AB 786, as amended, Levine. Common interest developments: property use and maintenance.
The Davis-Stirling Common Interest Development Act governs the management and operation of common interest developments. Existing law provides that, unless otherwise provided in the common interest development declaration, the association is responsible for repairing, replacing, or maintaining the common area, other than exclusive use common area, and the owner of each separate interest is responsible for maintaining that separate interest and any exclusive use common area appurtenant to that interest. Existing law makes void and unenforceable any provision of the governing documents or architectural or landscaping guidelines or policies that prohibits use of low water-using plants, or prohibits or restricts compliance with water-efficient landscape ordinances or regulations on the use of water, as specified.
Existing law also prohibits an association, except an association that uses recycled water for landscape irrigation, from imposing a fine or assessment on separate interest owners for reducing or eliminating watering of vegetation or lawns during any period for which the Governor has declared a state of emergency or the local government has declared a local emergency due to drought.
This bill would revise that exception to instead authorize thebegin delete owner of a separate interest to be fined or assessed if the property subject to the fine or assessment has previously received, and continues to receive,end deletebegin insert imposition of a fine or assessment against the owner of a separate interest that receivesend insert recycled waterbegin insert from a retail water
supplier, as defined, and fails to use that recycled waterend insert for landscaping irrigation.
This bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 4735 of the Civil Code proposed by AB 349 that would become operative if this bill and AB 349 are enacted and this bill is enacted last.
This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Vote: 2⁄3. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no. State-mandated local program: no.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
The Legislature finds and declares that due to
2the ongoing emergency drought conditions the state should
3maximize opportunities to conserve potable water, including
4encouraging homeowners to limit the watering of outdoor
5landscaping and removing all impediments to that goal.
Section 4735 of the Civil Code is amended to read:
(a) Notwithstanding any other law, a provision of the
8governing documents or architectural or landscaping guidelines
9or policies shall be void and unenforceable if it does any of the
10following:
11(1) Prohibits, or includes conditions that have the effect of
12prohibiting, the use of low water-using plants as a group or as a
13replacement of existing turf.
14(2) Has the effect of prohibiting or restricting compliance with
15either of the following:
P3 1(A) A water-efficient landscape ordinance adopted or in effect
2pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 65595 of the Government
3
Code.
4(B) Any regulation or restriction on the use of water adopted
5pursuant to Section 353 or 375 of the Water Code.
6(b) This section shall not prohibit an association from applying
7landscaping rules established in the governing documents, to the
8extent the rules fully conform with subdivision (a).
9(c) Notwithstanding any other provision of this part, except as
10provided in subdivision (d), an association
shall not impose a fine
11or assessment against an owner of a separate interest for reducing
12or eliminating the watering of vegetation or lawns during any
13period for which either of the following have occurred:
14(1) The Governor has declared a state of emergency due to
15drought pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 8558 of the
16Government Code.
17(2) A local government has declared a local emergency due to
18drought pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 8558 of the
19Government Code.
20(d) begin deleteAn end deletebegin insertSubdivision (c) shall not apply to an end insertowner of a
separate
21interestbegin delete may be subject to a fine or assessment if the property begin insert that, prior to the imposition of a fine or
22subject to the fine or assessment has previously received, and
23continues to receive,end delete
24assessment described in subdivision (c), receivesend insert recycled water,
25as defined in Section 13050 of the Water Code,begin insert from a retail water
26supplier, as defined in Section 13575 of the Water Code, and fails
27to use that recycled waterend insert for landscaping irrigation.
Section 4735 of the Civil Code is amended to read:
(a) Notwithstanding any other law, a provision of the
30governing documents or architectural or landscaping guidelines
31or policies shall be void and unenforceable if it does any of the
32following:
33(1) Prohibits, or includes conditions that have the effect of
34prohibiting, the use of low water-using plants as a group or as a
35replacement of existing turf.
36(2) Prohibits, or includes conditions that have the effect of
37prohibiting, the use of artificial turf or any other synthetic surface
38that resembles grass.
39(3) Has the effect of prohibiting or restricting compliance
with
40either of the following:
P4 1(A) A water-efficient landscape ordinance adopted or in effect
2pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 65595 of the Government
3Code.
4(B) Any regulation or restriction on the use of water adopted
5pursuant to Section 353 or 375 of the Water Code.
6(b) This section shall not prohibit an association from applying
7landscaping rules established in the governing documents, to the
8extent the rules fully conform with subdivision (a).
9(c) Notwithstanding any other provision of this part, except as
10provided in subdivision (d), an association shall not impose a fine
11or assessment against an owner of a separate interest for reducing
12or
eliminating the watering of vegetation or lawns during any
13period for which either of the following have occurred:
14(1) The Governor has declared a state of emergency due to
15drought pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 8558 of the
16Government Code.
17(2) A local government has declared a local emergency due to
18drought pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 8558 of the
19Government Code.
20(d) begin deleteAn end deletebegin insertSubdivision (c) shall not apply to an end insertowner of a separate
21interestbegin delete may be subject to a fine or assessment if the property begin insert
that, prior to the imposition of a fine or
22subject to the fine or assessment has previously received, and
23continues to receive,end delete
24assessment described in subdivision (c), receivesend insert recycled water,
25as defined in Section 13050 of the Water Code,begin insert from a retail water
26supplier, as defined in Section 13575 of the Water Code, and fails
27to use that recycled waterend insert for landscaping irrigation.
28(e) An owner of a separate interest upon which water-efficient
29landscaping measures have been installed in response to a
30declaration of a state of emergency described in subdivision (c)
31shall not be required to reverse or remove the water-efficient
32landscaping measures upon the conclusion of the state of
33emergency.
Section 2.5 of this bill incorporates amendments to
35Section 4735 of the Civil Code proposed by both this bill and
36Assembly Bill 349. It shall only become operative if (1) both bills
37are enacted and become effective, (2) each bill amends Section
384735 of the Civil Code, and (3) this bill is enacted after Assembly
39Bill 349, in which case Section 2 of this bill shall not become
40operative.
This act is an urgency statute necessary for the
2immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety within
3the meaning of Article IV of the Constitution and shall go into
4immediate effect. The facts constituting the necessity are:
5California is in a state of emergency because of the continued
6drought. In response, Governor Brown issued Executive Order
7B-29-15, ordering a 25 percent statewide reduction in urban water
8consumption. Because residential landscaping accounts for 35
9percent or more of the average urban water usage statewide, many
10homeowners have voluntarily ceased watering landscaping in order
11to assist with the drought emergency. However,
some homeowners
12associations have interpreted existing law to allow them to fine
13
homeowners who voluntarily cease using potable water on their
14landscaping if the homeowners association itself is using a de
15minimis amount of recycled water on common areas. This is
16directly contrary to the state’s need to conserve the precious and
17dwindling water supplied for urban, agricultural, and environmental
18needs.
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