A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT making technical, conforming, and other changes to the Labor LAws of North Carolina.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  G.S. 95‑25.5(a) reads as rewritten:
"(a)	No youth under 18 years of age shall be employed by any employer in any occupation without a youth employment certificate unless specifically exempted. The Commissioner of Labor shall prescribe regulations for youths and employers concerning the issuance, maintenance and revocation of certificates. Certificates will be issued by the Commissioner, both directly and electronically."
SECTION 2.  G.S. 95‑117(4) reads as rewritten:
"(4)	Passenger tramway. – A device used to transport passengers uphill on skis, or in cars on tracks, or suspended in the air by the use of steel cables, chains or belts, or by ropes, and usually supported by trestles or towers with one or more spans. The term includes any of the following devices:
a.	Chairlift. – A type of transportation on which passengers are carried on chairs suspended in the air and attached to a moving cable, chain or link belt supported by trestles or towers with one or more spans, or similar devices.
a1.	Conveyor. – A type of transportation on which passengers are transported uphill on a flexible moving element (conveyor belt) that travels uphill on one path and generally returns underneath the uphill portion.
a2.	Funicular. – A system in which passengers are transported in or on carriers that are supported and guided by a level or inclined guideway and propelled by means of a haul rope or other flexible element that is driven by a power unit remaining essentially at a single location.
a3.	Gondola. – An enclosed cabin attached to a cable that mechanically transports people or cargo.
b.	J bar, T bar, or platter pull. – Devices which pull skiers riding on skis by means of an attachment to a main overhead cable supported by trestles or towers with one or more spans.
c.	Multicar aerial passenger tramway. – A device used to transport passengers in several open or in closed cars attached to, and suspended from, a moving wire rope or attached to a moving wire rope and supported on a standing wire rope, or similar device.
d.	Rope tow. – A type of transportation which pulls the skiers, riding on skis as the skier grasps the rope manually, or similar device.
e.	Skimobile. – A device in which a passenger car running on steel or wooden tracks is attached to and pulled by a steel cable, or similar device.
f.	Two‑car aerial passenger tramway. – A device used to transport passengers in two open or enclosed cars attached to, and suspended from, a moving wire rope or attached to a moving wire rope and supported on a standing wire rope or similar device."
SECTION 3.  G.S. 95‑120(1) reads as rewritten:
"(1)	To adopt, modify, or revoke the rules necessary for carrying out the provisions of this Article, including those governing the design, construction, installation, operation, use, and maintenance of devices subject to the provisions of this Article. Rules adopted under this subdivision shall conform with good engineering and safety standards, formulas, and practices."
SECTION 4.  Article 15 of Chapter 95 of the General Statutes is amended by adding the following new sections to read:
"§ 95‑125.1.  Operation of unsafe device.
No person shall operate, permit to be operated, or use any device subject to the provisions of this Article if the person knows or reasonably should know that the operation or use of the device will expose the public to an unsafe condition which is likely to result in personal injury or property damage.
"§ 95‑125.2.  Reports required.
(a)	The owner of any device regulated under the provisions of this Article, or the owner's authorized agent, shall, within 24 hours, notify the Commissioner of each and every occurrence involving the device when either of the following occurs:
(1)	Death or injury requiring medical treatment, other than first aid, by a physician. For the purposes of this section, "first aid" means (i) the one‑time treatment or observation of scratches, cuts not requiring stitches, burns, splinters, or contusions or (ii) performing a diagnostic procedure, including examination and x‑rays, which does not ordinarily require medical treatment even though provided by a physician or other licensed personnel.
(2)	Damage to the device indicating a substantial defect in design, mechanics, structure, or equipment that affects the future safe operation of the device. No reporting is required in the case of normal wear and tear.
(b)	The Commissioner, without delay, after notification and determination that an occurrence involving injury or damage as specified in subsection (a) of this section has occurred, shall make a complete and thorough investigation of the occurrence. The report of the investigation shall be placed on file in the office of the division and shall give in detail all facts and information available. The owner may submit for inclusion in the file results of investigations independent of the department's investigation.
(c)	No person, after an occurrence specified in subsection (a) of this section, shall do either of the following:
(1)	Operate, attempt to operate, use, or move or attempt to move such device or part thereof, without the approval of the Commissioner, unless so as to prevent injury to any person or persons.
(2)	Remove or attempt to remove from the premises any damaged or undamaged part of such device or repair or attempt to repair any damaged part necessary to a complete and thorough investigation. The Department must initiate its investigation within 24 hours of being notified.
"§ 95‑125.3.  Violations; civil penalties; appeal, criminal penalties.
(a)	Any person who violates G.S. 95‑118 (Registration required; application procedures) is subject to a civil penalty not to exceed one thousand two hundred fifty dollars ($1,250) for each day each device is so operated or used.
(b)	Any person who violates G.S. 95‑120.1 (Liability insurance) or G.S. 95‑125.2 (Reports required) is subject to a civil penalty not to exceed two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500) for each day each device is so operated and used.
(c)	Any person who violates G.S. 95‑125.1 (Operation of unsafe device) is subject to a civil penalty not to exceed five thousand dollars ($5,000) for each day each device is so operated and used.
(d)	In determining the amount of any penalty ordered under authority of this section, the Commissioner shall give due consideration to the appropriateness of the penalty with respect to the annual gross volume of the person being charged, the gravity of the violation, the good faith of the person, and the record of previous violations.
(e)	The Commissioner's determination of the amount of the penalty is final, unless, within 15 days after receipt of notice thereof, by certified mail with return receipt, by signature confirmation as provided by the U.S. Postal Service, by a designated delivery service authorized pursuant to 26 U.S.C. § 7502(f)(2) with delivery receipt, or via hand delivery, the person charged with the violation takes exception to the determination, in which event final determination of the penalty shall be made in an administrative proceeding pursuant to Chapter 150B of the General Statutes, the Administrative Procedures Act.
(f)	The Commissioner may file in the office of the clerk of the superior court of the county wherein the person, against whom a civil penalty has been ordered, resides, or, if a corporation is involved, in the county wherein the violation occurred, a certified copy of a final order of the Commissioner unappealed from, or of a final order of the Commissioner affirmed upon appeal. Upon such filing, the clerk of said court shall enter judgment in accordance with the final order and notify the parties. The judgment shall have the same effect, and all proceedings in relation to the judgment shall thereafter be the same, as though the judgment had been rendered in a suit duly heard and determined by the superior court of the General Court of Justice.
(g)	Except as provided under subsection (h) of this section, any person who willfully violates any provision of this Article is guilty of a Class 2 misdemeanor, which may include a fine of not more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000); except that if the conviction is for a violation committed after a first conviction of the person, the person shall be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor, which may include a fine of not more than twenty thousand dollars ($20,000).
(h)	Any person who willfully violates any provision of this Article, and that violation causes the serious injury or death of any person, is guilty of a Class E felony, which shall include a fine.
(i)	Nothing in this section prevents any prosecuting officer of the State of North Carolina from proceeding against a person who violates this Article on a prosecution charging any degree of willful or culpable homicide."
SECTION 5.  G.S. 95‑174 reads as rewritten:
"§ 95‑174.  Definitions.
(a)	"Chemical manufacturer" means a manufacturing facility classified in North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) Codes 31 through 33 where chemicals are produced for use or distribution in North Carolina.
(b)	"Chemical name" means the scientific designation of a chemical in accordance with the nomenclature system developed by the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC), or the Chemical Abstracts Service (CAS) rules of nomenclature or a name which will clearly identify the chemical for the purpose of conducting a hazard evaluation.
(c)	"Common name" means any designation or identification such as a code name, code number, trade name, brand name or generic name used to identify a chemical other than by its chemical name.
(d)	"Distributor" means any business, other than a chemical manufacturer or importer, which supplies hazardous chemicals to other distributors or to purchasers.
(e)	"Employee" means any person who is employed by an employer under normal operating conditions.
(f)	"Employer" means a person engaged in business who has employees, including the State and its political subdivisions but excluding an individual whose only employees are domestic workers or casual laborers who are hired to work at the individual's residence.
(g)	"Facility" means one or more establishments, factories, or buildings located at one contiguous site in North Carolina.
(h)	"Fire Chief" means Fire Chief or Fire Marshall, or Emergency Response Coordinator in the absence of a Fire Chief or Fire Marshall for the appropriate local fire department.
(i)	Repealed by Session Laws 1987, c. 489, s. 1.
(j)	"Fire Department" means the fire department having jurisdiction over the facility.
(k)	"Hazardous chemical" means any element, chemical compound or mixture of elements and/or compounds which is a physical hazard or health hazard as defined in subsection (c) of the OSHNC Standard or a hazardous substance as defined in standards adopted by the Occupational Safety and Health Division of the North Carolina Department of Labor in Title 13, Chapter 7 of the North Carolina Administrative Code (13 NCAC 7).
(l)	"Hazardous Substance List" means the list required by G.S. 95‑191.
(m)	"Hazardous substance trade secret" means any formula, plan, pattern, device, process, production information, or compilation of information, which is not patented, which is known only to the employer, the employer's licensees, the employer's employees, and certain other individuals, and which is used or developed for use in the employer's business, and which gives the employer possessing it the opportunity to obtain a competitive advantage over businesses who do not possess it, or the secrecy of which is certified by an appropriate official of the federal government as necessary for national defense purposes. The chemical name and Chemical Abstracts Service number of a substance shall be considered a trade secret only if the employer can establish that the identity or composition of the substance cannot be readily ascertained without undue expense by analytical techniques, laboratory procedures, or other lawful means available to a competitor.
(n)	"Label" means any written, printed, or graphic material displayed on or affixed to containers of hazardous chemicals.
(o)	"Manufacturing facility" means a facility classified in NAICS Codes 31 through 33 which manufactures or uses a hazardous chemical or chemicals in North Carolina.
(p)	"Safety Data Sheets" or "SDS" means chemical information sheets adopted by the Occupational Safety and Health Division of the North Carolina Department of Labor in Title 13, Chapter 7 of the North Carolina Administrative Code (13 NCAC 7).
(q)	"Nonmanufacturing facility" means any facility in North Carolina other than a facility in NAICS Codes 31 through 33, the State of North Carolina (and its political subdivisions) and volunteer emergency service organizations whose members may be exposed to chemical hazards during emergency situations.
(r)	"OSHNC Standard" means the current Hazard Communication Standard adopted by the Occupational Safety and Health Division of North Carolina Department of Labor in Title 13, Chapter 7 of the North Carolina Administrative Code (13 NCAC 7).
(s)	"Storage and Container" has the ordinary meaning however it does not include pipes used in the transfer of substances or the fuel tanks of self‑propelled internal combustion vehicles."
SECTION 6.  G.S. 95‑191(a) reads as rewritten:
"(a)	All employers who manufacture, process, use, store, or produce hazardous chemicals, shall compile and maintain a Hazardous Substance List which shall contain all of the following information for each hazardous chemical stored in the facility in quantities of 55 gallons or 500 pounds, whichever is greater:
(1)	The chemical name or the common name used on the SDS or container label.
(2)	The maximum amount of the chemical stored at the facility at any time during a year, using the following ranges:
Class A, which includes quantities of less than 55 gallons or 500 pounds.
Class B, which includes quantities of between 55 gallons to 550 gallons, and quantities of between 500 pounds and 5,000 pounds.
Class C, which includes quantities of between 550 gallons and 5500 gallons, and quantities between 5,000 pounds and 50,000 pounds.
Class D, which includes quantities of greater than 5500 gallons or 50,000 pounds.
(3)	The area in the facility in which the hazardous chemical is normally stored and to what extent the chemical may be stored at altered temperature or pressure."
SECTION 7.  G.S. 95‑192 reads as rewritten:
"§ 95‑192.  Safety data sheets.
(a)	Chemical manufacturers and distributors shall provide safety data sheets (SDS's) to manufacturing and nonmanufacturing purchasers of hazardous chemicals in North Carolina for each hazardous chemical purchased.
(b)	Employers shall maintain the most current SDS received from manufacturers or distributors for each hazardous chemical purchased. If an SDS has not been provided by the manufacturer or distributor for chemicals on the Hazardous Substance List at the time the chemicals are received at the facility, the employer shall request one in writing from the manufacturer or distributor within 30 days after receipt of the chemical. If the employer does not receive an SDS within 30 days after his written request, he shall notify the Commissioner of Labor of the failure by manufacturer or distributor to provide the SDS."
SECTION 8.  G.S. 95‑194 reads as rewritten:
"§ 95‑194.  Emergency information.
…
(d)	Employers shall provide to the Fire Chief, upon written request of the Fire Chief, a copy of the SDS for any chemical on the Hazardous Substance List.
…
(f)	The Fire Chief shall make information from the Hazardous Substance List, the emergency response plan, and SDS's available to members of the Fire Department having jurisdiction over the facility and to personnel responsible for preplanning emergency response, police, medical or fire activities, but shall not otherwise distribute or disclose (or allow the disclosure of) information not available to the public under G.S. 95‑208. Such persons receiving such information shall not disclose the information received and shall use such information only for the purpose of preplanning emergency response, police, medical or fire activities.
…."
SECTION 9.  G.S. 95‑208 reads as rewritten:
"§ 95‑208.  Community information on hazardous chemicals.
(a)	Any person in North Carolina may request in writing from the employer a list of chemicals used or stored at the facility. The request shall include the name and address of the person making the request and a statement of the purpose for the request. If the person is requesting the list on behalf of or for the use of an organization, partnership, or corporation, he shall also disclose the name and business address of such organization, partnership, or corporation. The request may include, at the option of the employer, a statement to the effect that the information will be used only for the purpose stated. The employer shall furnish to the person making the request a list containing, at a minimum, all chemicals included on the Hazardous Substance List, the class of each chemical as defined in G.S. 95‑191(a)(2), and an SDS for each chemical for which an SDS is available and is requested. Whenever an employer has withheld a chemical under the provisions of G.S. 95‑197 from the information provided under G.S. 95‑208, the employer must state that the information is being withheld and, upon request, must provide the SDS for the chemical. Additional information may be furnished to the person making the request at the option of the employer. The employer shall provide, at a fee not to exceed the cost of reproducing the materials, the materials requested within 10 working days of the date the employer receives the written request for information.
(b)	If the employer fails or refuses to provide the information required under subsection (a) of this section, the person requesting the information may request in writing that the Commissioner of Labor review the request. The Commissioner of Labor may conduct an investigation in the same manner as provided in G.S. 95‑195(b). Following the investigation, the Commissioner shall make appropriate findings. Either the employer or the person making the initial request may request an administrative hearing pursuant to Chapter 150B of the General Statutes. This request for an administrative hearing shall be submitted to the Commissioner of Labor within 30 days following the Commissioner making his findings. The Commissioner of Labor shall within 30 days of receiving the request hold an administrative hearing to consider the request for information under subsection (a) of this section. This hearing shall be held as provided for in G.S. Chapter 150B, Article 3. If the Commissioner of Labor finds that the request complies with the requirements of subsection (a) of this section, the Commissioner of Labor shall direct that the employer provide to the person making the request a list containing, at a minimum, all chemicals used or stored at the facility included on the Hazardous Substance List, the class of each chemical as defined in G.S. 95‑191(a)(2), and an SDS for each chemical for which an SDS is available and is requested and may in his discretion assess civil penalties as provided in G.S. 95‑195(c); provided that it shall be a defense to such disclosure if the employer proves that the information has been requested directly or indirectly by, or in behalf of, a competitor of the employer, or that such information is a Hazardous Substance Trade Secret, or that the request did not comply with the requirements of subsection (a) of this section.
(c)	Any order by the Commissioner of Labor under subsection (b) of this section shall be subject to judicial review as provided under G.S. Chapter 150B, Article 4."
SECTION 10.  G.S. 95‑216 reads as rewritten:
"§ 95‑216.  Exemptions.
Notwithstanding any language to the contrary, the provisions of this Article shall not apply to chemicals in or on any of the following:
(1)	Hazardous substances while being transported in interstate commerce into or through this State.
(2)	Products intended for personal consumption by employees in the facilities.
(3)	Retail food sale establishments and all other retail trade establishments in North American Industry Classification System Codes 44 through 45, exclusive of processing and repair areas, except that the employer must comply with the provisions of G.S. 95‑194(a)(i).
(4)	Any food, food additive, color additive, drug or cosmetic as such terms are defined in the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 301, et seq.).
(5)	A laboratory under the direct supervision or guidance of a technically qualified individual provided that:
a.	Labels on containers of incoming chemicals shall not be removed or defaced;
b.	SDS's received by the laboratory shall be maintained and made accessible to employees and students;
c.	The laboratory is not used primarily to produce hazardous chemicals in bulk for commercial purposes; and
d.	The laboratory operator complies with the provisions of G.S. 95‑194(a)(i).
(6)	Any farming operation which employs 10 or fewer full‑time employees, except that if any hazardous chemical in an amount in excess of 55 gallons or 500 pounds, whichever is greater, is normally stored at the farming operation, the employer must comply with the provisions of G.S. 95‑194(a)(i).
(7)	Any distilled spirits, tobacco, and untreated wood products.
(8)	Medicines used directly in patient care in health care facilities and health care facility laboratories."
SECTION 11.  G.S. 95‑255(c) reads as rewritten:
"	."
SECTION 12.  This act becomes effective July 1, 2017.