BILL ANALYSIS
AB 1078
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Date of Hearing: April 28, 2009
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENTAL SAFETY AND TOXIC MATERIALS
Wesley Chesbro, Chair
AB 1078 (Feuer) - As Introduced: February 27, 2009
SUBJECT : Hazardous materials: toxic substances.
SUMMARY : Exempts mercury-containing lights from all but one
regulatory response that the Department of Toxic Substances
Control (DTSC) may impose to reduce the level of hazard posed by
a chemical of concern in a consumer product. Authorizes,
beginning on January 1, 2012, DTSC to establish regulations to
manage mercury-containing lights at the end of their useful
life, including through recycling or responsible disposal.
Makes technical, conforming corrections to Health and Safety
Code Sections relating to AB 1879 and SB 509 of the 2007 - 2008
legislative session.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Defines "consumer product" as a product or part of a product
that is used, bought, or leased for use by a person for any
purpose.
2)Exempts, until December 31, 2011, mercury-containing lights
from the definition of "consumer product." Authorizes DTSC,
after that date, to regulate mercury-containing lights as a
consumer product.
3)Requires, on or before January 1, 2011, DTSC to adopt
regulations to establish a process for evaluating chemicals of
concern in consumer products, and their potential
alternatives, to determine how best to limit exposure or to
reduce the level of hazard posed by a chemical of concern.
4)Requires the regulations to specify the range of regulatory
responses that DTSC may take, including, but not limited to,
any of the following actions:
a) Not requiring any action.
b) Imposing requirements to provide additional information
needed to assess a chemical of concern and its potential
alternatives.
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c) Imposing requirements on the labeling or other type of
consumer product information.
d) Imposing a restriction on the use of the chemical of
concern in the consumer product.
e) Prohibiting the use of the chemical of concern in the
consumer product.
f) Imposing requirements that control access to or limit
exposure to the chemical of concern in the consumer
product.
g) Imposing requirements for the manufacturer to manage the
product at the end of its useful life, including recycling
or responsible disposal of the consumer product.
h) Imposing a requirement to fund green chemistry challenge
grants where no feasible safer alternative exists.
i) Any other outcome that DTSC determines accomplishes the
requirements of this article.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown.
COMMENTS :
Purpose : According to the author's office, "This bill corrects
drafting errors in AB 1879 and SB 509 from the 2008 legislative
session. It corrects typographical errors, as well as errors in
exemption provisions related to mercury-containing light bulbs
that could not be corrected prior to the end of the previous
session."
Green chemistry : According to DTSC, green chemistry represents
a major paradigm shift that focuses on environmental protection
at the design stage of product and manufacturing processes. It
is an innovative approach to deal with chemicals before they
become hazards, with the goal of making chemicals and products
"benign by design." Green chemistry is a preemptive strategy
that reduces the use of toxic substances before they contaminate
the environment and our bodies. It is a marked departure from
the past where society managed industrial and municipal wastes
by disposal or incineration. Green chemistry seeks to
dramatically reduce the toxicity of chemicals in the first
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place, rather than merely manage their toxic waste after use and
disposal.
California's Green Chemistry Initiative : In 2007, Linda Adams,
Secretary of the California Environmental Protection Agency (Cal
EPA), directed DTSC to develop the California Green Chemistry
Initiative, with goals that included developing a consistent
means for evaluating risk, reducing exposure, encouraging
less-toxic industrial processes, and identifying safer,
non-chemical alternatives. In December, 2008, DTSC released its
California Green Chemistry Initiative: Final Report, which
included six policy recommendations for establishing a
comprehensive green chemistry program in California.
Green chemistry legislation : Last year, the Governor signed AB
1879 and SB 509 into law, which enacted two of the six green
chemistry policy recommendations outlined in DTSC's final
report. AB 1879 (Feuer and Huffman) Chapter 559, Statutes of
2008, requires DTSC to adopt regulations by January 1, 2011 to
identify and prioritize chemicals of concern, to evaluate
alternatives, and to specify regulatory responses where
chemicals of concern are found in consumer products. SB 509
(Simitian) Chapter 560, Statutes of 2008, requires DTSC to
establish an online, public Toxics Information Clearinghouse
that includes science-based information on the toxicity and
hazard traits of chemicals used in daily life.
AB 1879 and SB 509 established groundbreaking law that institute
a critical foundation for the development of a comprehensive
green chemistry policy in the state. Prior to the enactment of
these two bills, California had an extremely limited chemical
policy program in which many state entities held limited
regulatory authority over consumer products that contained
chemicals of concern. Often, more than one entity had authority
over the same chemical, but only when found in certain products
or at certain stages of the product's lifecycle, often the end.
This limited, disconnected approach prevented the development of
an effective, comprehensive program to manage known toxic
chemicals in consumer products.
Health effects of mercury exposure : According to the United
States Geological Survey (USGS), mercury is a highly toxic
element, of which methylmercury [CH3Hg] is the most toxic form.
Methylmercury affects the immune system, alters genetic and
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enzyme systems, and damages the nervous system, including
coordination and the senses of touch, taste, and sight. It is
particularly damaging to developing embryos, which are five to
ten times more sensitive than adults. Exposure to methylmercury
is usually by ingestion. The exact mechanisms by which mercury
enters the food chain remain largely unknown and may vary among
ecosystems; however it is thought that mercury is converted into
methylmercury as it bioaccumulates and travels up the food
chain. Exposure to elemental mercury, Hg (0), the form released
from broken thermometers, causes tremors, gingivitis, and
excitability when vapors are inhaled over a long period of time.
Consensus on California's green chemistry legislation: AB 1879
and SB 509 were carefully crafted to create consensus between
environmental, public health and industry organizations.
Generally, stakeholders do not favor a chemical by chemical or
product by product approach to regulating chemicals in consumer
products, and instead support a comprehensive process as
established by these two bills.
Are exemptions to new law establishing a comprehensive green
chemistry program appropriate ? This bill exempts
mercury-containing lights from nearly all of the potential
regulatory actions DTSC may take to reduce exposure to toxic
chemicals, as established in last year's green chemistry bills.
Allowing an exemption of a single product category seems to
damage the integrity of a program that was designed to be
comprehensive and inclusive. Further, allowing such an
exemption establishes a precedent for additional product
category exemptions.
Opposition : Sierra Club California opposes AB 1078 because, "It
would grant an unwarranted exemption from the foundation Green
Chemistry law to manufacturers of mercury-containing lights?
Last year, AB 1879 and SB 509 enacted the first steps in a new
paradigm for the state on chemical policy. The Legislature for
the first time delegated to DTSC comprehensive authority to
address chemicals of concern in consumer products before they
enter the waste stream? Mercury-containing lights were granted
a three-year exemption from the definition of "consumer product"
in AB 1879/ SB 509, under the rationale that they were being
addressed through the process established by 2007's Lighting
Efficiency and Toxics Reduction Act, AB 1109, and that further
legislation was expected to implement the recommendations of the
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AB 1109 Lighting Task Force. Follow-up legislation has indeed
been introduced this year, AB 1173, and we believe that his bill
is the appropriate vehicle to address mercury lamp issues. We
see no rationale for carving out a permanent loophole in the
Green Chemistry system for one particular product."
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
None on file.
Opposition
Sierra Club California
Analysis Prepared by : Shannon McKinney / E.S. & T.M. / (916)
319-3965