Full Text of SB2551 93rd General Assembly
SB2551eng 93RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
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| AN ACT in relation to public health and environmental | 2 |
| protection.
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| Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, | 4 |
| represented in the General Assembly:
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| Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the | 6 |
| Mercury-Containing Products Act. | 7 |
| Section 5. Findings. The General Assembly finds:
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| (1) That mercury is a potent neurotoxin that can cause | 9 |
| long-lasting health problems;
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| (2) That high mercury levels in our State's waterways | 11 |
| have forced officials to issue advisories warning certain | 12 |
| people to restrict eating predator fish caught from lakes | 13 |
| and streams;
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| (3) That mercury can be found in thousands of products | 15 |
| and applications;
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| (4) That mercury from consumer products may make its | 17 |
| way into waterways when discharged down the drain, | 18 |
| incinerated, or landfilled;
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| (5) That accidental mercury spills, breakages, and | 20 |
| releases have occurred at schools throughout the country | 21 |
| and that these spills have proven costly to clean up and | 22 |
| have exposed students, teachers, and administrators to | 23 |
| potentially harmful mercury emissions; and
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| (6) That in some cases, reduction or removal of | 25 |
| mercury-containing products from the waste stream prior to | 26 |
| disposal can be a cost-effective way to reduce mercury from | 27 |
| waste management or treatment facilities.
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| Section 10. Definitions. As used in this Act:
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| "Agency" means the Environmental Protection Agency. | 30 |
| "Board" means the Illinois Pollution Control Board. | 31 |
| "Manufacturer" includes any person that produces a |
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| mercury-added product or an importer or domestic distributor of | 2 |
| a mercury-added product produced in a foreign country. In the | 3 |
| case of a multicomponent product containing mercury, the | 4 |
| manufacturer is the last manufacturer to produce or assemble | 5 |
| the product. If the mercury-added product is produced in a | 6 |
| foreign country, then the manufacturer is the first importer or | 7 |
| domestic distributor of that product. | 8 |
| "Mercury-added product" means any of the following items if | 9 |
| it contains mercury added during manufacture: | 10 |
| (A) A switch or other device, individually or as part | 11 |
| of another product; used to measure, control, or regulate | 12 |
| gas, other fluids, or electricity; | 13 |
| (B) A scientific instrument or instructional | 14 |
| equipment; and
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| (C) An electric relay or other electrical device. | 16 |
| For the purposes of this Act, "mercury-added product" does not | 17 |
| include any formulated mercury-added products, including, but | 18 |
| not limited to, pharmaceutical products, animal vaccines, | 19 |
| biologics, and reagents. | 20 |
| "Mercury relay" means a mercury-added product or device | 21 |
| that opens or closes electrical contacts to effect the | 22 |
| operation of other devices in the same or another electrical | 23 |
| circuit. "Mercury relay" includes mercury displacement relays, | 24 |
| mercury wetted reed relays, and mercury contact relays. | 25 |
| "Mercury switch" means a mercury-added product or device | 26 |
| that opens or closes an electrical circuit or gas valve, | 27 |
| including mercury float switches actuated by rising or falling | 28 |
| liquid levels, mercury tilt switches actuated by a change in | 29 |
| the switch position, mercury pressure switches actuated by a | 30 |
| change in pressure, mercury temperature switches actuated by a | 31 |
| change in temperature, and mercury flame sensors. "Mercury | 32 |
| switch" does not include a mercury-added thermostat or switch | 33 |
| used in medical diagnostic equipment regulated under the | 34 |
| federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act.
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| "Motor vehicle component" means a mercury-added product | 36 |
| that is a component in a motor vehicle, including, but not |
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| limited to, a mercury headlamp and a mercury light switch. | 2 |
| "Mercury thermostat" means a mercury-added product | 3 |
| commonly used to sense and, through electrical communication | 4 |
| with heating, cooling, or ventilation equipment, control room | 5 |
| temperature. | 6 |
| "Person" includes an individual, a firm, an association, a | 7 |
| partnership, a corporation, a governmental entity, an | 8 |
| organization, a joint venture, and any other legal entity.
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| Section 15. Sales and use restrictions. | 10 |
| (a) Beginning July 1, 2005, a school may not purchase, for | 11 |
| use in a primary or secondary classroom, bulk elemental | 12 |
| mercury, chemicals containing mercury compounds, or | 13 |
| mercury-added instructional equipment and materials, except | 14 |
| mercury-added measuring devices and thermometers for which no | 15 |
| adequate substitute exists for use as teaching aids. Other | 16 |
| mercury-added products that are used by schools are not subject | 17 |
| to this prohibition.
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| (b) Beginning July 1, 2007, a person may not sell or | 19 |
| distribute or offer to sell or distribute a mercury switch or | 20 |
| mercury relay individually or as a product component. This | 21 |
| prohibition does not apply if the switch or relay is used to | 22 |
| replace a switch or relay that is a component in a larger | 23 |
| product in use prior to July 1, 2007, and one of the following | 24 |
| applies:
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| (1) the larger product is used in manufacturing; or
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| (2) the switch or relay is integrated and not | 27 |
| physically separate from other components of the larger | 28 |
| product. | 29 |
| This subsection (b) does not apply to the sale of a mercury | 30 |
| switch or mercury relay if use of the switch or relay is | 31 |
| required under federal law or federal contract specifications. | 32 |
| For a product that contains one or more mercury-added products | 33 |
| subject to this Act, this Section is applicable to each | 34 |
| component part or parts, and not to the entire product.
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| Section 20. Exemptions.
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| (a) A manufacturer of a mercury-added product subject to | 3 |
| this Act may apply to the Agency on or before July 1, 2006 for | 4 |
| an exemption from the provisions of this Act for one or more | 5 |
| specific uses of a mercury-added product by filing a written | 6 |
| petition with the Agency. The Agency may grant an exemption | 7 |
| with or without conditions upon finding that: | 8 |
| (1) The manufacturer has demonstrated that a | 9 |
| convenient and widely available system exists for the | 10 |
| proper collection, transportation, and processing of the | 11 |
| mercury-added product at the end of its useful life; and
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| (2) The specific use or uses of the mercury-added | 13 |
| product provides a net benefit to the environment, public | 14 |
| health, or public safety when compared to available | 15 |
| nonmercury alternatives. | 16 |
| (b) Before approving any exemption under this Act, the | 17 |
| Agency must consult with other states and regional | 18 |
| organizations to promote consistency in the regulation of | 19 |
| mercury-added products. Exemptions may be granted for a term | 20 |
| not to exceed 5 years and may be renewed upon written | 21 |
| application if the Agency finds that the mercury-containing | 22 |
| product continues to meet the criteria for the original | 23 |
| approval of the exemption.
The Agency must adopt rules for | 24 |
| processing exemption applications. These rules must provide | 25 |
| for public participation.
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| Section 25. Universal waste rules. On or before July 1, | 27 |
| 2006, the Board must modify its rules governing universal | 28 |
| hazardous waste as appropriate to promote the recycling, | 29 |
| recovery, and proper management of elemental mercury and | 30 |
| mercury-added products on a statewide basis.
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| Section 30. Report. The Agency must submit a report by | 32 |
| January 1, 2005, to the Governor and members of the General | 33 |
| Assembly. The report must include: | 34 |
| (A) An evaluation of programs to reduce and recycle |
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| mercury from mercury thermostats and mercury vehicle | 2 |
| components; and
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| (B) Recommendations for altering the programs to make | 4 |
| them more effective.
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| In preparing the report, the Agency may seek information from | 6 |
| and consult with businesses, trade associations, environmental | 7 |
| organizations, and other government agencies. | 8 |
| Section 40. Penalties. A violation of this Act is | 9 |
| punishable by a civil penalty not to exceed $1,000 for each | 10 |
| violation in the case of a first violation. Repeat violations | 11 |
| are liable for a civil penalty not to exceed $5,000 for each | 12 |
| repeat violation. | 13 |
| Section 90. The Environmental Protection Act is amended by | 14 |
| changing Section 22.28a as follows:
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| (415 ILCS 5/22.28a)
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| Sec. 22.28a. White goods and end-of-life motor vehicles
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| handled by scrap dealership ,
or junkyard , or vehicle recycler .
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| (a) No owner, operator, agent, or employee of a junkyard or | 19 |
| scrap dealership
may knowingly shred, scrap, dismantle, | 20 |
| recycle, incinerate, handle, store, or
otherwise manage any | 21 |
| white good that contains any white good components in
violation | 22 |
| of this Act or any other applicable State or federal law. | 23 |
| Beginning January 1, 2006, no vehicle recycler may knowingly | 24 |
| shred, scrap, dismantle, recycle, incinerate, handle, store, | 25 |
| or otherwise manage any end-of-life motor vehicle that contains | 26 |
| any mercury light switches or mercury headlamps in violation of | 27 |
| this Act or any other applicable State or federal law.
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| (b) For the purposes of this Section : | 29 |
| (1) The
, the terms "white goods" and "white
goods | 30 |
| components" have the same meaning as in Section 22.28. | 31 |
| (2) "Vehicle recycler" means any owner, operator, | 32 |
| agent, or employee of a business engaged in the business of | 33 |
| acquiring, dismantling, or crushing 6 or more motor |
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| vehicles in a calendar year for the primary purpose of | 2 |
| resale of their parts or materials. | 3 |
| (3) "End-of-life motor vehicle" means any motor | 4 |
| vehicle that is sold, given, or otherwise conveyed to a | 5 |
| motor vehicle crusher, recycler, or scrap recycling | 6 |
| facility for the purposes of recycling. | 7 |
| (4) "Mercury light switch" means a mercury switch used | 8 |
| for the purpose of turning a light bulb or lamp on and off. | 9 |
| (5) "Mercury headlamp" means a mercury-added lamp that | 10 |
| is mounted on the front of a motor vehicle to illuminate | 11 |
| the roadway.
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| (Source: P.A. 92-447, eff. 8-21-01.)
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| Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | 14 |
| becoming law. |
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