(415 ILCS 98/1)
(Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2023)
Sec. 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Mercury Thermostat Collection Act.
(Source: P.A. 96-1295, eff. 7-26-10.)
(415 ILCS 98/5)
(Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2023)
Sec. 5. Legislative findings. The General Assembly finds that:
(415 ILCS 98/10)
(Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2023)
Sec. 10. Definitions.
"Agency" means the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency.
"Board" means the Illinois Pollution Control Board.
"Collection program" means a system for the collection, transportation, recycling, and disposal of out-of-service mercury thermostats that is financed and managed or provided by a thermostat manufacturer individually or collectively with other thermostat manufacturers in accordance with this Act.
"Commercial building" has the meaning ascribed to that term in subsection (d) of Section 10.09-1 of the Capital Development Board Act.
"Contractor" means a person engaged in the business of installation, service, or removal of heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning components.
"Loose mercury ampoule" means an enclosed glass vessel that contains liquid mercury and has been removed intact from a mercury thermostat.
"Mercury thermostat" means a thermostat that meets the definition of a "mercury thermostat" under subsection (f) of Section 22.23b of the Environmental Protection Act.
"Out-of-service mercury thermostat" means a mercury thermostat that is removed, replaced, or otherwise taken out of service.
"Person" means any individual, partnership, co-partnership, firm, company, limited liability company, corporation, association, joint stock company, trust, estate, political subdivision, State agency, or any other legal entity, or its legal representatives, agents, or assigns.
"Qualified contractor" means a person engaged in the business of installation, service, or removal of heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning components who employs 7 or more service technicians or installers or who is located in an area outside of an urban area, as defined by the United States Bureau of the Census.
"Qualified local government authorities" means household hazardous waste facilities, solid waste management agencies, environmental management agencies, or departments of public health.
"Thermostat manufacturer" means a person who owns or owned a name brand of one or more mercury thermostats sold in the State.
"Thermostat retailer" means a person who sells thermostats of any kind primarily to homeowners or other nonprofessionals through any sale or distribution mechanism, including, but not limited to, sales using the Internet or catalogs. A thermostat retailer that meets the definition of thermostat wholesaler shall be considered a thermostat wholesaler.
"Thermostat wholesaler" means a person who is engaged in the distribution and wholesale selling of heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning components, including, but not limited to, thermostats, to contractors, and whose total wholesale sales account for 80% or more of its total sales. A thermostat manufacturer, as defined in this Section, is not a thermostat wholesaler.
(Source: P.A. 99-122, eff. 7-23-15.)
(415 ILCS 98/15)
(Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2023)
Sec. 15. Mercury thermostat collection programs.
(a) Each thermostat manufacturer shall, individually or collectively with other thermostat manufacturers, establish and maintain a collection program for the collection, transportation, and proper management of out-of-service mercury thermostats and loose mercury ampoules in accordance with the provisions of this Act.
(b) Each thermostat manufacturer shall, individually or collectively with other thermostat manufacturers through a collection program, do the following:
(c) If the collection programs do not collectively achieve the collection goals provided for in Section 25 of this Act for calendar year 2013, 2015 or 2017, thermostat manufacturers shall, individually or collectively, submit to the Agency for review and approval proposed revisions to the collection programs that are designed to achieve the goals in subsequent calendar years. The proposed revisions shall be submitted to the Agency with the annual report required in Section 20 of this Act.
(d) Within 90 days after receipt of the proposed collection program revisions required under subsection (c) of this Section, the Agency shall review and (i) approve, (ii) disapprove, or (iii) approve with modifications the proposed collection program revisions.
(Source: P.A. 99-122, eff. 7-23-15.)
(415 ILCS 98/20)
(Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2023)
Sec. 20. Reporting on collection efforts.
(a) No later than September 1 of each year, each thermostat manufacturer shall, individually or collectively with other thermostat manufacturers, submit a mid-term report on its collection program to the Agency covering the six-month period beginning on January 1st of the year in which the report is due. The mid-term report shall identify the number of out-of-service mercury thermostats and the number of loose mercury ampoules collected under the program and a listing of all collection sites in the State.
(b) No later than April 1 of each year, each thermostat manufacturer shall, individually or collectively with other thermostat manufacturers, submit an annual report on its collection program to the Agency covering the one-year period ending December 31st of the previous year. Each report shall be posted on the manufacturer's or program operator's respective internet website. The annual report shall include, but not be limited to, the following:
(Source: P.A. 99-122, eff. 7-23-15.)
(415 ILCS 98/25)
(Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2023)
Sec. 25. Collection goals. The collection programs established by thermostat manufacturers under this Act shall be designed to collectively achieve the following statewide goals:
The collection goals established by the Agency under subsection (c) of this Section are statements of general applicability under Section 1-70 of the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act and shall be adopted in accordance with the procedures of that Act. Any person adversely affected by a goal established by the Agency under subsection (c) of this Section may obtain a determination of the validity or application of the goal by filing a petition for review within 35 days after the date the adopted goal is published in the Illinois Register pursuant to subsection (d) of Section 5-40 of the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act. Review shall be afforded directly in the Appellate Court for the District in which the cause of action arose and not the Circuit Court. During the pendency of the review, the goal under review shall remain in effect.
For the purposes of determining compliance with the collection goals established under this Section, for calendar year 2015 and for each calendar year thereafter, the number of out-of-service mercury thermostats represented by loose ampoules shall be calculated:
(415 ILCS 98/30)
(Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2023)
Sec. 30. Management of out-of-service mercury thermostats and loose mercury ampoules. All contractors, thermostat wholesalers, thermostat manufacturers, and thermostat retailers participating in the program shall handle and manage out-of-service mercury thermostats and loose mercury ampoules in a manner that is consistent with the provisions of the universal waste regulations adopted by the Board.
(Source: P.A. 99-122, eff. 7-23-15.)
(415 ILCS 98/35)
(Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2023)
Sec. 35. Thermostat wholesaler and contractor responsibilities.
(a) On and after July 1, 2011, no thermostat wholesaler shall sell, offer to sell, distribute, or offer to distribute thermostats unless the wholesaler:
(b) On or after July 1, 2011, no contractor or other person shall remove, replace, or otherwise take out of service a mercury thermostat unless the contractor or person delivers it to a collection site established under this Act.
(Source: P.A. 96-1295, eff. 7-26-10.)
(415 ILCS 98/40)
(Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2023)
Sec. 40. Agency responsibilities.
(a) The Agency shall maintain on its website information regarding the collection and proper management of out-of-service mercury thermostats and loose mercury ampoules in the State. The information shall include, but is not limited to, the following:
(b) No later than November 1, 2019, the Agency shall submit a written report to the Governor and General Assembly regarding the effectiveness of the collection programs established under this Act, information on the number of out-of-service thermostats and loose mercury ampoules collected, how the out-of-service thermostats and loose mercury ampoules were managed, and an estimate of the number of thermostats that are available for collection. The Agency shall use this information to recommend whether the sunset date specified in Section 55 for this Act should be extended, along with any other statutory changes. In preparing the report, the Agency shall consult with mercury thermostat manufacturers, environmental organizations, and other interest groups.
(c) In conjunction with the educational and outreach programs implemented by the thermostat manufacturers under this Act, the Agency shall conduct outreach to promote the collection and proper management of out-of-service mercury thermostats and loose mercury ampoules.
(Source: P.A. 99-122, eff. 7-23-15.)
(415 ILCS 98/45)
(Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2023)
Sec. 45. Penalties.
(a) Any thermostat manufacturer that violates any provision of this Act or any rule adopted by the Agency pursuant to this Act, or that fails to perform any duty imposed by this Act shall be liable for a civil penalty not to exceed $2,500 per day for each violation. Each violation of this Act shall constitute a separate offense and violation.
(b) Any thermostat wholesaler, contractor, or other person that violates any provision of this Act, or any rule adopted by the Agency pursuant to this Act, or that fails to perform any duty imposed by this Act shall be liable for a civil penalty not to exceed $500 per day for each violation. Each violation of this Act shall constitute a separate offense and violation.
(c) The penalties provided for in this Section may be recovered in a civil action brought in the name of the people of the State of Illinois by the State's Attorney of the county in which the violation occurred or by the Attorney General. Any funds collected under this Section in an action in which the Attorney General has prevailed shall be deposited in the Environmental Protection Trust Fund, to be used in accordance with the provisions of the Environmental Trust Fund Act.
(d) There shall be no penalty under this Section for a thermostat manufacturer's failure to achieve the statewide collection goals set forth in Section 25 of this Act.
(Source: P.A. 96-1295, eff. 7-26-10.)
(415 ILCS 98/50)
(Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2023)
Sec. 50. Disposal prohibition.
(a) Beginning July 1, 2011, no person may knowingly cause or allow the mixing of an out-of-service mercury thermostat with any other municipal waste that is intended for disposal at a sanitary landfill.
(b) Beginning July 1, 2011, no person may knowingly cause or allow the disposal of an out-of-service mercury thermostat in a sanitary landfill.
(Source: P.A. 96-1295, eff. 7-26-10.)
(415 ILCS 98/51)
(Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2023)
Sec. 51. Removal of mercury thermostats from commercial buildings prior to demolition. Beginning January 1, 2016, no person shall demolish a commercial building unless (i) all mercury thermostats have been removed from the building and (ii) the person who removed the thermostats from the building has arranged for them to be delivered to a collection site established under this Act.
(Source: P.A. 99-122, eff. 7-23-15.)
(415 ILCS 98/55)
(Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2023)
Sec. 55. Repealer. This Act is repealed on January 1, 2023.
(Source: P.A. 101-639, eff. 6-12-20; 102-20, eff. 1-1-22.)
(415 ILCS 98/99)
(Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2023)
Sec. 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law.
(Source: P.A. 96-1295, eff. 7-26-10.)