BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 2192
Page 1
Date of Hearing: May 7, 2014
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON LOCAL GOVERNMENT
K.H. "Katcho" Achadjian, Chair
AB 2192 (Melendez) - As Introduced: February 20, 2014
SUBJECT : Housing: building plans.
SUMMARY : Allows local agencies to create and implement a
program whereby a building permit may be issued upon submission
of plans prepared by an architect and reviewed by another
unaffiliated architect. Specifically, this bill :
1)Allows the governing body of a local agency to create and
implement a program whereby a building permit may be issued
upon submission of plans prepared by an architect and reviewed
by another unaffiliated architect.
2)Specifies that this program shall only apply to the following
project types:
a) Single-family dwellings not more than two stories and
basement in height;
b) Multiple dwellings containing no more than four dwelling
units of not more than two stories and basement in height;
c) Garages or other structure appurtenant to buildings
described in this bill, not more than two stories and
basement in height;
d) Agricultural and ranch buildings, unless the building
official having jurisdiction deems that an undue risk to
the public health, safety, or welfare exists; or,
e) Nonstructural or nonseismic storefronts, interior
alterations, or additions.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Requires the building department of every city or county to
enforce within its jurisdiction all the provisions published
in the State Building Standards Code, the provisions of
existing law related to the regulation of buildings used for
human habitation, and the other rules and regulations
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promulgated pursuant to the provisions of this part pertaining
to the erection, construction, reconstruction, movement,
enlargement, conversion, alteration, repair, removal,
demolition, or arrangement of apartment houses, hotels, or
dwellings.
2)Allows, pursuant to existing law that specifies the regulation
of buildings for human habitation, a governing body of a local
agency to authorize its enforcement agency to contract with or
employ a private entity or persons on a temporary basis to
perform the plan-checking function.
3)Specifies that a local agency need not enter into a contract
or employ persons if it determines that no entities or persons
are available or qualified to perform the plan-checking
services.
4)Allows entities or persons employed by a local agency to,
pursuant to an agreement with the local agency, perform all
functions necessary to check the plans and specifications to
comply with other requirements imposed pursuant to this
section of law or by local ordinances adopted pursuant to this
part, except those functions reserved by this part or local
ordinance to the legislative body.
5)Allows the local agency to charge the applicant fees in any
amount necessary to defray costs directly attributable to
employing or contracting with entities or persons performing
services pursuant to existing law which the applicant
requested.
6)Provides, when there is an excessive delay in checking plans
and specifications submitted as a part of an application for
residential building permit, the local agency shall, upon
request of the applicant, contract with or employ a private
entity or persons on a temporary basis to perform the
plan-checking function subject to existing law.
7)Defines the following terms:
a) "Enforcement agency" to mean the building department or
building division of a local agency;
b) "Excessive delay" to mean the enforcement agency of a
local agency that has taken either of the following:
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i) More than 30 days after submittal of a complete
application to complete the structural building safety
plan check of the applicant's set of plans and
specifications which are suitable for checking. For a
discretionary building permit, the time period specified
shall commence after certification of the environmental
impact report (EIR), adoption of a negative declaration,
or a determination by the local agency that the project
is exempt, as specified; or,
ii) Including the days actually taken in i), above, more
than 45 days to complete the checking of the resubmitted
corrected plans and specifications suitable for checking
after the enforcement agency has returned the plans and
specifications to the applicant for correction.
c) "Local agency" means a city, county, or city and county;
and,
d) "Residential building" means a one-to-four family
detached structure not exceeding three stories in height.
FISCAL EFFECT : None
COMMENTS :
1)Purpose of this bill . This bill allows the governing body of
a local agency to create and implement a program whereby a
building permit may be issued upon submission of plans
prepared by an architect and reviewed by another unaffiliated
architect. The bill specifies that the Program shall only
apply to specified project types, including single-family
dwellings not more than two stories and basement in height;
multiple dwellings containing no more than four dwelling units
of not more than two stories and basement in height; garages
or other structure appurtenant to buildings described in this
bill, not more than two stories and basement in height;
agricultural and ranch buildings, unless the building official
having jurisdiction deems that an undue risk to the public
health, safety, or welfare exists; or, nonstructural or
nonseismic storefronts, interior alterations, or additions.
The bill is sponsored by the American Institute of Architects,
California Council.
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2)Author's statement . According to the author, "AB 2192 gives
local building departments the statutory authority to create
an alternative way to review and approve architectural plans
for residences and simple, non-structural commercial interior
design projects. For the most part, these are projects that
are exempt from the Architects Practice Act, meaning one does
not have to be an architect to legally design these project
types.
"Specifically, it allows the local building department to
voluntarily create a program to allow architects to contract
with other architects to review their plans for compliance
with the building code in lieu of building department plan
review. This authority would be limited to residential (not
exceeding four units) and nonstructural commercial tenant
improvement projects.
"Jobs in the design and construction industry fluctuate widely
with each turn in the California economy. When the
performance of the California economy drops, construction jobs
are among the first to disappear. And, they can reappear just
as quickly as they can disappear.
"When the economy and the demand for construction improves, AB
2192 will give local building departments, who wish to take
part, another tool to manage the increased demand for plan
review for projects that, for the most part, do not require a
licensed architect to prepare the designs yet are designed by
a licensed architect. Additionally, this will speed up the
start of construction by allowing a building permit for these
simple projects to be issued the same day the plans are
submitted to the local building department.
"Having plans reviewed by an entity other than the building
department is not a new situation. Local building departments
have the authority to contract with design firms to review
plans when there is a backlog of plans. Additionally, the CSU
and UC systems use design professionals for plan review.
Also, the cities of New York, Chicago, and Phoenix have
programs that allow architects to self-certify their plans.
"This is an approach that is used outside of California, and
within California, with success. AB 2192 proposes to allow
local building departments to expand the use of outside plan
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review, on small, simple projects only, so that they can
better manage their workload and allow building permits to be
issued the same day the plans are submitted. AB 2192 does not
propose any change to construction inspection. This
inspection would be performed by the local building department
to ensure that the project is constructed according to the
architect's plans (in compliance with all applicable laws and
regulations)."
3)Regulation of Architects in California . The profession of
licensed architects in California is regulated by the
California Architects Board, the Architects Practice Act in
the Business and Professions Code, and adopted regulations
contained in the California Code of Regulations. In general,
the practice of architecture is defined as "offering or
performing, or being in responsible control of, professional
services which require the skills of an architect in the
planning of sites, and the design, in whole or in part, of
buildings, or groups of buildings and structures." These
professional services can include any or all of the following:
investigation, evaluation, consultation, and advice;
planning, schematic and preliminary studies, designs, working
drawings, and specifications; coordination of the work of
technical and special consultants; compliance with generally
applicable codes and regulations, and assistance in the
governmental review process; technical assistance in the
preparation of bid documents and agreements between clients
and contractors; contract administration; and, construction
observation
The Architects Practice Act provides certain exemptions. For
instance, the Practice Act specifies, in the Chapter entitled
"Application of Chapter" that the Chapter does not prohibit
any person from preparing plans, drawings, or specification
for any of the following:
a) Single-family dwellings of woodframe construction not
more than two stories and basement in height;
b) Multiple dwellings containing no more than four dwelling
units of woodframe construction not more than two stories
and basement in height;
c) Garages or other structures appurtenant to buildings as
described of woodframe construction not more than two
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stories and basement in height; or,
d) Agricultural and ranch buildings of woodframe
construction, unless the building official having
jurisdiction deems that an undue risk to the public health,
safety, or welfare is involved.
In general, this means that for the types of dwellings listed
above, that any applicant can submit plans to a local agency,
and there is no requirement that the plans, drawings, or
specifications must be drawn up by a licensed architect.
4)Existing law related to plan-checking . Current law allows the
governing body of a local agency to authorize its enforcement
agency to contract with or employ a private entity or persons
on a temporary basis to perform the plan-checking function.
Current law also specifies that a local agency need not enter
into a contract or employ persons if it determines that no
entities or persons are available or qualified to perform the
plan-checking services. Further, entities or persons employed
by a local agency may, pursuant to an agreement with the local
agency, perform all functions necessary to check the plans and
specifications to comply with other requirements imposed
pursuant to existing law or by ordinances adopted pursuant to
existing law, except those functions reserved by existing law
or local ordinance to the legislative body.
Existing law also provides that when there is an excessive
delay in checking plans and specifications submitted as a part
of an application for a residential building permit, the local
agency must, upon request of the applicant, contract with or
employ a private entity or persons on a temporary basis to
perform the plan-checking function, as specified. The term
"excessive delay" is defined in this section of the code.
5)Policy considerations . The Committee may wish to consider the
following:
a) Is legislation necessary ? Provisions in existing law
already allow a local agency to authorize its enforcement
agency (the building department or building division of a
local agency) to contract with or employ a private entity
or persons to perform the plan-checking function. There
are no limits in this section of law about what an
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appropriate private entity or persons to perform the
plan-checking function, so conceivably, a local agency
could use licensed architects for this function, should
they choose to do so.
b) Problem that the bill is addressing. It is unclear what
problem this bill is trying to solve. The sponsor argues
that this bill gives local building departments the
statutory authority to work with developers and architects
to create an alternative plan review process for small
projects, which can allow these projects to be approved and
construction to begin more quickly. The Committee may wish
to ask the author and sponsor to assess if timeliness of
the plan-checking function is an issue for building
officials. Current law defines what constitutes an
"excessive delay" is, with respect to the plan-checking
function, and in fact grants to an applicant the ability to
request that the local agency contract with or employ a
private entity or persons on a temporary basis to perform
the plan-checking function.
c) Self certification vs. peer review . The sponsors point
to several other states that have similar plan-checking
statutes. These states, however, do not have an
established "peer review" plan-checking function, and
instead, allow specified professions to "self certify" that
the plans meet all applicable building standards and codes.
For instance, the self-certification program in the City
of Chicago "streamlines the permit review process for
eligible projects by allowing qualified architects and
structural engineers to self-certify that plans filed with
the department do not contain any false information and are
in compliance with the requirements of the Chicago Building
Code."
The City of Chicago program requires the architect or
engineer to provide proof of professional liability
insurance in a specified amount and also requires the
architect or engineer to successfully complete a
self-certification training class offered by or under the
direction of the department
d) Is a peer review appropriate ? The Committee may wish to
consider the practice of allowing those of the same
profession to "police" each other, as this bill would
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establish in the peer review process.
e) Scope of practice fight . The Interior Design Coalition
(IDCC), opposed to this bill, notes that this bill "would
have a negative impact on the growth of small businesses,
raise prices to consumers, and provide no advancement to
citizen welfare?.the proposed legislation would have the
effect of eliminating exemptions that allow persons who are
not architects, such as designers and engineers, to design
and submit building plans for nonstructural and non-seismic
construction permits. These exemptions allow qualified
individuals to design interior spaces within existing
commercial or residential buildings or structures that may
require nonstructural or non-seismic construction."
Additionally, IDCC argues that the bill "would give
architects a perceived advantage over other design
professions that currently are able to offer a full scope
of services, effectively putting them out of
business?.allowing an independent group of architects to
create and implement a self-certification process for
building permits, controlled by architects yet excluding
all other qualified design professionals, will eliminate
the thriving design-build profession and will essentially
create an architect-dominated monopoly."
6)Arguments in support . The Construction Employers' Association
believes that allowing for the implementation of a temporary
expedited plan-check program for local governments is a
positive means to eliminate existing back logs, and that this
bill will expedite permits and construction activity.
7)Arguments in opposition . Opponents argue that the bill is
unnecessary because building departments are already free to
contract out plan review services, that there are currently no
delays in obtaining building permits, and that this bill would
give architects a perceived advantage of other design
professionals.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
The American Institute of Architects, California Council
[SPONSOR]
AB 2192
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Construction Employers' Association
Concerns
League of California Cities
Opposition
Interior Design Coalition of California
Individual letters (2)
Analysis Prepared by : Debbie Michel / L. GOV. / (916)
319-3958