The federal Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) contains specific directives for state governments for the implementation of EPCRA at the state level. The EPCRA program as it applies to California was promulgated in the state Health and Safety Code, Title 19, and in Executive Orders. The federal EPCRA program is implemented and administered in California by the California Emergency Management Agency (Cal EMA), a State Emergency Response Commission (SERC), six local Emergency Planning Committees (LEPCs), and 83 Certified Unified Program Agencies (CUPAs). Cal EMA provides staff support to the SERC and the LEPCs.
The SERC directives and membership are specified in Executive Order W-40-93.
The California SERC (also known as the Chemical Emergency Planning and Response Commission (CEPRC)) oversees implementation of EPCRA in California through the following responsibilities:
- By establishing the emergency planning districts the same as the Cal EMA Mutual Aid Regions
- Appointing 6 LEPCs one for each planning district and supervising and coordinating their activities
- Establishing procedures for receiving and processing requests from the public for hazardous materials information, as administered by Cal EMA and CUPAs
- Receiving disclosure notification from facilities handling hazardous materials when they are subject to EPCRA requirements, as administered by Cal EMA and CUPAs. Click on the folllowing link for Spill Notification information.
- Notifying the U.S. EPA Administrator of facilities subject to EPCRA requirements, as administered by Cal EMA
- Reviewing emergency response plans and make recommendations necessary to ensure coordination with emergency response plans of other emergency planning jurisdictions, as administered by Cal EMA.
The SERC Chair is the Secretary of Cal EMA: The SERC address is:
State Emergency Response Commission
c/o California Emergency Management Agency
Hazardous Materials Section
3650 Schriever Avenue
Mather, CA 95655
(916) 845-8798
The SERC Mission is to coordinate and supervise implementation of EPCRA within California including federal programs to prevent, mitigate, and enhance response to hazardous material emergencies and ensure public availability of appropriate chemical information as prescribed by law.
Statute: Health and Safety Code, Chapter 6.95, Article 1
Regulation: Title 19, California Code of Regulations, Section 2720 et. seq.
Related Federal Program: United States Code, Title 42, Section 11001 et. seq.