Article 1. General of California Health And Safety Code >> Division 103. >> Part 5. >> Chapter 8. >> Article 1.
(a) This chapter shall be known, and may be cited, as the
California Environmental Contaminant Biomonitoring Program.
(b) For the purposes of this chapter, the following terms have the
following meanings:
(1) "Agency" means the California Environmental Protection Agency.
(2) "Biomonitoring" means the process by which chemicals and their
metabolites are identified and measured within different biological
specimens.
(3) "Biological specimen" means a sample taken from a biophysical
substance, that is reasonably available within a human body, for use
as a medium to measure the presence and concentration of toxic
chemicals.
(4) "Community" means geographically or nongeographically based
populations that may participate in the community-based biomonitoring
program. A "nongeographical community" includes, but is not limited
to, populations that may share a common chemical exposure through
similar occupations, populations experiencing a common health outcome
that may be linked to chemical exposures, or populations that may
experience similar chemical exposures because of comparable
consumption, lifestyle, product use, or subpopulations that share
ethnicity, age, or gender.
(5) "Department" means the State Department of Public Health.
(6) "Designated chemicals" means those chemicals that are known
to, or strongly suspected of, adversely impacting human health or
development, based upon scientific, peer-reviewed animal, human, or
in vitro studies, and consist of only those substances including
chemical families or metabolites that are included in the federal
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention studies that are known
collectively as the National Reports on Human Exposure to
Environmental Chemicals program and any substances as specified
pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 105449.
(7) "Director" means the State Public Health Officer.
(8) "DTSC" means the Department of Toxic Substances Control within
the agency.
(9) "Office" means the Office of Environmental Health Hazard
Assessment within the agency.
(10) "Panel" means the Scientific Guidance Panel established
pursuant to Article 2 (commencing with Section 105448).
(11) "Program" or "biomonitoring program" means the California
Environmental Contaminant Biomonitoring Program, which shall be
established and operated by the department, in collaboration with the
agency, the office, and DTSC.
(12) "Secretary" means the Secretary of the California
Environmental Protection Agency.
The department, in collaboration with the agency, shall
establish the California Environmental Contaminant Biomonitoring
Program. The department is the lead entity for the program unless
otherwise specified in this chapter. The program shall utilize
biological specimens, as appropriate, to identify designated
chemicals that are present in the bodies of Californians.
Biomonitoring shall utilize scientifically based statewide surveys.
Additional community-based surveys shall be contingent on funding and
shall be statistically valid and scientifically based. Biomonitoring
shall take place on a strictly voluntary and confidential basis.
Results reported pursuant to this chapter shall not disclose
individual confidential information of participants. Appropriate
biological specimens shall be used to monitor and assess the presence
and concentration of designated chemicals. Biological specimens
shall be analyzed by laboratories operated by the department, DTSC,
or their contractors.
(a) All participants shall be evaluated for the presence of
designated chemicals as a component of the biomonitoring process.
Participants shall be provided with information and fact sheets about
the program's activities and its findings. Individual participants
may request and shall receive their complete results. Any results
provided to participants shall be subject to the Institutional Review
Board protocols and guidelines. When either physiological or
chemical data obtained from a participant indicate a significant
known health risk, program staff experienced in communicating
biomonitoring results shall consult with the individual and recommend
followup steps, as appropriate. Program administrators shall receive
training in administering the program in an ethical, culturally
sensitive, participatory, and community-based manner.
(b) Individuals selected to participate in the biomonitoring
program shall reflect the age, economic, racial, and ethnic
composition of the state. Other selection criteria may be applied, as
appropriate, for studies of specific populations.
(c) Informational materials and outreach activities directed to
program participants and communities shall, to the extent possible,
be culturally appropriate and translated as needed. Educational
materials shall be adapted to the biological specimens being used.
(a) The program shall develop guidelines and model
protocols that address the science and practice of biomonitoring to
implement this chapter, including, but not limited to, study design,
subject recruitment, and data collection and management, and that
accomplish all of the following:
(1) Ensure confidentiality and informed consent.
(2) Communicate findings to participants, communities, and the
general public.
(3) Emphasize all aspects of the program in a culturally sensitive
manner.
(4) Serve as a guide for other biomonitoring programs supported by
state funds.
(b) The program shall incorporate, as appropriate, the methods
utilized by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
for the studies known collectively as the National Report on Human
Exposure to Environmental Chemicals.
(c) The program shall be implemented in collaboration with the
California Environmental Health Tracking Program and the
environmental indicators system maintained by the office pursuant to
Section 71081 of the Public Resources Code.
(d) The department, office, and DTSC shall collaborate on the
development of fact sheets and other informational and outreach
materials for the biomonitoring program.
(e) The department, in collaboration with the office and DTSC,
shall conduct statistical and epidemiological analyses of the
biomonitoring results.
(f) Personal information as defined in Section 1798.3 of the Civil
Code, shall not be shared without the written and informed consent
of the individual to whom it pertains.
(g) No governmental agency or private person or entity shall
discriminate against a person or community based upon the
biomonitoring results.