BILL ANALYSIS
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 183|
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UNFINISHED BUSINESS
Bill No: SB 183
Author: Lowenthal (D), et al
Amended: 3/25/10
Vote: 21
SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE : 8-3, 4/21/09
AYES: Lowenthal, Ashburn, DeSaulnier, Kehoe, Oropeza,
Pavley, Simitian, Wolk
NOES: Huff, Harman, Hollingsworth
SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE : 4-1, 4/28/09
AYES: Corbett, Harman, Florez, Leno
NOES: Walters
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : Senate Rule 28.8
SENATE FLOOR : 21-12, 5/28/09
AYES: Alquist, Ashburn, Cedillo, Corbett, Correa,
DeSaulnier, Florez, Hancock, Kehoe, Leno, Liu, Lowenthal,
Maldonado, Negrete McLeod, Padilla, Pavley, Romero,
Simitian, Steinberg, Wiggins, Yee
NOES: Aanestad, Benoit, Cogdill, Cox, Denham, Dutton,
Hollingsworth, Huff, Runner, Strickland, Walters, Wyland
NO VOTE RECORDED: Calderon, Ducheny, Harman, Oropeza,
Wolk, Wright, Vacancy
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 47-20, 4/12/10 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Residential building safety
SOURCE : California Coalition for Childrens Safety and
CONTINUED
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Health
California State Firefighters Association
DIGEST : This bill enacts the Carbon Monoxide Poisoning
Prevention Act of 2010 (Act) requiring all existing
dwellings intended for human occupancy that have a fossil
fuel burning appliance, a fireplace, or an attached garage
to install a carbon monoxide device.
Assembly amendments change the timeframe for which an
approved carbon monoxide (CO) device is required to be
installed in all existing single-family dwelling units from
January 1, 2011 to July 1, 2011, and in all other dwellings
intended for human occupancy from January 1, 2012 to
January 1, 2013. In addition, the amendments require the
State Fire Marshall's certification and decertification
process for CO devices include a review of the
manufacturer's instructions and ensure their consistency
with building standards applicable to new construction for
the relevant type of occupancy with respect to number and
placement.
ANALYSIS :
Existing law:
1. Requires a transferor to deliver a statutory transfer
disclosure statement, and other disclosures, as soon as
practicable before transfer of title, or close of
escrow, when transferring real property, except in
certain cases, and manufactured homes or mobilehomes,
provided that the sale or lease with an option to
purchase involves an agent.
2. Requires a seller of a single-family dwelling disclose
to a transferee that he/she has installed an operable
smoke detector in the home as required by law.
3. Requires that smoke detectors be installed in all
single-family dwellings that are sold.
4. Provides that no transfer of title is invalidated on the
basis of a failure to comply with this requirement and
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the exclusive remedy for failure to comply is an award
of actual damages not to exceed $100, exclusive of any
court costs and attorney's fees.
5. Provides that a transfer shall not be invalidated solely
because any person failed to comply with the transfer
disclosure requirements described above. However, any
person who willfully or negligently violates or fails to
perform a required duty is liable in the amount of
actual damages suffered by a transferee.
6. Requires an owner of rental property to install a smoke
detector in a dwelling unit and permits the owner or his
or her agent to enter a unit to install, maintain,
repair, or test the detector. A tenant must notify the
owner of an inoperable smoke detector and the owner must
correct any deficiencies.
7. Permits a landlord to enter a dwelling unit only with
reasonable notice and during normal business hours
except in cases of emergency or where the tenant
consents to an entry during other than normal business
hours at the time of the entry.
This bill:
1. Requires a CO device that has been approved by the State
Fire Marshall (SFM) to be installed in any existing
dwelling intended for human occupancy that has a fossil
fuel burning heater or appliance, fireplace, or an
attached garage within the earliest applicable timeframe
as follows:
A. For all existing single-family dwelling units
intended for human occupancy on or before January
1, 2011.
B. For all other dwellings intended for human
occupancy on or before July 1, 2013.
2. Makes legislative findings regarding the number of
deaths due to CO poisoning, the chronic health effects
of prolonged exposure to CO, and the benefit of
equipping homes with CO detectors.
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3. Defines a "carbon monoxide device" as a device that
meets all of the following requirements:
A. Detects CO and produces a distinct audible
alarm.
B. Is battery powered, a plug in device with a
battery backup or installed as recommended by
Standard 720 of the National Fire Protection
Association that is either wired into the
alternating current power line of the dwelling unit
with a secondary battery backup or connected to a
system via a panel.
C. Has been tested and certified pursuant to the
requirements of the American National Standards
Institute (ANSI) and Underwriters Laboratories Inc.
(UL), by a nationally recognized testing laboratory
as specified.
D. If combined with a smoke detector the device
must:
(1) Meet the standards that apply to CO alarms
as described in the Act.
(2) Meet the standards that apply to smoke
detectors.
(3) Emit an alarm or voice warning in a manner
that clearly differentiates between a CO alarm
and a smoke detector warning.
4. Defines "dwelling unit intended for human occupancy" to
include single family dwelling, factory built home,
duplex, lodging house, dormitory apartment complex,
hotel, motel, condominium, stock cooperate, time-share
project or dwelling unit of a multi-family complex.
Exempts a property owned or leased by the state, the
Regents of the University of California, or a local
government agency.
5. Defines "fossil fuel" to mean coal, kerosene, oil, wood,
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fuel gases, and other petroleum or hydrocarbon product
which emit CO as a byproduct of combustion.
6. Requires the SFM to develop a certification and
decertification process to approve and list CO devices
that must include consideration of the effectiveness and
reliability, including their propensity to record false
alarms.
7. Requires the certification and decertification process
of CO devices to include review of the manufacturer's
instructions to insure that they are consistent with
building standards for new construction regarding the
number and placement of CO devices.
8. Permits the SFM to charge an appropriate fee to the
manufacturer of a CO device to cover the cost associated
with approving and listing CO devices.
9. Prohibits the sale or distribution of CO devices in the
state unless the device has been approved and listed by
the SFM.
10.Requires an owner to adhere to the building standards
applicable to new construction or manufacturer
instructions when determining the number and placement
of CO devices in a dwelling.
11.Provides a violation of this Act is punishable by a
maximum fine of $200 for each offense.
12.Requires a resident of a single-family home to receive a
30-day notice to correct a violation of this Act prior
to being assessed a fine.
13.Allows a local jurisdiction to enact or amend an
ordinance requiring CO devices that is consistent with
the Act.
14.Requires an owner of rental units to test and maintain
the CO device in that dwelling unit.
15.Allows an owner to enter into a rental unit to test and
maintain a CO device.
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16.Requires an owner of a rental unit to give a tenant
twenty-four hours notice, except in an emergency, before
entering the unit to install, repair, test or maintain a
CO device.
17.Requires a tenant to notify the manager or owner of a
rental unit if the CO device does not work.
18.Provides that if the Department of Housing & Community
Development (HCD) in consultation with the SFM
determines that there are not enough tested and approved
CO devices on the market by the date that the devices
are required to be installed in existing dwellings, HCD
may suspend enforcement of the Act for six months.
19.Requires HCD, if a decision to delay installation of CO
devices is made, to post a notice on the Secretary of
State's Internet Web site that describes the findings
and decision.
20.Provides that if the California Building Standards
Commission (CBSC) adopts building standards relating to
CO devices an owner is not required to install a new
device meeting those requirements until the owner makes
an application for a permit for alterations requires to
a dwelling of more than $1,000.
21.Revises the statutory transfer disclosure statement that
the seller of a manufactured home or a one- to four-unit
residential property must provide to a buyer by:
A. Requiring the seller to check-off whether or not
the property has one or more CO devices.
B. Adding a footnote to the form advising buyers
that installation of a CO device is not a
precondition of sale.
C. Requiring a seller to certify as opposed to
check-off on the list of present items, that the
property is in compliance with laws requiring smoke
detectors and the bracing of water heaters.
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Background
On November 27, 2007, the Senate Committee on
Transportation and Housing held an informational hearing
entitled "Preventing Carbon Monoxide Poisoning." The
purpose was to hear from experts on the dangers of carbon
monoxide poisoning and consider whether California should
require the installation of carbon monoxide detectors in
dwellings. The committee staff made several findings upon
conclusion of the hearing, including that "[c]arbon
monoxide poisoning is generally preventable through better
education of consumers and improved maintenance of
combustion appliances. When carbon monoxide does enter a
home, carbon monoxide devices can and do alert the
residents and prevent or significantly decrease the
severity of a poisoning."
According to the author's office, the 2009 International
Residential Code requires that carbon monoxide detectors be
installed in new construction dwelling units with
fuel-fired appliances or attached garages. The updated
code also requires detectors to be installed in existing
homes that have fuel-fired appliances or attached garages
when work requiring a building permit occurs. The author's
office indicates that the Department of Housing and
Community Development is currently considering adopting
these requirements in California for newly constructed one
and two unit dwellings.
Last year, the author of this bill introduced a similar
bill, SB 1386 (Lowenthal). That bill, which would have
required that carbon monoxide devices be installed in both
new construction and existing, dwelling units, was vetoed
by the Governor. In order to address the concerns in the
Governor's veto message, this bill will apply only to
existing housing and not to new construction.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: Yes
SUPPORT : (Verified 6/30/09) (unable to reverify at time
of writing)
California Coalition for Children's Safety and Health
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(co-source)
California State Firefighters Association (co-source)
California Alarm Association
California Industrial Hygiene Council
California Retailers Association
Carbon Monoxide Safety and Health Association
Home Depot
National Fire Protection Association
California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation
Safe Kids
State Association of Electrical Workers
Western Center on Law and Poverty
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : The author's office writes that
"[c]arbon monoxide (CO) is the leading cause of accidental
poisoning deaths in the United States. Carbon monoxide is
an odorless, colorless, deadly gas. The most effective
safety device available to reduce injuries and fatalities
related to carbon monoxide poisoning is a CO alarm. SB 183
(Lowenthal) will help to ensure California's families are
protected from carbon monoxide poisoning." The author's
office further writes, "The California Air Resources Board
has determined that 30-40 "avoidable deaths" occur just in
California each year, on average, due to unintentional
carbon monoxide poisoning. Additionally, there are 175-700
"avoidable" emergency room visits and hospitalizations in
California alone."
ASSEMBLY FLOOR :
AYES: Adams, Ammiano, Arambula, Bass, Beall, Bill
Berryhill, Block, Blumenfield, Bradford, Brownley,
Buchanan, Caballero, Carter, Chesbro, Conway, Coto,
Davis, De La Torre, De Leon, Eng, Feuer, Fletcher, Fong,
Fuentes, Hayashi, Hernandez, Hill, Huffman, Jones, Lieu,
Bonnie Lowenthal, Ma, Mendoza, Monning, Nava, V. Manuel
Perez, Portantino, Ruskin, Salas, Saldana, Skinner,
Solorio, Swanson, Torres, Torrico, Yamada, John A. Perez
NOES: Tom Berryhill, Blakeslee, Cook, DeVore, Fuller,
Gaines, Gilmore, Hagman, Huber, Knight, Logue, Miller,
Nestande, Niello, Nielsen, Norby, Silva, Audra
Strickland, Tran, Villines
NO VOTE RECORDED: Anderson, Charles Calderon, Emmerson,
Evans, Furutani, Galgiani, Garrick, Hall, Harkey,
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Jeffries, Smyth, Torlakson, Vacancy
JJA:do 4/14/10 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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