Public Health Hazard Amendments

15
19-6-901
19-6-902
19-6-903
19-6-903.1
19-6-904
19-6-905
19-6-906
26B-7-409
0
Public Health Hazard Amendments
2026 GENERAL SESSION
STATE OF UTAH
Chief Sponsor: Lisa Shepherd
Senate Sponsor: Keven J. Stratton
LONG TITLE
General Description:
This bill amends provisions related to public health hazards.
Highlighted Provisions:
This bill:
amends provisions related to when law enforcement must inform a local health
department of a potentially contaminated property;
requires a local health department to determine if a property is contaminated after
receiving a report from law enforcement under certain circumstances; and
makes technical and conforming changes.
Money Appropriated in this Bill:
None
Other Special Clauses:
None
Utah Code Sections Affected:
AMENDS:
19-6-902
, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2023, Chapter 327
19-6-903
, as enacted by Laws of Utah 2004, Chapter 249
19-6-904
, as enacted by Laws of Utah 2004, Chapter 249
19-6-905
, as enacted by Laws of Utah 2004, Chapter 249
19-6-906
, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2015, Chapter 451
26B-7-409
, as renumbered and amended by Laws of Utah 2023, Chapter 308
ENACTS:
19-6-903.1
, Utah Code Annotated 1953
REPEALS:
19-6-901
, as enacted by Laws of Utah 2004, Chapter 249
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
Section 1. Section
19-6-902
is amended to read:
19-6-902
. Definitions.
As used in this part:
(1)
"Board" means the Waste Management and Radiation Control Board, as defined in
Section
19-1-106
, within the Department of Environmental Quality.
(2)
"Certified decontamination specialist" means an individual who has met the standards
for certification as a decontamination specialist and has been certified by the board
under Subsection
19-6-906(2)
.
(3)
"Contaminated" or "contamination" means:
(a)
polluted by hazardous materials that cause property to be unfit for human habitation
or use due to immediate or long-term health hazards; or
(b)
that a property is polluted by hazardous materials as a result of the use, production,
or presence of methamphetamine in excess of decontamination standards adopted by
the Department of Health and Human Services under Section
26B-7-409
.
(4)
"Contaminating drug" means methamphetamine or fentanyl.
(4)
(5)
"Contamination list" means a list maintained by the local health department of
properties:
(a)
reported to the local health department under Section
19-6-903
; and
(b)
determined by the local health department to be contaminated.
(5)
(6)
(a)
"Decontaminated" means property that at one time was contaminated, but the
contaminants have been removed.
(b)
"Decontaminated" for a property that was contaminated by the use, production, or
presence of methamphetamine means that the property satisfies decontamination
standards adopted by the Department of Health and Human Services under Section
26B-7-409
.
(6)
(7)
"Hazardous materials":
(a)
has the same meaning as "hazardous or dangerous material" as defined in Section
58-37d-3
; and
(b)
includes any illegally manufactured controlled substances.
(7)
(8)
"Health department" means a local health department under
Title 26A, Local
Health Authorities
.
"Local health department" means a local health department created
under Title 26A, Local Health Authorities.
(9)
"Lodging establishment" means the same as that term is defined in Section
29-2-102
.
(8)
(10)
"Owner of record":
(a)
means the owner of real property as shown on the records of the county recorder in
the county where the property is located; and
(b)
may include an individual, financial institution, company, corporation, or other entity.
(9)
(11)
(a)
"Property":
(a)
means any real property, site, structure, part of a structure, or the grounds
surrounding a structure
; and
.
(b)
"Property"
includes single-family residences, outbuildings, garages, units of
multiplexes, condominiums, apartment buildings, warehouses, hotels, motels, boats,
motor vehicles, trailers, manufactured housing, shops, or booths.
(10)
(12)
"Reported property" means property that is the subject of a law enforcement
report under Section
19-6-903
.
Section 2. Section
19-6-903
is amended to read:
19-6-903
. Law enforcement reporting and records.
(1)
(a)
When any state or local law enforcement agency in the course of its official
duties observes any paraphernalia of a clandestine drug laboratory operation,
including chemicals or equipment used in the manufacture of unlawful drugs, the
agency shall report the location where the items were observed to the local health
department.
A state or local law enforcement agency shall report to a local health
department:
(a)
the location of a clandestine drug laboratory operation if the agency observes any
paraphernalia of a clandestine drug laboratory operation including chemicals or
equipment used in the manufacture of unlawful drugs; or
(b)
a lodging establishment not described in Subsection
(1)(a)
if the agency has:
(i)
reason to believe that a portion of the property is contaminated;
(ii)
(A)
observed a contaminating drug or paraphernalia related to the use of a
contaminating drug in the potentially contaminated portion of the property; or
(B)
obtained, from an individual with connections to the property, an admission
regarding the use of a contaminating drug in the potentially contaminated
portion of the property; and
(iii)
obtained a test result for a contaminating drug taken from the surface of the
property indicating the portion of the property is potentially contaminated.
(b)
(i)
(2)
(a)
The law enforcement officer shall make the report under Subsection
(1)(a)
(1)
at
the location where the observation occurred, if making the report at that time will not
compromise an ongoing investigation.
(ii)
(b)
If the report cannot be made at the location, the report shall be made as soon
afterward as is practical.
(c)
The report under Subsection
(1)(a)
(1)
shall include:
(i)
the date of the observation;
(ii)
the name of the reporting agency and the case number of the case that involves
the location of the observation;
(iii)
the contact information of the officer involved, including name and telephone
number;
(iv)
the address of the location and descriptions of the property that may be
contaminated; and
(v)
a brief description of the evidence at the location that led to the belief the property
at the location may be contaminated.
(2)
(3)
The law enforcement agency shall forward to the local health department copies of
the reports made under Subsection
(1)
.
(3)
(a)
Upon receipt of a complaint or a report from law enforcement regarding
possibly contaminated property, the local health officer or his designee shall
determine if reasonable evidence exists that the property is contaminated.
(b)
The local health department shall place property considered to be contaminated on a
contamination list.
(4)
The local health departments shall maintain searchable records of the properties on
their contamination lists and shall:
(a)
make the records reasonably available to the public;
(b)
provide written notification to persons requesting access to the records that the
records are only advisory in determining if specific property has been contaminated
by clandestine drug lab activity; and
(c)
remove the contaminated property from the list when the following conditions have
been met:
(i)
the local health department has monitored the decontamination process and, after
documenting that the test results meet decontamination standards, has authorized
the removal of or purging of the contamination information from the department's
records; or
(ii)
a certified decontamination specialist submits a report to the local health
department stating that the property is decontaminated.
Section 3. Section
19-6-903.1
is enacted to read:
19-6-903.1
. Local health department duties.
(1)
(a)
A local health department shall determine if reasonable evidence exists that a
property described in Subsection
19-6-903(1)(a)
or
(b)
is contaminated upon
receiving a report from law enforcement under Section
19-6-903
.
(b)
A local health department shall place the property described in Subsection
19-6-903(1)(a)
or
(b)
that is considered to be contaminated on a contamination list if
a local health department determines the property or a portion of the property is
contaminated.
(2)
A local health department shall:
(a)
maintain searchable records of the properties on the local health department's
contamination list;
(b)
make the records reasonably available to the public;
(c)
provide written notification to persons requesting access to the records that the
records are only advisory in determining if specific property has been contaminated;
(d)
remove the contaminated property from the list when the following conditions have
been met:
(i)
the local health department has monitored the decontamination process and, after
documenting that the test results meet decontamination standards, has authorized
the removal of or purging of the contamination information from the local health
department's records; or
(ii)
a certified decontamination specialist submits a report to the local health
department stating that the property is decontaminated.
Section 4. Section
19-6-904
is amended to read:
19-6-904
. Decontamination specialist reporting to local health departments.
(1)
(a)
A certified decontamination specialist is required to report to the local health
department the location of any property that is the subject of decontamination work
by that decontamination specialist.
(b)
The report shall be submitted prior to commencement of the decontamination work.
(2)
The report under Subsection
(1)
shall include:
(a)
sufficient information to allow the local health department to investigate and verify
the location of the property, including the address and description of the property; and
(b)
a proposed work plan for decontaminating the property.
(3)
Upon completion of the decontamination process, a report certifying that the property is
decontaminated shall be submitted to the local health department within 30 days.
Section 4. Section
19-6-905
is amended to read:
19-6-905
. Notification of property owner -- Notification of municipality or
county.
(1)
(a)
If the local health department determines a property is contaminated,
it
the local
health department
shall
:
(i)
notify the owner of record that the property has been placed on the contamination
list
and shall
; and

(ii)
provide to the owner information regarding
:
(A)
remediation options
;
and
(B)
the requirements necessary to clean up the property, obtain certification that
the property is decontaminated, and remove the property from the
contamination list.
(b)
The notification shall include a deadline for the owner to provide to the local health
department information on how the owner plans to address the contamination.
(c)
This part does not require that decontamination be conducted by a certified
decontamination specialist.
(d)
However, upon completion of the decontamination, the property must be
determined to be decontaminated in accordance with Subsection
19-6-903(4)(c)
in
order to be removed from the contamination list
A property previously listed on the
contamination list may not be removed from the list unless the property meets the
conditions described in Subsection
19-6-903.1(3)(d)
.
(2)
If the local health department does not receive a response from the owner of record
within the time period specified in the notice, or the owner of record advises the local
health department that the owner does not intend to take action or that the reported
property will be abandoned, the local health department shall notify the municipality in
which the reported property is located, or the county, if the location is in an
unincorporated area, of the owner of record's response or lack of response.
Section 6. Section
19-6-906
is amended to read:
19-6-906
. Decontamination standards -- Specialist certification standards --
Rulemaking.
(1)
The Department of Health shall make rules under
Title 63G, Chapter 3, Utah
Administrative Rulemaking Act
, in consultation with the local health departments and
the Department of Environmental Quality, to establish:
(a)
decontamination and sampling standards and best management practices for the
inspection and decontamination of property and the disposal of contaminated debris
under this part;
(b)
appropriate methods for the testing of buildings and interior surfaces, and
furnishings, soil, and septic tanks for contamination; and
(c)
when testing for contamination may be required.
(2)
(1)
The
Department of Environmental Quality Waste Management and Radiation
Control Board
board
shall make rules under
Title 63G, Chapter 3, Utah Administrative
Rulemaking Act
, in consultation with the Department of Health
and Human Services

and local health departments, to establish within the Department of Environmental
Quality Division of Environmental Response and Remediation:
(a)
certification standards for any private person, firm, or entity involved in the
decontamination of contaminated property; and
(b)
a process for revoking the certification of a decontamination specialist who fails to
maintain the certification standards.
(3)
(2)
All rules made under this part shall be consistent with other state and federal
requirements.
(4)
(3)
The board has authority to enforce the provisions
under Subsection
(2)
of this
section
.
Section 7. Section
26B-7-409
is amended to read:
26B-7-409
. Scientific standards for decontamination -- Public education
concerning methamphetamine contamination.
(1)
The department shall make rules adopting scientifically-based standards for
methamphetamine decontamination.
(1)
The definitions of Section
19-6-902
apply to this section.
(2)
The department shall make rules under Title 63G, Chapter 3, Utah Administrative
Rulemaking Act, in consultation with the local health departments and the Department
of Environmental Quality, to establish:
(a)
decontamination standards, sampling standards, and best management practices for
the inspection and decontamination of property, including property contaminated by
methamphetamine and fentanyl;
(b)
standards and practices for the disposal of contaminated debris;
(c)
appropriate methods for the testing of buildings, interior surfaces, furnishings, soil,
and septic tanks for contamination; and
(d)
when testing for contamination may be required.
(2)
(3)
A local health department, as defined in
Title 26A, Local Health Authorities
, shall
follow rules made by the department under Subsection
(1)
(2)
in administering
Title 19,
Chapter 6, Part 9, Illegal Drug Operations Site Reporting and Decontamination Act
.
(3)
(4)
The department shall conduct a public education campaign to inform the public
about potential health risks of methamphetamine contamination.
(5)
All rules made under this section shall be consistent with other state and federal
requirements.
Section 8.
Repealer.
Title.
Section 9.
Effective Date.
This bill takes effect on
May 6, 2026
.
1-26-26 3:12 PM