History of Political Wrangling Over Cell Phones Includes Tom Hayden 3

A long list of Tom Hayden’s accomplishments during his years as a California legislator includes enactment of more than 100 environmental, workplace, and consumer safety laws, and is on the Glendale Public Library’s event webpage. Missing from the list is a bill Hayden proposed in 2000 requiring manufacturers and retailers to warn of potential cell phone health risks, and the California Department of Public Health to review research on health effects of cell phone technology.

Elizabeth Kelley, now managing director of the International Commission for ElectroMagnetic Safety, consulted with Hayden on the bill, and brought in two expert witnesses, Henry Lai and Jerry Phillips, to testify in its support. Footage from the hearings is on the 2000 film Public Exposure: DNA, Democracy and the Wireless Revolution.

The bill was voted through both the Senate and the Assembly. According to Kelley, it was clear from the hearings that the industry was dead set against its enactment – industry representatives even came from Europe to oppose it:

“There were many industry reps there, lining the walls, wanting to testify before the two committee hearings that were held on the bill. SB1699 initially called for warning labels and a cell phone science research program under the CA State Health Department, but the language was watered down during the legislative review process to call for a review of the existing science on cell phone radiation science.

When the bill passed, all that was remaining was for the bill to go through the Rules Committee. This was considered an easy step as it was a “no-money” bill. I was really surprised when Hayden’s staffer called me to tell me the bill had “died” in the Rules Committee! He explained that there were too many bills this year and they had to chose which ones to handle. I always felt there was a story there. If that bill had passed, [California] would have been the first state in the U.S. and perhaps the first legislative body in the world to enact such a bill. Hayden retired from the Senate soon after.”

After Hayden spoke at the Glendale Public Library Wednesday night, I asked him about the bill. He remembered the bill was “lobbied to death,” and observed that the large companies that prevented its passage are very adept at arguing there is no direct link between “cell damage” and “health effects.”

A Maine bill requiring warnings of a link between cell phone use and cancer was voted down just a few days ago; several industry representatives appeared to argue against it. A fact-based approach is being attempted again in San Francisco and at the state level, with proposals requiring retailers and manufacturers, respectively, to provide consumer information about cell phone radiation levels.

A recent ArsTechnica post contrasts Maine’s approach with that of San Francisco’s:

In contrast to the Maine legislation, Newsom is promoting a law that would require cell phones sold in the city to carry an indication of the amount of radiation that their users are exposed to. Although that would almost certainly stoke unwarranted fears, it’s actually a reasonable approach given the current state of the science. We can’t currently know whether there are risks following decades of exposure; the bill would provide those who want to exercise caution with an opportunity to limit their exposure.