The bill, introduced by Senator Jackie Speier in December 2004 as an amendment to the California Education Code, received 63 'ayes' in the Assembly and 15 'noes' on Wednesday. Although it had previously been passed by the Senate, it was returned to the floor for further approval the following day, as it had been amended since the last vote took place in May. This approval was granted by 28 'ayes' to 9 'noes'.
The final hurdle for the bill now lies with the Governor, who has 30 days within which he may veto it.
SB-37 would require teenage athletes to pledge not to use ephedrine alkaloids, dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) or synephrine (also known as bitter orange or citrus aurantium), and prohibits their marketing at school-related events.
But the bill has come in for criticism since its wording deals only with 'dietary supplements' rather than 'performance enhancing substances', which the Council for Responsible Nutrition says creates the misimpression that dietary supplements are a problem, and that all or many dietary supplements are unsafe and prohibited by the USADA.
The CRN has also questioned the scope of the bill, pointing out that ephedrine alkaloids are already banned both in California and by the FDA, and that the sale of DHEA (dehydroepiandrosterone) to minors is also restricted in the state. Synephrine, meanwhile, is not restricted by the US Anti-Doping Agency but is merely on its monitoring list, along with caffeine.
Last year Governor Schwarzenegger vetoed a similar bill, SB 1630, also introduced by Senator Speier.
CRN spokesperson Judy Blatman told NutraIngredients-USA.com: "We hope that the Governor will recognise that last year's bill was too broad, and that this year's is too narrow, and subsequently see fit to veto it."
She added: "We trust that the governor will look at the merits of the bill independently of allegation of his ties with the dietary supplements industry."
Press reports have claimed that the cost to taxpayer of enacting the bill will be around half a million dollars - a lot of money when taxpayers are getting little in return, said Blatman.
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