Amended in Assembly August 18, 2014

Amended in Assembly June 12, 2014

Amended in Assembly June 4, 2014

Amended in Senate April 21, 2014

Amended in Senate April 9, 2014

Senate Bill No. 1405

Introduced by Senator DeSaulnier

(Coauthor: Senator Lara)

February 21, 2014

An act to amend Sections 17609, 17610, 17611, and 17612 of, and to add Sections 17611.5 and 17614 to, the Education Code, and to amend Sections 12996, 12999.4, 13181, 13182, 13183, and 13187 of, and to add Section 13186.5 to, the Food and Agricultural Code, relating to pesticides.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SB 1405, as amended, DeSaulnier. Pesticides: schoolsites.

(1) Existing law, the Healthy Schools Act of 2000, requires each schoolsite to maintain records of all pesticide use at the schoolsite for a period of 4 years and to make these records available to the public upon request, as specified. Existing law authorizes a schoolsite to meet these requirements by retaining a copy of the warning sign posted for each pesticide application, as specified, and recording on the copy the amount of pesticide used. Existing law requires a schoolsite or school district to identify an individual, known as a school designee, to carry out the requirements of the act.

This bill, if a begin delete school end delete begin insert schoolsite end insert chooses to use certain pesticides, would require the school designee, at the end of each calendar year, or more often at his or her discretion, to submit to the Director of Pesticide Regulation a copy of the records, as specified, of all pesticide use at the schoolsite. The bill, if a schoolsite chooses to use certain pesticides, would require the school designee to develop and post on the Internet Web site of the schoolsite begin insert , or, if the schoolsite does not maintain an Internet Web site, the school district, end insert an integrated pest management plan begin insert , as defined, end insert for the schoolsite or school district, except if begin delete the schoolsite does not maintain end delete begin insert neither the schoolsite nor the school district maintains end insert an Internet Web site, the school designee would be required to include the integrated pest management plan with a certain annual notification sent to staff and parents or guardians of pupils enrolled at the schoolsite. The bill would authorize a school designee to do these things related to an integrated pest management plan if the schoolsite does not choose to use certain pesticides.

(2) Existing law requires the Department of Pesticide Regulation to promote and facilitate the voluntary adoption of integrated pest management programs for schoolsites that voluntarily choose to do so, excluding privately operated child day care facilities. For these schoolsites, existing law requires the department to establish an integrated pest management program for schoolsites. Existing law, in establishing the program, requires the department to develop criteria for identifying least-hazardous pest control practices and encourage their adoption as part of an integrated pest management program at each schoolsite and develop a model program guidebook, as specified, that prescribes essential program elements for schoolsites that have adopted a least-hazardous integrated pest management program. Existing law provides that a violation of the laws, and the regulations adopted pursuant to those laws, relating to pesticides is generally a misdemeanor.

This bill would require the Department of Pesticide Regulation to develop a training course to train any person who intends to apply pesticides on a schoolsite, and would require the training course to cover integrated pest management and the safe use of pesticides in relation to the unique nature of schoolsites and children’s health. The bill would require the training course to be provided by the department or an agent authorized by the department. The bill would also require, commencing July 1, 2016, a school designee and any person applying a pesticide at a schoolsite subject to the act, to annually complete a training course provided by the department or an agent authorized by the department. The bill would require the training begin insert course end insert to include integrated pest management and the safe use of pesticides in relation to the unique nature of schoolsites and children’s health. begin insert The bill would exclude the violation of the provisions requiring the completion of an annual training course from being a crime. end insert

(3) This bill would make conforming changes and various nonsubstantive changes.

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.  

Section 17609 of the Education Code is amended
to read:

17609.  

The definitions set forth in this section govern the
construction of this article unless the context clearly requires
otherwise:

(a) “Antimicrobial” means those pesticides defined by the
Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (7 U.S.C. Sec.
136(mm)).

(b) “Crack and crevice treatment” means the application of
small quantities of a pesticide consistent with labeling instructions
in a building into openings such as those commonly found at
expansion joints, between levels of construction, and between
equipment and floors.

(c) “Emergency conditions” means any circumstances in which
the school designee or a property owner of a property where a
privately operated child day care facility is located, or the property
owner’s agent, deems that the immediate use of a pesticide is
necessary to protect the health and safety of pupils, staff, or other
persons, or the schoolsite.

(d) “Integrated pest management plan” means a written plan
based on a template provided or approved by the Department of
Pesticide Regulation that outlines a strategy for integrated pest
management, as described in Section 13181 of the Food and
Agricultural Code.

(e) “School designee” or “IPM coordinator” means a begin delete school end delete
begin insert schoolsite end insert or begin insert school end insert district employee identified by a schoolsite
or school district to carry out the requirements of this article or to
ensure that the requirements of this article are carried out.

(f) “Schoolsite” means any facility used as a child day care
facility, as defined in Section 1596.750 of the Health and Safety
Code, or for kindergarten, elementary, or secondary school
purposes. The term includes the buildings or structures,
playgrounds, athletic fields, vehicles, or any other area of property
visited or used by pupils. “Schoolsite” does not include any
postsecondary educational facility attended by secondary pupils
or private kindergarten, elementary, or secondary school facilities.
For child day care facilities, the State Department of Social
Services shall serve as the liaison to these facilities, as needed.

SEC. 2.  

Section 17610 of the Education Code is amended to
read:

17610.  

(a) It is the policy of the state that effective least toxic
pest management practices should be the preferred method of
managing pests at schoolsites and that the state, in order to reduce
children’s exposure to toxic pesticides, shall take the necessary
steps, pursuant to Article 17 (commencing with Section 13180)
of Chapter 2 of Division 7 of the Food and Agricultural Code, to
facilitate the adoption of effective least toxic pest management
practices at schoolsites. It is the intent of the Legislature that all
school personnel involved in the application of a pesticide at a
schoolsite be trained in integrated pest management and the safe
use of pesticides in relation to the unique nature of schoolsites and
children’s health.

(b) (1) (A) A property owner of a property where a child day
care facility is located, or the property owner’s agent, who
personally applies any pesticides on an area listed in paragraph
(2) shall provide notice to the child day care facility as described
in paragraph (3) at least 120 hours before the application, unless
an emergency condition, as defined in Section 17609, exists.

(B) An owner of property on which a child day care facility is
located shall be subject to the requirement to provide notice
pursuant to this subdivision 30 days after it has received notice
from a child day care facility of its presence at the property, unless
the property owner, or his or her agent, received that notice
pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (d) of Section 1597.40 of
the Health and Safety Code before the effective date of this
subdivision in which case the property owner shall be subject to
the notice requirements on and after the effective date of this
subdivision.

(2) This subdivision applies when a property owner or his or
her agent intends to personally apply pesticides on any of the
following:

(A) Inside the rented premises on which the child day care
facility is located.

(B) Upon a designated child day care facility playground
designated by the property owner.

(C) Upon an area designated for use by the child day care
facility.

(D) Upon an area within 10 feet of the perimeter of the child
day care facility.

(3) The notice required by paragraph (1) shall include the
following:

(A) The product name.

(B) The manufacturer’s name.

(C) The active ingredients of each pesticide.

(D) The United States Environmental Protection Agency’s
product registration number.

(E) The intended date of application.

(F) The areas of application listed in paragraph (2).

(G) The reason for application.

(4) A notice of pesticide application provided to a tenant
pursuant to subdivision (d) of Section 13186 of the Food and
Agricultural Code shall satisfy the notice requirements of this
section.

(5) If the child day care facility ceases to operate on the property,
the provisions of this act shall no longer apply to the property.

SEC. 3.  

Section 17611 of the Education Code is amended to
read:

17611.  

(a) Each schoolsite shall maintain records of all
pesticide use at the schoolsite for a period of four years, and shall
make this information available to the public, upon request,
pursuant to the California Public Records Act (Chapter 3.5
(commencing with Section 6250) of Division 7 of Title 1 of the
Government Code). A schoolsite may meet the requirements of
this section by retaining a copy of the warning sign posted for each
application required pursuant to Section 17612, and recording on
that copy the amount of the pesticide used.

(b) (1) If a schoolsite chooses to use a pesticide not included
within Section 17610.5, at the end of each calendar year, or more
often at the discretion of a school designee, the school designee
shall submit to the Director of Pesticide Regulation a copy of the
records of all pesticide use at the schoolsite for the calendar year.
The records submitted to the Director of Pesticide Regulation shall
be submitted using a form prepared by the Department of Pesticide
Regulation similar to that prepared pursuant to subdivision (b) of
Section 13186 of the Food and Agricultural Code, and shall include
all of the following:

(A) The name of a school designee for the schoolsite.

(B) The name and address of the schoolsite, or the department
code or licensed child day care facility number indicating if the
site is an elementary or secondary school facility, or a child day
care facility.

(C) The product name, manufacturer’s name, the United States
Environmental Protection Agency’s product registration begin delete number end delete
begin insert number, end insert and the amount used, including the unit of measurement.

(D) The date, time, and location of application.

(2) The report submitted pursuant to paragraph (1) shall not
include pesticide use reported pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section
13186 of the Food and Agricultural Code.

SEC. 4.  

Section 17611.5 is added to the Education Code, to
read:

17611.5.  

(a) The school designee may develop and post on
the Internet Web site of the begin delete schoolsite end delete begin insert schoolsite, or, if the
schoolsite does not maintain an Internet Web site, the school
district, end insert an integrated pest management plan for the schoolsite or
the school district. If begin delete the schoolsite does not maintain end delete begin insert neither the
schoolsite nor the school district maintains end insert an Internet Web site,
the school designee may include the integrated pest management
plan with the annual notification sent to staff and parents or
guardians of pupils enrolled at the schoolsite pursuant to Section
17612. The integrated pest management plan shall include the
name of the school designee or IPM coordinator, include the
pesticides begin insert expected to be end insert applied at the schoolsite by schoolsite or
begin insert school end insert district employees and hired pest control applicators, and
include a date when the plan shall be reviewed and, if necessary,
updated.

(b) If a schoolsite chooses to use a pesticide not included within
Section 17610.5, the school designee shall post on the Internet
Web site of the begin delete schoolsite end delete begin insert schoolsite, or, if the schoolsite does not
maintain an Internet Web site, the school district, end insert an integrated
pest management plan for the schoolsite or the school district. If
begin delete the schoolsite does not maintain end delete begin insert neither the schoolsite nor the
school district maintains end insert an Internet Web site, the school designee
shall include the integrated pest management plan with the annual
notification sent to staff and parents or guardians of pupils enrolled
at the schoolsite pursuant to Section 17612. The integrated pest
management plan shall include the name of the school designee
or IPM coordinator, include the pesticides applied at the schoolsite
by begin delete school end delete begin insert schoolsite end insert or begin insert school end insert district employees and hired pest
control applicators, and include a date when the plan shall be
reviewed and, if necessary, updated.

(c) Nothing in this section shall limit or otherwise change the
requirements of Section 17612.

SEC. 5.  

Section 17612 of the Education Code is amended to
read:

17612.  

(a) The school designee shall annually provide to all
staff and parents or guardians of pupils enrolled at a schoolsite a
written notification of the name of all pesticide products expected
to be applied at the schoolsite during the upcoming year. The
notification shall identify the active ingredient or ingredients in
each pesticide product. The notice shall also contain the Internet
address used to access information on pesticides and pesticide use
reduction developed by the Department of Pesticide Regulation
pursuant to Section 13184 of the Food and Agricultural begin delete Code end delete begin insert Code,
the Internet address where the schoolsite integrated pest
management plan may be found if the schoolsite has posted the
plan, end insert and may contain other information deemed necessary by the
school begin delete designee, and the Internet address where the schoolsite
integrated pest management plan may be found if the school has
posted the plan. end delete begin insert designee. end insert The notice shall also inform staff and
parents and guardians of pupils enrolled at a schoolsite that they
may view a copy of the integrated pest management plan in the
schoolsite office. No other written notification of pesticide
applications shall be required by this act except as follows:

(1) In the written notification provided pursuant to this
subdivision, the school designee shall provide the opportunity for
recipients to register with the schoolsite if they wish to receive
notification of individual pesticide applications at the schoolsite.
Persons who register for notification shall be notified of individual
pesticide applications at least 72 hours before the application. The
notice shall include the product name, the active ingredient or
ingredients in the product, and the intended date of application.

(2) If a pesticide product not included in the annual notification
is subsequently intended for use at the schoolsite, the school
designee shall, consistent with this subdivision and at least 72
hours before application, provide written notification of its intended
use.

(b) The school designee shall make every effort to meet the
requirements of this section in the least costly manner. Annual
notification by a school district to parents and guardians shall be
provided pursuant to Section 48980.3. Any other notification shall,
to the extent feasible and consistent with the act adding this article,
be included as part of any other written communication provided
to individual parents or guardians. This section shall not require
the school designee to issue the notice through first-class mail,
unless he or she determines that no other method is feasible.

(c) Pest control measures taken during an emergency condition
as defined in Section 17609 shall not be subject to the requirements
of paragraphs (1) and (2) of subdivision (a). However, the school
designee or property owner shall make every effort to provide the
required notification for an application of a pesticide under
emergency conditions.

(d) The school designee shall post each area of the schoolsite
where pesticides will be applied with a warning sign. The warning
sign shall prominently display the term “Warning/Pesticide Treated
Area” and shall include the product name, manufacturer’s name,
the United States Environmental Protection Agency’s product
registration number, intended date and areas of application, and
reason for the pesticide application. The warning sign shall be
visible to all persons entering the treated area and shall be posted
24 hours before the application and remain posted until 72 hours
after the application. In case of a pest control emergency, the
warning sign shall be posted immediately upon application and
shall remain posted until 72 hours after the application.

(e) Subdivisions (a) and (d) shall not apply to schools operated
by the Division of Juvenile Justice. The school administrator of a
school operated by the Division of Juvenile Justice shall notify the
chief medical officer of that facility at least 72 hours before the
application of pesticides. The chief medical officer shall take any
steps necessary to protect the health of pupils in that facility.

(f) This section and Section 17611 shall not apply to activities
undertaken at a school by participants in the state program of
agricultural vocational education, pursuant to Article 7
(commencing with Section 52450) of Chapter 9 of Part 28 of
Division 4 of Title 2, if the activities are necessary to meet the
curriculum requirements prescribed in Section 52454. This
subdivision does not relieve schools participating in the state
program of agricultural vocational education of any duties pursuant
to this section for activities that are not directly related to the
curriculum requirements of Section 52454.

(g) Sections 17610 to 17614, inclusive, shall not apply to family
day care homes or property owners of family day care homes, as
defined in Section 1596.78 of the Health and Safety Code, or their
agents who personally apply any pesticides.

(h) If pesticide is applied by a property owner or his or her agent,
or by a pest control operator, failure to provide notice pursuant to
subdivision (b) of Section 17610 or subdivision (d) of Section
13186 of the Food and Agricultural Code shall relieve a privately
operated child day care facility from the requirements of this
section.

SEC. 6.  

Section 17614 is added to the Education Code, to read:

17614.  

Commencing July 1, 2016, the school designee and
any person, including, but not necessarily limited to, a pest control
applicator or schoolsite or begin insert school end insert district employee, who, in the
course of his or her work intends to apply a pesticide at a schoolsite
subject to this article, shall annually complete a training course
provided by the Department of Pesticide Regulation or an agent
authorized by the Department of Pesticide Regulation. The training
course shall include integrated pest management and the safe use
of pesticides in relation to the unique nature of schoolsites and
children’s health.

SEC. 7.  

Section 12996 of the Food and Agricultural Code is
amended to read:

12996.  

(a) Every person who violates any provision of this
division relating to pesticides, or any regulation issued pursuant
to a provision of this division relating to pesticides, is guilty of a
misdemeanor and upon conviction shall be punished by a fine of
not less than five hundred dollars ($500) nor more than five
thousand dollars ($5,000), or by imprisonment of not more than
six months, or by both the fine and imprisonment. Upon a second
or subsequent conviction of the same provision of this division
relating to pesticides, a person shall be punished by a fine of not
less than one thousand dollars ($1,000) nor more than ten thousand
dollars ($10,000), or by imprisonment of not more than six months
or by both the fine and imprisonment. Each violation constitutes
a separate offense.

(b) Notwithstanding the penalties prescribed in subdivision (a),
if the offense involves an intentional or negligent violation that
created or reasonably could have created a hazard to human health
or the environment, the convicted person shall be punished by
imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding one year or in the
state prison or by a fine of not less than five thousand dollars
($5,000) nor more than fifty thousand dollars ($50,000), or by both
the fine and imprisonment.

(c) This section does not apply to violations of Chapter 7.5
(commencing with Section 15300) or Section 13186.5.

SEC. 8.  

Section 12999.4 of the Food and Agricultural Code is
amended to read:

12999.4.  

(a) In lieu of civil prosecution by the director, the
director may levy a civil penalty against a person violating Sections
12115, 12116, 12671, 12992, 12993, Chapter 10 (commencing
with Section 12400) of Division 6, Article 4.5 (commencing with
Section 12841), Section 13186.5, Chapter 7.5 (commencing with
Section 15300), or the regulations adopted pursuant to those
provisions, of not more than five thousand dollars ($5,000) for
each violation.

(b) Before a civil penalty is levied, the person charged with the
violation shall be given a written notice of the proposed action,
including the nature of the violation and the amount of the proposed
penalty, and shall have the right to request a hearing within 20
days after receiving notice of the proposed action. A notice of the
proposed action that is sent by certified mail to the last known
address of the person charged shall be considered received even
if delivery is refused or the notice is not accepted at that address.
If a hearing is requested, notice of the time and place of the hearing
shall be given at least 10 days before the date set for the hearing.
Before the hearing, the person shall be given an opportunity to
review the director’s evidence. At the hearing, the person shall be
given the opportunity to present evidence on his or her own behalf.
If a hearing is not timely requested, the director may take the action
proposed without a hearing.

(c) If the person against whom the director levied a civil penalty
requested and appeared at a hearing, the person may seek review
of the director’s decision within 30 days of the date of the decision
pursuant to Section 1094.5 of the Code of Civil Procedure.

(d) After the exhaustion of the review procedure provided in
this section, the director, or his or her representative, may file a
certified copy of a final decision of the director that directs the
payment of a civil penalty and, if applicable, any order that denies
a petition for a writ of administrative mandamus, with the clerk
of the superior court of any county. Judgment shall be entered
immediately by the clerk in conformity with the decision or order.
No fees shall be charged by the clerk of the superior court for the
performance of any official service required in connection with
the entry of judgment pursuant to this section.

(e) Any money recovered under this section shall be paid into
the Department of Pesticide Regulation Fund for use by the
department, upon appropriation, in administering this division and
Division 6 (commencing with Section 11401).

SEC. 9.  

Section 13181 of the Food and Agricultural Code is
amended to read:

13181.  

(a) Notwithstanding any other law, for purposes of this
article, “integrated pest management” means a pest management
strategy that focuses on long-term prevention or suppression of
pest problems through a combination of techniques such as
monitoring for pest presence and establishing treatment threshold
levels, using nonchemical practices to make the habitat less
conducive to pest development, improving sanitation, and
employing mechanical and physical controls. Pesticides that pose
the least possible hazard and are effective in a manner that
minimizes risks to people, property, and the environment, are used
only after careful monitoring indicates they are needed according
to preestablished guidelines and treatment thresholds. This
definition shall apply only to integrated pest management at school
facilities and child day care facilities.

(b) For purposes of this article “IPM coordinator” has the same
meaning as school designee or IPM coordinator, as those terms
are defined in subdivision (e) of Section 17609 of the Education
Code.

SEC. 10.  

Section 13182 of the Food and Agricultural Code is
amended to read:

13182.  

It is the policy of the state that effective least toxic pest
management practices should be the preferred method of managing
pests at schoolsites and that the state, in order to reduce children’s
exposure to toxic pesticides, shall take the necessary steps, pursuant
to this article, to facilitate the adoption of effective least toxic pest
management practices at schoolsites. It is the intent of the
Legislature that all school personnel involved in the application
of begin delete pesticide end delete begin insert pesticides end insert at a schoolsite be trained in integrated pest
management and the safe use of pesticides in relation to the unique
nature of schoolsites and children’s health.

SEC. 11.  

Section 13183 of the Food and Agricultural Code is
amended to read:

13183.  

(a) The department shall promote and facilitate the
voluntary adoption of integrated pest management programs for
schoolsites, excluding privately operated child day care facilities,
as defined in Section 1596.750 of the Health and Safety Code, that
voluntarily choose to do so. For these schoolsites, the department
shall do all of the following:

(1) Establish an integrated pest management program for
schoolsites consistent with Section 13181. In establishing the
program, the department shall:

(A) Develop criteria for identifying least-hazardous pest control
practices and encourage their adoption as part of an integrated pest
management program at each schoolsite.

(B) Develop a model program guidebook that prescribes
essential program elements for schoolsites that have adopted a
least-hazardous integrated pest management program. At a
minimum, this guidebook shall include guidance on all of the
following:

(i) Adopting an IPM policy.

(ii) Selecting and training an IPM coordinator.

(iii) Identifying and monitoring pest populations and damage.

(iv) Establishing a community-based school district advisory
committee.

(v) Developing a pest management plan for making
least-hazardous pest control choices.

(vi) Contracting for integrated pest management services.

(vii) Training and licensing opportunities.

(viii) Establishing a community-based right-to-know standard
for notification and posting of pesticide applications.

(ix) Recordkeeping and program review.

(C) Develop a template for an integrated pest management plan
to be used by schoolsites or school districts. The template shall
outline a strategy for integrated pest management as described in
Section begin delete 13180 end delete begin insert 13181 end insert .

(2) Make the model program guidebook available to schoolsites
and establish a process for systematically updating the guidebook
and supporting documentation.

(b) The department shall promote and facilitate the voluntary
adoption of integrated pest management programs at child day
care facilities, as defined in Section 1596.750 of the Health and
Safety Code, through the following:

(1) Modifying the department’s existing integrated pest
management program for schoolsites as described in subdivision
(a) of Section 13183 for the child day care setting.

(2) Creating or modifying existing educational and informational
materials on integrated pest management for the child day care
setting.

(3) Making the materials available to child day care facilities
and establishing a process for systematically updating them.

(c) The department shall develop a training course to train any
person who intends to apply pesticides on a schoolsite. The training
course shall cover integrated pest management and the safe use of
pesticides in relation to the unique nature of schoolsites and
children’s health. The training course shall be provided by the
department or an agent authorized by the department.

SEC. 12.  

Section 13186.5 is added to the Food and Agricultural
Code, to read:

13186.5.  

Commencing July 1, 2016, a school designee, as
defined in Section 17609 of the Education Code, and any person
applying a pesticide at a schoolsite subject to this article shall
annually complete a training course provided by the department
or an agent authorized by the department. The training begin insert course end insert shall
include integrated pest management and the safe use of pesticides
in relation to the unique nature of schoolsites and children’s health.

SEC. 13.  

Section 13187 of the Food and Agricultural Code is
amended to read:

13187.  

Sections 13186 and 13186.5 shall not apply to any
agency signatory to a cooperative agreement with the State
Department of Public Health pursuant to Section 116180 of the
Health and Safety Code.