CALCode Quarterly - Fall 2022

Here at the California Building Standards Commission (CBSC), the rulemaking cycles have definite beginning and end dates, but in fact, rulemaking activities never end! Once one 18-month cycle concludes, the next cycle is usually already underway. So, even before the 2022 edition of the California Building Standards Code, Title 24 of the California Code of Regulations (Title 24) is effective on January 1, 2023, activities have already begun for the next code adoption cycle. The 2022 Intervening Code Adoption Cycle is so called because the regulations that will be amended and developed will be adopted into the 2022 edition of Title 24 as supplements (the blue pages).

To kick off the intervening cycle, state agencies that are developing new code change proposals and amendments to existing code language hold pre-cycle meetings and workshops to garner input from interested parties and the regulated community. They may also post proposed code change language on their websites for public review and input. This is the ground floor of code development, when the language is being written and modified, and the public can have the most influence.

State agencies that propose numerous or complex building standards for inclusion in Title 24 are required to involve the public in their development process in accordance with California Administrative Code, Part 1 of Title 24, Chapter 1, Article 4, and state law (Government Code Sections 11346 - 11348 and Health and Safety Code Section 18934). Adopting agencies, such as the Board of State and Community Corrections, administer their own adoption process and public comment periods, and later present their adopted regulations to the commission for approval. CBSC administers the process and public comment periods for proposing state agencies—including the Division of the State Architect, the Department of Health Care Access and Information (formerly OSHPD), the Department of Housing and Community Development and the Office of the State Fire Marshal—and then adopts and approves the regulations at a public meeting.

During the pre-cycle, CBSC also provides building standards rulemaking guidance to agency staff involved in code development. A training session is held to explain the adoption process, give specific requirements for building standard rulemaking file submittals to CBSC, and provide information about lessons learned during past code adoption cycles. The goal is to ensure rulemaking file submittals from the various agencies are consistent in appearance and organization for ease of review by committees, the public and ultimately the commission.

This cycle, the due date for rulemaking file submittals to CBSC is December 1, 2022. After receiving the packages from the proposing state agencies, CBSC staff will review each file for completeness and compliance with submittal requirements in the California Administrative Code. After that, draft code language and other documents will be prepared for review by the Code Advisory Committees in the spring of next year. Notices for public Code Advisory Committee (CAC) meetings will be sent to CBSC’s mailing list subscribers and posted on CBSC’s website under the Rulemaking tab. Proposing state agencies that have rulemakings to be considered by a CAC will also send notice to their mailing list subscribers.

Watch for more information about the 2022 Intervening Code Adoption Cycle in upcoming editions of CALCode Quarterly.

A bill is chaptered by the secretary of state once it passes through both houses of the California Legislature (Assembly and Senate) and has either been signed by the governor or has become law without the governor's signature. The following legislative bills tracked by the California Building Standards Commission (CBSC) have chaptered in Statutes of 2022 and will become effective January 1, 2023 (unless otherwise specified in statute).

AB 209 Energy and climate change (Chapter 251) Section 8 directs CBSC to consider adoption of safety standards for refrigerants from the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) and Underwriters Laboratories (UL). If not adopted into Title 24, effective July 1, 2024, standards may not be prohibited from being adopted by state or local agencies.

AB 682 Planning and zoning: density bonuses: shared housing buildings (Bloom, Chapter 634) Regarding density bonuses for cohousing buildings.

AB 916 Zoning: bedroom addition (Salas, Chapter 635) No local jurisdiction hearing required to increase bedroom count within existing dwelling units.

AB 1738 Building standards: installation of electric vehicle charging stations: existing buildings (Boerner-Horvath, Chapter 687) Mandatory electric vehicle (EV) charging requirements for existing multifamily dwellings and nonresidential buildings undergoing retrofits, additions and alterations.

AB 2061 Transportation electrification: electric vehicle charging infrastructure (Ting, Chapter 345) California Energy Commission (CEC) and Public Utilities Commission (PUC) to develop uptime recordkeeping and reporting standards for EV charging stations that receive state funding incentives or charge ratepayers.

AB 2075 Energy: electric vehicle charging standards (Ting, Chapter 346) Future EV charging standards development by the Building Standards Commission (BSC) and the Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) must be in coordination with CEC and its published best practices.

AB 2139 Building standards: local rebuilding plans: state of emergency (Gallagher, Chapter 184) Allows use of template floor plans for rebuilding in areas with a state of emergency declaration.

AB 2164 Disability access: certified access specialist program: funding (Lee, Chapter 895) Requires inclusion of small business information relative to financial assistance for physical accessibility improvements.

AB 2232 School facilities: heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems (McCarty, Chapter 777) Requires minimum heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) ventilation rates and minimum efficiency reporting value (MERV) levels for schools, colleges and California universities, and requires development of mandatory standards for carbon dioxide monitors in those same occupancies.

AB 2322 California building standards: fire resistance: occupancy risk categories (Wood, Chapter 284) The Office of the State Fire Marshal (SFM) is to develop mandatory building standards for fire resistance based on occupancy risk categories.

AB 2446 Embodied carbon emissions: construction materials (Holden, Chapter 352) The California Air Resources Board (CARB) is to develop a framework for quantifying embodied carbon in building materials and a strategy for achieving a 40% net reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2035, with benchmarks along the way.

AB 2863 Green building standards: bicycle parking (Wilson, Chapter 809) BSC and HCD are to develop mandatory bicycle parking standards independent of vehicle parking spaces for residential and nonresidential occupancies.

SB 897 Accessory dwelling units: junior accessory dwelling units (Wieckowski, Chapter 664) Expands accessory dwelling unit (ADU) laws relative to parking, height, setback, landscape, architectural review and size, etc.; standards must be objective.

SB 1194 Public restrooms: building standards (Allen, Chapter 839) Allows local ordinance or resolution for design of multiuser all-gender public restrooms between now and when they are mandatory in the California Plumbing Code, Part 5 of Title 24.

SB 1252 Housing Omnibus Bill (Senate Committee on Housing, Chapter 632) Updates existing law to create more affordable housing in California.

Mailing List Subscriptions

Interested parties should note that development workshops for regulations related to some of the mandates above may be carried out by agencies other than CBSC. Please sign up for the mailing lists of those agencies to participate in their code development process.

CARB arb.ca.gov/rulemaking (link at bottom of page)

CBSC dgs.ca.gov/BSC/Contact

CEC energy.ca.gov/programs-and-topics/programs/building-energy-efficiency-standards

DSA public.govdelivery.com/accounts/CADGS/subscriber/topics?qsp=CADGS_5

HCD hcd.ca.gov/contact-us/email-signup

PUC cpuc.ca.gov/about-cpuc/divisions/news-and-public-information-office/public-advisors-office/tracking-issues-of-interest

SFM osfm.fire.ca.gov/divisions/code-development-and-analysis/code-development-and-analysis-mailing-list/

Helpful terms when reading laws:

“Notwithstanding” means that regardless of what the other section says, this section takes precedence.

“Except as provided” means there is more to consider and the code user must also read any other referenced section(s).

See Accessing Laws, Regulations and Legislation Online and Code Book Fundamentals for more information on how to find and read laws, regulations and legislation.

Please join us in welcoming California Building Standards Commission’s (CBSC) newest team member, Stephanie Surigao.

Stephanie joined CBSC as an architectural associate in October and will be assisting in the administration of the code adoption process for the building standards in Title 24.

Her background in architecture working as a draftswoman and model maker for high-end residential, winery and hospital projects gives her a unique perspective on the use and application of California’s building standards. “I look forward to assisting in the rulemaking process,” she says. “After five years in the private sector designing hospitals, I have a desire to learn more about Title 24, and to contribute to protecting the health, safety and welfare of the public.”

Stephanie was born in the Philippines and moved to the Bay Area when she was four years old. She attended College of Marin for two years and transferred to UC Berkeley in 2014. In 2016, she received her bachelor’s degree in architecture. In Stephanie’s free time, she loves to bake, build 3D models, roller skate and ski. She’s also a novice oil painter and likes to paint pictures of baked goods, specifically croissants.

Last month, Barbara celebrated five years of service with CBSC and the state of California. During those years, she has promoted from office technician to staff services analyst and, in August 2022, to associate governmental program analyst, or AGPA.

This promotion was in recognition of her skills and dedication to the many tasks within her job duty list: human resources and staff training liaison, contracts and procurement, budget reporting and the facilitation of many of CBSC’s public meetings.

At the beginning of the pandemic, CBSC had to quickly figure out how to conduct public meetings on a virtual platform. Barbara’s research and testing were integral to the transition from in-person meetings to web-based meetings. She tested and documented the many steps it takes to facilitate all the different types of CBSC meetings that are required by law to allow public participation. Her documentation shows other CBSC staff how to schedule, share and conduct public meetings.

During her time here at CBSC, Barbara says she has learned a lot about the many different state agencies that cooperate to develop building codes, and about the importance of public involvement. “The diversity of those involved in the process, and what is brought to the table is fascinating and incredible,” says Barbara.

“One of my favorite duties is assisting with the technical side of CBSC’s meetings,” she says. When she’s facilitating CBSC’s various meetings, she gets to hear “a wealth of knowledge and a broad array of perspectives on the various topics. It’s very interesting and eye-opening.”

Please join us in congratulating Barbara on her well-deserved promotion.