Article 2. Licensing Of Laboratories of California Health And Safety Code >> Division 101. >> Part 1. >> Chapter 4. >> Article 2.

(a) (1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), laboratories engaged in the performance of forensic alcohol analysis tests by or for law enforcement agencies on blood, urine, tissue, or breath for the purposes of determining the concentration of ethyl alcohol in persons involved in traffic accidents or in traffic violations shall comply with Group 8 (commencing with Section 1215) of Subchapter 1 of Chapter 2 of Division 1 of Title 17 of the California Code of Regulations, as they exist on December 31, 2004, until the date when those regulations are revised pursuant to Section 100703.
  (2) (A) Laboratories that are accredited in forensic alcohol analysis by the American Society of Crime Laboratory Directors/Laboratory Accreditation Board shall not be required to establish the concentration of each lot of secondary alcohol standards it uses, whether prepared or acquired, by an oxidimetric method that employs a primary standard.
  (B) Laboratories that are accredited in forensic alcohol analysis by the American Society of Crime Laboratory Directors/Laboratory Accreditation Board are not limited to reporting analytical results to the second decimal place.
  (b) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), the department shall not require laboratories to be licensed.

All laboratories that are subject to the requirements of Section 100700 shall ensure that breath alcohol instruments and calibrating devices used in testing are listed in the conforming products list in the Federal Register by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration of the United States Department of Transportation.

(a) All laboratories that are subject to the requirements of Section 100700 shall follow the American Society of Crime Laboratory Directors/Laboratory Accreditation Board (ASCLD/LAB) guidelines for proficiency testing. The required proficiency test must be obtained from any ASCLD/LAB approved test provider.
  (b) Each laboratory shall participate annually in an external proficiency test for alcohol analysis.
  (c) Each examiner shall successfully complete at least one proficiency test annually.
  (d) Each laboratory shall have a procedure in writing that describes a review of proficiency test results, and, if applicable, the corrective action taken when proficiency test results are inconsistent with expected test results.

(a) On or before July 1, 2005, the department shall establish a review committee.
  (b) The review committee shall have eight members, including one person representing each of the following:
  (1) Prosecuting attorneys.
  (2) Law enforcement agencies.
  (3) Defense attorneys.
  (4) Coroners, pathologists, or medical examiners.
  (5) Criminalists.
  (6) Toxicologists.
  (7) Crime laboratory directors.
  (8) The State Department of Public Health.
  (c) The review committee shall meet at least once in each three-year period after its initial meeting, or within 60 days of receipt of a request by the department or a member of the review committee.
  (d) The review committee shall evaluate Group 8 (commencing with Section 1215) of Subchapter 1 of Chapter 2 of Division 1 of Title 17 of the California Code of Regulations and determine revisions that will limit those regulations to those that the review committee determines are reasonably necessary to ensure the competence of the laboratories and employees to prepare, analyze, and report the results of the tests and comply with applicable laws. In determining revisions, the review committee shall also take into consideration the advancement and development of scientific processes, including the reporting of results with an estimated uncertainty measurement. The review committee shall submit a summary of revisions to the California Health and Human Services Agency.
  (e) Within 90 days of receiving the review committee's revisions, the California Health and Human Services Agency may disapprove of one or more of those revisions.
  (f) (1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), the department shall adopt regulations pursuant to this section that shall incorporate the review committee's revisions. Nothing in this section shall be construed as exempting the regulations from the requirements of Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code.
  (2) The department shall not adopt regulations to incorporate any review committee revisions that were disapproved under subdivision (e).

On or after January 1, 1971, the department shall enforce this chapter and regulations adopted by the department.

Any ampoules and their contents employed in a breath alcohol analysis test may be destroyed by the law enforcement agency in possession of them one year after the date of collection of the breath sample.