Bill Text: CA AB225 | 2023-2024 | Regular Session | Chaptered
Bill Title: Real property: environmental hazards booklet.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Passed) 2023-10-08 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 420, Statutes of 2023. [AB225 Detail]
Download: California-2023-AB225-Chaptered.html
Assembly Bill
No. 225
CHAPTER 420
An act to add Section 10084.2 to the Business and Professions Code, and to amend Section 13261 of the Health and Safety Code, relating to property.
[
Approved by
Governor
October 08, 2023.
Filed with
Secretary of State
October 08, 2023.
]
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 225, Grayson.
Real property: environmental hazards booklet.
Existing law requires the Department of Real Estate to develop, and the Department of Toxic Substances Control to publish, a booklet to educate and inform consumers on, among other things, common environmental hazards that are located on, and affect, real property. Existing law requires the types of common environmental hazards to include, but not be limited to, asbestos, radon gas, lead-based paint, formaldehyde, fuel and chemical storage tanks, and water and soil contamination. Existing law also states the intent of the Legislature that the booklet be updated to include a section on carbon monoxide.
This bill would, as existing resources permit or as private resources are made available, require the booklet to be updated to include 3 new sections on wildfires, climate change, and sea level rise, as specified. The bill would require the Department of Toxic Substances Control to seek the advice and assistance of departments within the Natural Resources Agency in the writing of the booklet, as specified.
This bill would make nonsubstantive changes to correct erroneous cross-references.
Digest Key
Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: NOBill Text
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1.
Section 10084.2 is added to the Business and Professions Code, to read:10084.2.
(a) As existing resources permit, or as private resources are made available, the Homeowners’ Guide to Environmental Hazards prepared pursuant to Section 10084.1 and updated pursuant to Sections 13261, 25417, and 25417.1 of the Health and Safety Code, shall be updated to include three new sections on wildfires, climate change, and sea level rise.(b) The Department of Toxic Substances Control
shall seek the advice and assistance of departments within the Natural Resources Agency in the writing of the booklet to determine the contents of the booklet prepared pursuant to this section.
SEC. 2.
Section 13261 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read:13261.
The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:(a) According to the American Medical Association, carbon monoxide is the leading cause of accidental poisoning deaths in the United States. The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate that carbon monoxide kills approximately 500 people each year and injures another 20,000 people nationwide.
(b) According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, a person cannot see or smell carbon monoxide. At high levels carbon monoxide can kill a person in minutes. Carbon monoxide is produced whenever any fuel, such as gas, oil, kerosene, wood, or charcoal, is burned.
(c) The State
Air Resources Board estimates that every year carbon monoxide accounts for between 30 and 40 avoidable deaths, possibly thousands of avoidable illnesses, and between 175 and 700 avoidable emergency room and hospital visits.
(d) There are well-documented chronic health effects of acute carbon monoxide poisoning or prolonged exposure to carbon monoxide, including, but not limited to, lethargy, headaches, concentration problems, amnesia, psychosis, Parkinson’s disease, memory impairment, and personality alterations.
(e) Experts estimate that equipping every home with a carbon monoxide device would cut accident-related costs by 93 percent. Eighteen states and a number of large cities have laws mandating the use of carbon monoxide devices.
(f) Carbon monoxide devices provide a vital, highly effective, and low-cost
protection against carbon monoxide poisoning and these devices should be made available to every home in California.
(g) The Homeowners’ Guide to Environmental Hazards prepared pursuant to Section
10084.1 of the Business and Professions Code is an important educational tool and should include information regarding carbon monoxide. It is the intent of the Legislature that when the booklet is next updated as existing resources permit, or as private resources are made available, it be updated to include a section on carbon monoxide.
