103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2023 and 2024 SB0147 Introduced 1/25/2023, by Sen. Linda Holmes SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: New Act Creates the Paint Stewardship Act. Contains the findings of the General Assembly. Provides that manufacturers of architectural paint sold at retail in the State or representative organizations shall submit to the Director of the Environmental Protection Agency a plan for the establishment of a postconsumer paint stewardship program. Requires the program to meet specified requirements. Provides that manufacturers or retailers shall not sell or offer for sale architectural paint to any person in the State unless the manufacturer of a paint brand or representative organization is implementing an approved paint stewardship plan. Prohibits the incineration of leftover architectural paint collected pursuant to an approved paint stewardship plan. Provides that manufacturers or representative organizations shall submit reports with specified requirements. Provides that manufacturers or representative organizations participating in a postconsumer paint stewardship program shall not be liable for any claim of a violation of antitrust, restraint of trade, unfair trade practice, or other anticompetitive conduct arising from conduct undertaken in accordance with the program. Provides for administrative and oversight fees to be paid to the Agency. Provides that manufacturers or representative organizations shall implement the postconsumer paint collection plan within 6 months of the date that the program plan is approved. Contains provisions regarding postconsumer paint from households and small businesses. Contains other provisions. LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b A BILL FOR 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2023 and 2024 SB0147 Introduced 1/25/2023, by Sen. Linda Holmes SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: New Act New Act Creates the Paint Stewardship Act. Contains the findings of the General Assembly. Provides that manufacturers of architectural paint sold at retail in the State or representative organizations shall submit to the Director of the Environmental Protection Agency a plan for the establishment of a postconsumer paint stewardship program. Requires the program to meet specified requirements. Provides that manufacturers or retailers shall not sell or offer for sale architectural paint to any person in the State unless the manufacturer of a paint brand or representative organization is implementing an approved paint stewardship plan. Prohibits the incineration of leftover architectural paint collected pursuant to an approved paint stewardship plan. Provides that manufacturers or representative organizations shall submit reports with specified requirements. Provides that manufacturers or representative organizations participating in a postconsumer paint stewardship program shall not be liable for any claim of a violation of antitrust, restraint of trade, unfair trade practice, or other anticompetitive conduct arising from conduct undertaken in accordance with the program. Provides for administrative and oversight fees to be paid to the Agency. Provides that manufacturers or representative organizations shall implement the postconsumer paint collection plan within 6 months of the date that the program plan is approved. Contains provisions regarding postconsumer paint from households and small businesses. Contains other provisions. LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b A BILL FOR 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2023 and 2024 SB0147 Introduced 1/25/2023, by Sen. Linda Holmes SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: New Act New Act New Act Creates the Paint Stewardship Act. Contains the findings of the General Assembly. Provides that manufacturers of architectural paint sold at retail in the State or representative organizations shall submit to the Director of the Environmental Protection Agency a plan for the establishment of a postconsumer paint stewardship program. Requires the program to meet specified requirements. Provides that manufacturers or retailers shall not sell or offer for sale architectural paint to any person in the State unless the manufacturer of a paint brand or representative organization is implementing an approved paint stewardship plan. Prohibits the incineration of leftover architectural paint collected pursuant to an approved paint stewardship plan. Provides that manufacturers or representative organizations shall submit reports with specified requirements. Provides that manufacturers or representative organizations participating in a postconsumer paint stewardship program shall not be liable for any claim of a violation of antitrust, restraint of trade, unfair trade practice, or other anticompetitive conduct arising from conduct undertaken in accordance with the program. Provides for administrative and oversight fees to be paid to the Agency. Provides that manufacturers or representative organizations shall implement the postconsumer paint collection plan within 6 months of the date that the program plan is approved. Contains provisions regarding postconsumer paint from households and small businesses. Contains other provisions. LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b A BILL FOR SB0147LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147 LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147 LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b 1 AN ACT concerning safety. 2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, 3 represented in the General Assembly: 4 Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Paint 5 Stewardship Act. 6 Section 5. Findings. The General Assembly finds that: 7 (1) Leftover architectural paints present significant 8 waste management issues for counties and municipalities. 9 Managing the end-of-life of architectural paint can be costly 10 and present environmental, health, and safety risks if not 11 properly managed. 12 (2) Nationally, an estimated 10% of architectural paint 13 purchased by consumers is leftover. Current governmental 14 programs collect only a fraction of the potential leftover 15 paint for proper reuse, recycling, or disposal. In northern 16 Illinois, there are only 4 permanent household hazard waste 17 facilities and these facilities do not typically accept latex 18 paint, the most common paint purchased by consumers. 19 (3) It is in the best interest of this State for paint 20 manufacturers to assume responsibility for development and 21 implementation of a cost-effective paint stewardship program 22 that will: educate consumers on strategies to reduce the 23 generation of leftover paint; provide opportunities to reuse 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2023 and 2024 SB0147 Introduced 1/25/2023, by Sen. Linda Holmes SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: New Act New Act New Act Creates the Paint Stewardship Act. Contains the findings of the General Assembly. Provides that manufacturers of architectural paint sold at retail in the State or representative organizations shall submit to the Director of the Environmental Protection Agency a plan for the establishment of a postconsumer paint stewardship program. Requires the program to meet specified requirements. Provides that manufacturers or retailers shall not sell or offer for sale architectural paint to any person in the State unless the manufacturer of a paint brand or representative organization is implementing an approved paint stewardship plan. Prohibits the incineration of leftover architectural paint collected pursuant to an approved paint stewardship plan. Provides that manufacturers or representative organizations shall submit reports with specified requirements. Provides that manufacturers or representative organizations participating in a postconsumer paint stewardship program shall not be liable for any claim of a violation of antitrust, restraint of trade, unfair trade practice, or other anticompetitive conduct arising from conduct undertaken in accordance with the program. Provides for administrative and oversight fees to be paid to the Agency. Provides that manufacturers or representative organizations shall implement the postconsumer paint collection plan within 6 months of the date that the program plan is approved. Contains provisions regarding postconsumer paint from households and small businesses. Contains other provisions. LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b A BILL FOR New Act LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147 LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147- 2 -LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147 - 2 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147 - 2 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b 1 leftover paint; and collect, transport, and process leftover 2 paint for end-of-life management, including reuse, recycling, 3 energy recovery, and disposal. Requiring paint manufacturers 4 to assume responsibility for the collection, recycling, reuse, 5 transportation, and disposal of leftover paint will provide 6 more opportunities for consumers to properly manage their 7 leftover paint, provide fiscal relief for this State and local 8 governments in managing leftover paint, keep paint out of the 9 waste stream, and conserve natural resources. 10 (4) Similar architectural paint stewardship programs are 11 currently operating in 11 jurisdictions and are successfully 12 diverting a significant portion of the collected paint waste 13 from landfills. These paint stewardship programs are saving 14 counties and municipalities the cost of managing paint waste 15 and have been successful at recycling leftover paint into 16 recycled paint products as well as other products. For 17 instance, in the state of Oregon, 64% of the latex paint 18 collected in the 2019-2020 fiscal year was recycled into paint 19 products; and, in Minnesota, 48% of the latex paint collected 20 during the same time period was reused or recycled into paint 21 products. Given the lack of access to architectural paint 22 collection programs in Illinois, especially for leftover latex 23 architectural paint, and the demonstrated ability of the paint 24 industry to collect and recycle a substantial portion of 25 leftover architectural paint, this legislation is necessary. 26 It will create a statewide program that diverts a significant SB0147 - 2 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147- 3 -LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147 - 3 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147 - 3 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b 1 portion of paint waste from landfills and facilitates 2 recycling of leftover paint into paint and other products. 3 (5) Establishing a paint stewardship program in Illinois 4 will create jobs as the marketplace adjusts to the needs of a 5 robust program that requires transporters and processors. 6 Certain infrastructure already exists in the State and the 7 program may attract additional resources. 8 (6) Legislation is needed to establish this program in 9 part because of the risk of antitrust lawsuits. The program 10 involves activities by competitors in the paint industry and 11 may affect the costs or prices of those competitors. As 12 construed by the courts, the antitrust laws impose severe 13 constraints on concerted action by competitors that affect 14 costs or prices. Absent State legislation, participation in 15 this program would entail an unacceptable risk of class action 16 lawsuits. The risk can be mitigated by legislation that would 17 bar application of federal antitrust law under the "state 18 action" doctrine. Under that doctrine, federal antitrust law 19 does not apply to conduct that is (1) undertaken pursuant to a 20 clearly expressed and affirmatively articulated state policy 21 to displace or limit competition, and (2) actively supervised 22 by the State. 23 (7) To ensure that this defense will be available to 24 protect participants in the program, it is important for State 25 legislation to be specific about the conduct it is authorizing 26 and to express clearly that the State is authorizing that SB0147 - 3 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147- 4 -LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147 - 4 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147 - 4 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b 1 conduct pursuant to a conscious policy decision to limit the 2 unfettered operation of market forces. It is also critical for 3 the legislation to provide for active supervision of the 4 conduct that might otherwise be subject to antitrust attack. 5 In particular, the legislation must provide for active 6 supervision of the decisions concerning the assessments that 7 will fund the program. A clear articulation of the State's 8 purposes and policies and provisions for active State 9 supervision of the program will ensure that industry 10 participation in the program will not trigger litigation. 11 (8) To ensure that the costs of the program are 12 distributed in an equitable and competitively neutral manner, 13 the program will be funded through an assessment on each 14 container of paint sold in this State. That assessment will be 15 sufficient to recover, but not exceed, the costs of sustaining 16 the program and will be reviewed and approved by the Illinois 17 Environmental Protection Agency. Funds collected through the 18 assessment will be used by the representative organization to 19 operate and sustain the program. 20 Section 10. Definitions. In this Act: 21 "Agency" means the Environmental Protection Agency. 22 "Architectural paint" means interior and exterior 23 architectural coatings sold in containers of 5 gallons or 24 less. "Architectural paint" does not include industrial 25 original equipment or specialty coatings. SB0147 - 4 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147- 5 -LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147 - 5 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147 - 5 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b 1 "Collection site" means any location, service, or event at 2 which architectural paint is accepted into a postconsumer 3 paint collection program pursuant to a postconsumer paint 4 collection program plan. 5 "Director" means the Director of the Environmental 6 Protection Agency. 7 "Environmentally sound management practices" means 8 procedures for the collection, storage, transportation, reuse, 9 recycling, and disposal of architectural paint to be 10 implemented by a manufacturer or representative organization 11 or by the manufacturer's or representative organization's 12 contracted partners to comply with all applicable federal, 13 State, and local laws and any rules, regulations, and 14 ordinances for the protection of human health and the 15 environment. These procedures shall address adequate 16 recordkeeping, tracking and documenting of the final 17 disposition of materials, and appropriate environmental 18 liability coverage for the representative organization. 19 "Household waste" has the same meaning as defined in 40 20 CFR 261.4(b)(1). 21 "Postconsumer paint" means architectural paint not used 22 and no longer wanted by a purchaser. 23 "Manufacturer" means a manufacturer of architectural paint 24 who sells, offers for sale, or distributes the architectural 25 paint in the State under the manufacturer's own name or brand. 26 "Program" means the postconsumer paint stewardship program SB0147 - 5 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147- 6 -LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147 - 6 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147 - 6 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b 1 established pursuant to Section 15. 2 "Recycling" means a method, technique, or process designed 3 to remove any contaminant from waste so as to render the waste 4 reusable, or any process by which materials that would 5 otherwise be disposed of or discarded are collected, 6 separated, or processed and returned to the economic 7 mainstream in the form of raw materials or products. 8 "Representative organization" means a nonprofit 9 organization established by a manufacturer to implement the 10 postconsumer paint stewardship program. 11 "Retailer" means a company that offers architectural paint 12 or other allied products for retail sale in the State. 13 "Very small quantity generator" has the same meaning as 14 defined in 40 CFR 260.10. 15 Section 15. Paint stewardship program plan. 16 (a) A manufacturer of architectural paint sold at retail 17 in the State or a representative organization shall submit to 18 the Director a plan for the establishment of a postconsumer 19 paint stewardship program. The program shall seek to reduce 20 the generation of postconsumer paint, promote its reuse and 21 recycling, and manage the waste stream using environmentally 22 sound management practices. 23 (b) The plan submitted by the manufacturer or 24 representative organization to the Agency under this Section 25 shall: SB0147 - 6 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147- 7 -LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147 - 7 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147 - 7 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b 1 (1) Provide a list of participating manufacturers and 2 brands covered by the program. 3 (2) Provide information on the architectural paint 4 products covered under the program, such as interior or 5 exterior water-based and oil-based coatings, primers, 6 sealers, or wood coatings. 7 (3) Describe how it will provide for convenient and 8 cost-effective statewide collection of postconsumer 9 architectural paint in the State. The manufacturer or 10 representative organization may coordinate the program 11 with existing household hazardous waste collection 12 infrastructure as is mutually agreeable. A paint retailer 13 may be authorized by the manufacturer or representative 14 organization as a paint collection site if the paint 15 retailer volunteers to act as such, complies with all 16 applicable laws, rules, and regulations, and the retail 17 location is consistent with the maintenance of a 18 cost-effective network of paint collection locations. 19 (4) Establish a goal for the number and geographic 20 distribution of collection sites for postconsumer 21 architectural paint using geographic modeling and the 22 following criteria: 23 (A) at least 90% of State residents shall have a 24 collection site within a 15-mile radius; and 25 (B) one site shall be available for every 50,000 26 residents of the State unless otherwise approved by SB0147 - 7 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147- 8 -LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147 - 8 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147 - 8 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b 1 the Director. 2 (5) Describe how postconsumer paint will be managed in 3 an environmentally and economically sound manner using the 4 following strategies and in the following order: reuse, 5 recycling, energy recovery, and disposal. Incineration 6 within the State shall not be utilized. 7 (6) Describe education and outreach efforts to inform 8 consumers about the program. These materials should 9 include: 10 (A) information about collection opportunities for 11 postconsumer paint; 12 (B) information about the fee for the operation of 13 the program that shall be included in the purchase 14 price of all architectural paint sold in the State; 15 and 16 (C) efforts to promote the source reduction, 17 reuse, and recycling of architectural paint. 18 (7) Be reviewed by an independent auditor to assure 19 that any added fee to paint sold in the State as a result 20 of the postconsumer paint stewardship program does not 21 exceed the costs to operate and sustain the program in 22 accordance with sound management practices. The 23 independent auditor shall verify that the amount added to 24 each unit of paint will cover the costs and sustain the 25 postconsumer paint stewardship program. 26 (c) A manufacturer or representative organization shall SB0147 - 8 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147- 9 -LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147 - 9 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147 - 9 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b 1 select the independent auditor under paragraph (7) of 2 subsection (b) in consultation with the Agency. The Agency 3 shall review the work product of the independent auditor. The 4 cost of any work performed by the independent auditor shall be 5 funded by the program. 6 (d) Not later than 60 days after submission of the plan 7 under this Section, the Director shall make a determination in 8 writing whether to approve the plan as submitted or disapprove 9 the plan. 10 (e) The Agency shall enforce the plan and may, by rule or 11 regulation, establish enforcement procedures. If circumstances 12 require an adjustment of the paint stewardship fee, the 13 manufacturer or representative organization shall request the 14 adjustment by submitting to the Agency a justification for the 15 adjustment as well as financial reports to support the 16 request, including a 5-year projection of the financial status 17 of the organization. The Agency shall review the request to 18 determine if the proposed fee adjustment will generate 19 revenues sufficient to pay the program expenses, including any 20 accumulated debt, and develop a reasonable reserve level 21 sufficient to sustain the program. If a decrease in the paint 22 fee is requested, the Agency shall review the request to 23 determine if the proposed fee adjustment and the resulting 24 decreased revenue is sufficient to pay program expenses and 25 maintain a reasonable reserve level sufficient to sustain the 26 program. SB0147 - 9 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147- 10 -LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147 - 10 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147 - 10 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b 1 (f) No later than the implementation date of the program, 2 information regarding the approved plan, the names of 3 participating manufacturers, and the brands of architectural 4 paint covered by the program shall be posted on the Agency's 5 website and on the website of the manufacturer or 6 representative organization. 7 (g) Upon implementation of the program, each manufacturer 8 shall include in the price of any architectural paint sold to 9 retailers and distributors in the State the per container 10 amount in the approved program plan. Manufacturers are 11 responsible for filing, reporting, and remitting the paint 12 stewardship assessment for each container of architectural 13 paint to the representative organization. A retailer or 14 distributor shall not deduct this amount from the purchase 15 price. 16 Section 20. Incineration prohibited. No person may 17 incinerate leftover architectural paint collected pursuant to 18 an approved paint stewardship plan as required by Section 15. 19 Section 25. Plan submission. The plan required by Section 20 15 shall be submitted not later than 12 months after the 21 authorization of the program is final. The Agency may grant an 22 extension of time to submit the plan for good cause. 23 Section 30. Sale of paint. SB0147 - 10 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147- 11 -LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147 - 11 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147 - 11 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b 1 (a) A manufacturer or retailer shall not sell or offer for 2 sale architectural paint to any person in the State unless the 3 manufacturer of a paint brand or the manufacturer's 4 representative organization is implementing an approved paint 5 stewardship plan as required by Section 15. 6 (b) A retailer shall be in compliance with this Act if, on 7 the date the architectural paint was offered for sale, the 8 retailer's manufacturer is listed on the Agency's website as 9 implementing or participating in an approved program or if the 10 paint brand is listed on the Agency's website as being 11 included in the program. 12 (c) A paint collection site authorized under the 13 provisions of this Act shall not charge any additional amount 14 for the disposal of paint when it is offered for disposal. 15 (d) No retailer is required to participate in a paint 16 stewardship program as a collection site. A retailer may 17 participate as a paint collection site on a voluntary basis. 18 (e) Nothing in this Act shall require a retailer to track, 19 file, report, submit, or remit a paint stewardship assessment, 20 sales data, or any other information on behalf of a 21 manufacturer, distributor, or representative organization. 22 Section 35. Liability. A manufacturer or representative 23 organization participating in a postconsumer paint stewardship 24 program shall not be liable for any claim of a violation of 25 antitrust, restraint of trade, unfair trade practice, or other SB0147 - 11 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147- 12 -LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147 - 12 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147 - 12 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b 1 anticompetitive conduct arising from conduct undertaken in 2 accordance with the program. 3 Section 40. Annual report. Annually, a manufacturer or 4 representative organization shall submit a report to the 5 Agency that details the program. The report shall include: 6 (1) a description of the methods used to collect and 7 transport postconsumer paint collected in the State; 8 (2) the volume and type of postconsumer paint 9 collected and a description of the methods used to process 10 the paint, including reuse, recycling, and other methods; 11 (3) samples of educational materials provided to 12 consumers of architectural paint; and 13 (4) the total cost of the program and an independent 14 financial audit. An independent financial auditor shall be 15 chosen by the manufacturer or representative organization. 16 The report or information relating to the report shall be 17 posted on the Agency's website and on the website of the 18 manufacturer or representative organization. 19 Section 45. Annual report submission. A manufacturer or 20 representative organization shall submit the first annual 21 report detailing the postconsumer paint collection program as 22 required by Section 15 to the Director on or before July 1 of 23 the second year following official implementation of the 24 program, and annually thereafter. The Agency may extend the SB0147 - 12 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147- 13 -LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147 - 13 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147 - 13 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b 1 time for submission of the annual report for cause shown. 2 Section 50. Disclosure. Financial, production, or sales 3 data reported to the Agency by a manufacturer, retailer, or 4 representative organization shall not be subject to 5 disclosure, but the Director may release a summary form of the 6 data that does not disclose financial, production, or sales 7 data of the manufacturer, retailer, or representative 8 organization. 9 Section 55. Program plan submission fee. A manufacturer or 10 representative organization submitting a program plan shall 11 pay an administrative fee to the Agency at the time of 12 submission. The Agency may establish a variable fee based on 13 relevant factors, including, but not limited to, the portion 14 of architectural paint sold in the State by members of the 15 manufacturer or representative organization compared to the 16 total amount of architectural paint sold in the State by all 17 manufacturers or representative organizations that submit a 18 plan. 19 Section 60. Oversight fee. A manufacturer or 20 representative organization operating a stewardship program 21 shall pay to the Agency the costs it incurs in overseeing the 22 stewardship program. The Agency shall set the fee at an amount 23 that, when paid by every manufacturer or representative SB0147 - 13 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147- 14 -LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147 - 14 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147 - 14 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b 1 organization that submits a plan, is adequate to reimburse the 2 Agency's full costs of administering this Act. The total 3 amount of annual fees collected under this Section must not 4 exceed the amount necessary to reimburse costs incurred by the 5 Agency to administer this Act. 6 Section 65. Timing of oversight fee. A manufacturer or 7 representative organization subject to Section 60 must pay the 8 Agency's administrative fee annually. The annual 9 administrative fee may not exceed 5% of the aggregate 10 stewardship fee added to the cost of all architectural paint 11 sold by manufacturers in the State for the preceding calendar 12 year. The Agency may extend the time for payment upon good 13 cause shown. 14 Section 70. Implementation. A manufacturer or 15 representative organization shall implement the postconsumer 16 paint collection plan within 6 months of the date that the 17 program plan is approved. The Agency may extend the date of 18 implementation for good cause shown. 19 Section 75. Postconsumer paint from households and small 20 businesses. 21 (a) Generators of household waste and very small quantity 22 generators are authorized to transport or send their 23 architectural paints to a paint collection site to the extent SB0147 - 14 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147- 15 -LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147 - 15 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147 - 15 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b SB0147 - 15 - LRB103 25543 CPF 51892 b