Amended in Assembly May 5, 2014

California Legislature—2013–14 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 2644

Introduced by Assembly Member Nazarian

February 21, 2014

An act to amend Sections 114276, 118500, and 118505 of the Health and Safety Code, relating to public health.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 2644, as amended, Nazarian. Toilet facilities.

Existing law, the California Retail Food Code, sets forth uniform health and sanitation standards for retail food facilities. Local health agencies are primarily responsible for enforcing this code. These provisions are also enforced by the State Department of Public Health, except as specified. Among other things, the code sets forth standards for toilet facilities located in permanent food facilities. A person who violates any provision of the code is guilty of a misdemeanor, except as otherwise provided.

Existing law also requires every public agency that conducts an establishment serving the public or open to the public and that maintains in that establishment restroom facilities for the public, to make every water closet, or restroom, for each sex maintained within the facilities available without cost or charge to the patrons, guests, or invitees of the establishment. Existing law generally requires publicly and privately owned facilities, including sports and entertainment arenas, stadiums, community and convention halls, and specialty event centers, where the public congregates to be equipped with sufficient temporary or permanent restrooms to meet the needs of the public at peak hours.

This bill would require each toilet stall in (1) toilet facilities located in permanent food facilities and provided for use by consumers, guests, and invitees, (2) restroom facilities maintained by a public agency in an establishment that serves or is open to the public, and (3) temporary or permanent restroom facilities in publicly and privately owned facilities where the public congregates to contain a waste receptacle begin insert , unless the addition of a waste receptacle would result in noncompliance with a local, state, or federal law relating to access for persons with disabilities, as end insert begin insert determined by the local health officer end insert . By imposing new duties on local health agencies and by revising the definition of a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

The bill would also make technical changes.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that with regard to certain mandates no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

With regard to any other mandates, this bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs so mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: yes.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

Section 114276 of the Health and Safety Code
is amended to read:

114276.  

(a) A permanent food facility shall provide clean
toilet facilities in good repair for use by employees.

(b) (1) A permanent food facility shall provide clean toilet
facilities in good repair for consumers, guests, or invitees when
there is onsite consumption of foods or when the food facility was
constructed after July 1, 1984, and has more than 20,000 square
feet of floor space.

(2) Notwithstanding Section 113984.1, toilet facilities that are
provided for use by consumers, guests, or invitees shall be in a
location where consumers, guests, and invitees do not pass through
food preparation, food storage, or utensil washing areas to reach
the toilet facilities. Each toilet stall provided for use by consumers,
guests, or invitees shall contain a waste begin delete receptacle. end delete begin insert receptacle,
unless the addition of a waste receptacle in the toilet stall would
result in noncompliance with a local, state, or federal law relating
to access for persons with disabilities, as determined by the local
health officer. end insert

(3) For purposes of this section, a building subject to paragraph
(1) that has a food facility with more than 20,000 square feet of
floor space shall provide at least one separate toilet facility for
men and one separate toilet facility for women.

(4) For purposes of this section, the gas pump area of a service
station that is maintained in conjunction with a food facility shall
not be considered as property used in connection with the food
facility or be considered in determining the square footage of floor
space of the food facility.

(c) (1) Toilet rooms shall be separated by well-fitted,
self-closing doors that prevent the passage of flies, dust, or odors.

(2) Toilet room doors shall be kept closed except during cleaning
and maintenance operations.

(d) Handwashing facilities, in good repair, shall be provided as
specified in Sections 113953 and 113953.3.

(e) A city, county, or city and county may enact ordinances that
are more restrictive than this section.

(f) (1) Except as provided in paragraph (1) of subdivision (b),
a building that is constructed before January 1, 2004, that has a
food facility that provides space for the consumption of food on
the premises shall either provide clean toilet facilities in good
repair for consumers, guests, or invitees on property used in
connection with, or in, the food facility or prominently post a sign
within the food facility in a public area stating that toilet facilities
are not provided.

(2) The first violation of paragraph (1) shall result in a warning.
Subsequent violations shall constitute an infraction punishable by
a fine of not more than two hundred fifty dollars ($250).

(3) The requirements of this section for toilet facilities that are
accessible to consumers, guests, or invitees on the property may
be satisfied by permitting access by those persons to the toilet and
handwashing facilities that are required by this part.

SEC. 2.  

Section 118500 of the Health and Safety Code is
amended to read:

118500.  

Every public agency that conducts an establishment
serving the public or open to the public, and that maintains therein
restroom facilities for the public, shall make every restroom for
each sex maintained within the facilities available without cost or
charge to the patrons, guests, or invitees of the establishment and
each toilet stall shall contain a waste begin delete receptacle. end delete begin insert receptacle, unless
the addition of a waste receptacle end insert begin insert in the toilet stall would result
in noncompliance with a local, state, or federal law relating to
access for persons with disabilities, as determined by the local
health officer. end insert “Public agency” as used in this section means only
the state and any agency of the state and a city, a county, and a
city and county.

SEC. 3.  

Section 118505 of the Health and Safety Code is
amended to read:

118505.  

(a) Publicly and privately owned facilities where the
public congregates shall be equipped with sufficient temporary or
permanent restrooms to meet the needs of the public at peak hours.
Each toilet stall shall contain a waste begin delete receptacle. end delete begin insert receptacle, unless
the addition of a waste receptacle end insert begin insert in the toilet stall would result
in noncompliance with a local, state, or federal law relating to
access for persons with disabilities, as determined by the local
health officer. end insert

(b) In conformity with the State Plumbing Code, and except as
otherwise provided in this section, standards shall be adopted in
order to enforce this section, as follows:

(1) The California Building Standards Commission shall adopt
standards with respect to all state-owned or state-occupied facilities
where the public congregates and over which it has jurisdiction
pursuant to Section 18934.5.

(2) The Office of the State Architect shall adopt standards with
respect to all facilities where the public congregates and that are
not covered by paragraph (1), unless exempt from coverage
pursuant to this section.

(c) The standards adopted pursuant to subdivision (b) shall be
published in the California Building Standards Code contained in
Title 24 of the California Code of Regulations.

(d) This section shall apply to facilities where the public
congregates that commence construction, or that undertake
structural alterations, repairs, or improvements exceeding 50
percent of the entire facility, on or after January 1, 1989.

(e) (1) For the purposes of this section, “facilities where the
public congregates” means sports and entertainment arenas,
stadiums, community and convention halls, specialty event centers,
amusement facilities, and ski resorts.

(2) For purposes of this section, “facilities where the public
congregates” also means specialty event centers in public parks.

(f) This section shall not apply to the following:

(1) A hotel. For purposes of this section, “hotel” means an
establishment in which there exists the relationship of guests and
innkeeper between the occupants and the owner or operator of the
establishment. The existence of some other legal relationship
between the occupants and owner or operator shall be immaterial.

(2) A restaurant or food facility, as defined in Section 113789.

(3) A public or private elementary or secondary school facility.

(4) A qualified historic building, defined as qualifying under
provisions in the California Historical Building Code contained
in Part 8 (commencing with Section 8-101.1) of Title 24 of the
California Code of Regulations.

(g) It is the intent of the Legislature that, in order to ensure that
standards are both viable and efficacious, the Office of the State
Architect and the California Building Standards Commission hold
a series of public meetings with representatives of affected
industries and state and local agencies prior to adopting standards
under this section.

SEC. 4.  

No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution for certain
costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school district
because, in that regard, this act creates a new crime or infraction,
eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty for a crime
or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the
Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the
meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
Constitution.

However, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that
this act contains other costs mandated by the state, reimbursement
to local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made
pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division
4 of Title 2 of the Government Code.