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| AN ACT in relation to public health and environmental |
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| protection.
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| Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, |
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| represented in the General Assembly:
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| Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the |
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| Mercury-Containing Products Act. |
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| Section 5. Findings. The General Assembly finds:
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| (1) That mercury is a potent neurotoxin that can cause |
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| long-lasting health problems;
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| (2) That high mercury levels in our State's waterways |
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| have forced officials to issue advisories warning certain |
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| people to restrict eating predator fish caught from lakes |
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| and streams;
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| (3) That mercury can be found in thousands of products |
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| and applications;
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| (4) That mercury from consumer products may make its |
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| way into waterways when discharged down the drain, |
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| incinerated, or landfilled;
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| (5) That accidental mercury spills, breakages, and |
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| releases have occurred at schools throughout the country |
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| and that these spills have proven costly to clean up and |
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| have exposed students, teachers, and administrators to |
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| potentially harmful mercury emissions; and
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| (6) That in some cases, reduction or removal of |
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| mercury-containing products from the waste stream prior to |
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| disposal can be a cost-effective way to reduce mercury from |
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| waste management or treatment facilities.
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| Section 10. Definitions. As used in this Act:
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| "Agency" means the Environmental Protection Agency. |
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| "Board" means the Illinois Pollution Control Board. |
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| "Manufacturer" includes any person that produces a |
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| mercury-added product or an importer or domestic distributor of |
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| a mercury-added product produced in a foreign country. In the |
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| case of a multicomponent product containing mercury, the |
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| manufacturer is the last manufacturer to produce or assemble |
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| the product. If the mercury-added product is produced in a |
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| foreign country, then the manufacturer is the first importer or |
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| domestic distributor of that product. |
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| "Mercury-added product" means any of the following items if |
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| it contains mercury added during manufacture: |
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| (A) A switch or other device, individually or as part |
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| of another product; used to measure, control, or regulate |
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| gas, other fluids, or electricity; |
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| (B) A scientific instrument or instructional |
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| equipment; and
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| (C) An electric relay or other electrical device. |
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| For the purposes of this Act, "mercury-added product" does not |
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| include any formulated mercury-added products, including, but |
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| not limited to, pharmaceutical products, animal vaccines, |
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| biologics, and reagents. |
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| "Mercury relay" means a mercury-added product or device |
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| that opens or closes electrical contacts to effect the |
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| operation of other devices in the same or another electrical |
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| circuit. "Mercury relay" includes mercury displacement relays, |
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| mercury wetted reed relays, and mercury contact relays. |
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| "Mercury switch" means a mercury-added product or device |
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| that opens or closes an electrical circuit or gas valve, |
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| including mercury float switches actuated by rising or falling |
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| liquid levels, mercury tilt switches actuated by a change in |
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| the switch position, mercury pressure switches actuated by a |
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| change in pressure, mercury temperature switches actuated by a |
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| change in temperature, and mercury flame sensors. "Mercury |
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| switch" does not include a mercury-added thermostat or switch |
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| used in medical diagnostic equipment regulated under the |
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| federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act.
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| "Motor vehicle component" means a mercury-added product |
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| that is a component in a motor vehicle, including, but not |
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| limited to, a mercury headlamp and a mercury light switch. |
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| "Mercury thermostat" means a mercury-added product |
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| commonly used to sense and, through electrical communication |
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| with heating, cooling, or ventilation equipment, control room |
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| temperature. |
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| "Person" includes an individual, a firm, an association, a |
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| partnership, a corporation, a governmental entity, an |
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| organization, a joint venture, and any other legal entity.
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| Section 15. Sales and use restrictions. |
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| (a) Beginning July 1, 2005, a school may not purchase, for |
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| use in a primary or secondary classroom, bulk elemental |
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| mercury, chemicals containing mercury compounds, or |
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| mercury-added instructional equipment and materials, except |
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| mercury-added measuring devices and thermometers for which no |
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| adequate substitute exists for use as teaching aids. Other |
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| mercury-added products that are used by schools are not subject |
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| to this prohibition.
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| (b) Beginning July 1, 2007, a person may not sell or |
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| distribute or offer to sell or distribute a mercury switch or |
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| mercury relay individually or as a product component. This |
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| prohibition does not apply if the switch or relay is used to |
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| replace a switch or relay that is a component in a larger |
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| product in use prior to July 1, 2007, and one of the following |
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| applies:
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| (1) the larger product is used in manufacturing; or
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| (2) the switch or relay is integrated and not |
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| physically separate from other components of the larger |
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| product. |
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| This subsection (b) does not apply to the sale of a mercury |
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| switch or mercury relay if use of the switch or relay is |
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| required under federal law or federal contract specifications. |
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| For a product that contains one or more mercury-added products |
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| subject to this Act, this Section is applicable to each |
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| component part or parts, and not to the entire product.
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| Section 20. Exemptions.
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| (a) A manufacturer of a mercury-added product subject to |
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| this Act may apply to the Agency on or before July 1, 2006 for |
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| an exemption from the provisions of this Act for one or more |
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| specific uses of a mercury-added product by filing a written |
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| petition with the Agency. The Agency may grant an exemption |
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| with or without conditions upon finding that: |
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| (1) The manufacturer has demonstrated that a |
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| convenient and widely available system exists for the |
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| proper collection, transportation, and processing of the |
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| mercury-added product at the end of its useful life; and
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| (2) The specific use or uses of the mercury-added |
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| product provides a net benefit to the environment, public |
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| health, or public safety when compared to available |
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| nonmercury alternatives. |
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| (b) Before approving any exemption under this Act, the |
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| Agency must consult with other states and regional |
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| organizations to promote consistency in the regulation of |
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| mercury-added products. Exemptions may be granted for a term |
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| not to exceed 5 years and may be renewed upon written |
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| application if the Agency finds that the mercury-containing |
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| product continues to meet the criteria for the original |
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| approval of the exemption.
The Agency must adopt rules for |
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| processing exemption applications. These rules must provide |
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| for public participation.
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| Section 25. Universal waste rules. On or before July 1, |
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| 2006, the Board must modify its rules governing universal |
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| hazardous waste as appropriate to promote the recycling, |
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| recovery, and proper management of elemental mercury and |
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| mercury-added products on a statewide basis.
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| Section 30. Report. The Agency must submit a report by |
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| January 1, 2005, to the Governor and members of the General |
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| Assembly. The report must include: |
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| (A) An evaluation of programs to reduce and recycle |
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| mercury from mercury thermostats and mercury vehicle |
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| components; and
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| (B) Recommendations for altering the programs to make |
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| them more effective.
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| In preparing the report, the Agency may seek information from |
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| and consult with businesses, trade associations, environmental |
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| organizations, and other government agencies. |
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| Section 40. Penalties. A violation of this Act is |
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| punishable by a civil penalty not to exceed $1,000 for each |
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| violation in the case of a first violation. Repeat violations |
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| are liable for a civil penalty not to exceed $5,000 for each |
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| repeat violation. |
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| Section 90. The Environmental Protection Act is amended by |
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| changing Section 22.28a as follows:
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| (415 ILCS 5/22.28a)
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| Sec. 22.28a. White goods and end-of-life motor vehicles
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| handled by scrap dealership ,
or junkyard , or vehicle recycler .
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| (a) No owner, operator, agent, or employee of a junkyard or |
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| scrap dealership
may knowingly shred, scrap, dismantle, |
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| recycle, incinerate, handle, store, or
otherwise manage any |
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| white good that contains any white good components in
violation |
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| of this Act or any other applicable State or federal law. |
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| Beginning January 1, 2006, no vehicle recycler may knowingly |
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| shred, scrap, dismantle, recycle, incinerate, handle, store, |
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| or otherwise manage any end-of-life motor vehicle that contains |
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| any mercury light switches or mercury headlamps in violation of |
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| this Act or any other applicable State or federal law.
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| (b) For the purposes of this Section : |
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| (1) The
, the terms "white goods" and "white
goods |
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| components" have the same meaning as in Section 22.28. |
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| (2) "Vehicle recycler" means any owner, operator, |
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| agent, or employee of a business engaged in the business of |
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| acquiring, dismantling, or crushing 6 or more motor |
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| vehicles in a calendar year for the primary purpose of |
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| resale of their parts or materials. |
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| (3) "End-of-life motor vehicle" means any motor |
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| vehicle that is sold, given, or otherwise conveyed to a |
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| motor vehicle crusher, recycler, or scrap recycling |
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| facility for the purposes of recycling. |
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| (4) "Mercury light switch" means a mercury switch used |
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| for the purpose of turning a light bulb or lamp on and off. |
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| (5) "Mercury headlamp" means a mercury-added lamp that |
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| is mounted on the front of a motor vehicle to illuminate |
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| the roadway.
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| (Source: P.A. 92-447, eff. 8-21-01.)
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| Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon |
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| becoming law. |