Amended in Senate June 19, 2014

Amended in Assembly May 20, 2014

Amended in Assembly May 12, 2014

Amended in Assembly April 22, 2014

Amended in Assembly March 28, 2014

California Legislature—2013–14 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 1699

Introduced by Assembly Member Bloom

(Coauthors: Assembly Members Nestande and Stone)

February 13, 2014

An act to add Chapter 5.9 (commencing with Section 42360) to Part 3 of Division 30 of the Public Resources Code, relating to waste management.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 1699, as amended, Bloom. Waste management: begin delete microplastics. end delete begin insert plastic microbeads. end insert

The Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986 (Proposition 65) prohibits any person, in the course of doing business, from knowingly and intentionally exposing any individual to a chemical known to the state to cause cancer or reproductive toxicity without giving a specified warning, or from discharging or releasing such a chemical into any source of drinking water, except as specified. Existing law prohibits the sale of expanded polystyrene packaging material by a wholesaler or manufacturer. Existing law prohibits a person from selling a plastic product in this state that is labeled with the term “compostable,” “home compostable,” or “marine degradable” unless, at the time of sale, the plastic product meets the applicable American Society for Testing and Materials standard specification.

This bill would prohibit, after January 1, 2019, a begin delete person in the course of doing business end delete begin insert person end insert , as defined, from selling or offering for promotional purposes in this state any personal care product containing begin delete microplastic end delete begin insert plastic microbeads end insert , as specified. The bill would exempt from this prohibition the sale or promotional offer of a product containing less than 1 part per million (ppm) by weight of begin delete microplastic end delete begin insert plastic microbeads end insert , as provided.

The bill would make a violator liable for a civil penalty not to exceed $2,500 per day for each violation. The bill would authorize the penalty to be assessed and recovered in a civil action brought in any court of competent jurisdiction by the Attorney General or local officials, as provided. The bill would require the civil penalties collected in an action brought pursuant to the act to be retained by the office of the Attorney General or local official who brought the action.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

Chapter 5.9 (commencing with Section 42360)
is added to Part 3 of Division 30 of the Public Resources Code, to
read:

 

Chapter  5.9. begin delete Microplastic end delete begin insert Plastic Microbeads end insert Nuisance
Prevention Law

 

42360.  

The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:

(a) Plastic does not biodegrade like other organic materials, but,
upon exposure to the elements, photodegrades into smaller pieces,
causing land and water pollution that is virtually impossible to
remediate.

(b) Plastic pollution is the dominant type of anthropogenic debris
found throughout the marine environment.

(c) Plastic pollution is an environmental and human health
hazard and a public nuisance.

(d) Consumer personal care products such as facial scrubs,
soaps, and toothpaste increasingly contain thousands of begin delete microplastic end delete begin insert plastic microbead end insert particles, ranging from 50 to 500
microns, which are flushed down drains as part of their intended
use.

(e)  begin delete Microplastics end delete begin insert Plastic microbeads end insert in personal care products
are not recoverable through ordinary wastewater treatment and so
are released into the environment.

(f)  begin delete Microplastics end delete begin insert Plastic microbeads end insert of the size found in
personal care products are ingested by marine organisms.

(g)  begin delete Microplastics end delete begin insert Plastic microbeads end insert attract other pollutants
commonly present in the environment, many of which are
recognized to have serious deleterious impacts on human health
or the environment, including DDT, DDE, PCBs, and
flame-retardants.

(h)  begin delete Microplastics end delete begin insert Plastic microbeads end insert have been found in surface
waters within the United States, as well as in fish, marine
mammals, and reptiles, and in the digestive and circulatory systems
of mussels and worms.

(i) PAHs, PCBs, and PBDEs from plastic transfer to fish tissue
during digestion and bioaccumulate, resulting in liver damage.

(j) Fish that humans consume have been found to ingest
begin delete microplastics end delete begin insert plastic microbeads end insert .

(k) There are many biodegradable, natural alternatives to
begin delete microplastics end delete begin insert plastic microbeads end insert that are economically feasible,
as evidenced by their current use in some consumer personal care
products.

42361.  

As used in this chapter, the following terms have the
following meanings:

begin delete

(a) “Microplastic” means any plastic size 5 millimeter or less
in all dimensions.

end delete begin delete

(b)

end delete

begin insert (a) end insert  “Person” means an individual, begin delete trust, firm, joint stock
company, corporation, company, partnership, limited liability
company, and association. end delete begin insert business, or other entity. end insert

begin delete

(c) “Personal care products” means mixtures and solutions used
for bathing and facial or body cleaning, including, but not limited
to, hand and body soap, exfoliates, shampoos, toothpastes, and
scrubs.

(d) “Person in the course of doing business” does not include
any person employing fewer than 10 employees in his or her
business; any city, county, or district or any department or agency
thereof or the state or any department or agency thereof or the
federal government or any department or agency thereof; or any
entity in its operation of a public water system.

(e) “Plastic” means a synthetic material made from linking
monomers through a chemical reaction to create a polymer chain
that can be molded or extruded at high heat into various forms.
Plastics can be made from many organic substances, including
petroleum and natural gas.

end delete begin insert

(b) (1) “Personal care product” means an article intended to
be rubbed, poured, sprinkled, or sprayed on, introduced to, or
otherwise applied to, the human body or any part thereof for
cleansing, beautifying, promoting attractiveness, or altering the
appearance, and an article intended for use as a component of
such an article.

end insert begin insert

(2) “Personal care product” does not include a prescription
drug, as defined in Section 110010.2 of the Health and Safety
Code.

end insert begin insert

(c) “Plastic microbead” means an intentionally added plastic
particle measuring five millimeters or less in size in every
dimension.

end insert

42362.  

On or after January 1, 2019, a person begin delete in the course of
doing business end delete shall not sell or offer for promotional purposes in
this state any personal care products containing begin delete microplastic end delete begin insert plastic
microbeads end insert .

42363.  

Section 42362 shall not apply to any person begin delete in the
course of doing business end delete that sells or offers for promotional
purposes a personal care product containing begin delete microplastic end delete begin insert plastic
microbeads end insert in less than 1 part per million (ppm) by weight.

42364.  

(a) A person who violates or threatens to violate Section
42362 may be enjoined in any court of competent jurisdiction.

(b) (1) A person who violates Section 42362 is liable for a civil
penalty not to exceed two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500)
per day for each violation in addition to any other penalty
established by law. That civil penalty may be assessed and
recovered in a civil action brought in any court of competent
jurisdiction.

(2) In assessing the amount of a civil penalty for a violation of
this chapter, the court shall consider all of the following:

(A) The nature and extent of the violation.

(B) The number of, and severity of, the violations.

(C) The economic effect of the penalty on the person.

(D) Whether the person took good faith measures to comply
with this chapter and the time these measures were taken.

(E) The deterrent effect that the imposition of the penalty would
have on both the person and the regulated community as a whole.

(F) Any other factor that justice may require.

(c) Actions pursuant to this section may be brought by the
Attorney General in the name of the people of the state, by a district
attorney, by a city attorney of a city having a population in excess
of 750,000 persons, or, with the consent of the district attorney,
by a city prosecutor in a city or city and county having a full-time
city prosecutor.

42367.  

The civil penalties collected pursuant to Section 42364
shall be retained by the office of the city attorney, city prosecutor,
district attorney, or Attorney General, whichever office brought
the action.

42368.  

This chapter does not alter or diminish any legal
obligation otherwise required in common law or by statute or
regulation, and this chapter does not create or enlarge any defense
in any action to enforce the legal obligation. Penalties and sanctions
imposed under this chapter shall be in addition to any penalties or
sanctions otherwise prescribed by law.