The governator has veto'd AB48 which would have directly mapped California RoHS to the EU RoHS legislation.
The text of his letter to the California senate assembly is here:
"To the Members of the California State Assembly:
I am returning Assembly Bill 48 without my signature.
This bill exponentially expands the scope of electrical and electronic equipment subject
to the Restriction on the use of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) provisions under the
California Waste Recycling Act. Unfortunately, the approach taken in this bill is largely
unworkable and instead of the benefits it seeks to accomplish, could ultimately result in
unintended and potentially more harmful consequences.
This bill purports to impose restrictions similar to those already in place in the European
Union, but the deviations it takes from the European Union approach are fatally flawed.
For example, the exemption language for spare parts and refurbished products, as
currently written in this bill, will make many electronic products prematurely obsolete
and force their retirement years earlier than necessary. The European Union RoHS
Directive includes a specific exemption for spare and refurbished products to promote
and extend the lives of electronic products and keep them out of the waste stream.
Additionally, this bill significantly expands the list of products subject to California’s
restriction on the use of specified hazardous metals. Existing law covers nine categories
of video display devices. This bill is overly broad in its scope because it would prohibit
the sale of potentially tens of thousands of electrical and electronic products for
California’s consumers and businesses.
Sincerely,
Arnold Schwarzenegger"
The pdf document can be downloadede from the CA government web site at :
http://gov.ca.gov/pdf/press/2007bills/AB%2048%20Veto%20Message.pdf
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