News for California Building Departments
Issue 4, October - December 2004
In memory of Norman Sorensen who died
suddenly on October 7, 2004.
Norm was the Deputy Director of the Division of Codes and Standards within the Department of Housing and Community Development since 1996. He will be missed by those who knew him.
Index to all issues of The Willdan Letter
Important Dates
November 18 , 2004
Building Standards Commission Hearing,
Sacramento, CA
See www.bsc.ca.gov
December 2-3, 2004
A two-day IAPMO seminar,
Ontario, CA
December 6, 8, & 10, 2004
HCD Hearings on Universal Design, discussed below in What’s Up with the State.
December 11, 2004
Last day to apply for IAMPO certification exams on January 22, 2005 for UPC and UMC. Exams held in Sacramento, Oakland, Oroville, Ontario & Ventura
Call NITC at 1-877-457-6482 for details
February 21-March 6, 2005
2005 International Code Council Codes Forum, Millennium Hotel Cincinnati, Ohio.
February 28-March 4, 2005
CALBO Annual Business Meeting at Yosemite Park.
See www.calbo.org for details.
What's Up With The State?
-
Ruben Grijalva has been appointed to the position of State Fire Marshal. Mr. Grijalva has been the fire chief for the City of Palo Alto since 1994. Grijalva is past president of the Fire Chiefs Department for the League of California Cities and past president of the Santa Clara County Fire Chief's Association.
-
HCD has held two open public meetings with the most recent on July 16, 2004, to consider the adoption of the 2003 International Residential Code as the new California Residential Code for one and two family dwellings. The proposal is to adopt the IRC as Part 2.1 of Title 24, California Code of Regulations. The electrical, mechanical and plumbing provisions are not planned for adoption. A 59-page draft is available at: http://www.hcd.ca.gov/codes/shl/
-
At the June 2, 2004 meeting of the Coordinating Council of state agencies that serves the Building Standards Commission (BSC), the representatives of several state adopting agencies announced plans for proposed building standards adoptions that will be filed with the BSC on or before the deadline of August 2, 2004, for possible adoption and publishing in 2005. Plans included the adoption of the 2003 IRC, 2003 UPC and 2003 UMC, amendments to the 2001 CBC, and amendments to the adopted, but not yet effective, 2002 NEC. Discussion about the NFPA Building Code adoption revealed that work is delayed because of staffing shortages, other regulatory work, or they are waiting for a requested opinion of the Attorney General regarding copyrights to NFPA building code language being provided the state agencies by the NFPA. DSA will be proposing numerous changes to the accessibility regulations in Chapter 11B of the CBC. HCD will be proposing a complete rewrite of Chapter 11A of the CBC that has been the subject of numerous public meetings over the past three years.
-
The Building Standards Commission met on July 21, 2004 in Sacramento. The significant events were the adoption of the California Energy Commission’s 2005 Energy Standards to take effect on October 1, 2005. Yes, 2005! Also, the Commission voted to publish the previously adopted 2002 NEC with an effective date possibly in March 2005. This means the various parts of Title 24 will have differing effective dates.
-
From the Energy Commission: The Energy Commission publishes an energy standards newsletter, the Blueprint. Past issues are available and indexed at www.energy.ca.gov/efficiency/blueprint/index.html. One feature “Seeking Excellence” includes interviews with individuals going beyond the code and showing that achieving high levels of energy efficiency in buildings is indeed possible. The Blueprint also offers lists of trainings on the Energy Standards and questions and answers on the Standards. To receive the Blueprint via email, send an email to Kurt Pisor at title24@energy.state.ca.us or call the CEC Hotline at 916/772-3300 or 916/654-5106.
2004 Legislation of Interest to Building Departments
1. Senate Bill 1815 has passed and amends section 17951 within the portion of the Health and Safety Code known at the State Housing Law. On and after January 1, 2005, when a city or county building department fails to conduct inspections within 60 days of receiving notice of the completion of work performed under a permit for which fees were collected, the permittee shall be entitled to reimbursement of the permit fees. An advisement of the permittee’s right to reimbursement shall be printed on issued permits or an accompanying document. ]
2. Senate Bill 1634 has been substantially amended since its introduction. If enacted as last amended on June 15, 2004, this bill will add new section 17967.1 to the State Housing Law within the Health and Safety Code and make other related amendments relating to code enforcement. The bill proposes to allow a local enforcement agency to issue an administrative citation pursuant to Government Code section 53069.4 when reinspection determines that a previously issued order to abate a substandard condition has not been fully obeyed. GC53069.4 allows local government to establish ordinances for administrative citations and fines to enforce state laws and local ordinances.
3. Senate Bill 1652 if enacted as last amended on June 29, 2004, will require on and after January 1, 2006, a solar photovoltaic energy system in at least 15% of all single-family dwellings constructed as part of a development of at least 25 homes. This bill will increase the percentage 10% per year until January 1, 2010, and has exemptions for climate zones 1 and 16 and when such a system is impractical. The local building department must approve provided evidence of the impracticality.
Assembly Bill 2533, if enacted as last amended on July 7, 2004, amends existing laws requiring the identification of potentially hazardous buildings in seismic zone 4 and the posting of warning notices. Lease documents will need disclosure of the hazard. This bill and AB 3032 are in response to the deaths in Paso Robles during the earthquake on December 22, 2003. Watch for amendments requiring action by local government.
4. Assembly Bill 2536 has been substantially amended since its introduction. If enacted as last amended on June 16, 2004, will require DSA to propose new building standards for adoption by the Building Standards Commission that will require the installation of grab bars in existing hotel guest room bath and shower facilities when alterations occur. On and after January 1, 2006, all hotel and motel shower and bath facilities shall have nonskid floor surfaces or provide nonskid mats.
Assembly Bill 2632 if enacted as last amended on July 13, 2004, will exempt skilled nursing and intermediate care facilities from the oversight by the Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development when construction and alteration is to repair, upgrade systems or is in the course of normal or routine maintenance.
5. Other bills to watch include SB1775, AB3032, AB1633, AB224, AB731 and AB2065.
Did You Know?
California Building Code section 101.17, and its subsections, may be one of the most important sections in the book. Why? Because it identifies the meaning of the various state agency banners (SFM, HCD-1, DSA/AC, etc.), the type of building or feature subject to the agency’s adoptions, the authority in law for the adoption, and the identification of the enforcement agency which is very often local government. Similar provisions are provided in Article 089 of the California Electrical Code, and Sections 101.11 and 108.1 of the California Plumbing and Mechanical Codes, respectively. Without a thorough understanding of these provisions, applying the California codes is impossible.
Useful Websites
Free training videos
Current and prior year legislation
State regulations other than Title 24
State laws
International Code Council
National Fire Protection Association
Int’l Assoc of Plumbing & Mechanical Officials