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. (a) There is hereby imposed a fee on manufacturers and
other persons formerly, presently, or both formerly and presently
engaged in the stream of commerce of lead or products containing
lead, or who are otherwise responsible for identifiable sources of
lead, which have significantly contributed historically, currently
contribute, or both have significantly contributed historically and
contribute currently to environmental lead contamination.
(b) After July 1, 1992, but on or before January 1, 1993, the
department shall, by regulation, establish specific fees to be
assessed on manufacturers and other parties formerly, presently, or
both formerly and presently engaged in the stream of commerce of lead
or products containing lead, or who are otherwise responsible for
identifiable sources of lead which, as determined by the department,
have significantly contributed historically, currently contribute, or
both have significantly contributed historically and contribute
currently to environmental lead contamination.
To the maximum extent practicable, the fees shall be assessed on
the basis of the following criteria:
(1) A person's past and present responsibility for environmental
lead contamination.
(2) A person's "market share" responsibility for environmental
lead contamination.
This section shall not apply to, and no fee shall be assessed
upon, any retailer of lead or products containing lead.
(c) The fee shall be assessed and collected annually by the State
Board of Equalization. The first payment of these fees shall be due
on or before April 1, 1993. The annual fee assessment in subdivision
(a) shall be adjusted by the department to reflect both of the
following:
(1) The increase in the annual average of the California Consumers
Price Index, as recorded by the California Department of Industrial
Relations, for the most recent year available.
(2) The increase or decrease in the number of children in
California who are receiving services pursuant to this article.
This adjustment of fees shall not be subject to the requirements
of Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division
3 of Title 2 of the Government Code.
(d) (1) No fee shall be assessed upon a person if that person can
demonstrate, as determined by the department, that his or her
industry did not contribute in any manner, as described in this
section, to environmental lead contamination.
(2) No fee shall be assessed upon a party if that party
demonstrates, as determined by the department, that the lead, or the
product containing lead, with which it is currently, or was
historically, associated does not currently, or did not historically,
result in quantifiably persistent environmental lead contamination.
(e) The fee imposed pursuant to this section shall be administered
and collected by the board of Equalization in accordance with Part
22 (commencing with Section 43001) of Division 2 of the Revenue and
Taxation Code. The fees shall be deposited in the Childhood Lead
Poisoning Prevention Fund, which is hereby created in the State
Treasury. Moneys in the fund shall be expended for the purposes of
this chapter, including the State Board of Equalization's costs of
collection and administration of fees, upon appropriation by the
Legislature. All interest earned on the moneys which have been
deposited into the Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Fund shall be
retained in that fund.
(f) The fees collected pursuant to this section and the earnings
therefrom shall be used solely for the purposes of implementing this
chapter. The department shall not collect fees pursuant to this
section in excess of the amount reasonably anticipated by the
department to fully implement this chapter. The department shall not
spend more than it collects from the fees and the earnings in
implementing this chapter. In no fiscal year shall the department
collect more than sixteen million dollars ($16,000,000) in fees, as
adjusted for inflation pursuant to subdivision (b).
(g) It is the intent of the Legislature, in subsequent
legislation, to appropriate and deposit into the Childhood Lead
Poisoning Prevention Fund the sum of one hundred twenty-eight
thousand dollars ($128,000) from the General Fund on July 1, 1992, to
the Controller for allocation as loans as follows:
(1) Seventy-eight thousand dollars ($78,000) to the department,
for the purposes of adopting regulations to establish the fee
schedule authorized by this section. The State Board of Equalization
shall repay the amount of this appropriation, on or before June 30,
1993, with interest at the pooled money investment rate, from fees
collected pursuant to this section.
(2) Fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) to the State Board of
Equalization, for the purposes of implementing this section. The
State Board of Equalization shall repay the amount of this
appropriation on or before June 30, 1993, with interest at the pooled
money investment rate, from fees collected pursuant to this section.
(h) Regulations adopted for fee assessment and collection pursuant
to this section shall be exempt from review by the Office of
Administrative Law.