BILL ANALYSIS
SB 1255
Page 1
Date of Hearing: August 4, 2010
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Felipe Fuentes, Chair
SB 1255 (Padilla) - As Amended: June 22, 2010
Policy Committee: EducationVote:5-2
Health
14-5
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
No Reimbursable: No
SUMMARY
This bill, beginning on July 1, 2011, prohibits an electrolyte
replacement beverage (ERB) that contains no more than 42 grams
of added sweetener per 20 ounce serving from being sold to
middle and high school pupils from one-half hour before the
start of the schoolday until one-half hour after the end of the
schoolday.
FISCAL EFFECT
Beginning in 2011, annual loss of revenue, of approximately $5
million statewide, to school districts by limiting the sale of
ERBs in middle and high schools, as specified. There are 493
school districts with middle and high schools in the state. For
example, several school districts report ERB sales accounts for
between 45% and 70% of their total beverage sales. To the
extent that this loss of revenue leads to reductions in a
district's meal program, there will be GF/98 cost pressure to
mitigate these reductions.
COMMENTS
1)Purpose . According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC),
"Among pre-school age children 2-5 years of age, obesity
increased from 5 to 10.4% between 1976-1980 and 2007-2008 and
from 6.5 to 19.6% among 6-11 year olds. Among adolescents aged
12-19, obesity increased from 5 to 18.1% during the same
period." CDC county-level data also demonstrates "the
geographic variability of obesity within a state. In general,
obesity prevalence is highest in western and southern
California, southern Texas, the central and north eastern
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seaboard, and some Appalachian states. Nearly all counties
touching the Pacific Ocean have prevalences above 15%, whereas
many of the counties in the Rocky Mountains have prevalences
below 10%."
According to the author, "One third of California's kids ages
9 -11 are overweight or at risk of becoming overweight and are
increasingly suffering from nutrition-related illnesses that
normally occur in adulthood, diseases such as type-2 diabetes
and pre-hypertension. A number of studies have found that
greater consumption of sweetened beverages is associated with
overweight and obesity among both adults and children."
This bill, sponsored by the governor, prohibits ERBs from
being sold to middle and high school pupils from one-half hour
before the start of the schoolday until one-half hour after
the end of the schoolday.
2)Electrolyte replacement beverages (ERBs) are designed to
replace fluids after exercise and generally contain sodium and
potassium to improve fluid absorption in the body. According
to a U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) report on
Carbohydrate/ERBs, "carbohydrate/ERBs provide carbohydrate
(glucose, sucrose, glucose polymers) replacement to sustain
energy output, and electrolytes (sodium, potassium) to replace
those lost in sweat." The USDA report states that ERBs may be
useful for individuals who have lost large quantities of
fluids through sweating on a daily basis, and those who
perform continuous exercise for more than 60 minutes. The
report, however, concludes there is no need to substitute ERBs
for water as a primary form of fluid replacement.
According to a University of California Center for Weight and
Health (UC Center) information sheet on sports drinks (2007),
"research shows that even when children exercise vigorously
(i.e., running nonstop for an entire hour) water is just as
good at adding back the fluids they need while keeping their
electrolytes in balance." The UC Center also states:
"Children get plenty of electrolytes from the food they eat,
so during the school day and at most practices, sports drinks
don't provide any extra benefit over water."
3)Costs of childhood obesity . According to a 2006 Thomson
MEDSTAT research brief, "Children treated for obesity are
roughly three times more expensive for the health system than
the average insured child. Annual healthcare costs are about
$6,700 for children treated for obesity covered by Medicaid
and about $3,700 for obese children with private insurance."
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4)Existing law . Since 2001, there have been three legislative
measures: SB 19 (Escutia), Chapter 913, Statutes of 2001, SB
677 (Ortiz), Chapter 415, Statutes of 2003, and SB 965
(Escutia), Chapter 237, Statutes of 2005, that have regulated
beverage sales at elementary, middle, and high schools. SB 19
limited beverage sales at elementary schools; SB 677 extended
the elementary school limitations to middle schools; and SB
965 extended the middle school limitations to high schools.
The following chart represents current law regarding the types
of beverages allowed to be sold at schools during specified
time periods.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
| Beverage | Elementary | Middle and High |
| | Schoolsa | Schoolsb |
|-----------------------------------+---------------+------------------|
|Fruit-based drinks that are | | |
|composed of no less than 50% fruit | X |X |
|juice and have no added sweetener | | |
|-----------------------------------+---------------+------------------|
|Vegetable-based drinks that are | | |
|composed of no less than 50% | X | X |
|vegetable juice and have no added | | |
|sweetener. | | |
|-----------------------------------+---------------+------------------|
|Drinking water with no added | X | X |
|sweetener. | | |
|-----------------------------------+---------------+------------------|
|Two percent fat milk, one percent | | |
|fat milk, soy milk, rice milk, and | X | X |
|other similar non-dairy milk. | | |
|-----------------------------------+---------------+------------------|
|ERB that contains no more than 42 | | |
|grams of added sweetener per 20 | |X |
|ounce serving. | | |
----------------------------------------------------------------------
aAt elementary schools, these beverages may be sold regardless
of the time of day.
bAt middle and high schools, these beverages may only be sold
from one-half hour before the start of the schoolday to
one-half hour after the end of the schoolday.
Analysis Prepared by : Kimberly Rodriguez / APPR. / (916)
SB 1255
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319-2081