BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                            



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          |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE            |                       SB 1167|
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                                    THIRD READING


          Bill No:  SB 1167
          Author:   Hueso (D)
          Amended:  3/26/14
          Vote:     21


           SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE  :  11-0, 4/1/14
          AYES:  DeSaulnier, Gaines, Beall, Cannella, Galgiani, Hueso,  
            Lara, Liu, Pavley, Roth, Wyland


           SUBJECT  :    Vector infestations

           SOURCE  :     California Association of Code Enforcement Officers
                      Physicians for Local Responsibility, Los Angeles
                      Regional Asthma Management and Prevention


           DIGEST  :    This bill requires property owners to abate  
          substandard building conditions causing vector infestations, in  
          addition to destroying the vectors.

           ANALYSIS  :    The State Housing Law contains a long list of  
          conditions relating to inadequate sanitation, structural  
          hazards, faulty weather protection, and unsafe wiring, plumbing,  
          or mechanical systems that make a dwelling unit substandard.   
          One of these is an infestation of insects, vermin, or rodents.   
          The law further empowers code enforcement officers to cite  
          substandard conditions and to require that a property owner  
          correct the violations.  If the owner fails to do so after 30  
          days' notice, or within a shorter notice period if the  
          enforcement agency deems it necessary to prevent or remedy an  
          immediate threat to the health and safety of the public, the  
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          enforcement agency must institute appropriate actions or  
          proceedings to prevent, restrain, correct, or abate the  
          violation.

          Likewise, state environmental health law requires a person who  
          possesses (i.e., owns or leases) any place that is infested with  
          rodents to endeavor to exterminate and destroy the rodents.  The  
          law allows the Department of Public Health (DPH) and local  
          health officers to inspect places for infestation.  If the  
          possessor of the property fails to endeavor to exterminate and  
          destroy the rodents, DPH or the local health officer must  
          exterminate and destroy the rodents and may place a lien against  
          the property to recover its costs.  Independent of any  
          particular property, a city or county may also order and pay for  
          the extermination and destruction of rodents on both private and  
          public property.

          This bill amends the State Housing Law to provide that if a  
          dwelling is substandard due to an infestation of insects,  
          vermin, or rodents, the enforcement agency's order shall include  
          a requirement that the owner abate any other substandard  
          conditions causing the infestation.

          This bill also amends state environmental health law to expand  
          the authority and obligations of DPH and local health officers  
          to abate substandard conditions causing a rodent infestation.

           FISCAL EFFECT  :    Appropriation:  No   Fiscal Com.:  No   Local:  
           No

           SUPPORT  :   (Verified  4/3/14)

          California Association of Code Enforcement Officers (co-source)
          Physicians for Local Responsibility, Los Angeles (co-source)
          Regional Asthma Management and Prevention (co-source)
          Alameda County Healthy Housing Department
          Asthma Coalition of Los Angeles County
          California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation
          Merced/Mariposa County Asthma Coalition
          Sierra Club California
          Western Center on Law and Poverty

           ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT  :    According to the author, 


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               Pest infestations are related to structural conditions that  
               provide entry, food, and water needed for pests to thrive.  
               Currently, state laws only requires those cited for a pest  
               infestation to "exterminate and destroy" the pests.  If  
               structural deficiencies such as leaky plumbing, water  
               intrusion, and holes in walls are not fixed, the pests  
               often return resulting in repeat infestations.  

               For residents, this results in an unhealthy mix of  
               reoccurring infestations and often repeated exposure to  
               pesticides used to exterminate the pest. 

               By aligning existing structural housing codes with existing  
               pest infestation codes, SB 1167 would ensure that  
               structural deficiencies be addressed when an owner is cited  
               for a pest infestation, resulting in more effective and  
               long term elimination of pest infestations and healthier  
               living conditions for residents.


          JA:e  4/3/14   Senate Floor Analyses 

                           SUPPORT/OPPOSITION:  SEE ABOVE

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