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2002 SESSION

• | print version

SB 392 Sale of mercury fever thermometers prohibited.

Introduced by: Mary Margaret Whipple | all patrons    ...    notes | add to my profiles

SUMMARY AS PASSED SENATE: (all summaries)

Sale of mercury fever thermometers prohibited. Requires a ban on the sale of liquid mercury fever thermometers in Virginia. This bill states that the General Assembly finds that (i) mercury has been identified as a potent neurotoxin, the exposure to which can cause irreversible brain damage to developing children, significant harm to pregnant women and their fetuses, and has caused reproductive and behavioral deficits in animals; (ii) a primary source of mercury in the environment has been shown to be the inappropriate disposal of broken liquid mercury fever thermometers; and (iii) through the use of digital fever thermometers, mercury exposure can be avoided. Further, broken liquid mercury fever thermometers can pose great hazards to children and pregnant women when mercury vapor is inhaled as a result of inadvertently breaking fever thermometers in the home. Any person violating the prohibition against the sale of liquid mercury fever thermometers will be subject to the general penalties for violations of Title 32.1 statutes and Board of Health regulations, for example, Class 1 misdemeanor and fines of up to $10,000 per violation. A second enactment clause requires the Department of Health, in cooperation with the Department of Environmental Quality, to provide information on the proper disposal of liquid mercury fever thermometers to local governments and other landfill operators for the purpose of informing the public about the proper disposal of liquid mercury fever thermometers.

FULL TEXT

• 01/09/02  Senate: Presented & ordered printed, prefiled 01/09/02 026349564  pdf | impact statement
• 02/04/02  Senate: Printed as engrossed 026349564-E  pdf | impact statement

AMENDMENTS

• Senate amendments

HISTORY

• 01/09/02  Senate: Presented & ordered printed, prefiled 01/09/02 026349564
• 01/09/02  Senate: Referred to Committee on Education and Health
• 01/31/02  Senate: Reported from Ed. & H. with amendments (15-Y 0-N)
• 02/01/02  Senate: Constitutional reading dispensed (38-Y 0-N)
• 02/01/02  Senate: VOTE: CONST. RDG. DISPENSED R (38-Y 0-N)
• 02/04/02  Senate: Read second time
• 02/04/02  Senate: Reading of amendments waived
• 02/04/02  Senate: Committee amendments agreed to
• 02/04/02  Senate: Title replaced
• 02/04/02  Senate: Engrossed by Senate as amended
• 02/04/02  Senate: Printed as engrossed 026349564-E
• 02/05/02  Senate: Read third time and passed Senate (39-Y 0-N)
• 02/05/02  Senate: VOTE: PASSAGE R (39-Y 0-N)
• 02/05/02  Senate: Communicated to House
• 02/13/02  House: Placed on Calendar
• 02/13/02  House: Read first time
• 02/13/02  House: Referred to Committee on Health, Welfare and Institutions
• 02/19/02  House: Tabled in H. W. I. (13-Y 9-N)