroom performance. Because
children spend so much time in school and their bodies are
developing rapidly, it is important to provide safe drinking
water to avoid health problems linked to lead?
?Beginning in 1994, Department of Health Services (now DPH)
conducted a study on the extent of lead contamination in paint,
soil and water in California schools. Even though the
conclusions of the report, as well as numerous other research
including recommendations by the US EPA, highly recommend that
all schools test their drinking water taps for lead (and other
toxic substances), these provisions are purely voluntary. It is
up to the discretion of the school to monitor its water quality.
The state needs the data on lead levels in schools drinking
water in order to begin to address the issues at hand."
Lead in California schools: The state has initiated a number of
lead identification and prevention efforts in schools. As
required by the Lead-Safe Schools Protection Act, DHS conducted
a study, delivered in 1998, that reported that most elementary
schools contain paint with a lead content above the federal
recommended level and that six percent of public elementary
schools have bare soils with lead levels that exceed the US
EPA's recommended level.
Lead in California schools' water: According to the report,
water can be contaminated with lead by the source water system
or by corrosion of lead plumbing or fixtures. Plumbing
installed prior to 1930 is considered most likely to contain
lead. However, lead could also leak from lead plumbing solder,
which was commonly used until banned in 1986.
Using weighted sample analysis, the study estimated that 18.1%
of schools may have water outlets with lead content that exceeds
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federal recommended levels. While lead content was highest in
schools built before 1940, schools of all ages had water samples
with lead content above the federal recommended levels. The
report recommended evaluating the lead content of drinking water
in public schools using US EPA guidelines, including collecting
water using standard US EPA sampling techniques that should be
analyzed only by laboratories certified by DHS.
Testing for lead in schools' water: As part of the Budget Act
of 1998, SB 1564 (Schiff), Chapter 330, Statutes of 1998, the
education trailer bill, provided $1.053 million to fund lead
testing in drinking water in public elementary and secondary
schools. The budget allocated $120 to each elementary school
site and $230 to each junior high, middle and high school for
this purpose. A water collection guideline developed for the
test recommended prioritizing testing of school buildings
constructed prior to 1986, when lead plumbing solder was banned
for use in drinking water plumbing systems.
Districts that conducted lead testing with state funds from the
1998-99 budget were not required to provide data to the CDE and
therefore, statewide information is not available on the extent
and results of the tests. The author contends that it is
impossible to gather this information, which is already dated.
This bill requires school districts to conduct a one-time
analysis of the level of lead in water in schools with plumbing
that has not been updated since 1993. Since 1993, lead-based
plumbing and solders has been prohibited in the construction of
new school facilities and the modernization of existing
facilities.
How many schools would be affected? Based on the buildings
surveyed in the 1998 report to the Legislature, an estimated
3,756, or 39%, of all school buildings are more than 40 years
old. By now, some may have replaced their plumbing systems
during modernization projects. Also, beginning in 1993,
lead-based plumbing and solders have been prohibited in the
construction and modernization of any new school facility.
Therefore, it is unclear how many schools would be affected by
this bill.
What would the assessments tell us? While the drinking water
assessments might alert officials to elevated levels of lead in
drinking water, they would not necessarily be able to ascertain
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where in the system the problem arises (at the source, along the
way to the school, or at the school itself).
Previous legislation : This bill is similar to AB 2965
(Krekorian), which was held in the Assembly Appropriations
Committee's Suspense File in 2008. AB 2965 required testing of
lead as well as copper, trihalomethanes and other chemicals and
passed out of ESTM Committee on a 6 - 0 vote.
Suggested technical amendments : The Committee may wish to
consider the following amendments:
1. Rather than setting a specific standard in statute for
the presence of lead as a funding eligibility requirement,
as described in the bill, instead require DPH to prioritize
applications for funding in order to achieve the greatest
protection from lead exposure among public school children.
2. Require DPH to establish a deadline for the submittal of
applications for funding for lead exposure mitigation, as
described in the bill.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support:
Latino Issues Forum (sponsor)
American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees
(AFL-CIO)
California School Employees Association
East Bay Municipal Utility District
Environmental Working Group
State Building and Construction Trades Council
Opposition:
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by : Shannon McKinney / E.S. & T.M. / (916)
319-3965