BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó






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                                   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.








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          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  







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            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  







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          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  







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          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








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          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  







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            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


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