BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó






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          |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE            |                        SB 328|
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                                   THIRD READING 


          Bill No:  SB 328
          Author:   Hueso (D)
          Amended:  5/4/15  
          Vote:     21  

           SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE:  5-2, 5/12/15
           AYES:  Jackson, Hertzberg, Leno, Monning, Wieckowski
           NOES:  Moorlach, Anderson

           SUBJECT:   Landlords:  notice of pesticide use


          SOURCE:    Author


          DIGEST:  This bill requires a landlord or a landlord's agent to  
          provide a tenant, and any tenant of adjacent units, with advance  
          written notice of the use of pesticides at a dwelling unit if  
          the landlord or authorized agent applies any pesticide without a  
          licensed structural pest control operator.  This bill requires  
          the posting of a similar notice at least 24 hours prior to  
          applying a pesticide in a common area without a licensed  
          structural pest control operator, unless the pest poses an  
          immediate threat to health and safety, in which case the notice  
          is required to be posted as soon as practicable, but not later  
          than one hour after the pesticide is applied.


          ANALYSIS:   


          Existing law:









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          1)Regulates the terms and conditions of residential tenancies  
            and generally requires a landlord to keep a rental unit in a  
            condition fit for occupancy.  (Civ. Code Sec. 1940 et seq.)

          2)Creates an implied covenant of quiet enjoyment in every lease,  
            requiring that the tenant shall not be disturbed in his or her  
            possession by the landlord. (Civ. Code Sec. 1927; Pierce v.  
            Nash (1954) 126 Cal.App.2d 606, 612.)

          3)Provides that any building or portion thereof including any  
            dwelling unit, guestroom or suite of rooms, in which there  
            exists an infestation of insects, vermin, or rodents to an  
            extent that endangers the life, limb, health, property,  
            safety, or welfare of the public or the occupants thereof  
            shall be deemed a substandard building.  (Health & Saf. Code  
            Sec. 17920.3.)

          4)States that a registered structural pest control company shall  
            provide the owner, or owner's agent, and tenant of the  
            premises for which work is to be done with clear written  
            notice.  (Bus. & Prof. Code Sec. 8538.)

          5)Specifies that the notice described above shall contain the  
            following statements and information using words with common  
            and everyday meaning:

                 the pest to be controlled;
                 the pesticide or pesticides proposed to be used, and the  
               active ingredient or ingredients;
                 a statement which, among other things, provides  
               "CAUTION-PESTICIDES ARE TOXIC CHEMICALS."  The statement  
               must also include notice regarding possible symptoms of  
               illness, and various persons to contact for further  
               information; and
                 if a contract for periodic pest control has been  
               executed, the frequency with which the treatment is to be  
               done.  (Bus. & Prof. Code Sec. 8538.)

          1)States that the notice described above shall be provided at  
            least 48 hours prior to application of pesticides, except as  
            provided.  (Bus. & Prof. Code Sec. 8538.)

          2)Requires a landlord of a residential dwelling unit to provide  







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            each new tenant that occupies the unit with a copy of the  
            notice provided by a registered structural pest control  
            company if a contract for periodic pest control service has  
            been executed.  (Civ. Code Sec. 1940.8.)

          3)Requires, by regulation, registered structural pest control  
            operators to leave in a conspicuous location a written notice  
            identifying the common, generic or chemical name of each  
            pesticide applied within or around a structure, and states  
            that such notice may be provided by a door hanger, invoice,  
            billing statement or other similar written document which  
            contains the registered company's name, address, and telephone  
            number.   (16 Cal. Code Reg. Sec. 1970.4.)

          4)Specifies, by regulation, that in the case of a multiple  
            family structure, such notice may be given to the designated  
            agent or the owner, and that for external pest control  
            servicing to a multiple family dwelling consisting of more  
            than 4 units, notices shall be posted in heavily frequented,  
            highly visible areas including, but not limited to, all  
            mailboxes, the manager's apartment, in all laundry rooms, and  
            community rooms.  (16 Cal. Code Reg. Sec. 1970.4.)

          This bill:

          1)Requires a landlord or authorized agent that applies any  
            pesticide to a dwelling unit without a licensed structural  
            pest control operator to provide, at least 24 hours prior to  
            application of the pesticide, a tenant of that dwelling unit  
            and a tenant in each neighboring dwelling unit that could  
            reasonably be impacted by the pesticide use with written  
            notice.

          2)Requires a landlord or authorized agent that applies any  
            pesticide to a common area without a licensed structural pest  
            control operator to post, at least 24 hours prior to  
            application of the pesticide and at least 24 hours after the  
            pesticide is applied, written notice in a conspicuous place in  
            the common area in which a pesticide is to be applied.

          3)Specifies that the written notices referenced above must  
            contain, in nontechnical language and in a clear and coherent  
            manner, the following statements and information:








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                 the pest or pests to be controlled;
                 the name and brand of the pesticide product proposed to  
               be used;
                 a statement which, among other things, provides  
               "CAUTION-PESTICIDES ARE TOXIC CHEMICALS."  The statement  
               must also include notice regarding possible symptoms of  
               illness, and various persons to contact for further  
               information; 
                 the approximate date, time, and frequency with which the  
               pesticide will be applied; and
                 for pesticides applied in a dwelling unit, a  
               notification stating "The approximate date, time, and  
               frequency of this pesticide application is subject to  
               change if a tenant in the unit the pesticides will be  
               applied waives the 24-hour waiting period."

          1)Provides that upon receipt of written notification, the tenant  
            may sign a waiver to allow the landlord or authorized agent to  
            apply a pesticide to a dwelling unit at an agreed upon time  
            within 24 hours.

          2)States that if the pest poses an immediate threat to health  
            and safety, thereby making compliance with the 24-hour prior  
            notice requirement for application of a pesticide in a common  
            area unreasonable, a landlord or authorized agent shall post  
            the notification as soon as practicable, but not later than  
            one hour after the pesticide is applied.

          3)Specifies that this bill neither abrogates the responsibility  
            of a registered structural pest control company to abide by  
            specified notification requirements, nor authorizes a landlord  
            or authorized agent to enter a tenant's dwelling unit in  
            violation of existing law.


          Background


          According to the American Association of Poison Control Centers,  
          Americans placed over 3 million calls to poison control centers  
          in 2013, the most recent year for which data is available.   
          (American Association of Poison Control Centers, 2013 Annual  
          Report of the American Association of Poison Control Centers'  
          National Poison Data System  







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          Existing law requires registered structural pest control  
          operators to provide the owner and tenants of a property for  
          which work is to be done with advance written notice prior to  
          the application of pesticides.  This bill requires landlords or  
          their agents to provided tenants with advance written notice of  
          the use of pesticides at a dwelling unit at least 24 hours prior  
          to their application if the landlord or agent applies any  
          pesticide without a licensed structural pest control operator.


          Comments


          The author writes:


            Current law requires that a tenant be notified when a  
            registered pest management professional is going to  
            potentially expose them to pesticides.  However, such  
            notification is not required when a landlord or property  
            manager applies over-the-counter pesticides on their own,  
            leaving tenants without any information about their exposure  
            to pesticides.  As a result, tenants have no way to protect  
            their families from these harmful toxins.


            SB 328 would require landlords that apply pesticide products  
            to their properties to provide tenants with prior notification  
            of the pest being treated, the product being used, and basic  
            health and safety information, including symptoms to look for  
            and phone numbers to local poison control centers.  Landlords  
            already must get consent from tenants to enter their units.   
            Adding this notification to the existing landlord-tenant  
            communication process when pesticides are being applied will  
            standardize the information shared and ensures tenants are  
            fully aware of the pesticide products used in their homes.


          


          Related/Prior Legislation








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          SB 1167 (Hueso, Chapter 81, Statutes of 2014) expanded the duty  
          of individuals who possess property infested with rodents to  
          immediately exterminate and destroy the rodents, to also require  
          those individual to abate specified conditions causing the  
          infestation.  The bill also authorized specified agencies and  
          governing bodies to abate the conditions causing the rodent  
          infestation, and directed that an agency's abatement order  
          include abatement of specified conditions that the agency  
          determines to have caused the infestation.


          SB 1411 (Jackson, 2014) would have authorized county  
          agricultural commissioners to adopt regulations to prohibit the  
          use of any pesticide within one-quarter mile of a school, and  
          would have required schools and other specified sites within  
          one-quarter mile of planned pesticide application be notified in  
          writing in advance.  The bill would have required the placement  
          of signs in agricultural fields that include the name of the  
          pesticide, date and time of any restricted entry interval, and  
          the telephone numbers of the commissioner and pesticide  
          applicator.  The bill died in the Senate Agriculture Committee.


          SB 2143 (Bowen, Chapter 234, Statutes of 2000) required the  
          landlord of a residential dwelling unit to provide each new  
          tenant that occupies the unit with a copy of the notice provided  
          by a registered structural pest control company if a contract  
          for periodic pest control service has been executed.  The bill  
          specified that the required notice contain information about the  
          frequency of treatment if a contract for periodic pest control  
          has been executed.


          AB 2260 (Shelley, Chapter 718, Statutes of 2000) established the  
          Healthy Schools Act of 2000.  The bill required that the  
          preferred method of managing pests at schoolsites be "effective  
          least toxic pest management practices," required each schoolsite  
          to maintain records of all pesticide use at the schoolsite for a  
          period of 4 years and make the records available to the public  
          upon request, and required, on an annual basis, the school  
          district to provide to all staff and parents or guardians of  
          pupils enrolled at a school written notification addressing,  
          among other things, expected pesticide use.







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


          SUPPORT:   (Verified5/15/15)


          Alameda County Board of Supervisors
          Black Women for Wellness
          Breast Cancer Action
          California Association of Code Enforcement Officers
          California Healthy Nail Salon Collaborative
          California Pan-Ethnic Health Network
          California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation
          Californians for a Healthy and Green Economy
          Center for Environmental Health
          Clean Water Action - California
          Coalition for Clean Air
          Environmental Working Group
          Healthy Homes Collaborative
          Inquilinos Unidos/United Tenants
          Instituto de Educacion Popular del Sur de California
          Oakland Tenants Union
          Pacoima Beautiful
          Pest Control Operators of California
          Pesticide Action Network North America
          Physicians for Social Responsibility - Los Angeles
          Regional Asthma Management and Prevention
          San Francisco Asthma Task Force
          San Francisco Bay Area Physicians for Social Responsibility
          SoCalCOSH
          Society for Allergy Friendly Environmental Gardening
          Western Center on Law & Poverty
          one individual

          OPPOSITION:   (Verified5/15/15)

          Apartment Association of Greater Los Angeles
          California Apartment Association
          California Association of Realtors
          Educational Community for Homeowners
          Santa Barbara Rental Property Association







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          ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT:     According to the Healthy Homes  
          Collaborative, tenants should be afforded the right to know  
          about pesticide applications in their homes and be given the  
          opportunity to take precautionary measures that comes with that  
          knowledge.  Currently, such notification is only required when  
          landlords hire a licensed pest control professional.  However,  
          we know that in many cases, owners and property managers attempt  
          to manage pests on their own through the use of store-bought  
          pesticides.  In these cases, there are no requirements that  
          tenants be notified.  By requiring landlords and property  
          managers to notify tenants of any do-it-yourself pesticide use,  
          SB 328 would ensure that tenants have the right to know about  
          the pesticides used in their homes and are given the opportunity  
          to take steps to avoid unwanted pesticide exposure independent  
          of who is applying the pesticides.

          ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION:According to the Apartment Association  
          of Greater Los Angeles and the Santa Barbara Rental Property  
          Association, this bill in its current form suffers from some  
          confusing definitional requirements and prohibits property  
          owners from ridding a kitchen of a recently reported ant  
          infestation without a 24-hour prior notice and an okay to enter  
          the unit to treat the infestation.  They also state that the  
          bill's prescription for warning residents of the content of  
          commercially available pest-control products already appear on  
          the products themselves, as required by federal and state law,  
          and the disclosure requirements of SB 328 exceed even those  
          required of professional pest-control operators.

          According to the California Apartment Association (CAA), the  
          definition of pest and pesticides in the bill may be too broad,  
          potentially capturing such things as anti-bacterial products,  
          homemade bleach solutions, and mold.  CAA notes potential  
          ambiguity in the bill concerning the required notice, waiver of  
          the 24-hour notification period for pesticide applications in a  
          dwelling unit, and the meaning of specific words such as  
          "non-technical."  According to the California Association of  
          Realtors (CAR), SB 328 holds landlords and property managers to  
          stricter notification stands than that for licensed pest control  
          operators, resulting in non-uniform pesticide notification  
          standards for pesticide applications on residential real  
          property.








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          Prepared by:Tobias Halvarson / JUD. / (916) 651-4113
          5/15/15 15:24:28


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