BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 2093
Page 1
Date of Hearing: April 13, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Lorena Gonzalez, Chair
AB
2093 (Steinorth) - As Amended March 31, 2016
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Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: NoReimbursable: No
SUMMARY:
This bill seeks to promote compliance with disability access
requirements in commercial property. Specifically, this bill:
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1)Requires the Division of the State Architect (DSA) to require
each applicant for certification as a certified access
specialist (CASp), and for CASp recertification, to provide
the DSA with information about location (city, county) where
they intend to, or have provided services, and requires the
DSA to post this information on its website. The California
Commission on Disability Access (CCDA) must also post a link
on its website to the DSA's CASp program.
2)Requires a commercial property owner to state on every lease
form or rental agreement executed after July 1, 2017, whether
or not the property being leased has undergone inspection by a
CASp.
3)Requires, if the property has undergone a CASp inspection, and
there have been no modifications since the inspection to
impact access compliance, the property owner to provide a copy
of the CASp's inspection report prior to execution of the
lease.
4)Stipulates that any modifications necessary to correct
accessibility deficiencies as noted in a CASp report are
presumed to be the responsibility of the property owner,
unless otherwise mutually agreed to by the owner and the
lessee.
5)Requires the property owner, if the property has been provided
a current disability access inspection certificate, to furnish
the certificate to the lessee within seven days of execution
of the lease.
6)Requires the property owner, if the property has not been
provided a current disability access inspection certificate,
to state in the lease agreement that a CASp can inspect the
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property, and although an inspection is not required by state
law, the owner cannot prohibit a lessee from arranging and
inspection.
FISCAL EFFECT:
DSA's costs will be minor and absorbable to obtain and publish
information regarding where each CASp provides their services.
COMMENTS:
1)Purpose. Under current law, a commercial property owner is
required to state on every lease form or rental agreement
whether the property has been inspected by a CASp. If the
property has undergone a CASP inspection, the lease or rental
agreement must state whether the property meets all applicable
construction-related accessibility standards. Since the
property owner may not know whether the property has met all
applicable-related accessibility standards, current law may
unintentionally create a disincentive for a business property
owner to obtain CASp services.
This bill seeks to increase the amount of information that
tenants get about commercial property that they may rent or
lease, ultimately promoting compliance of commercial property
with the ADA and state construction-related accessibility
standards.
2)Finding a CASp. The State Architect publishes a list of all
the CASps in the State on its website. Currently, there are
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over 575 CASps, however, it may be difficult to find a CASp
who is available in a given area. Currently, the State
Architect's website does not consistently provide the location
in which a CASp provides his or her services. This bill
requires an applicant for CASp certification or renewal to
provide the State Architect the location where the applicant
will provide CASp services, specifically, the city, county, or
city and county. Additionally, the proposed amendments
require the State Architect to publish this locational
information.
3)Prior Legislation. This bill is similar to AB 1342 (Steinorth)
of 2015, which the Governor vetoed due to provisions, not
included in AB 2093, which established two staff positions
within the CCDA.
AB 1521 (Assembly Judiciary Committee), Chapter 755, Statutes
of 2015, addressed the problem of high-frequency ADA
litigation by establishing new pre-filing procedures for
"high-frequency litigants" and providing new tools for
businesses to use when they are served with complaints
alleging violations of construction-related accessibility
claims
4)Related Legislation. SB 269 (Roth), also on today's committee
agenda, establishes a list of "technical violations" that are
presumed to not cause a person difficulty, discomfort or
embarrassment for the purpose of awarding the plaintiff
minimum statutory damages, and protects a business with 50
employees or less from liability for minimum statutory damages
for violations of construction-related accessibility standards
during the 120 day period after the business obtained a CASp
inspection of the business and corrected violations noted in
the inspection.
AB 2093
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Analysis Prepared by:Chuck Nicol / APPR. / (916)
319-2081