FEBRUARY 2004 LEGISLATIVE REPORT
CALIFORNIA FIRE CHIEF’S FIRE PREVENTION OFFICERS
The following is legislation in the California Legislature being monitored by the FPO Legislative Committee.
For current information or to review any of these bills go to www.leginfo.ca.gov
AB = Assembly Bill
SB = Senate Bill
AB 224, Kehoe Cal-Chiefs: Support
Topic: Roof covering materials.
Status: In Senate. Read first time. To Com. on
RLS. for assignment.
Position: Support
Priority: 1
Summary: This bill would provide that a common interest
development (Home Owner’s Association and
such) may not require a homeowner to install
or repair a roof in a manner that violates
the requirements of current law.
AB 904, Lowenthal Cal-Chiefs: Support
Topic: Arson: registration.
Status: In Assembly -2-year bill
Summary: Existing law requires a person convicted in this state of arson, as defined, on or after November 30, 1994, to register with the chief of police or sheriff of the jurisdiction in which the person is residing within a specified period after changing his or her residence.
This bill would, in addition, require a person to register as an arsonist if the person is convicted, on or after January 1, 2004, in any other state, federal, or military court, of any offense that if committed or attempted in this state would have been punishable as arson, or if the person has been ordered by any other court to register as an arsonist.
AB 1633, Levine: This bill has been pulled by the sponsors
Topic: Building standards.
Status: In Senate –2-year bill
Summary: This bill would authorize the commission,
in cases other than those state buildings,
to adopt those building standards when it
determines that uniform statewide standards
are necessary to protect the public health
and safety or are otherwise in the public
interest.
AB 1802, Bogh
Topic: Illegal dumping, penalties.
Status: Ref. to Comm. on Public Safety
Summary: This bill would require, rather than allow, a judge to issue an order relating to the removal or payment for the removal of waste matter dumped by a person convicted of this crime.
AB 1907, Pacheco
Topic: Arson.
Status: From printer. May be heard in committee on March 11.
Summary: This bill would decrease the amount of property damage and other losses from $5,000,000 to $1,500,000 in order to be guilty of the crime of aggravated arson and would delete the repeal date of January 1, 2005 for provisions relating to property damage in existing law.
AB 1924, Bogh
Topic: Fire Prevention Penalties.
Status: From printer. May be heard in committee on March 12.
Summary: This bill would require, rather then authorize, the courts to impose fines on persons convicted of felony arson and double the amount of the fine currently in effect.
AB 1996, Bogh
Topic: Arson registry: Internet.
Status: From printer. May be heard in committee on March 18.
Summary: This bill would repeal the prohibition on public inspection of registration information and would require the Department of Justice to make specified registration information available to the public via the Internet
AB 2065, Nakano
Topic: Health and care facilities: fire protection.
Status: From printer. May be heard in committee on March 19.
Summary: As written, this bill would require all licensed, residential care facilities to install fire sprinklers and fire alarm systems after January 1, 2008 and would allow the State Fire Marshal to promulgate emergency regulations to implement the provisions of the bill.
AB 2133, Oropeza
Topic: Entertainment: Emergency Exits
Status: From printer. May be heard in committee on March 20.
Summary: This bill would require that an announcement be made of the location of every emergency exit prior to the beginning of the concert, show, film, play, dance, or other event.
AB 2134, Dutton
Topic: Building Standards.
Status: From printer. May be heard in committee on March 20.
Summary: This bill would declare the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation to incorporate the recommendations of those involved in building homes in the state into revisions of the California Building Standards Code.
AB 2241, Campbell
Topic: Building Standards.
Status: Read first time. To print.
Summary: This bill would require the appointed members of the California Building Standards Commission to include a licensed general building contractor and a local chief building official.
AB 2337, Corbett
Topic: Fire suppression assessments
Status: Read first time. To print.
Summary: This bill would include "fire prevention", including, but not limited to, vegetation removal or management undertaken, in whole or in part, for the reduction of a fire hazard, in the definition of "fire suppression services" for purposes of any fire district, county, or city to determine and levy an assessment for those services.
AB 2343, Nation
Topic: School facilities: sprinkler systems.
Status: Read first time. To print.
Summary: This bill would require an automatic fire sprinkler system to be installed in facilities modernized pursuant to the Leroy F. Greene School Facilities Act of 1998 which are located in local jurisdictions that have local ordinances requiring retroactive sprinkler systems.
AB 2381, La Suer
Topic: Forest resources: Wildfire threat.
Status: Read first time. To print.
Summary: This bill would declare the Legislature's intent to enact legislation to exempt from the Z'berg Nejedly Forest Practice Act of 1973 the cutting and removal of trees to reduce the threat of wildfire, and to require surface fuels that could promote the spread of wildfire to be chipped, burned, or otherwise removed within 45 days from the date of commencement of timber operations.
AB 2401, Harman
Topic: State Fire Marshal.
Status: Read first time. To print.
Summary: This bill would authorize the State Fire Marshal or his or her designee to stay the suspension of a license on condition that the licensee pay a specified monetary penalty and incur no other cause for disciplinary action, as specified. Those penalties would be deposited in the State Fire Marshal Licensing and Certification Fund.
AB 2406, Bermudez
Topic: Fire Safety.
Status: Read first time. To print.
Summary: This bill would require every fire department within a city or a city and county with a population greater than 10,000 people to establish service delivery objectives that include specific service delivery response time objectives for each major service component of the fire department and a performance objective for the percentage of responses that meet the response time objectives, as specified AND would require every fire department to prepare and provide a report every 2 years to the governing body of the jurisdiction in which the fire department is located based upon the evaluations. It would require a report to also be provided to the State Fire Marshal. The bill would provide that this requirement does not require a fire department to have every major service component that is identified or to expend funds to meet delivery response times or performance objectives.
AB 2570, Dutton
Topic: School facilities: natural disasters prevention.
Status: Read first time. To print.
Summary: This bill would authorize a school district to apply to the State Allocation Board for funding, which would come from an emergency reserve fund to be established pursuant to a general obligation bond act, in cases where a school building faces imminent danger from a natural disaster in order to prevent damage to the school building. In order to be eligible for funding, the applicant school district shall demonstrate the imminent danger presented by the natural disaster and present a recommendation from a local fire marshal or other local safety officer of the imminent danger and the remedy or remedies to prevent damage to the school building.
AB 2629, Salinas
Topic: Community care facilities: mentally ill residents.
Status: Read first time. To print.
Summary: This bill would transfer jurisdiction of licensing and regulation for social rehabilitation facilities and any other residential community care facility in which at least 75% of the residents are mentally ill from the State Department of Social Services to the State Department of Mental Health.
AB 2632, Bogh
Topic: Health facilities: construction plans: expedited approval.
Status: Read first time. To print.
Summary: This bill would require construction or alteration of skilled nursing and intermediate care facilities to be exempt from conformance with the latest edition of the California Building Standards Code, and to be exempt from independent review and inspection by OSHPD when, among other things, the construction or alteration is undertaken to repair or replace existing systems, to upgrade systems for efficiency purposes, to keep up the course of normal or routine maintenance, or to keep vital systems used in providing care to patients housed in the facility operational.
AB 2638, Cogdill
Topic: Building standards: public information.
Status: Read first time. To print.
Summary: This bill would deem any interpretation of the California Building Standards Code and any rules and regulations to clarify the application of the code by a local enforcement agency to be a public record for purposes of the Public Records Act.
AB 2694, Bogh
Topic: Litter: cigarettes: increased fines.
Status: Read first time. To print.
Summary: This bill would substantially increase the fines for discarding waste matter upon public or private property, when the waste matter discarded is a cigarette, cigar, match, or any flaming or glowing substance.
AB 2901, Pavley
Topic: Hazardous waste: cellular telephones: recycling.
Status: Read first time. To print.
Summary: This bill would enact the Cell Phone Recycling Act of 2004 and would make it unlawful to sell, on and after July 1, 2005, a cell phone in this state to a consumer, as defined, unless the retailer of that cell phone complies with the act and would require a retailer selling a cell phone in this state to have in place, by July 1, 2005, a system approved by the board for the acceptance, collection, reuse, and recycling or proper disposal of used cell phones
AB 2950, Goldberg
Topic: School facilities: construction standards.
Status: Read first time. To print.
Summary: This bill would state the intent of the Legislature that the Department of General Services Office of Public School Construction, in consultation with the Department of Education, establish clear, concise standards for school facility construction.
AB 3004, Pavley
Topic: Road safety flares.
Status: Read first time. To print.
Summary: This bill would, on and after January 1, 2008, prohibit the manufacture, processing, and distribution of a road safety flare that contains perchlorate.
SB 1369, Kuehl
Topic: Fire protection: high fire hazard zone.
Status: From print. May be acted upon on or after March 20.
Summary: This bill would revise existing requirements in very high fire hazard severity zones to require the removal of all brush, flammable vegetation, or combustible growth that is located within 100 feet from an occupied dwelling or occupied structure or to the property line, or at a greater distance if required by state law, or local ordinance, rule, or regulation AND would require an owner, prior to constructing a new dwelling or structure or reconstructing a dwelling or structure damaged by a fire in a very high fire hazard severity zone, to certify to the property insurance carrier that insures the dwelling or structure, that the dwelling or structure will be constructed in compliance with all state and local building codes, including specified standards covering fire prevention.