BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 245|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: SB 245
Author: Rubio (D)
Amended: 4/14/11
Vote: 21
SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE : 7-2, 4/12/11
AYES: DeSaulnier, Harman, Kehoe, Lowenthal, Pavley, Rubio,
Simitian
NOES: Gaines, Huff
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : Senate Rule 28.8
SUBJECT : Smoke detectors: mobilehomes
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill requires that beginning January 1,
2012 all used manufactured homes and mobilehomes have a
smoke alarm installed in each room designed for sleeping.
ANALYSIS : Since 1976, federal law has required that all
newly constructed manufactured homes have operable smoke
detectors installed in each bedroom, the living room
nearest the kitchen, and at the top of the stairway in
two-story homes. Beginning in 1973, California's
regulations contained a similar requirement, but since
1976, the federal rules on construction of manufactured
homes have pre-empted state rules.
Since 1986, state law has required that all used
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mobilehomes and manufactured homes that are sold have a
smoke detector that is operable on the date of the transfer
of title. AB 2050 (Garcia), Chapter 737, Statutes of 2008,
expanded this requirement so that at the time of sale, all
used manufactured homes, mobilehomes, and multifamily
manufactured homes have a smoke alarm in each room designed
for sleeping that is operable on the date of the transfer
of title.
This bill requires, beginning on July 1, 2012, that all
used manufactured homes, used mobilehomes, and used
multifamily manufactured homes shall have a smoke alarm
installed in each room designed for sleeping. For all
manufactured homes and multifamily manufactured homes
manufactured on or after September 16, 2002, each smoke
alarm shall comply with the federal Manufactured Housing
Construction and Safety standards Act. For manufactured
homes manufactured before September 16, 2002, and for
mobilehomes and multifamily manufactured homes manufactured
at any time, each smoke alarm shall be installed in
accordance with the terms of its listing and installation
requirements, and battery-powered smoke alarms shall be
acceptable for use when installed in accordance with the
terms of their listing and installation requirements.
On or after July 1, 2012, within 45 days prior to the date
of transfer of title and as a condition of transfer of
title, the transferor shall sign a declaration stating that
each smoke alarm in the manufactured home is installed and
is operable on the date the declaration is signed.
The Department of Housing and Community Development may
promulgate rules and regulations to clarify or implement
the provision of this bill.
For sales of manufactured homes or mobilehomes installed on
real property, as to real estate agents licensed pursuant
to Division 4 (commencing with Section 10000) of the
Business and Professions Code, the real estate licensee
liability provisions of subdivisions (e), (f), and (g) of
Section 13113.8 shall apply to the disclosures required by
this section.
The provisions of this bill become operative on July 1,
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2012.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: Yes
SUPPORT : (Verified 5/3/11)
Bakersfield Fire Department
California Fire Chiefs Association
Fire Districts Association of California
The City of Coalinga
Western Manufactured Housing Communities Association
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : The author's office introduced
this bill in response to a tragedy that occurred on January
9, 2011, when four people died in a mobilehome park in
south Bakersfield after a space heater started a fire in a
mobilehome that had no working smoke detector. This
mobilehome was not required to have a smoke detector
because it was built prior to 1973 and not sold after 1986.
The author's office notes that mobilehomes are highly
vulnerable to fires, can quickly become engulfed in flames,
and can have limited escape routes. The lack of smoke
detectors compounds the danger. The author's office
introduced this bill to help prevent future tragedies such
as the one in Bakersfield by requiring smoke detectors in
all mobilehomes.
RJG:do 5/4/11 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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