BILL ANALYSIS �
SB 1358
Page 1
SENATE THIRD READING
SB 1358 (Wolk and Lara)
As Amended August 5, 2014
Majority vote
SENATE VOTE :29-1
BUSINESS & PROFESSIONS 10-2 APPROPRIATIONS 13-4
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|Ayes:|Bonilla, Bocanegra, |Ayes:|Gatto, Bocanegra, |
| |Campos, Dickinson, | |Bradford, |
| |Eggman, Gordon, | |Ian Calderon, Campos, |
| |Maienschein, Mullin, | |Eggman, Gomez, Holden, |
| |Skinner, Ting | |Linder, Pan, Quirk, |
| | | |Ridley-Thomas, Weber |
| | | | |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
|Nays:|Jones, Hagman |Nays:|Bigelow, Donnelly, Jones, |
| | | |Wagner |
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SUMMARY : Requires the California Building Standards Commission
(Commission) to adopt mandatory building standards for the
installation of baby diaper changing accommodations in restroom
facilities in public use areas. Specifically, this bill:
1)Requires the Commission to adopt, approve, codify, and publish
mandatory building standards for the installation of baby
diaper changing accommodations in restroom facilities in
public use areas with the next triennial edition of the
California Building Standards Code adopted after January 1,
2015.
2)Requires the standards to apply to newly constructed restrooms
and renovated restrooms when the renovation requires a
building permit and the value of the renovation is more than
$10,000.
3)Authorizes the Commission to expend funds from the Building
Standards Administration Special Revolving Fund for the
development and the adoption of the standards.
4)Defines the term "public use area" to mean interior or
exterior rooms, spaces, or elements that are made available to
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the public.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to Assembly Appropriations Committee,
any costs for the BSC [Commission] to develop the standards will
be minor and absorbable.
The term "public use areas," as defined in the state building
code, includes both privately and publicly-owned buildings.
Anecdotal evidence suggests that costs to purchase and install a
diaper changing station as a part of new construction may be in
the range of $1,000 to $2,000 per station. Total state costs
would depend on the number of state buildings constructed in a
single year, the number of restrooms in those buildings that are
accessible to the public, and similarly to the number of
accessible restrooms renovated in existing state buildings.
These costs are unknown but would likely not be significant in
any fiscal year and would be borne by numerous different state
funds. Any costs to local governments to complete with this
bill's requirement would not be state reimbursable.
COMMENTS :
1)Purpose of this bill. This bill will require the Commission
to develop standards requiring public use areas that build new
restrooms or substantially renovate their restrooms to install
baby diaper changing accommodations. This bill is
author-sponsored.
2)Author's statement. According to the author's office,
"Currently, parents who change their babies' diapers while
away from home often find the availability of public restrooms
problematic. Parents may be forced to change their babies'
diapers on dirty bathroom floors, posing a health risk to the
child. Changing the baby in the parents' personal vehicle is
not an option for families that rely on public transit. Also,
given the trend of fair distribution of parenting
responsibilities, as compared with four decades ago, baby
changing tables should be available in both men's and women's
restrooms."
3)The California Building Standards Commission. The Commission,
located within the Department of General Services, was
established in 1953 to review and approve building standards
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and codify and publish those standards every three years.
Starting in 1989, the Commission has published the California
Building Standards Code in its entirety every three years.
Title 24 is available for purchase or to the public at no cost
through depository libraries. The most recent version of the
California Building Standards Code was published in 2013.
4)Requirements for baby diaper changing accommodations. There
is no current state requirement for the provision of baby
diaper changing accommodations, but there are some technical
standards in place for those facilities which choose to
install them. However, some localities have modified their
local building codes to require placement. In 1998, Florida's
Miami-Dade County adopted standards requiring new or
substantially renovated public-oriented establishments to
install diaper-changing accommodations that are equally
accessible to women and men. San Francisco followed with
similar regulations in 2005.
Analysis Prepared by : Sarah Huchel / B., P. & C.P. / (916)
319-3301
FN: 0004489