BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 980
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Date of Hearing: May 15, 2013
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Mike Gatto, Chair
AB 980 (Pan) - As Amended: March 21, 2013
Policy Committee: B&P Vote:8-4
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
No Reimbursable:
SUMMARY
This bill:
1)Requires the California Building Standards Commission (CBSC),
in conjunction with the Office of Statewide Health Planning
and Development (OSHPD), to adopt emergency regulations
deleting a specific section from the 2013 Triennial Edition of
the California Building Standards Code applicable to primary
care clinics that provide abortion services.
2)Prohibits the CBSC from adopting building code standards
establishing construction requirements for primary care
clinics providing medication or aspiration abortion services
that differ from standards applicable to other primary care
clinics.
FISCAL EFFECT
Minor absorbable costs to the CBSC and OSHPD.
COMMENTS
1)Background . The CBSC was established in 1953 and is
responsible for administering California's building codes,
including adopting, approving, publishing, and implementing
codes and standards. The Code is published every three years,
with supplements published in intervening years. Building
regulations and standards take effect 180 days after their
publication unless otherwise stated.
OSHPD promulgates building standard regulations related to the
construction of licensed clinics and outpatient clinical
AB 980
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services of a hospital in non-hospital buildings under the
jurisdiction of local building departments. OSHPD also
develops building standards that have specific construction
requirements for primary care clinics providing abortion
services based on California Department of Public Health
regulations prescribing general space requirements for
clinics.
As part of the 2013 Code, which takes effect on January 1,
2014, the CBSC recently adopted proposed OSHPD regulations
that exempt primary care clinics, except for those that
provide abortions, from certain plumbing code and space
requirements. The 2013 Code standards also state that primary
care clinics that include treatment rooms, procedure rooms, or
patient treatment spaces requiring positive or negative
pressure other than airborne infection isolation exam rooms do
not receive these exemptions. The result is that, if a primary
care clinic that would provide abortions is being built or
retrofitted, it would not be entitled to the exemption from
the space and plumbing code requirements described above and
would instead have to adhere to the more stringent and costly
building standards.
2)Purpose . AB 980, sponsored by Planned Parenthood Affiliates of
California, requires CBSC and OSHPD to adopt emergency
regulations to repeal Code Section 1226.7 (which deals
specifically with requirements for primary care clinics that
provide abortion services), thus allowing primary care clinics
that provide abortion services to avail themselves of the less
expensive building standard. (Any building standard adopted
through the emergency rulemaking procedure takes effect
immediately upon filing with the Secretary of State, but
expires after six months. Any permanent change to the
building code would need to be promulgated through the regular
rulemaking process within 180 days of taking effect.)
AB 980 also explicitly prohibits CBSC from adopting future
building standards that distinguish between primary care
clinics providing medication or aspiration (as opposed to
surgical) abortion services and certain other primary care
clinics.
Analysis Prepared by : Chuck Nicol / APPR. / (916) 319-2081
AB 980
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