BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 849|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 849
Author: Gatto (D)
Amended: 7/13/11 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE : 6-0, 6/21/11
AYES: DeSaulnier, Gaines, Huff, Kehoe, Lowenthal, Rubio
NO VOTE RECORDED: Harman, Pavley, Simitian
SENATE ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY COMMITTEE : 7-0, 7/6/11
AYES: Simitian, Strickland, Blakeslee, Hancock, Kehoe,
Lowenthal, Pavley
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 79-0, 5/31/11 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Graywater building standards
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill repeals the authority of a city,
county, or other local agency to adopt building standards
that prohibit entirely the use of graywater and instead
authorize the adoption, under specified requirements, of
standards that are more restrictive than the standards
adopted pursuant to state requirements.
ANALYSIS : The California Building Standards Law
establishes the California Building Standards Commission
(BSC) and the process for adopting state building
standards. Under this process, relevant state agencies
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propose amendments to model building codes, which the BSC
must then adopt, modify, or reject. For example, the
Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) is
the relevant state agency for residential building
standards. The Office of Statewide Health Planning and
Development is responsible for hospitals and clinics, and
the Division of the State Architect is the relevant
agencies for schools and emergency service buildings.
Current law requires BSC to publish the California Building
Standards Code (Code) in its entirety once every three
years.
Existing law defines "graywater" as "untreated wastewater
which has not been contaminated by any toilet discharge ?
and does not present a threat from contamination by
unhealthful processing, manufacturing , or operating
wastes. Graywater includes wastewater from bathtubs,
showers, bathroom washbasins, clothes washing machines, and
laundry tubs but does not include wastewater from kitchen
sinks or dishwashers."
SB 1258 (Lowenthal), Chapter 172, Statutes of 2008,
requires HCD to adopt and submit to the BSC for approval
building standards for the construction, installation, and
alteration of graywater systems for indoor and outdoor use
in residential occupancies. HCD conducted an extensive
outreach and public participation process to develop the
proposed standards, and the BSC adopted these standards on
July 30, 2009. SB 1258 also includes a provision allowing
a city or county to adopt building standards that prohibit
entirely the use of graywater or that are more restrictive
than the graywater standards in the Code.
SB 518 (Lowenthal), Chapter 622, Statutes of 2010, required
the BSC as part of the next triennial edition of the Code
to adopt standards for the construction, installation, or
alteration of graywater systems for indoor and outdoor uses
in non-residential occupancies. The next triennial set of
codes is scheduled for adoption in July 2013.
Current law also allows a city or county to amend state
building standards if the amendments are reasonably
necessary because of local climatic, geological, or
topographical conditions.
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This bill:
1. Repeals the authority of a city, county, or other local
agency to adopt building standards that prohibit
entirely the use of graywater and instead authorizes the
adoption, under specified requirements, of standards
that are more restrictive than the standards adopted
pursuant to state requirements.
2. Adds public health as one of the conditions that
necessitate building standards which are more
restrictive than the standards adopted pursuant to state
requirements.
3. Requires the local ordinance adopting the more
restrictive standards be limited to the specific are of
the city, county or local agency where the conditions
exist.
4. Requires, prior to permitting graywater systems, the
local entity consult with the local public health
department to ensure health concerns are addressed in
local standards or ordinances.
5. States legislative intent encouraging the use of
graywater systems and to provide uniformity in the
implementation of graywater systems.
Comments
Purpose of this bill . The author's goal is to encourage
the installation and use of graywater systems in as many
residential and commercial buildings as possible. Allowing
cities and counties to ban graywater systems is in conflict
with this goal, especially given the BSC's recent adoption
of building standards for graywater systems in residential
buildings and the pending standards for commercial
buildings. This bill allows cities and counties to make
necessary adjustments to state graywater standards to
address local conditions without allowing them to ban
graywater systems outright.
Saving water . In 2009, the Legislature enacted SB 7X7
(Steinberg), Chapter 4, Statutes of 2009, Seventh
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Extraordinary Session, requiring that California reduce
water consumption by 20 percent per capita by the year
2020. Landscape irrigation makes up 70 percent of average
household water use in many communities. Because graywater
is primarily used for outdoor purposes, it has great
potential to reduce the need for potable water and help
California meet its SB 7X7 goal.
Restoring the general rule . When cities and counties have
widely divergent building standards, it is difficult for
architects and builders to work across jurisdictional
lines. In order to ensure the maximum level of uniformity
in building standards, current law requires the BSC to
adopt building standards that apply statewide but allows
cities and counties to make amendments that are reasonably
necessary because of local climatic, geological, or
topographical conditions. The exception to this general
rule is the graywater law that allows cities and counties
to prohibit graywater systems entirely without making a
finding of local conditions. This bill restores the
general rule under which state building standards apply
unless a city or county makes a finding of necessity based
on local climatic, geological, or topographical conditions.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: No
Local: No
SUPPORT : (Verified 7/13/11)
California Building Industry Association
California State Pipe Trades Council
Planning and Conservation League
ReWater Systems
The Tree People
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 79-0, 5/31/11
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Allen, Ammiano, Atkins, Beall,
Bill Berryhill, Block, Blumenfield, Bonilla, Bradford,
Brownley, Buchanan, Butler, Charles Calderon, Campos,
Carter, Cedillo, Chesbro, Conway, Cook, Davis, Dickinson,
Donnelly, Eng, Feuer, Fletcher, Fong, Fuentes, Furutani,
Beth Gaines, Galgiani, Garrick, Gatto, Gordon, Grove,
Hagman, Halderman, Hall, Harkey, Hayashi, Roger
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Hernández, Hill, Huber, Hueso, Huffman, Jeffries, Jones,
Knight, Lara, Logue, Bonnie Lowenthal, Ma, Mansoor,
Mendoza, Miller, Mitchell, Monning, Morrell, Nestande,
Nielsen, Norby, Olsen, Pan, Perea, V. Manuel Pérez,
Portantino, Silva, Skinner, Smyth, Solorio, Swanson,
Torres, Valadao, Wagner, Wieckowski, Williams, Yamada,
John A. Pérez
NO VOTE RECORDED: Gorell
JJA:kc 7/13/11 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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