HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTES - 04222014 - C.44RECOMMENDATION(S):
ADOPT a position of "Support" on SB 1300, as introduced (Hancock): Refineries: turnarounds, a bill that would
require every petroleum refinery to submit to the Division of Occupational Safety and Health, a full schedule of
planned turnarounds, meaning a planned, periodic shutdown of a refinery process unit or plant to perform
maintenance, overhaul, and repair operations and to inspect, test, and replace process materials and equipment for the
following calendar year; provide any information provided that is a trade secret is confidential; and authorize the
charging of fees for actions regarding refineries, as recommended by the Legislation Committee.
FISCAL IMPACT:
With regards to the fees collected from owners for refinery safety, SB 1300 would:
1) Authorize the Department of Industrial Relations (instead of the division within the department) to fix and collect
reasonable fees to cover all necessary expenses, including administrative and indirect costs, for the existing
consultation, inspection, adoption of standards and other duties required under the Refinery and Chemical Plant
Safety Act.
APPROVE OTHER
RECOMMENDATION OF CNTY ADMINISTRATOR RECOMMENDATION OF BOARD COMMITTEE
Action of Board On: 04/22/2014 APPROVED AS RECOMMENDED OTHER
Clerks Notes:
VOTE OF SUPERVISORS
AYE:John Gioia, District I Supervisor
Candace Andersen, District II
Supervisor
Mary N. Piepho, District III
Supervisor
Karen Mitchoff, District IV
Supervisor
Federal D. Glover, District V
Supervisor
Contact: L. DeLaney,
925-335-1097
I hereby certify that this is a true and correct copy of an action taken and entered on the minutes of the Board
of Supervisors on the date shown.
ATTESTED: April 22, 2014
David Twa, County Administrator and Clerk of the Board of Supervisors
By: June McHuen, Deputy
cc:
C. 44
To:Board of Supervisors
From:LEGISLATION COMMITTEE
Date:April 22, 2014
Contra
Costa
County
Subject:Support Position on SB 1300 (Hancock): Refineries: turnarounds
FISCAL IMPACT: (CONT'D)
2) Additionally, authorize the fees to be used to fund participation in interagency efforts to improve safety in
refineries and chemical plants.
3) Delete the requirement in law that the fees must be sufficient to cover 15 staff positions.
4) Require the director of DIR to adopt rules and regulations governing the criteria and procedures to fix and
collect the fees, including emergency regulations as necessary.
5) Require the director of DIR to recoup from the owner of a refinery (by adding the amount expended to next
year's assessment), the full costs of extraordinary expenditures resulting from the division's response to a
hazardous material release or similar occurrence. The director shall document expenses for which reimbursement
is sought.
6) Authorize the department to credit against the owner's subsequent year's assessment, any unexpended funds or
hold them in reserve as a contingency fund for expenditures required by an emergency response to a hazardous
material release or other situation.
No direct fiscal impact on Contra Costa County. The refineries in the county, however, would be required to pay
the fees.
BACKGROUND:
Purpose of SB 1300
Currently, there is no requirement for oil refineries to report their schedule of “turnarounds,” or other related
information, to the Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA). This bill would require petroleum
refineries to annually report their schedule for “turnarounds” to Cal/OSHA on September 15. It would also require
them to provide Cal/OSHA with documentation on refinery safety and infrastructure.
Under existing law, there is no requirement for an oil refinery to inform Cal/OSHA when it is going to perform a
“turnaround.” A “turnaround” is a planned partial or total shutdown of any unit of an oil refinery for certain
purposes including maintenance, overhaul, or repair, and to inspect, test, and replace process materials and
equipment. According to the American Petroleum Institute (API), “turnarounds” are a necessary part of refinery
operations. They can last anywhere from one to four weeks. They are usually scheduled at least one or two years
in advance. The API admits that “refinery incidents are more likely to occur” during turnarounds than during
normal operations.” Despite the obvious importance of “turnarounds,” Cal/OSHA is often unaware of when one
will occur at an oil refinery. This prevents Cal/OSHA from preparing for a possible incident during a scheduled
refinery “turnaround.” It also means that Cal/OSHA inspectors are left unaware when the last “turnaround” was
done while performing inspections of refinery facilities.
This is not an abstract concern. Chevron Corp. did not inspect several sections of piping of its Richmond refinery
during a November 2011 “turnaround.” One of the sections of had thinned in thickness by 80 percent, which
contributed to the August 6 fire at the facility, one of the worst incidents in recent years. The fire caused 15,000
Richmond residents to seek medical attention.
During its inspection of the Chevron refinery after the August 6 fire, Cal/OSHA found that several refinery parts
were in place at least 30 months past their last “turnaround.” Cal/OSHA found that the failure to replace the parts
sooner to be a “willful” violation of state law. Had Cal/OSHA known about Chevron’s failure to inspect or replace
those parts during recent “turnarounds,” it is possible that Cal/OSHA inspectors could have done their own
targeted inspection. Doing so could have prevented an incident that threatened the public health, affected the
environment, and imposed severe financial costs upon Chevron. Additionally, in its investigation of the August 6
fire at the Chevron refinery, the federal Chemical Safety Board advocated for targeted inspections.
What SB 1300 Would Do
SB 1300 would require oil refineries to do three things with reference to “turnarounds.” First, it would require
refineries to submit a full schedule of planned “turnarounds” to Cal/OSHA annually on September 15th .
Second, upon Cal/OSHA request, refineries would be required to provide access on site and submit certain
documentation at least 60 days before a planned “turnaround.” This required documentation would include
corrosion reports, unfulfilled work orders, risk-based inspection reports, Process Hazard Analyses, and all
management of change records related to repairs, design modifications, and process changes.
Third, at least 30 days submit a planned “turnaround,” refineries would have to supplemental documents to
Cal/OSHA explaining any changes since their previous, 60-day report.
This bill would prohibit any information identified as a trade secret that is submitted to Cal/OSHA to be released
to the public.
This bill would instead authorize the Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) rather than Cal/OSHA under
existing law, to fix and collect fees to cover necessary expenses including fees for consultation, inspection,
adoption of standards, and participation in interagency efforts to improve safety in refineries and chemical plants.
DIR will be authorized to hold any unexpended funds as a contingency fund for expenses in emergency situations
at a petroleum refinery.
Current Status: 03/26/2014: From SENATE Committee on LABOR AND INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS: Do
pass to Committee on JUDICIARY.
The Legislation Committee at its April 3, 2014 meeting voted unanimously to recommend a position of "support"
on SB 1300 to the Board of Supervisors.
ATTACHMENTS
SB 1300 Bill Text
Bill Analysis SB 1300
Sample Support Letter
Senate Committee on Labor and Industrial Relations
Senator Ben Hueso, Chair
Date of Hearing: March 26, 2014 2013-2014 Regular Session
Consultant: Alma Perez-Schwab Fiscal:Yes
Urgency: No
Bill No: SB 1300
Author: Hancock
As Introduced/Amended: February 21, 2014
SUBJECT
Refineries: turnarounds
KEY ISSUES
Should the Legislature require the Department of Industrial Relations to recoup from the owner
of a refinery, the full costs of extraordinary expenditures resulting from the division’s response
to an emergency hazardous material release or similar occurrence?
Should oil refineries be required to annually report their schedule for “turnarounds” to the
Division of Occupational Safety and Health and provide documentation on refinery safety and
infrastructure?
Should the Legislature prohibit certain information on refinery safety and infrastructure that is
submitted to the State as a “trade secret” from being released to the public?
ANALYSIS
Existing law established the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA),
within the Department of Industrial Relations (DIR), to protect workers from health and safety
hazards on the job through research and standards, enforcement and consultation programs.
Among other things, Cal/OSHA promotes worker safety through implementation of training and
process safety management in refineries and other facilities, as specified.
Existing law, under the California Refinery and Chemical Plant Worker Safety Act of 1990:
1)Declares that the potential consequences of explosions, fires, and releases of dangerous
chemicals may be catastrophic; thus immediate and comprehensive government action
must be taken to ensure that workers in petroleum refineries, chemical plants, and other
related facilities are thoroughly trained and that adequate process safety management
practices are implemented.
1)Defines “process safety management” as the application of management programs, as
specified, when dealing with the risks associated with handling or working near
hazardous chemicals and is intended to prevent or minimize the consequences of
catastrophic releases of acutely hazardous, flammable, or explosive chemicals.
2)Among other things, “Process Safety Management Standards” require:
(Labor Code §7850 – 7870)
a.The Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board to adopt process safety
management standards for refineries, chemical plants, and other manufacturing
facilities.
b.An employer to develop and maintain a compilation of written safety information
to enable the employer and employees operating the machinery to identify and
understand the hazards posed by processes involving acutely hazardous and
flammable material. A copy of this information is to be accessible to all workers.
c.An employer to perform a hazard analysis for identifying, evaluation, and
controlling hazards involved in the process.
d.An employer to develop, implement, and update periodically written operating
procedures that provide clear instructions for safely conducting activities involved
in each process consistent with the process safety information.
e.Each employee whose primary duties includes the operating or maintenance of a
process to be trained in an overview of the process with an emphasis on the
specific safety and health hazards, procedures, and safe practices applicable to the
employee’s job tasks as well as refresher and supplemental training documented
by the employer’s certification record.
f.An employer to inform contractors performing work on, or near, a process of the
known potential fire, explosion, or toxic release hazards related to the contractor’s
work; and requires that contractors have trained their employees to a level
adequate to safely perform their job.
Existing law requires the Division of Occupational Safety and Health to annually fix and collect
reasonable fees for consultation, inspection, adoption of standards, and other duties conducted
pursuant to the act. The fees shall be sufficient to cover, at a minimum, the annual cost of 15
staff positions. All revenue collected is to be deposited into the Occupational Safety and Health
Fund and subject to appropriation by the Legislature in the annual Budget Act.
This Bill would 1) expand on the requirements for fees collected from refineries, 2) define what
a “turnaround” at refineries is and would establish specific requirements of refineries in notifying
the state of any planned turnarounds, and 3) would prohibit certain information submitted to the
state as a trade secret from being released to the public.
With regards to the fees collected from owners for refinery safety, this bill would:
1)Authorize the Department of Industrial Relations (instead of the division within the
department) to fix and collect reasonable fees to cover all necessary expenses, including
Hearing Date: March 26, 2014 SB 1300
Consultant: Alma Perez-Schwab Page 2
Senate Committee on Labor and Industrial Relations
administrative and indirect costs, for the existing consultation, inspection, adoption of
standards and other duties required under the Refinery and Chemical Plant Safety Act.
2)Additionally, authorize the fees to be used to fund participation in interagency efforts to
improve safety in refineries and chemical plants.
3)Delete the requirement in law that the fees must be sufficient to cover 15 staff positions.
4)Require the director of DIR to adopt rules and regulations governing the criteria and
procedures to fix and collect the fees, including emergency regulations as necessary.
5)Require the director of DIR to recoup from the owner of a refinery (by adding the amount
expended to next year’s assessment), the full costs of extraordinary expenditures resulting
from the division’s response to a hazardous material release or similar occurrence. The
director shall document expenses for which reimbursement is sought.
6)Authorize the department to credit against the owner’s subsequent year’s assessment, any
unexpended funds or hold them in reserve as a contingency fund for expenditures
required by an emergency response to a hazardous material release or other situation.
With regards to “turnarounds,” this bill would:
1)Define “turnaround” as a planned, periodic shutdown, total or partial, of a refinery
process unit or plant to perform maintenance, overhaul, and repair operations and to
inspect, test, and replace process materials and equipment.
2)Specify that “turnaround” does not include unplanned shutdowns that occur due to
emergencies or other unexpected maintenance matters in a process unit or plant, or
routine maintenance, as specified.
3)Require a refinery employer to submit to the division a full schedule of planned
“turnarounds” for the various units on September 15 of each year.
4)At the request of the division, require a refinery employer to provide on-site access and
specified documentation relating to a planned turnaround at least 60 days prior to the
shutdown of a process unit or plant, including:
a.Corrosion reports and risk-based inspection reports;
b.Process Hazard Analyses;
c.Boiler permit schedules;
d.Management of change records related to repairs, design modifications and
process changes;
e.Work orders scheduled to be completed in the planned turnaround; and
f.Temporary repairs since the last turnaround.
5)Require the refinery employer to submit notification of any changes and supporting
documents at least 30 days prior to a planned turnaround.
Hearing Date: March 26, 2014 SB 1300
Consultant: Alma Perez-Schwab Page 3
Senate Committee on Labor and Industrial Relations
6)Authorize the division, by agreement with a refinery employer, to modify the reporting
period as to any individual item of information.
7)Require the division to develop an electronic information management system to
facilitate monitoring of petroleum refineries.
With regard to information contained within documentation of a “turnaround,” this bill would:
1)Authorize a person providing information regarding a “turnaround,” to identify all or a
portion of the information submitted to the division as a trade secret.
2)Prohibit any information that is submitted to the division as a trade secret from being
released to the public. However, the fact that the information is claimed to be a trade
secret is public information.
3)Establish procedures for notifying a refinery of any requests for the release of
information claimed to be a trade secret, subsequent requirements of the refinery, and
final determination by the division on whether or not the information will be released.
4)Establish legal proceedings for the person seeking the release of information or the
person requesting that the information remain a trade secret.
COMMENTS
1.Overview on Refinery Turnarounds:
According to the American Petroleum Institute (API), a refinery turnaround is a planned,
periodic shut down (total or partial) of a refinery process unit or plant to perform
maintenance, overhaul and repair operations and to inspect, test and replace process materials
and equipment. Turnarounds are scheduled at least 1-2 years in advance and depending on
the process unit and the amount of maintenance needed, the length of the turnaround can vary
from 1 to 4 weeks or more. API also stated that the less often units are started up and taken
down, the safer it is since refinery incidents are more likely to occur during turnarounds.
2.Background on August 2012 explosion at Chevron Richmond Oil Refinery:
According to an Interim Investigation Report from the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard
Investigation Board on the Chevron Richmond Refinery Fire:
On August 6, 2012, the Chevron U.S.A. Inc. Refinery in Richmond, California
experienced a catastrophic pipe failure in the #4 Crude Unit. The pipe ruptured,
releasing flammable, hydrocarbon process fluid that partially vaporized into a large
vapor cloud that engulfed nineteen Chevron employees. All of the employees escaped,
narrowly avoiding serious injury. The ignition and subsequent continued burning of the
Hearing Date: March 26, 2014 SB 1300
Consultant: Alma Perez-Schwab Page 4
Senate Committee on Labor and Industrial Relations
hydrocarbon process fluid resulted in a large plume of unknown and unquantified
particulates and vapor traveling across the Richmond, California, area. In the weeks
following the incident, approximately 15,000 people from the surrounding area sought
medical treatment due to the release.
Multiple agencies opened investigations in response to the incident including the Division of
Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA), the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard
Investigation Board (CSB), and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA).
Additionally, Chevron also completed its own internal investigation. All investigations
identified serious concerns about process safety management procedures at the refinery
and expressed the need for stronger preventative safeguards.
On January 30, 2013, the Division of Occupational Safety and Health issued 25 citations
against Chevron USA, with proposed penalties totaling nearly $1 million ($963,200
exactly), for state safety standard violations related to the refinery explosion. The citations
included eleven “willful serious” and twelve “serious” violations, resulting in the highest
penalties in Cal/OSHA’s history. Among Cal/OSHA’s finding, they reported that:
Chevron did not follow the recommendations of its own inspectors and metallurgical
scientists to replace the corroded pipe that ultimately ruptured and caused the fire.
Those recommendations dated back to 2002.
Chevron did not follow its own emergency shutdown procedures when the leak was
identified, and did not protect employees.
3.Improving Public and Worker Safety at Oil Refineries: Report of the Interagency Working
Group on Refinery Safety
Following the August 2012 explosion at Chevron’s Richmond Oil Refinery, Governor Brown
convened a 13-agency Working Group to explore ways of improving public and worker
safety at and around oil refineries through enhanced oversight, and to strengthen emergency
preparedness. Over an 18-month period, the group met internally and with industry, labor,
community, environmental, academic, local emergency response and other stakeholders.
The report details recommendations to improve emergency response and preparedness.
Specifically, the report made the following recommendations:
Coordinating regulatory activities to avoid duplication and increase effectiveness;
Establishing clear criteria for unified response during emergencies and aligning radio
communications between industry firefighters and local first responders;
Improving information and data flows from refineries to the public and state and local
agencies;
Requiring refineries to implement inherently safer systems to prevent emergencies
and better protect workers and neighboring communities;
Strengthening enforcement capacity to ensure adequate oversight of refineries;
Hearing Date: March 26, 2014 SB 1300
Consultant: Alma Perez-Schwab Page 5
Senate Committee on Labor and Industrial Relations
Assessing operational safety and organizational structures at refineries to reduce
human factors such as lack of training, insufficient experience or fatigue that can
cause hazards;
Providing greater community access to air quality monitoring information in and
around refineries.
An Interagency Refinery Task Force was established in August 2013 to continue overseeing
progress on the recommendations, and will meet bimonthly to ensure proper implementation.
4.Need for this bill?
The devastating explosion that occurred at the Chevron Richmond Refinery has sparked
much discussion and debate on current safety standards, their effectiveness, or lack thereof,
and need for improvement. After several investigations and the highest ever penalties issued
in Cal/OSHA’s history, it has become clear that more needs to be done. Among Cal/OSHA’s
findings with regards to the Chevron Refinery explosion, were violations in Chevron’s
implementation of its own “process safety management” procedures required of all refineries.
Under current law, “process safety management” procedure regulations require refineries to
implement a comprehensive safety plan that includes a precise determination of what hazards
exist and procedures to eliminate or reduce them. Employers must ensure that machinery
and equipment are in good condition, that work procedures are safe, that hazards are
controlled, and that workers are trained to safely operate the equipment, recognize hazards
and respond appropriately in emergency situations. Chevron’s Richmond Refinery failed to
meet these requirements which resulted in the catastrophic explosion which put many lives in
danger and left the refinery with an almost $1 million fine.
This bill is necessary to establish specific requirements of refineries in notifying the
department of any planned “turnarounds” as well as provide documentation regarding the
refinery safety and infrastructure to allow for a more thorough review.
5.Proponent Arguments:
According to the author, oil refineries have no obligation under state law to report their
“turnaround” schedule to any part of state or local government. Nor are they required to
disclose important information, such as repair schedules or corrosion reports. The author
argues that given the importance of “turnarounds,” both to the refinery itself as well as the
public safety risk they pose, allowing the Division of Occupational Safety and Health to
know this information may allow it to conduct targeted inspections of refinery facilities. This
bill would require petroleum refineries to annually report their schedule for “turnarounds” to
the division and would require them to also submit documentation on refinery safety and
infrastructure.
Proponents argue that in the case of Chevron, had Cal/OSHA known that Chevron had not
inspected the section of piping that caused the explosion, it is possible that Cal/OSHA could
have done their own inspection. Doing so, they argue, could have prevented an incident that
threatened public health, affected the environment, and imposed severe financial costs.
Hearing Date: March 26, 2014 SB 1300
Consultant: Alma Perez-Schwab Page 6
Senate Committee on Labor and Industrial Relations
6.Opponent Arguments:
None received.
7.Staff Comment:
On page 5, line 24-25 of the bill would require the division (Cal/OSHA) to develop an
electronic information management system to facilitate monitoring of petroleum refineries;
however, the bill provides no further indication as to what or how this system would work,
which user it is targeting – the refineries, the public or the department? The author may wish
to amend the bill to provide further clarification on this provision.
8.Double Referral:
This bill has been double referred and, if approved by this committee, it will be sent to the
Senate Judiciary Committee for a hearing.
9.Prior Legislation:
SB 438 (Hancock) of 2013: Held in Assembly Appropriations Committee
SB 438 from last year is very similar to the provisions found in this bill, however, this year
the author has chosen to also address costs associated with the State’s response to a
hazardous occurrence and allows certain information to be protected from public disclosure.
SB 71(Budget and Fiscal Review Committee) of 2013: Chaptered
SB 71 included changes to Labor Code which directed the Department of Industrial Relations
to use its statutory authority to approve a fee by March 31, 2014, to support an increase in
funding and at least 15 new positions for the Process Safety Unit, which inspects oil
refineries and chemical plants.
AB 3672(Elder) of 1990: Chaptered
AB 3672 established the California Refinery and Chemical Plant Worker Safety Act of 1990
including process safety management standards to prevent or minimize the consequences of
catastrophic releases of toxic, flammable or explosive chemicals.
SUPPORT
Asian Pacific Environmental Network (APEN)
OPPOSITION
None received
Hearing Date: March 26, 2014 SB 1300
Consultant: Alma Perez-Schwab Page 7
Senate Committee on Labor and Industrial Relations
SENATE BILL No. 1300
Introduced by Senator Hancock
February 21, 2014
An act to amend Section 7870 of, and to add Sections 7872 and 7873
to, the Labor Code, relating to refineries.
legislative counsel’s digest
SB 1300, as introduced, Hancock. Refineries: turnarounds.
Existing law, the California Refinery and Chemical Plant Worker
Safety Act of 1990, states that its purpose is to prevent or minimize the
consequences of catastrophic releases of toxic, flammable, or explosive
chemicals. Existing law provides for the adoption of specified process
safety management standards for, among others, refineries that handle
acutely hazardous material. Existing law declares the intent of the
Legislature for, among others, the Division of Occupational Safety and
Health, to promote worker safety through implementation of training
and process safety management, as defined, in refineries and other
facilities as deemed appropriate. A violation of the act is a crime.
This bill would require every petroleum refinery employer to, every
September 15, submit to the division a full schedule of planned
turnarounds, meaning a planned, periodic shutdown of a refinery process
unit or plant to perform maintenance, overhaul, and repair operations
and to inspect, test, and replace process materials and equipment, for
the following calendar year, as specified. Upon the request of the
division, the bill would also require a petroleum refinery employer to
provide access on site and provide the division with specified
documentation relating to a planned turnaround within a certain period
of time, as provided. This bill would prohibit any information that is
submitted to the division that is identified as a trade secret from being
released to the public, as specified.
99
Existing law requires the division to annually fix and collect
reasonable fees for consultation, inspection, adoption of standards, and
other duties conducted pursuant to the act, and requires all revenue
collected from these fees to be deposited into the Occupational Safety
and Health Fund. Existing law requires the fees to be sufficient to
support, at a minimum, the annual cost of 15 positions and requires the
fees to be adopted by March 15, 2014.
This bill would instead authorize the Department of Industrial
Relations to fix and collect reasonable fees to cover all necessary
expenses, including administrative and indirect costs, for consultation,
inspection, adoption of standards, participation in interagency efforts
to improve safety in refineries and chemical plants, and other duties
conducted pursuant to this act. This bill would require the Director of
Industrial Relations to adopt reasonable rules and regulations governing
the criteria and procedures to fix and collect the fees, including
emergency regulations as necessary.
This bill would require the Director of Industrial Relations to recoup
the full costs of extraordinary expenditures from the owner of a refinery
by adding the amount expended to the next year’s assessment for that
facility as a result of the division’s response to a hazardous material
release or similar occurrence at a petroleum refinery.
This bill would authorize the department to hold in reserve any
unexpended funds as a contingency fund for expenditures required by
an emergency response to a hazardous material release or other
emergency situation an unexpended funds, as provided.
Because a violation of the bill’s requirements would be a crime, the
bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
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.
Existing constitutional provisions require that a statute that limits the
right of access to the meetings of public bodies or the writings of public
officials and agencies be adopted with findings demonstrating the
interest protected by the limitation and the need for protecting that
interest.
This bill would make legislative findings to that effect.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: yes.
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— 2 —SB 1300
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
line 1 SECTION 1. Section 7870 of the Labor Code is amended to
line 2 read:
line 3 7870. (a) Notwithstanding the availability of federal funds to
line 4 carry out the purposes of this part, the division shall annually
line 5 department may fix and collect reasonable fees to cover all
line 6 necessary expenses, including administrative and indirect costs,
line 7 for consultation, inspection, adoption of standards, participation
line 8 in interagency efforts to improve safety in refineries and chemical
line 9 plants, and other duties conducted pursuant to this part. The fees
line 10 shall be adopted by March 31, 2014. All revenue collected from
line 11 these fees shall be deposited into the Occupational Safety and
line 12 Health Fund. The fees shall be sufficient to support, at a minimum,
line 13 the annual cost of 15 positions. The expenditure of these funds
line 14 shall be subject to appropriation by the Legislature in the annual
line 15 Budget Act or other measure. Act. The director shall adopt
line 16 reasonable rules and regulations governing the criteria and
line 17 procedures to fix and collect the fees and to implement this section,
line 18 including emergency regulations as necessary. All regulations
line 19 previously adopted by the division pursuant to this section shall
line 20 remain in effect until repealed or amended by the director.
line 21 (b) The emergency regulations adopted pursuant to this section
line 22 shall be adopted by the director in accordance with Chapter 3.5
line 23 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title
line 24 2 of the Government Code. The adoption of these regulations is
line 25 an emergency and shall be considered by the Office of
line 26 Administrative Law necessary for the immediate preservation of
line 27 the public peace, health, safety, and general welfare.
line 28 (c) If, as a result of the division’s response to a hazardous
line 29 material release or similar occurrence at a petroleum refinery,
line 30 the division is required to make extraordinary expenditures,
line 31 including, but not limited to, transportation, meals, lodging,
line 32 overtime, or other costs, the director shall recoup the full costs of
line 33 such expenditures from the owner of the refinery by adding the
line 34 amount expended to the next year’s assessment for that facility.
line 35 The director shall provide the owner of the refinery with an
line 36 accounting of the costs for which reimbursement is being sought.
line 37 (d) In the event the funds collected pursuant to this section are
line 38 not fully expended by the department in carrying out its duties
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SB 1300— 3 —
line 1 pursuant to this part, the balance shall be carried forward and
line 2 may, in the department’s discretion, be credited against the
line 3 subsequent year’s assessment or held in reserve as a contingency
line 4 fund for expenditures required by an emergency response to a
line 5 hazardous material release or other emergency situation.
line 6 SEC. 2. Section 7872 is added to the Labor Code, to read:
line 7 7872. (a) For the purposes of this section, “turnaround” means
line 8 a planned, periodic shutdown, total or partial, of a refinery process
line 9 unit or plant to perform maintenance, overhaul, and repair
line 10 operations and to inspect, test, and replace process materials and
line 11 equipment. “Turnaround” does not include unplanned shutdowns
line 12 that occur due to emergencies or other unexpected maintenance
line 13 matters in a process unit or plant. “Turnaround” also does not
line 14 include routine maintenance, where routine maintenance consists
line 15 of regular, periodic maintenance on one or more pieces of
line 16 equipment at a refinery process unit or plant that may require
line 17 shutdown of such equipment.
line 18 (b) Every September 15, every petroleum refinery employer
line 19 shall submit to the division a full schedule of planned turnarounds
line 20 for the various units for the following calendar year.
line 21 (c) At the request of the division, at least 60 days prior to the
line 22 shutdown of a process unit or plant as part of a planned turnaround,
line 23 a petroleum refinery employer shall provide access on site and
line 24 allow the division to review and receive copies of, or, at the
line 25 division’s discretion, submit in physical format or in electronic
line 26 format if available electronically, the following documentation for
line 27 the process unit or plant scheduled to be shut down for that
line 28 turnaround:
line 29 (1) Corrosion reports and risk-based inspection reports generated
line 30 since the last turnaround.
line 31 (2) Process Hazard Analyses generated since the last turnaround.
line 32 (3) Boiler permit schedules.
line 33 (4) All management of change records related to repairs, design
line 34 modifications, and process changes implemented since the last
line 35 turnaround or scheduled to be completed in the planned turnaround
line 36 referenced in this subdivision and identified in subdivision (b).
line 37 (5) Work orders scheduled to be completed in the planned
line 38 turnaround referenced in this subdivision and identified in
line 39 subdivision (b).
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— 4 —SB 1300
line 1 (6) Temporary repairs since the last turnaround, including, but
line 2 not limited to, clamps and encapsulations. For the purposes of this
line 3 section, “temporary repairs” shall be defined as repairs made to
line 4 piping systems in order to restore sufficient integrity to continue
line 5 safe operation until permanent repairs can be scheduled.
line 6 (d) The division may request additional information as necessary
line 7 to perform its responsibilities in this part pursuant to Section 6314.
line 8 (e) At the request of the division, at least 30 days prior to the
line 9 shutdown of a process unit or plant as part of a planned turnaround,
line 10 a petroleum refinery employer shall provide access on site and
line 11 allow the division to review and receive copies of, or, at the
line 12 division’s discretion, submit in physical format or in electronic
line 13 format if available electronically, notification and description of
line 14 any changes to the information or documents provided pursuant
line 15 to subdivision (c) and relevant supporting documents.
line 16 (f) By agreement with a petroleum refinery employer, the
line 17 division may modify the reporting period as to any individual item
line 18 of information.
line 19 (g) This section is not intended to limit or increase the division’s
line 20 authority in Part 1 (commencing with Section 6300) to prohibit
line 21 use of a place of employment, machine, device, apparatus, or
line 22 equipment or any part thereof that constitutes an imminent hazard
line 23 to employees.
line 24 (h) The division shall develop an electronic information
line 25 management system to facilitate monitoring of petroleum refineries
line 26 pursuant to this section.
line 27 (i) The Legislature finds and declares the purpose of this section
line 28 is to improve the ability of the state to conduct inspections of
line 29 petroleum refining operations.
line 30 SEC. 3. Section 7873 is added to the Labor Code, to read:
line 31 7873. (a) Any person providing information pursuant to
line 32 Section 7872 may, at the time of submission, identify all or a
line 33 portion of the information submitted to the division as a trade
line 34 secret and, to the extent feasible, segregate records designated as
line 35 a trade secret from the other records. Information that is so
line 36 identified at the time of submission shall not be released to any
line 37 member of the public, except that such information may be
line 38 disclosed to other officers or employees of the division concerned
line 39 with carrying out the purposes of the division or when relevant in
line 40 any proceeding of the division. This section does not prohibit the
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SB 1300— 5 —
line 1 exchange of properly designated trade secrets between public
line 2 agencies when those trade secrets are relevant and necessary to
line 3 the exercise of their jurisdiction if the public agencies exchanging
line 4 those trade secrets preserve the protections afforded that
line 5 information by this section. For purposes of this section, “public
line 6 agency” has the same meaning as that term is defined in Section
line 7 6252 of the Government Code.
line 8 (b) Any information not identified as a trade secret shall be
line 9 available to the public unless exempted from disclosure by other
line 10 provisions of law. The fact that information is claimed to be a trade
line 11 secret is public information. Upon receipt of a request for the
line 12 release of information that has been claimed to be a trade secret,
line 13 the division shall immediately provide written notice to the person
line 14 who submitted the information. Within 10 days from receipt of
line 15 the notice of the request for the release of the information claimed
line 16 to be a trade secret, the person claiming trade secrecy shall submit
line 17 to the division the legal and factual basis for the claim of trade
line 18 secrecy.
line 19 (c) Within 75 days after receiving the request for disclosure,
line 20 but not before 30 days following the later of (1) the notification
line 21 of the person who submitted the information or (2) the division’s
line 22 receipt of the basis for the claim of trade secrecy submitted
line 23 pursuant to subdivision (b), the division shall determine whether
line 24 or not the information claimed to be a trade secret is to be released
line 25 to the public. If the division decides to make the information public,
line 26 it shall provide the person who submitted the information 21 days’
line 27 notice prior to public disclosure of the information.
line 28 (d) If the person requesting the release of the information or the
line 29 person who submitted the information institutes proceeding for
line 30 injunctive or declaratory relief or a writ of mandate to order or
line 31 prohibit disclosure of trade secret information, the person
line 32 instituting the proceeding shall name the other person as a real
line 33 party in interest. Each party shall bear its own costs and attorney’s
line 34 fees.
line 35 (e) For the purposes of this section, “trade secret” means any
line 36 trade secret as defined in subdivision (d) of Section 3426.1 of the
line 37 Civil Code, any trade secret as defined in subdivision (d) of Section
line 38 6254.7 of the Government Code, and any other information
line 39 regarding the scheduling, duration, and type of work to be
line 40 performed during a turnaround that may provide economic value
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line 1 to any person other than the petroleum refinery employer, including
line 2 the schedule submitted to the division pursuant to subdivision (b)
line 3 of Section 7872. Upon completion of a turnaround, the dates on
line 4 which that turnaround was conducted shall no longer be considered
line 5 a trade secret.
line 6 SEC. 4. No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
line 7 Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because
line 8 the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school
line 9 district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or
line 10 infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty
line 11 for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of
line 12 the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within
line 13 the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
line 14 Constitution.
line 15 SEC. 5. The Legislature finds and declares that Section 3 of
line 16 this act, which adds Section 7873 to the Labor Code, imposes a
line 17 limitation on the public’s right of access to the meetings of public
line 18 bodies or the writings of public officials and agencies within the
line 19 meaning of Section 3 of Article I of the California Constitution.
line 20 Pursuant to that constitutional provision, the Legislature makes
line 21 the following findings to demonstrate the interest protected by this
line 22 limitation and the need for protecting that interest:
line 23 The limitation upon the disclosure of information identified by
line 24 refineries as trade secrets is necessary to protect proprietary
line 25 business information of those refineries.
O
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SB 1300— 7 —
Sample Support Letter – Senate Bill 1300
Please send a support letter – On your letter head
Send by email viviana.becerra@sen.ca.gov or Fax (916) 327-1997
Date ____
Honorable Loni Hancock (D-09)
California State Senate
State Capitol, Room 2082
Sacramento, CA 95814
Re: Senate Bill 1300(Support)
Dear Senator Hancock,
[Name of Your Organization] is writing in support of Senate Bill 1300 (Hancock) that requires
refineries to annually report their schedule for “turnarounds” to the Division of Occupational Safety and
Health (Cal/OSHA) on September 15. It would also require them to provide Cal/OSHA, upon their
request, with access on site and documentation on refinery safety and infrastructure.
Under existing law, neither the state nor local government is required to be informed by an oil refinery
when it is going to perform a “turnaround.” A “turnaround” is a partial or total shutdown of any unit of an
oil refinery for certain purposes including maintenance, repair, or inspection.
According to the American Petroleum Institute (API), “turnarounds” are a necessary part of refinery
operations. They can last anywhere from one week to four. They are usually scheduled at least one or two
years in advance. The API admits that “refinery incidents are more likely to occur” during turnarounds
than during normal operations.”
Despite the obvious importance of “turnarounds” to, Cal/OSHA is often unaware of when one will occur
at an oil refinery. This prevents Cal/OSHA from preparing for a possible incident during a scheduled
refinery “turnaround.” It also means Cal/OSHA inspectors are left unaware when the last “turnaround”
was done while preparing for and performing inspection of refinery facilities.
This is not an abstract concern. Chevron Corp. did not inspect several sections of piping of its Richmond
refinery during a November 2011 “turnaround.” One of the sections had thinned in thickness by 80
percent, which contributed to the August 6, 2012 fire at the facility, one of the worst of such incidents in
recent years, which led to the hospitalization of 15,000 Richmond residents.
Had Cal/OSHA known that Chevron had not inspected that section of piping during its last “turnaround,”
it is possible that Cal/OSHA inspectors could have done their own inspection. Doing so could have
prevented an incident that threatened public health, affected the environment, and imposed severe
financial costs upon Chevron
SB 1300 simply requires annual reports of scheduled turnarounds.
Optional: Include sentences about why this is important to your organization.
Sincerely,