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SB-20 Occupational safety: fabrication activities on stone slab products. (2025-2026)

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Date Published: 12/02/2024 09:00 PM
SB20:v99#DOCUMENT


CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION

Senate Bill
No. 20

Introduced by Senator Menjivar

December 02, 2024

An act to add Chapter 2.2 (commencing with Section 6359.1) to Part 1 of Division 5 of the Labor Code, relating to occupational safety and health.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


SB 20, as introduced, Menjivar. Occupational safety: fabrication activities on stone slab products.
Existing law establishes the Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board within the Department of Industrial Relations to promulgate and enforce occupational safety and health standards for the state, including standards dealing with exposure to harmful airborne contaminants. Existing law requires the Division of Occupational Safety and Health within the department to enforce all occupational safety and health standards, as specified. A violation of these standards and regulations under specific circumstances is a crime.
This bill would impose restrictions on specified fabrication activities on certain stone slab products that are used for countertop installation or customization. Specifically, a person or entity engaged in those fabrication activities would be prohibited from using dry methods, and would be required to use effective wet methods, as specified. The bill would make a violation of these provisions grounds for, among other disciplinary action, an immediate order by the Division of Occupational Safety and Health prohibiting continued fabrication activities on those stone slab products.
Existing law establishes the State Department of Public Health, which is led by the State Public Health Officer, within the California Health and Human Services Agency. Existing law vests the department with certain duties, powers, functions, jurisdiction, and responsibilities over specified public health programs.
The bill would require, on or before July 1, 2026, the State Department of Public Health to consult with representatives of approved apprenticeship programs to adopt a training curriculum regarding the safe performance of fabrication activities on stone slab products that meets specified requirements, including classroom instruction, and to certify an individual who has completed that curriculum. Beginning July 1, 2027, the bill would require certain individuals, including an owner or operator of a stone slab product fabrication shop, to be enrolled in or have completed the training curriculum, except as specified, before fabrication activity or employment begins, as described.
The bill would require, on or before January 1, 2027, the department to develop an application and certification process for fabrication shops to lawfully engage in stone slab product fabrication activities. The bill would authorize fabrication shops to engage in those fabrication activities during the pendency of the application development and licensing process. The bill would require the department to develop an initial deposit process for fabrication shops to, during the pendency of the application development and certification process, submit a deposit fee for the application and certification subject to specified requirements, including that the deposit amount goes towards the initial certification fee collected by the department. The bill would require the department to create a statewide tracking system to track the number of fabrication shops that have submitted a deposit subject to specified requirements, including that the statewide tracking system is posted on the department’s internet website and is made available to the public.
The bill would require, beginning January 1, 2027, the department to grant a 3-year certification to a fabrication shop that demonstrates satisfaction of specified criteria involving workplace safety conditions and precautions, and would authorize certification renewal, as specified. Among other conditions, the bill would establish certain regulatory fees in amounts to be determined and adjusted by the department, as specified, for the certification and renewal thereof. The bill would authorize the department to suspend or revoke a certification in certain cases, including for gross negligence, as specified. The bill would require the department, in consultation with the Division of Occupational Safety and Health, to track and keep a record of specified information on fabrication shops, including the number of violations issued to any of the fabrication shops for failure to comply with any temporary or future standards relating to respirable crystalline silica, as specified. The bill would prohibit a person or entity, or an employee thereof, from engaging in fabrication activities on stone slab products unless the person or entity has a certification.
The bill would prohibit, beginning January 1, 2027, a person from supplying a slab solid surface product directly to a person or entity engaged in fabrication activities on those products if the person or entity does not have a valid certification. The bill would require a person that, among other things, supplies a slab solid surface product to a person or entity engaged in fabrication activities on those products to verify the person or entity has a certification, as specified. The bill would require a person that supplies a slab solid surface product to a person or entity that is not engaged in fabrication activities to rely on written certification issued under penalty of perjury that, among other things, they will not directly engage in fabrication activities with the product without a certification. By expanding the scope of the crime of perjury, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
The bill would specify that a violation of any of the above-described provisions may be grounds for disciplinary action, as specified, but is not a crime. The bill would establish the Slab Fabrication Activity Account in the Occupational Safety and Health Fund in the State Treasury, and require all fees, penalties, or other moneys collected by the department under the above-described provisions to be deposited into the account. The bill would authorize moneys in the account to be expended by the department for the purposes of administering the above-described provisions, and would make that authorization contingent on an appropriation of funds for that express purpose.
The bill would require, beginning January 1, 2027, the State Public Health Officer to maintain a publicly accessible database on the department’s internet website that includes, among other things, information on any active orders issued by the department in the prior 12 months prohibiting an activity at a fabrication shop, as specified.
The bill would define various terms for these purposes. The bill would make findings and declarations related to these provisions.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.
Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: YES  

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:


SECTION 1.

 (a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the following regarding silicosis and its associated health impacts:
(1) According to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), silicosis is an occupational lung disease caused by the inhalation of respirable dust containing crystalline silica.
(2) According to the State Department of Public Health, crystalline silica is in engineered stone, quartz, granite, and other stones. Cutting, grinding, chipping, sanding, drilling, and polishing these products can release hazardous levels of small silica particles into the air that workers breathe.
(3) When small particles of silica get into the lungs, they can cause permanent scarring and difficulty breathing and can also cause lung cancer, kidney damage, and several autoimmune diseases. Initial symptoms of silicosis can include shortness of breath, cough, and fatigue. Workers can die from silica dust overexposure.
(4) Many cases of incurable and fatal lung problems from exposure to silica dust in stone fabrication workers have been reported around the world and in the United States, including several cases among relatively young workers in California. Workers who cut, grind, and polish engineered stone slabs are at risk.
(5) According to the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, silicosis is irreversible and can progress even if a person is no longer exposed to silica dust, but with the right measures in place, it is preventable. It can take a person 10 to 30 years to develop silicosis, but a person who is exposed to high levels of silica dust can develop silicosis faster.
(b) The Legislature finds and declares both of the following regarding the increase in the number of cases of silicosis in California:
(1) Since 2010, more than 1,000 cases of silicosis in workers who fabricate countertops and other stone have been reported worldwide. The first cases of silicosis were reported in Spain in 2010 and in Israel in 2012. The first case of silicosis reported in the United States was in Texas in 2015.
(2) According to the State Department of Public Health, there are 132 workers who fabricate, install, or fabricate and install countertops and other stone products identified to date with silicosis in California. At least 10 workers have died, most of whom were 30 to 40 years of age, inclusive, and at least 12 workers have received lung transplants.
(c) The Legislature finds and declares all of the following regarding the increased use of silica in products:
(1) Crystalline silica is a common mineral found in the earth’s crust. Materials like sand, stone, concrete, and mortar contain crystalline silica. Stone slabs containing crystalline silica such as quartz are becoming increasingly popular for kitchen countertops and for use on a variety of surfaces.
(2) Workers who cut, polish, or grind products that contain crystalline silica can be exposed to hazardous levels of silica dust.
(3) In 1938, United States Secretary of Labor Frances Perkins declared that “silicosis can be prevented.”
(d) The Legislature finds and declares both of the following regarding the impact of silicosis on undocumented workers:
(1) The demographic for workers contracting silicosis are typically young, immigrant workers, are all males with a median age of 45 years of age at diagnosis, with 98 percent originating from Mexico or Central America, and are mostly reliant on public insurance or uninsured.
(2) Physicians at Olive View-UCLA Medical Center in the County of Los Angeles identified a cluster of patients with a rare occupational lung disease called pulmonary silicosis and played a key role in bringing their cases to light. The patients identified are predominantly Mexican and Latin American immigrant men who work as stonecutters in the San Fernando Valley, cutting synthetic stone kitchen and bathroom countertops. According to a State Department of Public Health directory, there are over 100 stone fabrication shops in the center’s catchment area in the San Fernando Valley and over 1,000 within the state, and many other at-risk workers in the County of Los Angeles and throughout the state.
(e) The Legislature finds and declares both of the following regarding the impact of silicosis worldwide:
(1) The New Zealand Council of Trade Unions (NZCTU) Te Kauae Kaimahi advanced a call for a total ban on engineered stone in New Zealand. According to the NZCTU President, Richard Wagstaff, “the evidence of the harm caused by engineered stone is overwhelming. It is clear to us that a ban on this product is the only option.”
(2) On July 1, 2024, Australia became the first country to institute a ban on engineered stone and follows a surge in hundreds of workers developing silicosis from working on engineered stone, a popular material mostly used for kitchen benches and bathroom vanities. When the ban was announced, the Australian Council of Trade Unions’ Assistant Secretary, Liam O’Brien, said, “Engineered stone is a fashion product that is killing the workers who make it. With alternatives readily available, why are we risking the lives of tradies for a fashionable finish in our kitchens?”
(f) The Legislature finds and declares that California must use the information described in these findings to determine the cost-benefit ratio to workers and whether existing regulations adequately protect workers from contracting silicosis.
(g) Therefore, it is the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation that would help protect and prevent worker overexposure to respirable crystalline silica by imposing all of the following requirements:
(1) Prohibiting the undertaking of fabrication activities without the use of effective wet methods that effectively suppress dust.
(2) Requiring a slab solid surface product fabrication activity certification for fabrication shops to engage in fabrication activities involving a stone slab solid surface product that contains crystalline silica.
(3) Prohibiting a person or entity from directly or indirectly supplying a slab solid surface product to a person or entity engaged in fabrication activities that is not associated with a valid slab solid surface product fabrication activity certification.
(4) Requiring the State Department of Public Health to maintain a publicly accessible database on its internet website that includes, but is not limited to, a list of fabrication shops and workplaces with any enforcement actions pending at those workplaces.

SEC. 2.

 Chapter 2.2 (commencing with Section 6359.1) is added to Part 1 of Division 5 of the Labor Code, to read:
CHAPTER  2.2. Fabrication Activities on Stone Slab Products

6359.1.
 For purposes of this chapter, the following definitions apply:
(a) “Certification” means a slab solid surface product fabrication activity certification to engage in fabrication activities that is issued to a fabrication shop by the department pursuant to this chapter.
(b) “Department” means the State Department of Public Health.
(c) “Director” means the State Public Health Officer.
(d) “Division” means the Division of Occupational Safety & Health.
(e) “Dry methods” means the undertaking of fabrication activities without the use of effective wet methods that effectively suppress dust.
(f) “Effective wet methods” means suppressing dust by one of the methods identified below, which ensure that water covers the entire surface of the work object where a tool, equipment, or machine contacts the work object:
(1) Applying a constant, continuous, and appropriate volume of running water directly onto the surface of the work object. When water flow is integrated with a tool, machine, or equipment, water flow rates shall equal or exceed manufacturer recommendations and specifications to ensure effective dust suppression.
(2) Submersing the work object under water.
(3) Water-jet cutting or using high-pressure water to cut material.
(g) (1) “Fabrication activities” means machining, crushing, cutting, drilling, abrading, abrasive blasting, grinding, chiseling, carving, gouging, polishing, buffing, fracturing, intentional breaking, or intentional chipping of slab solid surface products.
(2) “Fabrication activities” does not include onsite construction work covered by Section 1532.3 of Title 8 of the California Code of Regulations.
(h) (1) “Fabrication shop” means a location where fabrication activities are undertaken.
(2) “Fabrication shop” does not include facilities where slab solid surface products are manufactured, including, but not limited to, quarries, concrete manufacturing facilities, or tile manufacturing facilities.
(i) “Respirable crystalline silica” means quartz, cristobalite, or tridymite contained in airborne particles that are determined to be respirable by a sampling device designed to meet the characteristics for respirable-particle-size-selective samplers specified in the Air Quality – Particle Size Fraction Definitions for Health-Related Sampling in Report 7708 completed by the International Organization for Standardization in 1995.
(j) (1) “Slab solid surface product” means a hard stone-like substance, including, but not limited to, artificial, engineered, or natural stone, including granite or marble, that is used for countertop installation or customization.
(2) For purposes of paragraph (1), “artificial stone” means any reconstituted, artificial, synthetic, composite, engineered, or manufactured stone. It is commonly made by binding crushed or pulverized stone, quartz, porcelain, or other crystalline silica-containing materials with adhesives, polymers, epoxies, resins, or other binding materials to form a slab.

6359.15.
 (a) The Slab Fabrication Activity Account is hereby created in the Occupational Safety and Health Fund, as established pursuant to Section 62.5, in the State Treasury.
(b) All fees, penalties, or other moneys collected by the department under this chapter shall be deposited in the Slab Fabrication Activity Account.
(c) Upon appropriation by the Legislature for this express purpose, moneys in the account may be expended by the department for the purposes of administering this chapter.

6359.2.
 (a) A person or entity engaged in fabrication activities shall not use dry methods in any fabrication activities.
(b) A person or entity engaged in fabrication activities shall use effective wet methods in any fabrication activities.
(c) (1) A violation of this section shall be grounds for an immediate order prohibiting continued fabrication activities by the division and may be grounds for additional fines and penalties, as determined by the division or the director to further the purposes of this chapter.
(2) Notwithstanding any provision of this division to the contrary, a violation of this section is not a crime.
(d) A violation of this section may be reported to the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement.

6359.3.
 (a) On or before July 1, 2026, the department shall consult with representatives of approved apprenticeship programs to adopt a training curriculum regarding the safe performance of fabrication activities.
(1) The training curriculum shall satisfy both of the following requirements:
(A) The training curriculum shall cover applicable occupational safety and health standards.
(B) The training curriculum shall include classroom instruction and supervised hands-on activities.
(2) An approved apprenticeship program may provide the training curriculum. The department shall approve alternative providers if approved apprenticeship programs do not offer training programs sufficient to meet the needs of the industry.
(3) It is the intent of the Legislature in enacting this subdivision that the Department of Industrial Relations shall enact regulations or update existing regulations related to this chapter to further develop the training program described in paragraph (1) and shall consult and confer representatives of approved apprenticeship programs, applicable trade associations, and affected slab solid surface product producers, manufacturers, and fabricators during the regulatory process.
(b) Beginning on July 1, 2027, an owner or operator of a fabrication shop, any individual that will employ another individual to perform work on the shop floor of a fabrication shop, and any individual that will perform fabrication activities shall be enrolled in or have completed the training curriculum described in this section before that fabrication activity or employment begins.
(1) The owner or operator of a fabrication shop shall be responsible for paying for the costs of the training curriculum of its employees.
(2) The department shall certify an individual who has completed the approved training curriculum immediately upon completion.
(3) This subdivision shall not apply to an individual who is enrolled in, or who has graduated from, an apprenticeship program that covers fabrication activities and is approved by the Division of Apprenticeship Standards.

6359.4.
 (a) (1) On or before January 1, 2027, the department shall do all of the following:
(A) Develop an application and certification process for a “slab solid surface product fabrication activity” certification to authorize fabrication shops to engage in fabrication activities.
(B) Develop an initial deposit process for fabrication shops to, during the pendency of the application development and certification process, submit a deposit fee for the application and initial certification subject to all of the following requirements:
(i) The deposit fee amount shall be in an amount as the department deems necessary to implement this chapter and shall not exceed the reasonable regulatory cost.
(ii) The deposit fee amount collected by the department shall be used towards the initial certification fee collected pursuant to subdivision (b), and the applicable amount shall be returned to a fabrication shop if the deposit amount exceeds the initial certification fee or if the application is denied.
(C) (i) Determine the initial certification fee and the renewal fee to be collected pursuant to subdivision (b), which shall be in amounts as the department deems necessary to implement this chapter and shall not exceed the reasonable regulatory cost.
(ii) The department, in determining the fee amounts described in clause (i), may establish different fees for large or small fabrication shops in the state as the department deems necessary for regulatory purposes. The department shall, in determining the sizes of the fabrication shops and the fee amounts, consult with relevant stakeholders, including owners and operators of fabrication shops.
(D) Create a statewide tracking system to track the number of and progress of fabrication shops that have submitted a deposit for the application and certification process subject to all of the following requirements:
(i) The statewide tracking system shall be posted on the department’s internet website and be made available to the public.
(ii) The statewide tracking system shall include, but not be limited to, both of the following information:
(I) The names and total number of the fabrication shops that have submitted a deposit for the application and certification process.
(II) The status of the certification process for the fabrication shops that have submitted a deposit for the application and certification process.
(iii) The statewide tracking system shall not include any identifiable personal information.
(iv) The department shall, to the extent feasible, update the information described in clause (ii) to the statewide tracking system when new information becomes available.
(2) (A) Notwithstanding any provision of this chapter to the contrary, a fabrication shop may continue to engage in fabrication activities during the pendency of the application development and certification process.
(B) This paragraph shall become inoperative on January 1, 2027.
(b) (1) Commencing January 1, 2027, the department shall accept an application for and grant a certification to a fabrication shop that demonstrates to the department’s satisfaction of all of the following workplace safety conditions and precautions:
(A) Evidence of a legally obtained and valid business license and applicable state contractor’s license.
(B) Evidence of satisfactory workers’ compensation insurance coverage.
(C) Documentation of completion by applicable individuals of the training curriculum required by Section 6359.3 within one year of enrollment.
(2) The department, or a third party certified by the department for this purpose, shall inspect a fabrication shop before the issuance of the certification to verify that the equipment and procedures of the fabrication shop are in compliance with any occupational safety and health standards and orders that are promulgated by the Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board pursuant to Section 142.3.
(3) An applicant for a certification shall submit to the department an initial certification application, including an application fee and an initial certification fee in the amounts determined by the department, which shall be deposited in the Slab Fabrication Activity Account in the Occupational Safety and Health Fund for the purposes of administering this chapter.
(4) Each certification granted by the department shall be for a three-year period.
(5) (A) The department shall accept a renewal application for and grant a certification renewal to a fabrication shop that demonstrates to the department continued compliance with all of the following workplace safety conditions and precautions:
(i) Evidence of compliance with the requirements of any occupational safety and health standards and orders that are promulgated by the Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board pursuant to Section 142.3.
(ii) Documentation of certified air quality monitoring results consistent with any occupational safety and health standards and orders that are promulgated by the Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board pursuant to Section 142.3 over the prior three years.
(iii) Documentation of information related to employee-reported silicosis cases.
(iv) Beginning July 1, 2027, documentation that all individuals who perform fabrication activities or perform work on a shop floor of a fabrication shop have been certified, or are exempt from certification, pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 6359.3.
(B) The department, or a third party certified by the department for this purpose, shall inspect a fabrication shop before the issuance of a certification renewal to verify that the equipment and procedures of the fabrication shop are in compliance with any occupational safety and health standards and orders that are promulgated by the Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board pursuant to Section 142.3.
(C) An applicant for a certification renewal shall submit to the department a certification renewal fee in the amount determined by the department, which shall be deposited in the Slab Fabrication Activity Account in the Occupational Safety and Health Fund for the purposes of administering this chapter.
(D) A fabrication shop with a previous certification may continue to engage in fabrication activities during the pendency of the certification renewal application.
(6) The department may suspend or revoke a certificate issued pursuant to this section if the department finds that the fabrication shop has engaged in gross negligence, gross incompetence, or willful or repeated disregard of any emergency or other occupational safety and health standards, occupational safety and health standards orders, any provision of this chapter, or any other related provision of law.
(7) (A) The department, in consultation with the division, shall track and keep a record of information on fabrication shops regarding all of the following:
(i) The number of violations issued to any of the fabrication shops for failure to comply with any temporary or future standards relating to respirable crystalline silica adopted by the Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board, and the geographic areas in the state with the highest numbers of those violations.
(ii) The number of new cases of silicosis identified in any of the fabrication shops since the passage of any temporary or future standards relating to respirable crystalline silica adopted by the Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board.
(iii) The number of notices issued to fabrication shops found to be in noncompliance with department regulations relating to respirable crystalline silica.
(B) The department shall provide the information described in subparagraph (A) to the Department of Industrial Relations.
(C) The department shall provide the information described in subparagraph (A) to, or otherwise assist as applicable, local prosecutors in seeking civil or criminal action against fabrication shops in violation of any applicable provisions.
(D) The division may use the information described in subparagraph (A) in seeking enforcement against fabrication shops in violation of any applicable provisions.
(8) (A) A person or entity, or an employee of a person or entity, shall not engage in fabrication activities without a certificate issued by the department pursuant to this chapter.
(B) A violation of this paragraph may be reported to the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement.
(C) Notwithstanding any provision of this division to the contrary, a violation of this paragraph is not a crime.
(c) Commencing January 1, 2028, the department shall evaluate the cost of implementation of this chapter and may adjust the amounts of the initial certification fee and the renewal certification fee, which shall be in reasonable amounts as the department deems necessary to implement this chapter and shall not exceed the reasonable regulatory cost.

6359.5.
 (a) A person shall not supply a slab solid surface product directly to a person or entity engaged in fabrication activities if the person or entity engaged in fabrication activities does not have a valid certification.
(1) A person that supplies a slab solid surface product to a person or entity engaged in fabrication activities shall verify that the person or entity has a valid certificate before providing the slab solid surface product to the person or entity.
(2) A person that supplies a slab solid surface product to a person or entity that is not engaged in fabrication activities shall rely on a written certification issued under penalty of perjury from the person that the person will not directly engage in fabrication activities on the product without a certificate and that, if the person resells the product, the person will resell to a person or entity with a certification.
(b) A person that seeks services that require fabrication activities and enters into a contract with a person or entity to undertake fabrication activities shall verify that the person or entity has a valid certificate before engaging with and providing slab solid surface products to that person or entity.
(c) (1) A violation of this subdivision may be grounds for penalties as determined by the division to further the purposes of this chapter.
(2) Notwithstanding any provision of this division to the contrary, a violation of this section is not a crime.
(d) This section shall become operative on January 1, 2027.

6359.6.
 Beginning January 1, 2027, the director shall maintain a publicly accessible database on the department’s internet website that includes all of the following:
(a) Information on any active orders issued by the department in the prior 12 months prohibiting an activity at a fabrication shop pursuant to this chapter.
(b) Information on fabrication shops in the state certified pursuant to this chapter and on any pending enforcement actions against those certified fabrication shops.
(c) An online tool to report suspected or alleged violations of this chapter.

SEC. 3.

 No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution.