Bill Text


PDF |Add To My Favorites |Track Bill | print page

AB-707 Mercury Thermostat Collection Act of 2021.(2021-2022)

SHARE THIS:share this bill in Facebookshare this bill in Twitter
Date Published: 04/19/2021 09:00 PM
AB707:v98#DOCUMENT

Amended  IN  Assembly  April 19, 2021

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2021–2022 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill
No. 707

Introduced by Assembly Member Quirk

February 16, 2021

An act to amend Sections 25214.8.12 and 25214.8.13 repeal and add Article 10.2.2 (commencing with Section 25214.8.10) of Chapter 6.5 of Division 20 of the Health and Safety Code, relating to hazardous waste.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 707, as amended, Quirk. Mercury Thermostat Collection Act of 2008. 2021.
Existing law, the Mercury Thermostat Collection Act of 2008, as part of the state’s hazardous waste control laws, requires a manufacturer that owns or owned a name brand of mercury-added thermostats, as defined, sold in this state before January 1, 2006, to establish and maintain a collection, transportation, recycling, and disposal program for out-of-service mercury-added thermostats, as defined. The Among other requirements, the act requires each manufacturer, or group of manufacturers, to provide collection bins to wholesalers for collection of out-of-service mercury-added thermostats at a cost not to exceed $25. A violation of the hazardous waste control laws is a crime.
This bill would require each manufacturer, or group of manufacturers, to provide collection bins to wholesalers for collection of out-of-service mercury-added thermostats at a cost not to exceed $30. The bill would make other nonsubstantive changes to the act. repeal the Mercury Thermostat Collection Act of 2008 and recast the program, as part of the state’s hazardous waste control laws, as the Mercury Thermostat Collection Act of 2021.
This bill would establish the Mercury Thermostat Collection Fund in the State Treasury. The bill would require, beginning January 30, 2022, and annually thereafter until an unspecified date, each manufacturer, as defined, of mercury-added thermostats, or group of manufacturers, to contribute moneys to the fund until an unspecified amount has been contributed to the fund for that calendar year, as provided. The bill would provide that a manufacturer that fails to contribute to the fund shall be subject to a sales ban, as provided, and penalties to be assessed by the department. The bill would require that all penalties collected by the department be deposited in the fund. The bill would require each manufacturer, or group of manufacturers, to provide collection bins to wholesalers for collection of out-of-service mercury-added thermostats at a cost not to exceed $25 and to local government agencies for specified purposes. Because a violation of the act would be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
This bill would require the Department of Toxic Substances Control to issue a request for proposals for a qualified third party to develop and implement a convenient, cost-effective, and efficient program, as specified, for the collection, transportation, and recycling or disposal of out-of-service mercury-added thermostats, as defined. The bill would require the program to include, among other specified components, financial incentives to consumers for the collection of out-of-service mercury-added thermostats, which shall be no less than an unspecified amount per out-of-service mercury-added thermostat, and an education and outreach campaign about the importance of safe out-of-service mercury-added thermostat collection and disposal or recycling opportunities. The bill would require that all moneys in the fund, upon appropriation by the Legislature, be used only for financial incentives to consumers, the reasonable regulatory costs of administering and implementing the program, as provided, and satisfaction of any penalties assessed by the department pursuant to the former act that were not previously paid.
This bill would require the qualified third party to conduct a survey of specified entities to evaluate the effectiveness of the program’s education and outreach campaign and to obtain collection data from each entity engaged in the collection of out-of-service mercury-added thermostats, as provided. The bill would require the qualified third party to annually report to the department information regarding the program, including, but not limited to, the number of out-of-service mercury-added thermostats collected in the state during the previous calendar year. The bill would require, on or before January 1, 2025, the department to report to the Legislature on the status of the program. The bill would repeal the act on an unspecified date.
This bill would include a change in state statute that would result in a taxpayer paying a higher tax within the meaning of Section 3 of Article XIII A of the California Constitution, and thus would require for passage the approval of 2/3 of the membership of each house of the Legislature.
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: MAJORITY2/3   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: NOYES  

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


SECTION 1.

 The Legislature finds and declares the following:
(a) In 2006, the Legislature banned the sale of thermostats containing mercury switches in the state because of the toxicity of mercury and the development of alternative thermostat technologies.
(b) American manufacturers used almost 14.5 tons of mercury annually to produce these thermostats, with the average thermostat containing about four grams of mercury.
(c) Mercury is a powerful neurotoxin that interferes with normal childhood development. The health concerns posed by mercury are well known and severe. If mercury thermostats are improperly disposed of, the mercury from those thermostats has the potential to enter our waterways, impacting aquatic life and the food chain.
(d) In 2008, the Legislature enacted the Mercury Thermostat Collection Act of 2008, requiring thermostat manufacturers to establish collection programs for out-of-service mercury thermostats.
(e) In 2011, under the Mercury Thermostat Collection Act of 2008, the thermostat manufacturing industry collected 19,927 out-of-service mercury thermostats, representing a fraction of the mercury thermostats remaining in the state.
(f) In 2012, the thermostat industry's collection results were 16,353 out-of-service mercury thermostats.
(g) It is intent of the Legislature to enact a modified mercury thermostat collection program to ensure that the maximum feasible number of out-of-service mercury thermostats get collected for proper disposal as quickly and as cost effectively as possible. It is the intent of the Legislature that a modified mercury thermostat collection program do all of the following:
(1) Ensure convenient out-of-service mercury thermostat return options for consumers that are free and accessible across the state.
(2) Provide incentives to maximize returns for collection of out-of-service mercury thermostats.
(3) Include a robust public education effort that is multilingual and targets all individuals or specific groups of individuals that have mercury thermostats and does so in a cost-effective manner without externalizing costs to the environment or the public sector.

SEC. 2.

 Article 10.2.2 (commencing with Section 25214.8.10) of Chapter 6.5 of Division 20 of the Health and Safety Code is repealed.

SEC. 3.

 Article 10.2.2 (commencing with Section 25214.8.10) is added to Chapter 6.5 of Division 20 of the Health and Safety Code, to read:
Article  10.2.2. Mercury Thermostat Collection Act of 2021

25214.8.10.
 This article shall be known, and may be cited as, the Mercury Thermostat Collection Act of 2021.

25214.8.11.
 For purposes of this article, the following terms have the following meanings:
(a) “Act” means the Mercury Thermostat Collection Act of 2021 established pursuant to this article.
(b) “Department” means the Department of Toxic Substances Control.
(c) “Fund” means the Mercury Thermostat Collection Fund established pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 25214.8.11.5.
(d) “Manufacturer” means a business concern that owns or owned a name brand of mercury-added thermostats sold in the state before January 1, 2006.
(e) “Mercury-added thermostat” has the same meaning as defined in paragraph (2) of subdivision (b) of Section 25214.8.1.
(f) “Out-of-service mercury-added thermostat” means a mercury-added thermostat that is removed from a building or facility in this state and is intended to be discarded.
(g) “Program” means a system for the collection, transportation, and recycling or disposal of out-of-service mercury-added thermostats that is established pursuant to the act and financed through the fund. “Program” also includes education and outreach efforts made by the qualified third party to appropriate entities about the out-of-service mercury-added thermostat collection opportunities provided by the program.
(h) “Qualified third party” means a nonprofit organization, exempt from taxation pursuant to Section 501(c)(3) of the federal Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (26 U.S.C. Sec. 501(c)(3)), that is trained, experienced, and has a history of success with the collection, handling, and transport of hazardous materials.
(i) “Retailer” means a person who sells thermostats of any kind directly to a consumer through a selling or distribution mechanism, including, but not limited to, a sale using catalogs or the internet. A retailer may be a wholesaler if the person meets the definition of a wholesaler set forth in subdivision (k).
(j) “Thermostat” means a product or device that uses a switch to sense and control room temperature through communication with heating, ventilating, or air-conditioning equipment. “Thermostat” includes a thermostat used to sense and control room temperature in residential, commercial, industrial, and other buildings, but does not include a thermostat used to sense and control temperature as part of a manufacturing process.
(k) “Wholesaler” means a person engaged in the distribution and wholesale selling of heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning components to contractors who install heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning components, and whose total wholesale sales account for 80 percent or more of all total sales of the wholesaler. A manufacturer, as defined in subdivision (d), is not a wholesaler.

25214.8.11.5.
 (a) The Mercury Thermostat Collection Fund is hereby established in the State Treasury for purposes of the act.
(b) (1) Beginning on January 30, 2022, and annually thereafter until $ ____, each manufacturer shall individually, or collectively with other manufacturers, contribute moneys to the fund in accordance with this section until a total of $____ million has been contributed to the fund for that calendar year. Manufacturers shall apportion the contribution to the fund amongst themselves in a fair and reasonable manner.
(2) The total annual contribution to the fund required by paragraph (1) shall not exceed the combined reasonable regulatory costs of administering and implementing the program, and other costs, as detailed in subdivision (e), for that calendar year.
(c) (1) Payments to the fund shall be made no later than June 30 of each calendar year. If June 30 falls on a Saturday or Sunday, the payment is due the following Monday.
(2) (A) A manufacturer may individually remit payment to the fund, or a group of manufacturers may remit payment to the fund on behalf of various manufacturers.
(B) If payment to the fund is remitted by a group of manufacturers, the names of the manufacturers contributing to the payment shall be submitted, in writing, to the department so the department may determine each manufacturer’s compliance with the act.
(d) If a manufacturer fails to make a payment pursuant to this section, the manufacturer shall be subject to the sales ban pursuant to Section 25214.8.12, and a penalty to be assessed by the department. All penalties collected by the department shall be deposited in the fund.
(e) The moneys in the fund, upon appropriation by the Legislature, shall be used only for the following:
(1) Financial incentives to consumers for the collection of out-of-service mercury-added thermostats, which shall be no less than $____ per out-of-service mercury-added thermostat.
(2) The reasonable regulatory costs of administering and implementing the program, which shall include, but are not limited to, the costs incurred by the department to oversee implementation of the program, including enforcement costs and costs incurred by the qualified third party to develop and implement the program as provided in paragraph (3).
(3) Costs incurred by the qualified third party to develop and implement the program, including, but not limited to, both of the following:
(A) Collection, processing, and recycling or disposal of out-of-service mercury-added thermostats.
(B) Development and implementation of an education and outreach campaign as detailed in Section 25214.8.13.
(4) Satisfaction of any penalties assessed by the department against a manufacturer pursuant to former Article 10.2.2 (commencing with Section 25214.8.10) of Chapter 6.5 of Division 20 that were not paid prior to the effective date of this act.
(f) By March 1, 2022, the department shall enter into a new agreement with a manufacturer who is subject to a consent decree, statement of violation, or court order pursuant to former Article 10.2.2 (commencing with Section 25214.8.10) of Chapter 6.5 of Division 20 recognizing that liability established in these consent decrees and consent orders or alleged in those statements of violations shall be satisfied and discharged upon compliance with the act.
(g) Notwithstanding any other law, moneys deposited in the fund shall not be loaned to, or borrowed by, any other special fund or the General Fund.

25214.8.12.
 (a) (1) A person shall not sell or offer for sale in this state a thermostat that is produced by a manufacturer that is not in compliance with this article.
(2) The sales prohibition in paragraph (1) shall be effective on the 120th day after the notice described in subdivision (b) listing a manufacturer is posted on the department’s internet website and shall remain in effect until the manufacturer is no longer listed on the department’s internet website.
(b) On July 1, ____, and on January 1 and July 1 of each calendar year thereafter, the department shall post on its internet website a notice listing all manufacturers that are not in compliance with the act.
(c) A wholesaler or retailer that distributes or sells mercury-added thermostats shall monitor the department’s internet website to determine if the sale of a manufacturer’s thermostats is in compliance with this section.

25214.8.13.
 (a) The department shall issue a request for proposals for a qualified third party to develop and implement a convenient, cost-effective, and efficient program, consistent with the act. The department shall consider all of the following factors when selecting a qualified third party to develop and implement the program:
(1) The qualified third party’s history and success of operating product take-back collection programs.
(2) The qualified third party’s ability to identify and provide information to consumers about out-of-service mercury-added thermostat collection locations.
(3) The qualified third party’s ability to ensure transportation systems move waste safely and effectively.
(4) The qualified third party’s history of working with recycling or disposal experts, manufacturers, state and local governments, and retailers.
(5) The qualified third party’s ability to implement an effective education and outreach campaign.
(6) Any other factors determined by the department to be relevant to the selection of a qualified third party to develop and implement the program.
(b) A qualified third party selected by the department to develop and implement the program shall do all of the following:
(1) Collect, handle, and arrange for the appropriate management of out-of-service mercury-added thermostats in compliance with this act.
(2) On or before July 1, 2022, develop, and update as necessary, an educational and outreach campaign sufficient to inform appropriate entities about the importance of safe out-of-service mercury-added thermostat collection and recycling or disposal opportunities and to coordinate collection efforts with various stakeholders, including, but not limited to, all of the following:
(A) The Contractors State License Board.
(B) Heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning contractors.
(C) Demolition and environmental contractors, and related associations.
(D) Municipal utility districts.
(E) Household hazardous waste collection programs.
(F) Apartment and property management associations and organizations.
(G) Homeowners.
(H) Rural districts.
(I) Retailers.
(J) Disadvantaged communities, as identified by the California Environmental Protection Agency pursuant to Section 39711.
(K) The general public.
(3) (A) Create and distribute informational materials about the program, consistent with the department’s civil rights and language access policies and procedures, which shall be made available to retailers, wholesalers, household hazardous waste programs, local governments, and utility districts.
(B) Informational materials created and distributed pursuant to this paragraph shall include, but are not limited to, one or more of the following:
(i) Signage that is prominently displayed and easily visible to the consumer and contractors.
(ii) Written materials and templates of materials for reproduction by retailers and wholesalers to be provided to the consumer at the time of purchase, delivery, or both purchase and delivery of a thermostat. The materials shall include information on the prohibition of improper disposal of out-of-service mercury-added thermostats, the proper management of out-of-service mercury-added thermostats, and out-of-service mercury-added thermostat collection locations.
(iii) Advertising or other promotional materials, or both, that include references to out-of-service mercury-added thermostat collection opportunities.
(iv) Materials to be used in direct communications with the consumer and contractor at the time of purchase of a thermostat.
(v) A public service announcement promoting the proper management of out-of-service mercury-added thermostats. Copies of the public service announcement shall be provided to the department for its use and promotion.
(vi) The establishment of an internet website for the program that is accessible to the public. Templates of educational materials, in a form and format that can be easily downloaded, shall be posted on the internet website. A link to the internet website shall be provided to the department.
(4) Develop strategies to work with all of the following:
(A) State utilities participating in demand response programs involving the replacement of thermostats to encourage their participation in the collection and proper management of out-of-service mercury-added thermostats. These strategies may include the inclusion of an educational insert in their customers’ utility bills.
(B) Wholesalers in the state to encourage their support and participation in educating their customers on the proper management of out-of-service mercury-added thermostats.
(C) Retailers and other outlets to educate consumers on the proper management of out-of-service mercury-added thermostats.
(5) Make available mercury-added thermostat collection incentives for consumers, of no less than $____ per mercury-added thermostat collected, and educate contractors, service technicians, and residents to encourage the return of out-of-service mercury-added thermostats to established collection locations.
(6) Encourage the purchase of programmable thermostats that comply with Part 6 (commencing with Section 100) of Title 24 of the California Building Standards Code and that qualify for the ENERGY STAR program of the United States Environmental Protection Agency, as replacements for mercury-added thermostats.

25214.8.13.2.
 A manufacturer, or a collection of manufacturers working together as part of an association, that was required to comply with former Article 10.2.2 (commencing with Section 25214.8.10) of Chapter 6.5 of Division 20, shall coordinate with the qualified third party selected by the department and do both of the following:
(a) Provide information on and connections to known out-of-service mercury-added thermostat collection partners, state and local partners, and mercury-added thermostat collection, transport, storage, and recycling or disposal facilities.
(b) Facilitate the transition of program administration to the qualified third party to the greatest extent possible.

25214.8.13.4.
 (a) On or before July 1, and annually thereafter, the qualified third party shall conduct a survey of the entities listed in paragraph (2) of subdivision (b) of Section 25214.8.13 to evaluate the effectiveness of the education and outreach campaign consistent with Section 25214.8.13 and to obtain collection data from each entity engaged in the collection of mercury-added thermostats. The qualified third party shall transmit the survey results to the department by September 1 of the same year.
(b) The department shall post the results of the survey on its internet website and allow public comment on the survey for up to 30 calendar days after the survey is posted on its internet website.
(c) The qualified third party shall review the survey responses and public comments and adjust the program, as appropriate, for implementation the following calendar year to ensure that all out-of-service mercury-added thermostat collection locations are thoroughly informed about the program and its collection tools and provided with any technical assistance that may be needed to increase the program’s effectiveness at out-of-service mercury-added thermostat collection locations where warranted.
(d) The qualified third party shall inform the department of any changes made in education, outreach, and collection strategies. The department shall post the information provided by the qualified third party pursuant to this subdivision on the department’s internet website.

25214.8.13.6.
 (a) The qualified third party shall report to the department, no later than April 1 of each calendar year, all of the following information:
(1) The number of out-of-service mercury-added thermostats collected in the state during the previous calendar year.
(2) The number of incentives provided and the total amount of incentives paid to consumers pursuant to the program during the previous calendar year.
(3) The estimated total amount of mercury contained in the out-of-service mercury-added thermostats collected during the previous calendar year.
(4) An evaluation of the effectiveness of the program.
(5) An accounting of the program’s administrative costs, including a copy of the qualified third party’s Internal Revenue Service Form 990 for a nonprofit organization’s program.
(6) A description of the education and outreach strategies employed to increase participation and out-of-service mercury-added thermostat collection rates.
(7) Examples of outreach and educational materials developed and used as part of the program.
(8) The names and locations of all participating out-of-service mercury-added thermostat collection locations.
(9) The number of out-of-service mercury-added thermostats collected at each collection location.
(10) The internet website address where the annual report may be viewed online.
(11) A description of how the collected out-of-service mercury-added thermostats were managed.
(12) The results and analysis of the annual survey.
(13) A description of all modifications that the qualified third party is proposing to make to the program for the following calendar year.
(b) On or before January 1, 2025, the department shall report to the Legislature on the status of the program.

25214.8.14.
 (a) A wholesaler that has a physical location in the state shall act as a collection location for out-of-service mercury-added thermostats.
(b) Each manufacturer shall individually, or collectively with other manufacturers, do all of the following:
(1) On and after July 1, 2022, provide collection bins for out-of-service mercury-added thermostat collection to wholesalers at a cost not to exceed twenty-five dollars ($25).
(2) On and after July 1, 2022, make collection bins available at no cost for out-of-service mercury-added thermostats to any local governmental agency that requests a collection bin for use at a household hazardous waste collection facility or a household hazardous waste event.
(3) Either arrange for the pick up of the collection bins or pay for the costs of shipping the collection bins provided pursuant to paragraphs (1) and (2) for proper handling and recycling or disposal of the out-of-service mercury-added thermostats.
(c) A retailer or wholesaler that distributes new thermostats by mail to consumers in the state shall include with the sale of a new thermostat an internet website address and a toll-free telephone number with instructions on obtaining a prepaid mail-in label that a consumer may use to send an out-of-service mercury-added thermostat to a collection location and information on the incentive the consumer will receive for the collection of an out-of-service mercury-added thermostat.
(d) A wholesaler shall distribute to its customers the educational and outreach materials developed by the qualified third party as part of the program.

25214.8.15.
 A contractor who installs heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning components and who removes a mercury-added thermostat shall take the out-of-service mercury-added thermostat to a location that is authorized to collect out-of-service mercury-added thermostats.

25214.8.16.
 A person who demolishes a building shall remove any mercury-added thermostats from the building before demolition and take the out-of-service mercury-added thermostat to a location that is authorized to collect out-of-service mercury-added thermostats.

25214.8.17.
 The department shall repeal all regulations adopted by the department pursuant to former Article 10.2.2 (commencing with Section 25214.8.10) of Chapter 6.5 of Division 20.

25214.8.18.
 This article shall remain in effect only until ____, and as of that date is repealed.

SEC. 4.

 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.
SECTION 1.Section 25214.8.12 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read:
25214.8.12.

(a)(1)A manufacturer shall establish and maintain a program for out-of-service mercury-added thermostats in compliance with this article.

(2)A manufacturer may establish a collection and recycling program for out-of-service mercury-added thermostats individually or collectively with other manufacturers.

(3)A manufacturer, or a group of manufacturers operating a program collectively, may contract with a retailer for in-store or out-of-store collection of out-of-service mercury-added thermostats.

(b)(1)A person shall not sell or offer for sale in this state a thermostat that is produced by a manufacturer that is not in compliance with this article.

(2)The sales prohibition in paragraph (1) shall be effective on the 120th day after the notice described in subdivision (c) listing a manufacturer is posted on the department’s internet website and shall remain in effect until the manufacturer is no longer listed on the department’s internet website.

(c)On January 1 and July 1 of each calendar year, the department shall post a notice on its internet website listing manufacturers that are not in compliance with this article.

(d)A wholesaler or a retailer that distributes or sells mercury-added thermostats shall monitor the department’s internet website to determine if the sale of a manufacturer’s thermostats is in compliance with this section.

SEC. 2.Section 25214.8.13 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read:
25214.8.13.

Each manufacturer shall individually, or collectively with other manufacturers, do all of the following:

(a)Collect, handle, and arrange for the appropriate management of out-of-service mercury-added thermostats in compliance with this chapter and the regulations adopted pursuant to this chapter.

(b)Provide collection bins for out-of-service mercury-added thermostat collection to wholesalers at a cost not to exceed thirty dollars ($30).

(c)Make collection bins available at no cost for out-of-service mercury-added thermostats to any local governmental agency that requests a collection bin for use at household hazardous waste collection facilities or household hazardous waste events.

(d)Either arrange for pickup of the collection bins, or pay for the costs of shipping the collection bins provided pursuant to subdivisions (b) and (c) for proper handling and recycling.

(e)Until December 31, 2026, undertake education and outreach efforts, including, but not limited to, all of the following:

(1)A public service announcement promoting the proper management of out-of-service mercury-added thermostats. Copies of the public service announcement shall be provided to the department and the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery for their use and promotion.

(2)The establishment of a public internet website. Templates of educational materials shall be posted on the public internet website that are in a form and format that can be easily downloaded. A link to the public internet website shall be provided to the department and the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery.

(3)Methods used to engage other stakeholders such as waste, demolition, heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning organizations, as well as appropriate state agencies and local governments to secure support and participation to encourage the proper management of out-of-service mercury-added thermostats throughout California.

(4)Strategies to work with California utilities participating in demand response programs involving the replacement of thermostats to encourage their participation in the collection and proper management of out-of-service mercury-added thermostats. These strategies may include the inclusion of an educational insert in their customers’ utility bills.

(5)Contacting wholesalers in California and encouraging their support and participation in educating their customers on the proper management of out-of-service mercury-added thermostats.

(6)Strategies used to encourage support and participation by retailers and other outlets to educate consumers on the proper management of out-of-service mercury-added thermostats.

(f)Develop, and update as necessary, educational and other outreach materials aimed at heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning contractors, demolition contractors, and their associations, municipal utility districts, and homeowners. Those materials shall be made available to participating retailers, all wholesalers, and household hazardous waste programs. These materials shall include, but are not limited to, one or more of the following:

(1)Signage that is prominently displayed and easily visible to the consumer and contractors.

(2)Written materials and templates of materials for reproduction by retailers and wholesalers to be provided to the consumer at the time of purchase, delivery, or both purchase and delivery of a thermostat. The materials shall include information on the prohibition of improper disposal of mercury-added thermostats, the proper management of out-of-service mercury-added thermostats, and the locations of collection opportunities.

(3)Advertising or other promotional materials, or both, that include references to the collection opportunities.

(4)Materials to be used in direct communications with the consumer and contractor at the time of purchase.

(g)Provide incentives and education to contractors, service technicians, and homeowners to encourage the return of out-of-service mercury-added thermostats to established collection locations.

(h)Encourage the purchase of programmable thermostats that comply with Part 6 (commencing with Section 100) of Title 24 of the California Building Standards Code and that qualify for the Energy Star program of the federal Environmental Protection Agency, as replacements for mercury-added thermostats.

(i)On or before April 1 of each calendar year, and annually thereafter, submit an annual report to the department covering the one-year period ending December 31 of the previous calendar year. Each report shall be posted on the manufacturer’s or program’s internet website. The annual report shall include all of the following:

(1)The number of out-of-service mercury-added thermostats collected in California during the previous calendar year.

(2)The estimated total amount of mercury contained in the collected out-of-service mercury-added thermostats.

(3)An evaluation of the effectiveness of the program.

(4)A comparison to the performance requirements for collection established pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 25214.8.17.

(5)An accounting of the program administrative costs, including a copy of Internal Revenue Service Form 990 for a nonprofit organization’s program. For a for-profit organization’s program, the manufacturer, or group of manufacturers operating a program, shall submit independently audited financial statements detailing revenues and a full accounting of administrative costs incurred.

(6)A description of the outreach strategies employed to increase participation and collection rates.

(7)Examples of outreach and educational materials used.

(8)Names and locations of all participating collection locations.

(9)The number of out-of-service mercury-added thermostats collected at each collection location.

(10)The internet website address where the annual report may be viewed online.

(11)A description of how the collected out-of-service mercury-added thermostats were managed.

(12)Modifications that the manufacturer is proposing to make in its collection and recycling program.