HBA-CCH H.B. 2950 77(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 2950 By: Chavez Public Health 3/30/2001 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Current law prohibits the sale of abusable glues and aerosol paints and other abusable products that contain specific percentages of volatile chemicals such as tolune, xylene, methyl alcohol, and benzene that are found in gasoline fuel additives, carburetor and fuel injector cleaners, aerosol solvents, thinners, dyes, and acids. Although current law authorizes the Texas Department of Health (TDH) to provide permits to retailers that sell abusable glues and aerosol paints and to inspect those retailers for compliance with relevant law, TDH is not provided the same powers related to retailers that sell other abusable chemicals. The separate standards can create complications for retailers and regulators alike. House Bill 2950 repeals existing law pertaining to volatile chemicals, expands current law related to abusable glues and aerosol paints to include abusable volatile chemicals, and establishes the inhalant abuse prevention account. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that rulemaking authority is expressly delegated to the Texas Board of Health in SECTION 1 (Sections 485.011, 485.013, and 485.014, Health and Safety Code) of this bill. ANALYSIS House Bill 2950 amends the Health and Safety Code to repeal current law related to volatile chemicals and to expand law pertaining to abusable glues and paints to include abusable volatile chemicals. The bill requires the Texas Board of Health (board) to adopt rules to administer the provisions of the bill, including the issuance and renewal of a permit to sell abusable volatile chemicals (Sec.485.013). The bill authorizes the board to establish, by rule, fees in amounts not to exceed $50 for the issuance of a permit (Sec. 485.014). The bill requires the comptroller to deposit the amounts received from the permit fees in the state treasury to the credit of a separate account in the general revenue fund to be known as the inhalant abuse prevention account. The money in the account may only be used by the Texas Department of Health for purposes related to abusable volatile chemicals as specified in the bill (Sec. 485.017). The bill provides that it is a defense to prosecution related to the delivery of an abusable volatile chemical to a person younger than 18 years of age if the person making the delivery is not the manufacturer of the chemical and the manufacturer failed to label the chemical in a manner that provided notice that the chemical was vapor harmful (Sec. 485.033). EFFECTIVE DATE September 1, 2001.