SECTIONS 100325-100335

100325.  The department shall cause special investigations of thesources of morbidity and mortality and the effects of localities,employments, conditions and circumstances on the public health andthe department shall perform other duties as may be required inprocuring information for state and federal agencies regarding theeffects of these conditions on the public health.100330.  All records of interviews, written reports, and statementsprocured by the department or by any other person, agency, ororganization acting jointly with the department, in connection withspecial morbidity and mortality studies shall be confidential insofaras the identity of the individual patient is concerned and shall beused solely for the purposes of the study. The furnishing of thisinformation to the department or its authorized representative, or toany other co-operating individual, agency or organization in anyspecial study, shall not subject any person, hospital, sanitarium,rest home, nursing home, or other organization furnishing thisinformation to any action for damages. This section shall not applyto general morbidity and mortality studies customarily andcontinuously conducted by the department that do not involve patientidentification. Nothing in this section shall prohibit the publishing by thedepartment of statistical compilations relating to morbidity andmortality studies that do not identify individual cases and sourcesof information or religious affiliations.100333.  (a) The department shall annually compile and publish thelaws relating to the use, handling, transportation, storage, anddisposal of hazardous materials, including, but not limited to,hazardous wastes, flammable materials, corrosives, explosives,pesticides, and radioactive materials together with laws relating toadministration, enforcement, and emergency response. The compilationshall reflect the amendments, additions, and deletions enacted eachyear. (b) The department may contract with the Legislative Counsel toprepare the compilation of laws required by subdivision (a) and withthe Department of General Services to print and distribute thecompilation. Copies of the compilation shall be distributed at cost. (c) During the 1985-86 fiscal year, the department shall absorbthe costs of preparing the compilation from existing appropriations.It is the intent of the Legislature, commencing with the 1986-87fiscal year, to appropriate revenues received from the distributionof the compilation to the department for carrying out the purposes ofthis section.100335.  The department may do all of the following activities: (1) Make a continuing study of births, deaths, marriages, anddivorces, in order to provide a continuing analysis of trends tostate agencies and to the Legislature. (2) Request and receive demographic and population data from theDepartment of Finance. (3) Make any additional collection of data necessary to describeand analyze fertility, family formation and dissolution, abortionpractices, and other factors related to population dynamics, publichealth, and the environment. (4) Assess the health, environmental, and related effects ofcurrent and projected population. (5) Formulate recommendations for programs, consistent withindividual rights and the integrity of the environment, to respond toprojected trends.