Current Status Introducing Body:House Bill Number:3081 Ratification Number:173 Act Number:108 Primary Sponsor:M.O. Alexander Type of Legislation:GB Subject:Phosphates, cleaning agents Date Bill Passed both Bodies:May 22, 1991 Computer Document Number:3081 Governor's Action:S Date of Governor's Action:May 31, 1991 Introduced Date:Jan 08, 1991 Date of Last Amendment:May 21, 1991 Last History Body:------ Last History Date:May 31, 1991 Last History Type:Act No. 108 Scope of Legislation:Statewide All Sponsors:M.O. Alexander Manly Cork Keyserling Neilson Baxley McKay Houck Jaskwhich Cato Whipper J. Bailey Holt Barber Rama Hallman Fulmer Faber Koon Wilder McElveen McLeod Harrison D. Williams T.C. Alexander L. Martin Stoddard Haskins Corning Hayes McGinnis Wells Phillips Clyborne Mattos Littlejohn Bruce Corbett M. Martin Klapman Cromer Waites J. Williams Keegan J. Rogers Short Waldrop Burch Wilkins Kinon Kempe G. Brown J. Harris Rogers A. Young P. Harris Meacham Harvin Altman Marchbanks Rudnick J. Brown Hodges Sheheen Type of Legislation:General Bill
Bill Body Date Action Description CMN
---- ------ ------------ ------------------------------ ---
3081 ------ May 31, 1991 Act No. 108
3081 ------ May 31, 1991 Signed by Governor
3081 ------ May 27, 1991 Ratified R 173
3081 House May 22, 1991 Concurred in Senate
amendment, enrolled for
ratification
3081 Senate May 21, 1991 Amended, read third time,
returned with amendment
3081 Senate Apr 25, 1991 Read second time
3081 Senate Apr 23, 1991 Committee Report: Favorable 13
3081 Senate Feb 14, 1991 Introduced, read first time, 13
referred to Committee
3081 House Feb 14, 1991 Read third time, sent to
Senate
3081 House Feb 14, 1991 Objection withdrawn by
Representative
3081 House Feb 13, 1991 Read second time
3081 House Feb 12, 1991 Objection withdrawn by
Representative
3081 House Feb 12, 1991 Objection by Representative
3081 House Feb 12, 1991 Amended
3081 House Feb 06, 1991 Committee Report: Favorable 20
3081 House Jan 08, 1991 Introduced and read first 20
time, referred to Committee
3081 House Dec 12, 1990 Prefiled, referred to 20
Committee
View additional legislative information at the LPITS web site.
(A108, R173, H3081)
AN ACT TO AMEND THE CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, BY ADDING SECTION 44-53-50 SO AS TO PROHIBIT THE SALE OF CLEANING AGENTS CONTAINING PHOSPHATES, TO PROVIDE EXCEPTIONS, AND TO PROVIDE PENALTIES FOR VIOLATION.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
Phosphates; prohibitions; exceptions; penalties
SECTION 1. Article 1, Chapter 53, Title 44 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:
"Section 44-53-50. (A) Except as otherwise provided in this section, a person may not use, sell, manufacture, or distribute for use or sale in this State any cleaning agent that contains more than zero percent phosphorus by weight expressed as elemental phosphorus except for an amount not exceeding five-tenths of one percent that is incidental to manufacturing. For the purposes of this section, `cleaning agent' means a laundry detergent, dishwashing compound, household cleaner, metal cleaner, industrial cleaner, phosphate compound, or other substance that is intended to be used for cleaning purposes.
(B) A person may use, sell, manufacture, or distribute for use or sale a cleaning agent that contains greater than zero percent phosphorus by weight but does not exceed eight and seven-tenths percent phosphorus by weight that is:
(1) a detergent used in a dishwashing machine, whether commercial or household; and
(2) a substance excluded from the zero percent phosphorus limitation of this section by regulations adopted by the Department of Health and Environmental Control which are based on a finding that compliance with this section would:
(i) create a significant hardship on the user; or
(ii) be unreasonable because of the lack of an adequate substitute cleaning agent.
(C) This section does not apply to a cleaning agent that is:
(1) used in dairy, beverage, or food processing equipment;
(2) a product used as an industrial sanitizer, brightener, acid cleaner, or metal conditioner, including phosphoric acid products or trisodium phosphate;
(3) used in hospitals, veterinary hospitals, clinics, or health care facilities or in agricultural or dairy production or in the manufacture of health care supplies;
(4) used by a commercial laundry or textile rental service company or any other commercial entity:
(a) to provide laundry service to hospitals, clinics, nursing homes, other health care facilities, or veterinary hospitals or clinics;
(b) to clean textile products owned by a commercial laundry or textile rental service company and supplied to industrial or commercial users of the products on a rental basis; or
(c) to clean military, professional, industrial, or commercial work uniforms;
(5) used by industry for metal cleaning or conditioning;
(6) manufactured, stored, or distributed for use or sale outside of this State;
(7) used in any laboratory, including a biological laboratory, research facility, chemical laboratory, and engineering laboratory;
(8) used for cleaning hard surfaces, including household cleansers for windows, sinks, counters, ovens, tubs, or other food preparation surfaces and plumbing fixtures;
(9) used as a water softening chemical, antiscale chemical, or corrosion inhibitor intended for use in closed systems such as boilers, air conditioners, cooling towers, or hot water heating systems.
(D) The Department of Health and Environmental Control shall promulgate regulations to administer and enforce the provisions of this section. Any cleaning agent held for sale or distribution in violation of this section may be seized by appropriate administrative or law enforcement personnel. The seized cleaning agents are considered forfeited.
(E) A person who knowingly sells, manufactures, or distributes any cleaning agent in violation of the provisions of this section shall receive a written warning from the Department of Health and Environmental Control for the first violation. For a subsequent violation, the person is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, must be fined not more than five thousand dollars or imprisoned not more than one year. Each unlawful sale constitutes a separate violation."
Time effective
SECTION 2. This act takes effect January 1, 1992.
Approved the 31st day of May, 1991.