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Legwatch 2003-04
| Corp. counsel (46 bills) Energy (24 bills) | Environmental qual. (63 bills) Govt. Relations (4 bills) Labor, employment (36 bills) | Tax (71 bills) Worker's comp. (18 bills) |
| ENERGY CMTA lobbyist: Joe Lyons, (916) 498.3341 | Position | Status | Electrical Energy Importers Air Pollution Fee | AB 151 (Vargas ) Requires any person that imports electrical energy into the state, or causes electricity to be imported into the state, to pay up to a $0.001 per kWh air contaminant emission mitigation fee for that electricity if the electricity is produced by an electrical generating facility that is owned by a person domiciled in the U.S., located within an air basin shared by an air district and Mexico, and was not constructed using the best available control technology (BACT) for air contaminants. Bill text at www.leginfo.ca.gov Watch | Failed passage | | Judicial Review of CPUC Decisions | AB 840 (Calderon) (Spot bill) Bill text at www.leginfo.ca.gov Watch | Failed passage | ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY | CMTA lobbyist: Mike Rogge, (916) 498.3313 Position | Status | Underground Petroleum Storage Tank Fees | AB 1906 (Lowenthal) Increases the petroleum storage fee by $.001/gallon on January 1, 2005 and again on January 1, 2006 by the same amount. We have members who are both supporting and opposing this bill. Bill text at www.leginfo.ca.gov Watch | Signed by Gov. | | Hazardous Waste Facility Permits | AB 1942 (Lowenthal) This bill has been amended twice and only one positive aspect of the bill remains. If DTSC decides that changes to a structure or equipment is necessary to comply with requirements or the request of a state or federal agency or air district and if the change will decrease risks to human health and safety or the environment related to the management of the hazardous wastes in the structure, then the change can be handled as a Class I permit modification. Bill text at www.leginfo.ca.gov Support | Failed passage | | Air Pollution: Ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles | AB 2042 (Lowenthal) Despite recent amendments, this bill continues to discourage growth at the ports. The bill proposes to cap emissions at the Ports of Long Beach and LA by imposing growth restrictions that will limit imports and exports, causing price increases for California consumers and cost increases for California exporters. The bill, as amended, also continues to encourage litigation against local and state government by organizations who desire to limit growth at the ports, and conflicts with federal law by placing air emission "oversight" authority with the South Coast Air Quality Management District an area that should be left to appropriate state and federal agencies like CARB and USEPA. And, the credit trading program that was added to the bill creates a new and costly program with little or no chance of achieving success. As long as this bill continues to include an emissions cap for the ports by a date certain, and then a no-net-increase in emissions thereafter, this bill will be a major threat to California's economy. Bill text at www.leginfo.ca.gov Oppose | Governor's Desk | | Lead Contamination in Candy | AB 2297 (Vargas ) Requires DHS to monitor lead levels in imported candy, allows zero lead in imported candy, takes funds from the Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Fund, accumulated from a fee on paint and oil companies to deal with lead based paint. Since this candy is crossing international borders, regulating the lead content and any other potentially toxic content of any food should be left to the United States Food and Drug Administration. Bill text at www.leginfo.ca.gov Oppose | Failed passage | | California Ocean Plan | AB 2529 (Kehoe) Requires the State Water Resources Control Board to add marine protected areas, marine reserves, marine parks, marine conservation areas, marine cultural preservation areas, and marine recreational management areas to the list of beneficial uses of ocean waters. The Water Code already sets forth a process for the Board to adopt and update the California Ocean Plan to designate beneficial uses and corresponding water quality objectives to protect those uses. The bill could impose new stormwater requirements for areas far removed from the coast (i.e., foothills or Central Valley) as it does not specify how far upstream the State Water Board could go to identify and eliminate point and non-point source discharges into ocean waters. Provisions in the bill requiring new beneficial use designations for marine managed areas are unnecessary and in essence would upstage the regulatory process already in place to address these issues. This bill has been amended appeasing all of our concerns, removing our opposition. Bill text at www.leginfo.ca.gov Neutral | Signed by Gov. | | Hazardous Waste: Cellular Telephone Recycling | AB 2901 (Pavley) Prohibits the sale of cellular telephones due to the presence of heavy metals, if they are prohibited in the European Union, after 1/1/07 or the date that Directive 2002/95/EC takes effect, whichever date is later. It would be unlawful for a retailer not to have a system for collection, reuse, and recycling or proper disposal in place by 7/1/05. Mandates the Integrated Waste Management Board to develop a program, establish goals adopt regulations and impose civil liability for violations. (Passed the Assembly by one vote.) This bill has been amended significantly. The bill now only mandates a recycling program which industry has already voluntarily implemented. The regulated community coalition is currently debating whether or not it will remove its opposition. New amendments have removed concerns. Bill text at www.leginfo.ca.gov Neutral | Signed by Gov. | | Hazardous Materials: Liability, Brownfields | SB 493 (Cedillo) This bill initially would have limited liability for Brownfield redevelopers. It was amended in committee and no longer carries all of the previous positives. It is now primarily a funding bill. Bill text at www.leginfo.ca.gov Support | Failed passage | GOVERNMENT RELATIONS | CMTA lobbyist: Dorothy Rothrock, (916) 498.3319 Position | Status | Pharmacy Benefit Standards | AB 1960 (Pavley) Would require pharmacy benefit manager (PBMs) to make various disclosures and establish certain standards and requirements with regard to PBM contracts. Bill text at www.leginfo.ca.gov Oppose | Governor's Desk | LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT | CMTA lobbyist: Willie Washington, (916) 498.3322 Position | Status | Occupational Safety and Health | AB 1923 (Lowenthal) Defines "unhealthy condition" to include exposure to a critical incident and requires employers or emergency response personnel to establish, implement, and maintain a critical incident stress program for the purpose of relieving stress generated by exposure to a critical incident. Bill text at www.leginfo.ca.gov Oppose | Failed passage | | Employment Discrimination | AB 196 (Leno) Expands the prohibition on sexual discrimination and harassment by including gender in the definition of sex. Employers must allow an employee to dress consistent with the employee's gender identity. Bill text at www.leginfo.ca.gov Oppose | Signed by Gov. | | Occupational Safety and Health | AB 3037 (Yee) Requires the injury and illness prevention program (IIPP) of an employer to include either a joint employer-employee occupational safety and health committee or an employer-employee safety liaison team. Requires the Division of Occupational Safety and Health to adopt regulations to implement this new requirement on or before January 1, 2006, and to establish minimum criteria regarding committee duties and selection of employee representatives. Bill text at www.leginfo.ca.gov Oppose | Failed passage | | Employment Discrimination | AB 76 (Corbett) Expands current law to make it unlawful for an employer to fail to take immediate and appropriate corrective action to prevent harassment of an employee by any person, once the employer knows or should have known of this conduct. Bill text at www.leginfo.ca.gov Oppose | Signed by Gov. | | ||||||||||||||||