SENATE RULES COMMITTEE
Office of Senate Floor Analyses
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AB 362
THIRD READING
Bill No:
Author:
Amended:
Vote:
AB 362
Waldron (R)
3/16/15 in Assembly
21
SENATE GOVERNMENTAL ORG. COMMITTEE: 13-0, 6/9/15
AYES: Hall, Berryhill, Block, Gaines, Galgiani, Glazer, Hernandez, Hill, Hueso,
Lara, McGuire, Runner, Vidak
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: Senate Rule 28.8
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 78-0, 4/23/15 (Consent) - See last page for vote
SUBJECT: State printing: demonstration project: process free printing
SOURCE: Author
DIGEST: This bill allows the Department of General Services (DGS) to engage
in a pilot program to show the environmental and economic benefits that may be
achieved by utilizing “process free printing plates.” This bill requires that if DGS
conducts such a pilot, that the participating private vendor will pay for the project’s
cost.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law:
1) Requires that all the state printing shall be done in the Office of State Printing.
2) Specifies that DGS shall execute promptly all order for printing or binding
received from the various state agencies.
This bill:
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1) Authorizes DGS to engage in a “process free printing plates” pilot project to
demonstrate the possible environmental and economic benefits of this
technology and associated technology for state printing jobs.
2) Specifies that DGS shall make best efforts to adhere to the following best
practices:
a) Reduce the overall chemical usage in making printing plates.
b) Maximize the use of low-volatile organic compounds and less hazardous
chemicals.
c) Minimize water usage.
d) Reduce electricity usage.
e) Maximize the recycling of paper, ink, aluminum plates, and related
materials.
f) Reduce the carbon footprint.
3) Requires that if DGS conducts such a pilot, the participating private vendor
shall pay for costs associated with the demonstration project, including process
free printing plates, necessary for the pilot project.
4) Defines “process free printing plates” as printing plates that can be put on press
in offset printing, also known as lithography, immediately after imaging on a
platesetter, with no intermediary plate processing step required.
Background
Purpose of the bill. According to the author, traditional printing plates are imaged
on a platesetter, and then the plates are run through a bath of chemical developer
and water in the plate processing equipment. Once processed, the plates are put on
the printing press to begin the printing. The author argues that this process uses a
lot of water and a lot of chemicals that are hard on the environment.
The author concludes that process free plates use newer technology to skip the
chemical processing step completely which dramatically reduces water and
chemical use compared to the traditional printing process.
Kodak’s SONORA XP Process Free Plate. Kodak’s SONORA XP Process Free
Plate is a thermal plate that requires no processing equipment or chemistry, using
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press-ready technology to enable a printer to go directly from platesetter to press
with no intermediary processing or clean-out step. According to the Kodak Web
site, benefits of Process Free Plates include the reduction of energy, water, and
chemistry costs; freeing up space by eliminating processing equipment; eliminating
the variability from processing to improve consistency and quality; getting to press
faster; reducing maintenance costs and downtime with less equipment; and
providing a cleaner and safer working environment.
Prior/Related Legislation
SB 1079 (Walters, Chapter 513, Statutes of 2010) clarified the placement of paid
advertisements in state agency publications to reflect current practice.
SB 528 (Maldonado, Chapter 381, Statutes of 2005) struck the sunset on the
Advertising Pilot Project which allows state agencies to include advertisements in
their publications as a means of reducing printing costs.
AB 2315 (Chu, Chapter 220, Statutes of 2002) allowed the Office of State Printing
to accept paid advertisements in materials printed or published by the state.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No
Fiscal Com.:
Yes
Local: No
SUPPORT: (Verified 6/22/15)
Kodak
OPPOSITION: (Verified 6/22/15)
None received
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT: According to Kodak, “offset printing, the
dominant printing method, typically uses traditional printing plates that are
developed in a bath of chemicals, consuming much precious water in the process.
Kodak argues that process free printing plates use newer technology that skips the
chemical processing stem completely; saving water and energy, removing
chemical and waste, and reducing the overall carbon footprint of printing.”
Kodak concludes that, “this bill would show state government how it could
exercise more leadership in environmental stewardship through the use of green
procurement and sustainable management practices while maintaining high quality
print projects for all government clients it serves.”
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Page 4
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 78-0, 4/23/15
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Travis Allen, Baker, Bigelow, Bloom, Bonilla, Bonta,
Brough, Brown, Burke, Calderon, Chang, Chau, Chávez, Chiu, Chu, Cooley,
Cooper, Dababneh, Dahle, Daly, Dodd, Eggman, Frazier, Beth Gaines,
Gallagher, Cristina Garcia, Eduardo Garcia, Gatto, Gipson, Gomez, Gonzalez,
Gordon, Gray, Grove, Hadley, Harper, Roger Hernández, Holden, Irwin, Jones,
Jones-Sawyer, Kim, Lackey, Levine, Linder, Lopez, Low, Maienschein, Mathis,
Mayes, McCarty, Medina, Melendez, Mullin, Nazarian, Obernolte, O'Donnell,
Olsen, Patterson, Perea, Quirk, Rendon, Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez, Santiago,
Steinorth, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting, Wagner, Waldron, Weber, Wilk,
Williams, Wood, Atkins
NO VOTE RECORDED: Campos, Salas
Prepared by: Felipe Lopez / G.O. / (916) 651-1530
7/9/15 8:57:42
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