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<ns0:Id>20250AB__257798AMD</ns0:Id>
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<ns0:Action>
<ns0:ActionText>INTRODUCED</ns0:ActionText>
<ns0:ActionDate>2026-02-20</ns0:ActionDate>
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<ns0:Action>
<ns0:ActionText>AMENDED_ASSEMBLY</ns0:ActionText>
<ns0:ActionDate>2026-03-19</ns0:ActionDate>
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<ns0:SessionYear>2025</ns0:SessionYear>
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<ns0:AuthorText authorType="LEAD_AUTHOR">Introduced by Assembly Member Connolly</ns0:AuthorText>
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<ns0:Legislator>
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<ns0:House>ASSEMBLY</ns0:House>
<ns0:Name>Connolly</ns0:Name>
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<ns0:Title> An act to amend Section 25249.7 of the Health and Safety Code, relating to toxic substances. </ns0:Title>
<ns0:RelatingClause>toxic substances</ns0:RelatingClause>
<ns0:GeneralSubject>
<ns0:Subject>Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986: settlements: attorney’s fees.</ns0:Subject>
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<ns0:DigestText>
<html:p>The Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986, an initiative measure approved by the voters as Proposition 65 at the November 4, 1986, statewide general election, prohibits a person, in the course of doing business, from knowingly and intentionally exposing any individual to a chemical known to the state to cause cancer or reproductive toxicity without giving a specified warning, or from knowingly discharging or releasing that chemical into water, or into or onto land and passing into any source of drinking water, except as specified. The act authorizes a person, acting in the public interest, to bring an action to enforce the requirements of the act if specified requirements are met. If there is a settlement of an action brought by a person in the public interest the act requires the
plaintiff to submit the settlement to the court for approval upon noticed motion, and authorizes the court to approve the settlement only if the court makes specified findings, as provided.</html:p>
<html:p>This bill would additionally require the court to find that the settlement provides a public benefit and is in the public interest. The bill would further require, under a specified circumstance, the court to find that the settlement would require the defendant to reduce the exposure to the listed chemical from the level that existed before the settlement or provide a warning that complies with the act if that warning was not provided previously. The bill would also establish a procedure pursuant to which the court would be authorized to enter an award of attorney’s fees if the Attorney General objects to the award of attorneys’ fees set forth in the settlement, as provided.</html:p>
<html:p>
Proposition 65 provides that it may be amended by a statute, passed by a
<ns0:Fraction>
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vote of each house of the Legislature, to further its purposes.
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<html:p>This bill would find and declare that it furthers the purposes of Proposition 65. </html:p>
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<ns0:Preamble>The people of the State of California do enact as follows:</ns0:Preamble>
<ns0:BillSection id="id_6278C7B0-599E-4BBA-8868-106AAA3FF056">
<ns0:Num>SECTION 1.</ns0:Num>
<ns0:ActionLine action="IS_AMENDED" ns3:href="urn:caml:codes:HSC:caml#xpointer(%2Fcaml%3ALawDoc%2Fcaml%3ACode%2Fcaml%3ALawHeading%5B%40type%3D'DIVISION'%20and%20caml%3ANum%3D'20.'%5D%2Fcaml%3ALawHeading%5B%40type%3D'CHAPTER'%20and%20caml%3ANum%3D'6.6.'%5D%2Fcaml%3ALawSection%5Bcaml%3ANum%3D'25249.7.'%5D)" ns3:label="fractionType: LAW_SECTION" ns3:type="locator">
Section 25249.7 of the
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is amended to read:
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<ns0:Num>25249.7.</ns0:Num>
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<html:p>
(a)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
A person who violates or threatens to violate Section 25249.5 or 25249.6 may be enjoined in any court of competent jurisdiction.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(b)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
(1)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
A person who has violated Section 25249.5 or 25249.6 is liable for a civil penalty not to exceed two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500) per day for each violation in addition to any other penalty established by law. That civil penalty may be assessed and recovered in a civil action brought in any court of competent jurisdiction.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(2)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
In assessing the amount of a civil penalty for a violation of this chapter, the court shall consider all of the following:
</html:p>
<html:p>
(A)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The nature
and extent of the violation.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(B)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The number of, and severity of, the violations.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(C)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The economic effect of the penalty on the violator.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(D)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Whether the violator took good faith measures to comply with this chapter and the time these measures were taken.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(E)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The willfulness of the violator’s misconduct.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(F)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The deterrent effect that the imposition of the penalty would have on both the violator and the regulated community as a whole.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(G)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Any other factor that justice may require.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(c)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Actions pursuant to this section may be brought by the Attorney General in the
name of the people of the State of California, by a district attorney, by a city attorney of a city having a population in excess of 750,000, or, with the consent of the district attorney, by a city prosecutor in a city or city and county having a full-time city prosecutor, or as provided in subdivision (d).
</html:p>
<html:p>
(d)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Actions pursuant to this section may be brought by a person in the public interest if both of the following requirements are met:
</html:p>
<html:p>
(1)
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The private action is commenced more than 60 days from the date that the person has given notice of an alleged violation of Section 25249.5 or 25249.6 that is the subject of the private action to the Attorney General and the district attorney, city attorney, or prosecutor in whose jurisdiction the violation is alleged to have occurred, and to the alleged violator. If the notice alleges a violation of Section 25249.6, the notice of the
alleged violation shall include a certificate of merit executed by the attorney for the noticing party, or by the noticing party, if the noticing party is not represented by an attorney. The certificate of merit shall state that the person executing the certificate has consulted with one or more persons with relevant and appropriate experience or expertise who has reviewed facts, studies, or other data regarding the exposure to the listed chemical that is the subject of the action, and that, based on that information, the person executing the certificate believes there is a reasonable and meritorious case for the private action. Factual information sufficient to establish the basis of the certificate of merit, including the information identified in paragraph (2) of subdivision (h), shall be attached to the certificate of merit that is served on the Attorney General.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(2)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Neither the Attorney General, a district attorney, a city attorney, nor a
prosecutor has commenced and is diligently prosecuting an action against the violation.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(e)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
(1)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
(A)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
If, after reviewing the factual information sufficient to establish the basis for the certificate of merit and meeting and conferring with the noticing party regarding the basis for the certificate of merit, the Attorney General believes there is no merit to the action, the Attorney General shall serve a letter to the noticing party and the alleged violator stating the Attorney General believes there is no merit to the action.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(B)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
If the Attorney General does not serve a letter pursuant to subparagraph (A), this shall not be construed as an endorsement by the Attorney General of the merit of the action.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(2)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
A person bringing an action in the public interest pursuant to
subdivision (d) and a person filing an action in which a violation of this chapter is alleged shall notify the Attorney General that the action has been filed. Neither this subdivision nor the procedures provided in subdivisions (f) to (k), inclusive, affect the requirements imposed by statute or a court decision in existence on January 1, 2002, concerning whether a person filing an action in which a violation of this chapter is alleged is required to comply with the requirements of subdivision (d).
</html:p>
<html:p>
(f)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
(1)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
A person filing an action in the public interest pursuant to subdivision (d), a private person filing an action in which a violation of this chapter is alleged, or a private person settling a violation of this chapter alleged in a notice given pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (d), shall, after the action or violation is subject either to a settlement or to a judgment, submit to the Attorney General a reporting
form that includes the results of that settlement or judgment and the final disposition of the case, even if dismissed. At the time of the filing of a judgment pursuant to an action brought in the public interest pursuant to subdivision (d), or an action brought by a private person in which a violation of this chapter is alleged, the plaintiff shall file an affidavit verifying that the report required by this subdivision has been accurately completed and submitted to the Attorney General.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(2)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
A person bringing an action in the public interest pursuant to subdivision (d), or a private person bringing an action in which a violation of this chapter is alleged, shall, after the action is either subject to a settlement, with or without court approval, or to a judgment, submit to the Attorney General a report that includes information on any corrective action being taken as a part of the settlement or resolution of the action.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(3)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The Attorney General shall develop a reporting form that specifies the information that shall be reported, including, but not limited to, for purposes of paragraph (2) of subdivision (e), the date the action was filed, the nature of the relief sought, and for purposes of this subdivision, the amount of the settlement or civil penalty assessed, other financial terms of the settlement, and any other information the Attorney General deems appropriate.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(4)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
If there is a settlement of an action brought by a person in the public interest under subdivision (d), the plaintiff shall submit the settlement, other than a voluntary dismissal in which no consideration is received from the defendant, to the court for approval upon noticed motion, and the court may approve the settlement only if the court makes all of the following findings:
</html:p>
<html:p>
(A)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The warning that is required by the settlement complies with this chapter.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(B)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The award of attorney’s fees is reasonable under California law.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(C)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The penalty amount is reasonable based on the criteria set forth in paragraph (2) of subdivision (b).
</html:p>
<html:p>
(D)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The settlement provides a public benefit and is in the public interest. If the settlement is for an action brought pursuant to Section 25249.6, the settlement shall require the defendant to do either of the following:
</html:p>
<html:p>
(i)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Reduce the exposure to the listed chemical from the level that existed before the settlement.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(ii)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Provide the warning
required pursuant to Section 25249.6, if that warning was not provided previously.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(5)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The plaintiff subject to paragraph (4) has the burden of producing evidence sufficient to sustain each required finding. The plaintiff shall serve the motion and all supporting papers on the Attorney General, who may appear and participate in a proceeding without intervening in the case.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(6)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Neither this subdivision nor the procedures provided in paragraph (2) of subdivision (e) and subdivisions (g) to (k), inclusive, affect the requirements imposed by statute or a court decision in existence on January 1, 2002, concerning whether claims raised by a person or public prosecutor not a party to the action are precluded by a settlement approved by the court.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(7)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
If a settlement is submitted to the court for approval pursuant to paragraph (4), the Attorney General objects to the award of attorneys’ fees set forth in the settlement pursuant to paragraph (5), and the court finds that the evidence submitted to the court supports the findings in subparagraphs (A), (C), and (D) of paragraph (4) but does not support the finding required by subparagraph (B) of paragraph (4) that the award of attorneys’ fees set forth in the settlement is reasonable under California law, the court shall approve the settlement except for the award of fees, and inform the parties, by written order, that the award of attorney’s fees does not appear to be reasonable. Within 45 days of service of that order, the plaintiff may file a declaration or declarations that provide additional information in support of its fee request, which shall include sufficient detail for the court to determine if the fees incurred are reasonable. The
defendant, the Attorney General, or both, may file responses or objections to that declaration or those declarations. After review of the declaration or declarations and any responses or objections thereto, the court may enter an award of attorney’s fees, which shall not under any circumstances exceed the amount of the award of attorney’s fees that was set forth in the settlement.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(g)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The Attorney General shall maintain a record of the information submitted pursuant to subdivisions (e) and (f) and shall make this information available to the public.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(h)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
(1)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The basis for the certificate of merit required by subdivision (d) is discoverable only to the extent that the information is relevant to the subject matter of the action and not subject to the attorney-client privilege, the attorney work product privilege, or any other legal
privilege.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(2)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Upon the conclusion of an action brought pursuant to subdivision (d) with respect to a defendant, if the trial court determines that there was no actual or threatened exposure to a listed chemical, the court may, upon the motion of that alleged violator or upon the court’s own motion, review the basis for the belief of the person executing the certificate of merit, expressed in the certificate of merit, that an exposure to a listed chemical had occurred or was threatened. The information in the certificate of merit, including the identity of the persons consulted with and relied on by the certifier, and the facts, studies, or other data reviewed by those persons, shall be disclosed to the court in an in-camera proceeding at which the moving party shall not be present. If the court finds that there was no credible factual basis for the certifier’s belief that an exposure to a listed chemical had occurred or was threatened, then
the action shall be deemed frivolous within the meaning of Section 128.5 of the Code of Civil Procedure. The court shall not find a factual basis credible on the basis of a legal theory of liability that is frivolous within the meaning of Section 128.5 of the Code of Civil Procedure.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(i)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The Attorney General may provide the factual information submitted to establish the basis of the certificate of merit on request to a district attorney, city attorney, or prosecutor within whose jurisdiction the violation is alleged to have occurred, or to any other state or federal government agency, but in all other respects the Attorney General shall maintain, and ensure that all recipients maintain, the submitted information as confidential official information to the full extent authorized in Section 1040 of the Evidence Code.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(j)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
In an action brought by the Attorney General, a district
attorney, a city attorney, or a prosecutor pursuant to this chapter, the Attorney General, district attorney, city attorney, or prosecutor may seek and recover costs and attorney’s fees on behalf of a party who provides a notice pursuant to subdivision (d) and who renders assistance in that action.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(k)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Any person who serves a notice of alleged violation pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (d) for an exposure identified in subparagraph (A), (B), (C), or (D) of paragraph (1) shall complete, as appropriate, and provide to the alleged violator at the time the notice of alleged violation is served, a notice of special compliance procedure and proof of compliance form pursuant to subdivision (
<html:i>l</html:i>
) and shall not file an action for that exposure against the alleged violator, or recover from the alleged violator in a settlement any payment in lieu of penalties or any reimbursement for costs and attorney’s fees, if all of the following
conditions have been met:
</html:p>
<html:p>
(1)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The notice given pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (d) was served on or after the effective date of the act amending this section during the 2013–14 Regular Session and alleges that the alleged violator failed to provide clear and reasonable warning as required under Section 25249.6 regarding one or more of the following:
</html:p>
<html:p>
(A)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
An exposure to alcoholic beverages that are consumed on the alleged violator’s premises to the extent onsite consumption is permitted by law.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(B)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
An exposure to a chemical known to the state to cause cancer or reproductive toxicity in a food or beverage prepared and sold on the alleged violator’s premises primarily intended for immediate consumption on or off premises, to the extent of both of the following:
</html:p>
<html:p>
(i)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The chemical was not intentionally added.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(ii)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The chemical was formed by cooking or similar preparation of food or beverage components necessary to render the food or beverage palatable or to avoid microbiological contamination.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(C)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
An exposure to environmental tobacco smoke caused by entry of persons (other than employees) on premises owned or operated by the alleged violator where smoking is permitted at any location on the premises.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(D)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
An exposure to chemicals known to the state to cause cancer or reproductive toxicity in engine exhaust, to the extent the exposure occurs inside a facility owned or operated by the alleged violator and primarily intended for parking noncommercial vehicles.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(2)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Within 14 days after service of the
notice, the alleged violator has done all of the following:
</html:p>
<html:p>
(A)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Corrected the alleged violation.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(B)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
(i)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Agreed to pay a civil penalty for the alleged violation of Section 25249.6 in the amount of five hundred dollars ($500), to be adjusted quinquennially pursuant to clause (ii), per facility or premises where the alleged violation occurred, of which 75 percent shall be deposited in the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Fund, and 25 percent shall be paid to the person that served the notice as provided in Section 25249.12.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(ii)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
On April 1, 2019, and at each five-year interval thereafter, the dollar amount of the civil penalty provided pursuant to this subparagraph shall be adjusted by the Judicial Council based on the change in the annual California Consumer Price Index for All Urban
Consumers, published by the Department of Industrial Relations, Division of Labor Statistics and Research, for the most recent five-year period ending on December 31 of the year preceding the year in which the adjustment is made, rounded to the nearest five dollars ($5). The Judicial Council shall quinquennially publish the dollar amount of the adjusted civil penalty provided pursuant to this subparagraph, together with the date of the next scheduled adjustment.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(C)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Notified, in writing, the person that served the notice of the alleged violation, that the violation has been corrected. The written notice shall include the notice of special compliance procedure and proof of compliance form specified in subdivision (l), which was provided by the person serving notice of the alleged violation and which shall be completed by the alleged violator as directed in the notice.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(3)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The
alleged violator shall deliver the civil penalty to the person that served the notice of the alleged violation within 30 days of service of that notice, and the person that served the notice of violation shall remit the portion of the penalty due to the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Fund within 30 days of receipt of the funds from the alleged violator.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(l)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The notice required to be provided to an alleged violator pursuant to subdivision (k) shall be presented as follows:
</html:p>
<ns0:TipIn numPages="2">PRINTER PLEASE NOTE: TIP-IN MATERIAL TO BE INSERTED</ns0:TipIn>
<html:p>
(m)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
An alleged violator may satisfy the conditions set forth in subdivision (k) only one time for a violation arising from the same exposure in the same facility or on the same premises.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(n)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Nothing in subdivision (k) shall prevent the Attorney
General, a district attorney, a city attorney, or a prosecutor in whose jurisdiction the violation is alleged to have occurred from filing an action pursuant to subdivision (c) against an alleged violator. In any such action, the amount of any civil penalty for a violation shall be reduced to reflect any payment made by the alleged violator for the same alleged violation pursuant to subparagraph (B) of paragraph (2) of subdivision (k).
</html:p>
<html:p>
(o)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
If a violation of this chapter is alleged or the application or construction of provisions of this chapter is at issue in a proceeding in the Supreme Court, court of appeal, or the appellate division of the superior court, each party shall serve a copy of the party’s brief or petition and brief, on the Attorney General. Service on the Attorney General shall be accomplished by serving the brief, or petition and brief, on the Proposition 65 coordinator at the service address designated on the Attorney General’s
internet website for Proposition 65 enforcement reporting. A brief shall not be accepted or filed unless the proof of service shows service on the Attorney General. A party failing to comply with this subdivision shall be given a reasonable opportunity to cure the failure before the court imposes sanction, and, in that instance, the court shall allow the Attorney General reasonable additional time to file a brief in the matter.
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<ns0:Num>SEC. 2.</ns0:Num>
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<html:p>The Legislature finds and declares that this act furthers the purposes of the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986 (Chapter 6.6 (commencing with Section 25249.5) of Division 20 of the Health and Safety Code). </html:p>
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