Happy New Year everyone!
And with any new year we have a host of new California Laws that have, or soon will
be coming into effect.
One California
law in particular will affect the investment properties market, as it breathes
new life into last year’s Federal enactment of the Virginia
Graeme Baker Law
California Assembly Bill 1020: Swimming Pools
Effective January 1st, 2010. This bill is basically California’s answer to the Federal Virginia Grahame law that was passed late 2008. The new bill makes it a state law that
investment property landlords and owners install anti-entrapment devices on all public pools, new or old.
From info.sen.ca.gov
“…this bill is needed because California law is not consistent with new
federal safety standards which require public pools and spas to have
federally-approved anti-entrapment drain covers, whereas current state law
requires only that wading pools, new pools, or pools being renovated have these
covers.”
What does this mean to owners? My guess is that the California Department of
Public Health (DPH) is going have a
renewed interest in enforcement of pools, starting with public pools such as
parks, schools and apartment buildings.
This means that if you have a pool that has not been retrofitted with an
anti-entrapment device, 2010 is the year to take a serious look into it.
Where to begin? Have your property management company
contact (3) separate licensed pool contractors and get (3) bids for compliance
modification and/or retrofitting. Unfortunately, your favorite handy man cannot
tackle the repair work on his own. In
order to be fully compliant with the State, modification plans must be drawn
and approved by the DPH prior to the start of construction (which will take a
licensed contractor to accomplish).
Looking for more info? The California Department of Public Health site has additional information for Pool and Spa owners that is certainly worth noting.
For a complete list of all the new 2010 California Laws,
check out http://yubanet.com/california/New-California-Laws-Taking-Effect-Jan-1-2010.php
Make it a great 2010.
-TH