BILL ANALYSIS Ó ----------------------------------------------------------------- |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 764| |Office of Senate Floor Analyses | | |(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | | |327-4478 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- THIRD READING Bill No: AB 764 Author: Quirk (D), et al. Amended: 6/29/15 in Senate Vote: 21 SENATE TRANS. & HOUSING COMMITTEE: 10-0, 6/16/15 AYES: Beall, Allen, Bates, Gaines, Galgiani, Leyva, McGuire, Mendoza, Roth, Wieckowski NO VOTE RECORDED: Cannella SENATE INSURANCE COMMITTEE: 8-0, 7/8/15 AYES: Roth, Gaines, Berryhill, Glazer, Hall, Hernandez, Liu, Wieckowski NO VOTE RECORDED: Mitchell SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: Senate Rule 28.8 ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 78-0, 5/14/15 (Consent) - See last page for vote SUBJECT: Parking lots: design: insurance discount SOURCE: Author DIGEST: This bill requires the California Building Standards Commission (CBSC), in collaboration with the State Architect and the State Fire Marshall, to consider standards for installation of vehicle barriers in the design of any new building and allows an insurer to consider the installation of a vehicle barrier as a safety measure and provide or offer a discount on the property insurance of a commercial property owner who installs such a vehicle safety barrier. AB 764 Page 2 ANALYSIS: Existing law: 1)Establishes the CBSC within the Department of General Services (DGS), and requires any building standards adopted or proposed by state agencies to be submitted to, and approved by, the CBSC prior to codification into the California Standards Code (CBC). 2)Requires the CSBC to adopt, approve, codify, and publish building standards providing the minimum standards for the design and construction of state buildings, including buildings constructed by the Trustees of the California State University and, to the extent permitted by law, to buildings designed and constructed by the Regents of the University of California. 3)Requires the State Fire Marshal to develop building standards to implement the state's fire and life safety policy, and transfers any responsibilities of the State Fire Marshal to adopt building standards through a formal rulemaking process to the CBSC. 4)Grants the State Architect jurisdiction over access compliance requirements for all buildings in California (including schools) that are publicly funded in whole or in part by the use of state funds. 5)Requires specified insurance rates to be approved by the Insurance Commissioner (IC) prior to their use under the insurance Rate Reduction and Reform Act, or Proposition 103 (Prop. 103), as approved by the voters in 1988. This bill: 1)Requires the CBSC, in collaboration with the State Architect and the State Fire Marshal, to consider the installation of vehicle barriers in the design of any new building at each model code adoption review. 2)Defines a "vehicle barrier" as a horizontal or vertical protective device placed to protect buildings or pedestrians AB 764 Page 3 from collisions by motor vehicles. 3)Authorizes an insurer to consider the installation of vehicle barriers on a commercial property parking lot as a safety measure and to provide or offer a discount on the property owner's insurance of a commercial property owner who installs such a vehicle safety barrier. 4)Requires any discount to be actuarially sound and approved by the IC consistent with the requirements of Prop. 103. Comments Purpose of the bill. According to the author, vehicle-into-building crashes have been reported to occur as many as 60 times per day, with more than 3,600 pedestrians, store patrons, and employees seriously injured each year, nationwide. Sometimes called "storefront crashes," these accidents are often caused by driver error. Most of these accidents can be prevented with simple and inexpensive steps, including the installation of vehicle barriers, that can be taken in either the design phase or as part of a retrofit. This bill seeks to prevent storefront crashes by encouraging the adoption of protective barrier standards when considering building occupant safety options for buildings, particularly in commercial buildings, which have been slower to install vehicle barriers than other types of properties. Additionally, it would authorize an insurer to consider these vehicle barriers as a safety measure eligible for discounted building insurance rates. While the CBC has adopted regulations for vehicle barriers, the author believes it is not clear what they are designed to protect. This bill is intended to clarify that that vehicle barriers adopted by the CBSC would protect building occupants and pedestrians from storefront crashes. Vehicle-into-building crashes. According to the Texas A&M Transportation Institute (TTI), "With 500 people reportedly killed each year by vehicles crashing into retail stores, sidewalk cafes, hair salons, and other businesses, low-speed barrier crashes have been called 'one of the largest unaddressed safety issues in the country.'" According to TTI, these accidents occur most frequently when a driver is entering or leaving a parking space perpendicular to a building, and even at relatively low speeds can cause serious injury or death. TTI AB 764 Page 4 notes, however, that simple, preventative measures can protect pedestrians, store employees, and patrons from being injured or killed when the accidents occur. In recognition of the safety risks posed by errant vehicles and the increasingly important use of protective barriers as a way to prevent or minimize the damages from these types of accidents, the American Society for Testing and Materials International, an international standards development organization, in conjunction with the researchers at TTI, recently approved a test standard, known as the Test Method for Low Speed Barriers for Errant Vehicles, to set parameters for bollards, barriers, and other devices most often seen protecting storefronts and high-traffic pedestrian areas to help standardize the use of protective barriers. Prior to the adoption of this standard, there was no objective way to evaluate the effectiveness of vertical pipes, decorative planters, and other devices that could serve to protect a business from damages caused by a vehicle-into-building collision. California Building Standards. The California Building Standards Law established the CBSC and the process for adopting state building codes. Under this process, relevant state agencies propose amendments to model building codes, which the CBSC must then adopt, modify, or reject. For example, the Division of the State Architect is responsible for public schools, community colleges, and accessibility in public accommodations and public housing. The Office of the State Fire Marshal is responsible for life and life safety for hotels, apartments, dwellings, and assembly and high-rise buildings. Not all buildings fall under the jurisdiction of a relevant state agency. Most commercial, industrial, and manufacturing structures are considered "local buildings," over which local governments may determine applicable building standards. The CBSC is responsible for developing building standards for state-owned buildings, including university and state college buildings, and for developing green building standards for most buildings except for housing, public schools, and hospitals. Every three years, the CBSC adopts a new version of the CBC, known as the triennial update. The building codes apply to all building occupancies and related features and equipment throughout the state, and set requirements for structural, mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems, and require measures for energy conservation, green design, construction and AB 764 Page 5 maintenance, fire and life safety, and accessibility. Local guidance. At present, local jurisdictions have the authority to require the installation of vehicle barriers in new buildings, and some have done so. For example, the City of Artesia has required the installation of vehicle barriers in specified commercial properties. While the CBSC is responsible for developing standards for state buildings and local jurisdictions are responsible for developing standards for commercial structures, commercial builders often look to the CBC for further guidance, particularly when a jurisdiction is silent on an issue. For example, the CBC currently contains standards, adopted from an international model, for the installation of vehicle barriers if a builder chooses to install vehicle barriers in state buildings. If a local jurisdiction fails to regulate vehicle barriers for commercial properties, a builder presently choosing to install vehicle barriers will look to the CBC or another national standard for guidance. Insurance provisions. Although this bill draws attention to the safety aspects of vehicle barriers, insurers already consider the condition and safety features of a commercial property when writing a commercial insurance policy. Prop. 103, however, generally requires historical loss-based actuarial data to justify a discount in insurance premiums paid by an insured. The development of standards and ability to evaluate barrier effectiveness provided by this bill may make it easier for insurers to assess the extent to which their risk and exposure is reduced as a result of the installation of such barriers, and provide an actuarial justification in a rate filing subject to IC prior approval before a discount specific to vehicle barriers could be offered. FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.:YesLocal: No SUPPORT: (Verified8/17/15) California Restaurant Association Farrell's Ice Cream Parlour Restaurants Storefront Safety Council AB 764 Page 6 OPPOSITION: (Verified8/17/15) Department of General Services ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT: The Storefront Safety Council supports AB 764 and the authorization of safety barriers as a design consideration, and the added benefit of insurance premium relief as a reward for this positive safety effort. Farrell's Ice Cream Parlour Restaurants supports AB 764 because of its own experience with a vehicle crashing into one of its restaurants, causing one death and several severe injuries to young children. According to the CEO, "The carnage is something I hope other business owners never have to go through. But they will unless our state takes a step to fix a problem that has just evolved due to the changing age of our population who are still driving, and changes to parking design to accommodate the ADA ? storefront crash deaths are easily preventable." ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION: The DGS, the department under which the CBSC is administratively located, opposes this bill unless the references to the CBSC are struck out. According to DGS, the CBC already contains building standards for the construction and design of a vehicle barrier. Further, requirements for the installation of vehicle barriers for the purposes of protecting persons or pedestrians do not constitute building standards and would not be appropriate to include in the CBC. Additionally, the bill requires the CBSC to consider installation of vehicle barriers in each triennial code adoption cycle; however, once a building standard is developed and adopted, it is no longer necessary to consider those standards. Finally, the CBSC already has the authority to propose changes to the national model codes and opposes putting building standards, such as the definition of "vehicle barrier," in statute rather than in regulations through the administrative process. ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 78-0, 5/14/15 AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Travis Allen, Baker, Bigelow, Bloom, Bonilla, Bonta, Brough, Brown, Burke, Calderon, Campos, Chang, Chau, Chávez, Chiu, Chu, Cooley, Cooper, Dababneh, Dahle, Daly, Dodd, Eggman, Frazier, Beth Gaines, Gallagher, Cristina AB 764 Page 7 Garcia, Eduardo Garcia, Gatto, Gipson, Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon, Gray, Grove, Hadley, Harper, Roger Hernández, Holden, Irwin, Jones, Jones-Sawyer, Kim, Lackey, Levine, Lopez, Low, Maienschein, Mathis, Mayes, McCarty, Melendez, Mullin, Nazarian, Obernolte, O'Donnell, Olsen, Patterson, Perea, Quirk, Rendon, Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez, Salas, Santiago, Steinorth, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting, Wagner, Waldron, Weber, Wilk, Williams, Wood, Atkins NO VOTE RECORDED: Linder, Medina Prepared by:Alison Dinmore / T. & H. / (916) 651-4121 8/19/15 20:47:27 **** END ****