BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



          SENATE COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
                             Senator Ricardo Lara, Chair
                            2015 - 2016  Regular  Session

          AB 662 (Bonilla) - Public accommodation:  disabled adults:   
          changing facilities
          
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          |Version: July 7, 2015           |Policy Vote: T. & H. 9 - 2      |
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          |Urgency: No                     |Mandate: No                     |
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          |Hearing Date: August 17, 2015   |Consultant: Mark McKenzie       |
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          This bill meets the criteria for referral to the Suspense File. 







          Bill  
          Summary:  AB 662 would require a commercial place of amusement  
          with a capacity of 1,000 or more persons to have at least one  
          adult changing station for persons with specified physical  
          disabilities by January 1, 2020.  Existing facilities that are  
          renovated would be required to install an adult changing station  
          by January 1, 2025, if the renovations cost at least $10,000 or  
          require a permit.


          Fiscal  
          Impact:  
           One-time costs to the Division of the State Architect (DSA) in  
            the range of $150,000 to $170,000 to develop regulations  







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            specifying the requirements for installation of an adult  
            changing station and carry the regulations through the  
            adoption process. (Disability Access Account)

           Minor and absorbable costs to the Building Standards  
            Commission (BSC) to consider and adopt the DSA regulations.  
            (BSC Service Revolving Fund)


          Background:  Existing law directs the State Architect to develop and submit  
          proposed regulations and building standards to the California  
          Building Standards Commission for approval and adoption for the  
          purpose of making public buildings, public accommodations,  
          commercial buildings, public housing, and related facilities  
          accessible to and usable by persons with disabilities.  Upon  
          adoption, BSC publishes the building standards in triennial  
          updates to the California Building Standards Code.
          Existing law requires any person or firm who owns or manages  
          places of public amusement, such as theaters, concert halls, and  
          stadiums, to provide seating or accommodations for physically  
          disabled persons.




          Proposed Law:  
            AB 662 would require a person, private firm, organization, or  
          corporation that owns or manages a new commercial place of  
          public amusement to install and maintain at least one adult  
          changing station for persons with a physical disability by  
          January 1, 2020.  Existing facilities that are renovated must  
          comply with this requirement if the renovation requires a permit  
          or the renovations cost at least $10,000.  A facility must  
          ensure that the entrance to each adult changing station has  
          conspicuous signage and any central directory of a facility must  
          indicate the location of the changing station.  
          An adult changing station is defined as an adult changing table  
          located within an enclosed restroom facility, or other similar  
          private facility, that is for use by persons with specified  
          physical disabilities who need help with diapering.  A  
          commercial place of public amusement is defined as an  
          auditorium, convention center, cultural complex, exhibition  
          hall, permanent amusement park structure, sports arena, or  
          theater or movie house that has a maximum occupancy of 1,000 or  








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          more people, explicitly excluding public higher education  
          facilities.




          Related  
          Legislation:  SB 1350 (Lara), which was vetoed by Governor Brown  
          last year, would have directed the BSC to require baby-changing  
          stations installed in new or newly renovated restrooms in a  
          place of public accommodation to be equally available,  
          regardless of gender.  
          SB 1358 (Wolk), which was vetoed by Governor Brown last year,  
          would have required buildings owned by state or local  
          governments, as well as other private buildings open to the  
          public, to maintain at least one safe, sanitary, and convenient  
          baby diaper changing station that is accessible to both women  
          and men.  

          The Governor's veto message for both bills stated the following:

               At a time when so many have raised concerns about the  
               number of regulations in California, I believe it would be  
               more prudent to leave the matter of diaper changing  
               stations to the private sector.  Already, many businesses  
               have taken steps to accommodate their customers in this  
               regard. This may be a good business practice, but not one  
               that I am inclined to legislate.


          Staff  
          Comments:  This bill is intended to improve access to public  
          amusement spaces for adults with physical disabilities that  
          require adequate facilities for diapering needs.  Currently,  
          special education departments in California school districts  
          provide for restroom accommodations including a changing table  
          and a lift so students with disabilities can comfortably and  
          safely attend to their needs.  In addition, some public  
          amusements spaces, such as Disneyland and Disneyland California  
          Adventure Park offer adult diaper changing facilities, and some  
          provide accommodations within a first aid station, but many  
          others do not offer adult changing facilities to disabled  
          guests.
          A review of durable medical goods retailers indicates that adult  








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          changing tables range in price from $1,800 to $5,000 for  
          necessary materials, but this does not include labor costs or  
          construction costs that may be required to ensure adequate space  
          for installation.  The timelines in the bill are intended to  
          provide adequate flexibility to allow sufficient time for  
          affected owners and managers of commercial amusement spaces to  
          plan for compliance with the requirements.




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